Avant! Italy 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: Two years on from the release of his brilliant third album "Parallels", dark-wave and synth-wave explorer Hord returns to Avant with an equally impressive sequel. Rich in "Bladerunner"-era Vangelis synth sounds, clandestine grooves, moody chords, distant vocals and druggy arpeggio lines, the album is an altogether more atmospheric, tuneful and ethereal affair than some of the producer's previous outings. The overall mood is bittersweet and melancholic, but that's no bad thing. To our ears, it's the most impressively emotive Hord release to date, and that's reason enough for further exploration.

Review: RECOMMENDED
Horror Vacui, Sheer Mag, Torso, Terremoto and Crimson Scarlet team up with vocalist Chelsey Crowley and synthesists Andrea Mantione and Giacomo Zatti for one hell of a retro-tinged electro-pop adventure. New Earth is the sound of Adventures In Babysitting running into The Goonies celebrating their 21st birthday at Tech Noir, if that's enough 1980s movie references to get the point across. It's a snare topped, high energy rush of a record that makes no apologies for itself. And nor should it.

Apparently the contents here were originally written for the band's debut EP, Exposure, and with a male voice in mind. Listening back to the arrangements it became clear that there was a huge amount of Italo disco potential, and therefore Crowley was drafted to realise that. We're incredibly glad she was, as this is really something very special indeed.