Asobi Seksu - Fluorescence (first impressions)

The cover art for Asobi Seksu's 5th album, Fluorescence, is a dead-ringer for that of 4AD almuni, Cocteau Twins' Heaven or Las Vegas. Not surprisingly, the artist behind it is Vaughan Oliver, who designed that very artwork for the Twins. As you can imagine, the similarities between the two projects don't end there.



For this outing, Chikudate's vocals take greater precedence in the mix, unfortunately producing varying results. While she has nailed some of Elizbeth Fraser's vocalisations and inflections down to a t (as in the lovely single 'Trails'), the tonal quality itself sometimes leaves a bit to be desired (think the airy, vibrato devoid shrillness of Lush thrown into an exposing mix). The sweeping melodies tread a thin line between dreamy and sickly-sweet, but thankfully only ever cross over once or twice ('My Baby').

First-class drumming by recent band addition, Gorman, is reminiscent of Asobi Seksu's heavier early work and provides a welcome contrast to the delicate vocals and guitar-work. While the record works well as a whole, the tail-end really sees a lift in momentum. Hanna-sung single 'Counterglow' is a definite standout, along with the beautifully ethereal 'Ocean'.

Morpheme

Anyone remotely familiar with the scene should fondly recall the insanely talented and very ahead-of-its-time duo, Curve. Bassist Dean Garcia has recently launched a new project, aptly called The Project Morpheme, alongside guitarist, Perry Pelonero and vocalist, Kim Welsh. If the two tracks I've heard so far are anything to go by, Dean is not about to stray too far from Come Clean-era Curve territory; not necessarily a bad thing.




Their EP, Red Dog, is available on iTunes through XD Records.

HELEN STELLaR

HELEN STELLaR is a shoegaze-inspired rock outfit from Los Angeles, California. They play a vocal-centric breed of nugaze with simple and understated melodies, yet the performance, production and build-ups are always of epic proportions. It's little surprise they caught the eye of producer Cameron Crowe, who immediately added their barnstorming track IO (This Time Around) to the 2005, Elizabethtown, soundtrack.
 
They also appear on screen and on the soundtrack to independent film legend Gregg Araki's Kaboom.

Their debut double LP, A Prayer to Myself, is worth a few spins.