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Avant Garde

Slip into a chorally Lynchian delirium with Milk Bar Gang’s latest orchestration, The Accident

Posted on 31 December 2023

Hitting play on the latest single, The Accident, from Milk Bar Gang, you’d be forgiven for thinking you’ve slipped into a chorally Lynchian delirium as you allow the cultivated hazy dream pop tones to wash over you, submerging you in ethereal Avant-Garde surrealism.

The song’s sonic landscape is a complex tapestry, weaving together elements of Shoegaze’s choral dreaminess and the experimental edge reminiscent of Glenn Branca while the incorporation of jazzy rhythms and darkwave elements contribute to its rich and diverse texture.

Lyrically and thematically, The Accident delves into profound concepts. It reflects on the uncontrollable circumstances of birth and the ensuing struggle against oppression, as well as the emergence of resistance. This philosophical depth is matched by the music’s atmospheric synths and sharp guitar riffs, underlined by a rhythm section that couldn’t be further from archetypal. The unsettling melodies and chord progressions further enhance its impact, creating a sound that is simultaneously bleak and beautiful.

Recorded at home and refined by professionals in Melbourne, the single is a testament to Milk Bar Gang’s commitment to their craft. The band, formed in 2021 by Felix Chapple and Bianca Cao, brings a diverse range of influences and experiences. Chapple’s history with various Melbourne bands and musicians, combined with Cao’s background in dance and visual art from Beijing, contribute to the unique identity of Milk Bar Gang. If this is how they chose to end 2023, we’re aching to hear the artfully cohesive orchestrations that are lurking in the pipelines.

The Accident will debut on New Year’s Eve; hear it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Bear witness to the Avant-Garde finesse in Sairen’s Branca-esque post-rock instrumental score, Délivrance

Posted on 5 December 2023

The post-rock artist and composer, Sairen, created the embodiment of cinematic tension in his seminal instrumental score, Délivrance. This seven-minute piece flourishes distinctive avant-garde flair, marking it as a standout creation in the realm of modern instrumental music.

The track’s progression is a journey through the artist’s intricate vision, characterised by eloquently moody tones and a sophisticated use of musical elements. Sairen’s expertise in blending diverse musical influences is evident here. From the harbingering guitars that siren through the track to the tenaciously placed cymbal crashes, each element is carefully crafted to contribute to the overall narrative of the piece.

One of the most striking features of “Délivrance” is the introduction of chamber strings, which seamlessly complement the sonic spectacle of the crescendos. This inclusion not only enhances the track’s emotional depth but also showcases Sairen’s ability to fuse classical sensibilities with modern post-rock aesthetics.

The middle-eight of the track is particularly noteworthy. Centred around the motif of a ticking clock, it builds a palpable sense of drama, leading to a break into an arcanely all-consuming sequence that can only be described as filmic ingenuity. This segment demonstrates a touch of Glenn Branca in its composition, highlighting Sairen’s skill in creating complex, layered soundscapes.

Sairen’s background, with his early introduction to music and his affinity for baroque, romantic, dark metal, and post-rock, shines through in this creation. He bridges these seemingly opposite genres, crafting a unique sound that is both haunting and enchanting.

Délivrance was officially released on November 7th; stream it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Have a very chamber pop Christmas with Beware of Trains’ melancholy score, Forever Home

Posted on 24 November 2023

Beware of Trains stepped out of an anachronistic music box and onto the airwaves to share the histrionically ornate single, Forever Home, which carries all the glamour of the West End and all the alternative allure of the Legendary Pink Dots and Jason Webley.

The chamber pop orchestration unravels as a snow-capped fairy tale of a festive single; the all-bells and no whistles production takes the ordinary Christmas single and enchants it to the nth degree.

The origin of the single stems back to 2019 when Beware of Trains performed ‘A Kitmas Concert’ at Bradford Cathedral with members of Opera North to raise funds for Allerton Cat Rescue. Inspired by the charity’s slogan, ‘Helping cats and kittens find their furever home’, songwriter, Leighton Jones wanted to explore the sense of longing and belonging conjured by the phrase. If there’s any time of the year when the need to belong reaches its wistful peak, it is the festive holidays. If you can relate, prepare for the scintillating resonance and grab a few tissues. It hits harder than the end of Raymond Brigg’s symphonic poem, the Snowman.

In their own words:

“Forever Home is a symphonic festive tale that transports us into a snow globe and whisks us away through snowy Yorkshire fields and skies, revelling in the nostalgic sense of homecoming the festive season brings. But the song is also tinged with bittersweet melancholy, reflecting on the passing years and sadness of saying goodbye to the people and places we love and hold dear.”

Forever Home was officially released on November 24th; stream it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Jessamine Barham exhumed a ‘Shallow Grave’ to speak on the violent oppression of women in her latest single.

Posted on 12 October 2023

Jessamine Barham released her most striking single to date when she read the harrowing tale in her latest single, Shallow Grave. The haunting vocal harmonies atop the staccato acoustic guitar strings and as the centrefold within the quiescent orchestral swells of chamber pop strings brought the solemnity within Shallow Grave to spectral life in a way that assures us that even though Jessamine Barham’s dark pop stylings are niche, her talents of a sonic narrator of feminine tragedy should never be underestimated.

The days of the Salem witch trials and being sectioned with hysteria may be behind us, but the violent oppression of women will always be a tale as old as time. It was no feat of hyperbole to lyrically infer that feminine acts of rebellion can incur the death penalty. Some may say hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, but life hath no tyranny like the men determined to keep us chastised.

Shallow Grave was officially released on September 24; stream it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Roo Elizabeth – Ready to Die: A Dream Pop Redemption Story

Posted on 25 September 2023

Etherealism drifts through the latest avant-garde dream-pop installation, Ready to Die, from the Irish artist, songwriter, and fledging producer, Roo Elizabeth who has been taking the live circuit by storm after opening for Wyvern Lingo and Mary Coughlan and appearing on the bill at Electric Picnic and Forest Fest.

With a soundscape that bridges the gap between the melancholic intimacy of Bill Ryder-Jones, the hazy production techniques of Cigarettes After Sex, and the artful expression of Kate Bush in her The Kick Inside era, Roo Elizabeth gave her sophomore single a timelessly beguiling nocturnal quality, perfect for slipping into when you want to relish in introverted introspection.

The track title may appear macabre but the sonic experience itself couldn’t be more tender in its advocation for sanctity, acceptance, and authenticity. By illustrating the beauty of tragedy, in the same vein as Cultdreams, Roo Elizabeth rendered one of the most affirmingly inspirational singles of 2023.

In her own words:

‘READY TO DIE’ is about radical love. It’s about fighting for your own joy. Like a lot of others, I have grown up surrounded by addiction. It buries the spark in the people we love. This song is about cutting the ties of self-sabotage and rising to meet yourself in your own authenticity.

Ready to Die is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Chase Hagerman augmented the avant-garde in his galactically galvanised single, Love You ft MEV

Posted on 21 June 2023

Taken from his ingeniously titled 2023 LP, The Avant Guardian, the standout single, Love You, from Cali’s Chase Hagerman, is an artfully visceral explosion of pure sonic devotion.

Those three little words seem even smaller after experiencing the riotously rapturous soundscape, which unravels as a progressive medley of sheer experimentalism. From euphonic disco-funk grooves to hits of hip-hop to interludes of cosmic space folk to hyper pop, it would probably be easier to name the genres which were excluded from the high-octane melting pot, which picks up stratospheric mind-bending momentum to ensure the listener feels the love in mind, body and soul.

It is one thing to create such a massive sound and another thing entirely to make it so impactful with meaning simultaneously. Clearly, Chase Hagerman (AKA Chase the Composer) is as far from being pedestrian as the NASA Space Station.

Prior to releasing his solo material, the eclectically-styled classically-experienced composer, drummer, producer and pianist cut his teeth in college marching bands, orchestras, rock bands and theatre troupes; his collective experience became the sum of his avant-garde tenacity and anthemic subtlety.

Stream the album in full via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Liverpool’s most Machiavellian post-punk jazz outfit, Laz Berelow, did Friedrich Nietzsche proud in God is Dead

Posted on 15 May 2023
Dives by Laz Berelow

Laz Berelow’s latest single may decree that God is Dead, but Glenn Branca lives and breathes through the histrionically cold feat of post-punk capable of giving your speakers frostbite.

The complex time signatures of the guitars with the obscure jazz nuances and polyphonic chaos is a pairing that ensures God is Dead is a sonic deliverance of comfort to the disturbed. If you’re pious to the Machiavellian experimentalism of Mike Patton, you’re sure to get your kicks from God is Dead. Friedrich Nietzsche would be proud.

When GetIntoThis were tastemakers on the scene before Peter Guy shamed himself during my tenure as an editor, Laz Berelow was dubbed one of the best acts of 2020; they easily lived up to that accolade with God is Dead.

Stream and purchase God is Dead via Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nico David – Turn Your Magic On: A Renaissance of the Age of Innocence

Posted on 5 May 2023

The Avant-Garde artisan of evocative contemporary folk-pop tones, Nico David, created a renaissance of the ages of our respective innocence with his latest alt-piano-pop piece, Turn Your Magic On.

Starting as a tender ballad with chamber orchestral strings, the single amasses momentum within the ascending progressions and ardent vocal lines to pay a fitting ode to the endless power we possessed as children, granted to us by our limitless imaginations.

The process of maturity strips our senses of wonder and gift of naivety before replacing them with weary cynicism unless you’re lucky enough to find someone you feel safe enough to reignite that spark around. Turn Your Magic On is the ultimate sonic solace.

The lyrical depiction of a conversation between a man and an imaginary child is a reminder that our younger versions exist within us all, and they all need nurturing. It’s a stunning release through and through; the euphonically diaphanous beauty is equally matched by the tender sentiments expressed.

Stream the official music video of Turn Your Magic On via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Trip-hop goes baroque in Lakitah’s latest bullet to the monocultural mould, The Fall ft. EvenstAr

Posted on 18 March 2023

Lose yourself in the fantastical atmosphere of Lakitah’s latest single, The Fall, featuring EvenstAr; the baroquely histrionic brand of trip-hop melodically works to create a mise en scene of isolation and introspection.

The international collaboration project, led by vocalist and guitarist Dominika Zdrodowski, started as a lockdown-born endeavour, but as the struggle for hope is still as endemic as it was when we were commanded to keep distance between each other, and just as insular in our alienation, the project still thrives. You only need to slip into the artful opulence of the Fall to affirm that for yourselves.

The featuring artist EvenstAr takes influence from trip-hop acts, such as Portishead and Massive Attack; put against the monocultural-mould smashing beguile laid out by Lakitah, The Fall is an Avant-Garde emblem you will want to treasure for as long as you want to keep hold of your sanity.

Stream EvenstAr on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Growing Boi made a malady of sentimentality in his psychedelically experimental single, Overflow

Posted on 24 February 2023

After years of success as a touring artist, session musician, songwriter and producer, Chris Matthews obliterated the notion of genre with his exploratively alternative single, Overflow, under the moniker Growing Boi. The artfully melancholic track makes a malady out of sentimentality while exhibiting the same instrumental alchemy and ingenuity as the Legendary Pink Dots and the vocal gravitas of Leonard Cohen.

The spacey amalgam of psych, folk, electronica, trip-hop and 70s pop is devilishly clever, but never to the detriment of the accessibility of the intimately bold score that will stay with you for long after the complex chords have faded into silent obscurity. From honkytonk piano keys to motifs you’d expect to hear in a Tame Impala production, Overflow is a treasure trove of artful beguile that allows you to drift to a higher plateau.

Overflow will drop on February 24th; hear it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast