Press Info:
At the end of last year we announced the return of Luis Vasquez, a.k.a. The Soft Moon. On March 31st he will release Deeper, his most personally reflective album to date, one where he finally “felt the urge to express [himself]”.
The first taste of the album came from “Black”, a merciless track of heaving bass and “industrial aggrotech” (Rookie), whose “innovation, mantra, and darkness” says Vasquez, gives him “a sense of confidence to move forward in my everyday life.”
Today, we share Trentemøller’s take on the track. Using only bits of the the vocals and synth, Trentemøller built a “new soundscape with bass, guitars, a drum machine and…a vintage monophonic synth from ’74”, thus “heightening the tension and the tune’s capable dancefloor potential” [FADER]
Press Info:
Luis Vasquez never intended for The Soft Moon to reach the public’s ears; for him, music has always been about self-actualization rather than selfaggrandizement. Nevertheless, the bleak, hushed sounds he created years ago in his small Oakland apartment bubbled to the surface and 2010 saw his debut LP, The Soft Moon, released on Captured Tracks rise to critical acclaim. Pitchfork’s 8.1 review stated that Vasquez made “oblivion seems like an enticing prospect” and, indeed, listeners were immediately drawn into his murky musical wasteland, swathed in the moody atmospheres of jagged dark wave and wayfaring post-punk. For them, and for Vasquez, there was no turning back. The Total Decay EP and Zeros emerged soon after, and now Vasquez returns with The Soft Moon’s most introspective and focused album to date: Deeper.
Following live line-up changes and a lull in the The Soft Moon’s constant touring schedule, the year 2013 found Luis Vasquez lost in the void. Though he fatalistically stated that 2012’s Zeros would be the last album where he was the sole songwriter, Vasquez realized that The Soft Moon has always been one man’s vision. Over time, it’s been the one place where Vasquez can express himself, totally and singularly, on his own terms.
Thus, in July of 2013, Vasquez decamped from Oakland, CA to Venice, Italy, unsure of where The Soft Moon would land. While Zeros was written and recorded between long days on the road, Deeper was begat from an almost primal urge to recoil from the world and experience total solitude. During the writing process, Vasquez pushed himself to discover the reality and nightmare of living with yourself, in entirely foreign surroundings with nothing and no one to fall back on.
Stepping back and letting inspiration fall where it may, Vasquez only had one goal in mind for his third album: to pen his most emotional record yet. Between frequent visits to Berlin, Vasquez retreated to Venice’s Hate Studios, located in the mountains near electronic guru and spiritual anchor Giorgio Moroder’s hometown.
At Hate, he worked for almost a year with producer Maurizio Baggio to piece together Deeper, only completing the album in August 2014. While maintaining the stark sonic formula so indicative of The Soft Moon’s music — that bass that reeks of chorus, those unrelenting, mechanized beats, that wailing synthesizer and those eerily, angular guitar lines that worm into your ears and never leave —
Baggio also worked to refine the album’s gothic palette, leaving Vasquez to concentrate more intensely on songwriting and singing than ever before: “I’ve never worked so closely with someone before. Working with Maurizio felt right and I completely opened up to him during the entire process. I finally felt the urge to express myself more verbally with this record and I was able to focus more on songwriting rather than just experimenting with soundscapes.”
The voice of The Soft Moon has never been more clear and honest than it is on this record. With eerie, immersive tracks like the dogged “Far” and slow, beautifully melancholic “Wasting” (the first track written for Deeper), the album is a penetrating portrait of Vasquez as he wrestles thoughts of suicide, vulnerability and what it means to heal. By facing the most hopeless parts of himself without illusion and putting his past demons to bed, the creation of Deeper was an intense personal exploration of existence for Vasquez — old wounds were forcibly opened, deep anger and paranoia were manipulated into song — and he did not emerge unchanged. Deeper may have delivered Vasquez back to the waking world, but it willingly drags us further into The Soft Moon’s dark, euphonic universe once more.
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Thomas Brinkmann returns on Third Ear just over a year after his Guy Martin ep in 2013. Once again, his sheer class and technical skill are in abundant supply, creating blistering Techno drenched in the funk. Just brilliant.
Press Info:
As the name suggests, the Destructive EP by Static Plate is not for the faint-hearted. Firestarted from the very first track, Destructive sets the pace for this hard-hitting and relentless ep. Although staying true to his signature high-hat, Static Plate re-specifies his personal style with a distinctively different drive than found in his Count Zero project. Intense, fast and at times loud, Destructive finds Static Plate at his best in his comfort zone.
Release Date:
February 2015 (vinyl)
March 2015 (digital)
Format:
12″ & digital
Tracklist: 01) Under The City
02) Under The City (Rolando Remix)
03) Under The City (Reggy van Oers Remix)
Press Info:
A distinctive feature of Joachim Spieth’s music is the way how he’s using filters. After “Sensualized” and “Dark Matter” 12”s, “Under The City” witnesses this again. With just a few sounds he’s shaping an environment that is triggering the listeners perception. The remixes from Rolando (Underground Resistance, Roland Rocha Records, Ostgut Ton) and Reggy van Oers (Affin, Green Records) are completing this timeless release on Affin.
The first track on Side A, ‘Under The City’ is an original produced by Joachim that steadily builds into a driving melody. The rhythm is catchy and infectious and made for the dancefloor. Waning deliberately, ‘Under The City’ delicately tapers off to only find itself strengthen again into something even more fierce.
On Side B we find remixes by Rolando and Reggy Van Oers. Rolando gives ‘Under The City’ a minimal feel at first and then unwaveringly creates anticipation for the next chord. Well-known for his Ostgut Ton sound, Rolando keeps ‘Under The City’ groovy and melodious and adds more of an underground touch straight out of Germany. Reggy van Oers finishes off this 12” with a remix that gradually accelerates mixing in various elements to bring the EP to a climax.
‘Under The City’ has all the right fluctuation to be played in a variety of situations and circumstances. Whether to be played at peak hours to a large crowd or to close out or open the night, ‘Under The City’ is a very diverse and eclectic EP that can satisfy a wide range of Techno connoisseurs.
Full Track Streaming:
Special:
“Reflections – AFFIN Label’s 7 Years Anniversary Mix”
