ARMOURS
BODY
self-released
ARMOURS draw on the grand synth music traditions of their home in Sweden in more ways the one on their debut EP. On the one hand, they’re definitely steeped in synthpop, as the five tracks on the BODY EP all display a strong sense of melody and general songcraft. On the other hand, they’ve got their stomping boots on, and draw from classic and modern EBM, without going all in on the sounds aggression and muscle. A helpful point of comparison is American act Sleek Teeth, although ARMOURS’ approach is unique; on “Allegiance” the trip go for a gentle synth ballad, but back it with some busy, hard hitting percussion, including metallic sounds, giving the whole track a nice feeling of grit in contrast with its sweet melody. The title track on the other hand builds itself around a wiry synthline and a mid-tempo rhythm track, with the addition of some chiming sounds and stabs that give the song an urgency fit for it’s foreboding tone. With a few additional nods towards various electronic genres in the same orbit across the remaining tracks (there’s some new beat in the Easterb melodies that float through “Push”, and “Confront” invokes the slow and emotional electropop of their countrymen Kite), it’s an EP of remarkable breadth considering its length, and a very pleasingly developed sound for a debut.
Run Level Zero
The Star Of Naked Truth
self-released
The incredibly productive recent run from Swedish electro-experimentalists Run Level Zero have been on has continued, with a whopping four archival EPs dropping in as many months. Hans Åkerman and Oskar Lygner are also putting out new material at a quick rate, too, with the brooding, downtempo unease of preceding release Pneuma continued on The Star Of Naked Truth. If anything, these four cuts continue the project’s drift further away from its trad electro-industrial roots and into impressionistic synth composition for its own cosmic sake. “The Traveller” feels like a more wistful and wounded yet musically light sequel to the preceding release’s “The Ship”, while the moody arpeggios of “Heavy Stones” feel of a piece with any number of faded pastel synthwave soundtracks (though its lyrics tackle themes of aging and unmet ambition with stark sincerity). While clocking in at under twenty minutes there’s still a fair bit of variety on display, with a sharp contrast to be found between “You Are Made For Something” (part early Mute Records, part “Nightclubbing”) and the sprained, yet still mournful minimal synths of closer “In Your Embrace”. Much more so than sub-genre or even general style, RLZ are pursuing specific moods with each piece on each new record, and holding to whatever chilly but soulful sound suits.
