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LUST & DREAMS WEST - “DRIVING PLEASURES”

Dreams West, one of our favorite VHS-wave artists, partnered up with fellow retro synth act Lust last summer to birth a limited edition collaborative cassette tape entitled 12:56. While the collection is essentially a split EP with a couple of remixes that nobody really needs to have in their life immediately, the closing track that’s credited to the twosome is an absolute stunner. “Driving Pleasures” showcases the seedy darkness of Lust’s synthwave exploits while also clearly referencing Dreams West’s Balearic inclinations. What begins with a couple of clean piano stabs progressively devolves into an onslaught of each artist’s finer talents, building in intensity and synchronization until the wall of sound towers bombastically over the listener. Gritty synth rhythm tracks duel with digital tropicalia until both acts quickly reach their respective limits, burning the entire island down in three minutes flat. 12:56 is great for the die-hard follower of either Lust or Dreams West, but we highly, highly recommend the outro track. Do tha right thing, and grab a free MP3 download of “Driving Pleasures”, by Lust & Dreams West below, and then peruse each artist’s discography for more good tunes afterwards. You know we won’t pass up the opportunity to put in a solid plug for Dreams West’s </3.

MP3 Download of “Driving Pleasures”, by Lust & Dreams West (from 12:56)

COM TRUISE - “WIP (‘13)”

Heeeeey, lookey there. The same guy who posted the video rip of Lapti’s “Don’t U Know?” is the only guy that currently has a video of Com Truise’s latest B-side. I have a feeling we should probably download everything we see on Distapez’s Youtube channel. Either way, though, the internet’s hottest bringer of retro vibes has a new unreleased jam out, “WIP (‘13)”, which most likely refers to the Soho location at which he played yesterday, but may or may not also stand for an actual work in progress. I think we can rule out “women-in-prison” or “wank in public”, so hopefully the naming also subtly indicates the opening throes of a brand new synthwave-meets-downtempo release for Seth Haley (Com Truise). In the featured tune, slow, lighthearted, reverberating synth notes in the vein of “Cathode Girls” build gradually into Com Truise’s trademark arcade room flurry of pixelated mid-fi SFX. Halfway through, after a short refractory period, a laser-etched bassline battles through an asteroid belt of monolithic electronics as the transmission gradually fades up and out. Do tha right thing, and get a taste of “WIP (‘13)”, Mr. Truise’s latest public offering below the jump. Be sure to acquaint yourself with the rest of his portfolio thereafter, if you haven’t already. His latest release, In Decay, was easily one of our favorite full-lengths of 2012, so getcha some!

MP3 Download of “WIP (‘13)”, by Com Truise

VANGUARD - “ECHOHUNTER”

At Tiananmen Square Dance, we’re always sure to cite our sources, and we’d just like to let you know that if you haven’t already checked out DjemUK’s 80’s Dreamz mix at his Soundcloud page, then you need to get after it now. The featured Vanguard jam, along with several other VHS-wave tunes are all there, compiled for your convenience, and many of them are even free downloads. The organic electronic vibe in “Echohunter” starts slowly with a cascading ambient digital rain, building both in volume and intensity, reaching an absolutely supernatural high shortly after the one-minute mark. Sonorous vocal samples precede the meat of “Echohunter”, as if an annunciation of the glory to come. A bassline straight out of an early 80’s wet boogie dream underlies the reprise of some of the most truly triumphant vocals we have ever had the pleasure of hearing, and a lo-fi found monologue walks us back and out abruptly after the track is chopped and screwed into computerized oblivion. Boasting a prominent sample of Alexander O’Neal’s 1986 R&B hit “If You Were Here Tonight”, the song is perfect for fans of the earthy downtempo of Tycho, the dark witch house of Friendzone, or any particularly bouncy vintage synthwave jam by the likes of Lapti or Capo Blanco. Do tha right thing, and check out Vanguard’s “Echohunter” after the bump, and you can even download the free EP on which it is featured here, if you so desire. Of course, we also recommend you check out DjemUK’s 80’s Dreamz playlist too. There’s some truly good shit there.

MP3 Download of “Echohunter”, by Vanguard (from the Echo EP)

THE PILLARS OF CREATION - “GLOOM”

We’ve been exploring the back catalogs of several little-known bedroom synthwave artists lately, and we found an old release by The Pillars of Creation yesterday that we’d like to shine a light on today. The Soft Sound EP was released by Chicago’s Marc Zielinski (The Pillars of Creation) to little to no acclaim just over two years ago, due only really to the bite-size niche market that consumes these kinds of warped lo-fi synth jams. The track at the tail end of the four-track EP, “Gloom”, samples Reflex’s proto-chillwave “Night Jam A” as its base melody, building upon it with layers and layers of melted loops and whirling lead synth tracks. All in all, the rework alters the original tune enough to merit its own acclaim, creating a new beast out of Reflex’s seminal pre-Neon Indian synth track. Come for the funky key-bass and stay for the splashy, smeary surround sound synesthesiæ brought on by The Pillars of Creation’s notable 2011 song “Gloom”, which is anything but morose in tone. Do tha right thing, and grab a free MP3 download of this oft-overlooked jam gem, and then do some traveling into the deep space that is The Pillars’ repertoire of self-released full-lengths and EP’s.

MP3 Download of “Gloom”, by The Pillars of Creation (from Soft Sound EP)

OWL EYES - “CLOSURE (GIRAFFAGE REMIX)”

R&B-infused glo-fi superbeing Giraffage churned out a quick rework of Owl Eyes’ “Closure” the other day, complete with all the fringe benefits one might expect from the San Franciscan producer. Free to download, the jam gives a hazy, magic hour vibe to the original composition by heavily appropriating the eloquent howls of today’s chopped and screwed musical movement. Notably toward the end of Giraffage’s remix of “Closure”, Brooke Addamo’s soulful vocals, the retro guitar, and sensual R&B time keeping fade into the background as Charlie Yin (Giraffage) slows that shit down, turning the last bit of the tune into a haunting Chris D’eon-esque concentration on the titular refrain. Do tha right thing, and grab a free MP3 download of Giraffage’s dreamtrap improvement on Owl Eyes’ Australian electro-pop single “Closure”. Afterwards, check out the original version of the track, and definitely grab a copy of Giraffage’s latest full-length, Needs, as well.

MP3 Download of “Closure (Giraffage remix)”, by Owl Eyes