There is so much beautiful and nostalgic to hear. What if you made The Cure Disintegration but gave it razor sharp teeth? The drums had more snap. The guitar lines had that same entrancing delay but with more motion. Ean Clevenger has an obvious Robert Smith quality to his voice, yet where Smith focused more on a tongue and cheek sass. Clevenger is bringing a piercing intensity and higher range of New Order Movement feelings of being lost. The driving bass , the rising synth phrases, those crisp bark beat snaps. It’s like hearing every album that got me through my formative years but done with the precision production of the modern age. Every song makes me want to fall in love but never find the courage to express it.
Lets talk a bit about what isn’t nostalgic, because there is plenty of fresh takes in this offering. Beautiful guitar leads full of textural slush in a shoegaze slither. This record bleeds of layered sounds so thick you want to run your fingers through them. Intricate drum beats with a symphony conductors precision control the movement of each track. Just like most albums that touch me deeply it usually comes back to a vocalist that can make me feel something. Who can take me on a journey with words and feelings and this album left me shook. Every phrase drips with tortured honey and sorrow. Sometimes as an older listener who has lived a bit you hear something that makes you feel young again. In the case of Creux Lies it is not with energy and power. It is by reminding you of how deep you used to feel things before the world tempered you. Hearkening back to The Cure again this album is full of pop hooks. Strong ones that grab the lapels and shake you. It’s hard to define when you hear something that is similar to plenty of music I am hearing, but has something extra, has IT. I’m at a loss on how to express it but I do know it when I hear it. I heard it.
There really isn’t a weak track on this
album, but I’ll pick some favorites.
Portals – This is the obvious single, but it is that way for a reason. The beautiful New Order keyboard melodies are absolutely captivating. The lyrics “Did you fall in love with a killer at your door, while waiting for a lifetime to begin” pure poetry. The vocals in this track are a masterclass in sliding between the cracks in the wall of sound around you. The build on the end is a perfect tension and release. Staggering.
Virginity – This is such a gentle caress of an opening, that effectively smashes you in the face with a giant crashing wave of sound when you least expect it. The slow crawling tempo makes you sway like a leaf on the wind. It feels like the terrifying lack of control at a first love so powerful you don’t yet have a frame of reference for it. Clevenger reaches into some sky splitting notes in this one and laser burns them into your heart. Slow dance with yourself in this moment.
Aine’s Song – Tom fills, give me all these tom fills. Tiny dancing pin prick guitar lines doing a duelist routine with the bass and rhythm, “I saw your face again, I want to take you home” That feeling of being struck. We have all felt it but to blend the music and lyrics so seamlessly to express it. I love the whispered secret in between chorus. I love the world drops out breakdown. You built me up and then pulled it all away. Just so those toms could drive right back into me.
Overall this album is an emotional and powerful offering. It’s also full of energy and fun though. It shows me how the past can pave the way for something new in dark music. I was an instant fan for life and you will be too.
Members: Pedro
Code (IAMTHESHADOW) All songs composed and recorded by. Matt Howden –
Violin on “Made to Break. Herr G – Bass on “To Give” Victor
Moria – Piano “Through empty Spaces” Goncolo Mota – Piano “To
the Moon” Mastered:
Andre Castro
Cover Photo by Zinblume
I have been so lucky to find a waterfall of bands I love and get to write about. Sometimes I come across something truly transcendent,. Something that takes the depth and darkness of human nature in a way that wrenches your heart, but strikes such beauty that it fills you with rapture. It’s like standing in the rain staring at the place you first met them and remembering they are gone forever. That is what it is like to hear “The Certainty of Forever” 20 glorious tracks laying out a story of heart felt passion.
Sometimes when I have a particularly difficult review to describe I focus on a single word to anchor me back to the concept I am hearing and build on it. For The Dream Collision that word is resonance. It resounds with you emotionally, in depth of the lyrics, with the balance of the instruments, with Pedro’s room filling voice. The enormity of the experience inside the vastness of emptiness in the space between.
Pedro Code (IAMTHESHADOW) has laid himself raw and exposed in a Nick Cave meets Dead Can Dance masterpiece touching such classical notes of emotive power. The gentle weight of the piano lines pressing on you while you are caressed by violin and lifted from below by rich bass lines. The sound is tender and full of anguish, I felt myself moved to the point it became difficult to take in all at once.
Pedro has brought in friends and family to create a true glimpse into the core of a human contemplating his darkest musings. His voice remains one of the most intense and lovely in the genre. The connection he feels with the people creating this record with him is so apparent in every track. Each song is a story of his love and fears free of pretense. I challenge you to not be stirred by this personal offering.
I had some standout tracks I felt
really spoke to me:
Cutting Deep – This tender and flowing ballad with string movement and sensitive melodies set a stage for Pedro to shake the silence with his romantic baritone. “Maybe some colors, I can achieve. Life is so wrong, in me. That it cuts me deep in.” The exposed anguish on display here is memorizing. The question “Am I so wrong, am I so sick?”
Blackbirds – These Peter Murphy flowing synth pads weave a web behind a gentle spoke word verse. The piano lifts the tension. “But the lines won’t break, blackbirds stay here” The silky flow of the strings brushing a finger until the drums grow and open up the sky. It’s impossible to not feel the passion of delivery and become lost in the beauty of the moment. His voice goes to the higher range and finds a hopeful tone.
It Seems Like (Mother) – The back draw drums paving a place for the piano line. The haunting delivery of his lyrics, the feeling behind them is transferable. He flows in and out of the meter and calls out with gentle longing. “It seems like the snow fell, it’s true. The sky dropped that night, on you” beautiful heartbreak and exposed courage.
I am a huge fan of what Pedro does with
IAMTHESHADOW. It’s music to feel and listen to. This album though
strikes such an inspirational and personal place. It feels like you
were let inside someones more dangerous feelings and memories. I’m
Awestruck, share in the experience with me.
(Ken) This album left me shaken my friend. The depth of emotion here is beautiful and terrifying. Tell me about the themes present in your creation? what moved you to make it?
(Pedro)
If it makes you feel and shake, my job is done…:D to tell you
about my songs is to tell you about my life…my dreams, my despair,
my love, my pain… to compose The Dream Collision is to face my
demons with my angels, letting them fight knowing no one will win. i
just pick up the pieces of what is left.all
this songs are what i am, putting all simple…
(Ken)
Your son and friends played on a track. Tell me about that experience
and your pride in his ability?
‘ (Pedro) My son made one song… “To the Moon” in piano… he was playing at my house and as soon i listened i was overwhelmed by what i was listening and i told him” you will record this to my album!”. I did the second pianos and the atmosphere involved in the track… I know and feel he could be a great musician, but he doesn’t know that yet. I’m especially proud for whom he is, and that he has one of the best parts of me… my passion for the piano. For this album I also decided to invite some friends to play… Vitor Moreira and Rui Geada from IAMTHESHADOW, I wanted to have their emotion on this album. it was achieved I believe. I had Matt Howden too, without need of presentation. he is a great violinist. I’m extremely proud to have all these names in my Dream, sharing my emotions. I can not forget the person that made all this possible…Sandra (Zinn Blume)., my best friend and a true light in all this dark.
(Ken)
This album was so organic in a digital age of modern dark music. Was
the contrast on purpose and how did that lend itself to the final
sound?
(Pedro)
Nothing is on purpose in what i do in music, I only speak my truth
from the heart. The base is always the piano and the image i had
inside while composing these songs, they led me to the final result.
I cannot tell you. If i could have, I would had a true orchestra
recording besides true analog synths..for me the music is not old or
modern… is just true or not.
(Ken)
How was making this record different emotionally from IAMTHESHADOW?
(Pedro) For me they have for me the same depth and emotion…but the result..the final impact is very different. and what I’m trying to say is that as a listener, i feel these two projects in a different way, but the way i write is the same. I don’t write for Iamtheshadow or The Dream Collision. i write for me, because i need to. The Dream is more raw… with no compromises. Iamtheshadow is for obvious reasons compromises my band mates.
(Ken)
Tell me about where you recorded the album and how did that place
influence the sound you made?
Places
don’t really influence my writing. Only the places within myself and
the doors I open for it…i recorded the record at home as i always
do.. It’s necessary for my emotional state and nothing besides me
or what i feel affects the way i compose.
(Ken)
What is next for The Dream Collision ?
I sincerely don’t know… sometimes i feel that this album is a great way of ending my Dream…but on the other hand… i don’t want to end me. Is like life. I take it one day at a time. Sometimes i think of playing live…lets see .
(Ken)
This album has such personal lyrics and expression, how did you
overcome the weight of that and what did it mean for you in terms of
your growth as an artist?
I
can never seem to overcome the weight of my feelings and emotions..
its a everyday struggle…my music helps me to deal with that, to
know myself better and i just hope it helps me to grow as a human
being. If i achieve that i will be a better artist. Sometimes when i
listen one of my finished songs, I understand more of who i am, why
i feel what i feel, and what i want from life. In someway I know its
my purpose. to feel this and to compose this.
(Ken)
If you could add this album as the soundtrack to any film, what
would you choose and why?
(Pedro)
That is a difficult one….i can imagine The Dream Collision in many
movies, because of the pace, motion, intensity…There are some good
films that are passionate, intense and somewhat sad, but no film in
particular. I will ask you the same question. what film would
you choose for this songs? My songs are feelings, experiences
and images inside me. Its difficult to connect it with a vision from
someone else…
Its one of my dreams i didn’t achieve yet… to do a soundtrack for a movie and i expect that i can do it soon enough.
(Ken)
If I get to pick I would choose “Wings of Desire” the film by Wim
Wenders. The imagery of the traipse artist with the angel watching in
the background, I feel like it the perfect counterpart.
(Ken)
You are playing the Cold Transmission festival in July. I am beyond
excited I will get to see you preform live. What does this festival
mean to you?
(Pedro) Yes it will be a great pleasure to meet you finally! I am excited to be with many friends I haven’t seen for some time, like Andreas and Susan! I know it will be a great night of music with great bands. Iamtheshadow have been playing some festivals in Europe in the last few years and its always a great experience. Its something that is unforgettable. To share all this emotions in a festival.
Ok I have taken a bit of a hiatus from writing reviews prepping for a show but when Jason Corbett calls me out to review what is one of the most important new albums of 2018 I better crack my knuckles and get in front of my keyboard. When I first heard this Vancouver based band I was spell bound. Transported in time and enthralled by the sheer cold razor coolness of this record. It started really blowing up and I suppose I just felt like Actors were so good they didn’t need me to write about them as much as other new bands. However to not express what this album meant would be a disservice. This record cooks from front to back with throwback sounds, perfect precision and continuity, while lyrically bringing a fresh and modern take that resonates with everyone I play it for. Do you know how Ian McCulloch is a once and a life time sound that no one can really capture ever again? When I hear Jason Corbett I hear a young Ian crooning out effortless expressive lines that wrap you up and transport you. I’ve mentioned many times in reviews being a singer myself I always hone in on vocals first and Corbett delivers a sonic artistry of wide scope and emotion that makes every song feel like an intimate performance just for you. Not to understate his guitar work, when I saw the Actors live in Detroit I was blown away by how he shredded. The guitar lines while fitting in the post punk sound have a jagged edge. He was also wearing a Slayer shirt when he played them.
Musically this album is diverse in a way so missing from “Post Punk” today. It changes in tone and scope from song to song. Everything blends together in one story but just like a complex character in a novel it is full of intricate parts. Hemmett is a maestro of subtle brush stokes in the synth sounds contradicting the sharp moving guitar parts. They build, fall, and create movement. Russell has studied hard at the Martin Hannett school of using the bass as a percussion instrument to drive these songs and feed life. I remember being surprised how large a bass he plays live, but sometimes to get the big sound you need a big instrument. They are dark and bracing and surround you in the motion of a chase scene after a heist in a bright lit city on a cool night. Fink uses a crisp snapping drum sound that builds a foundation for the constant movement and swirling parts. I can’t remember the last time a record felt so much like a beautiful sound track of a film that was never made. You can’t help but conjure images of these songs in your head. It’s a magnificent effect which continues to grow every time I listen to it. Actors are not creating a brand new sound here, but they are playing at a level of quality in their synthesis of glam, post punk, electronic, and new wave that you feel like new ground is being broken. I’m truly awed by what is accomplished here and I am not alone.
So now we have reached the hard part,
how do I pick standout tracks on an album that was meant to be
absorbed as a single flowing piece. It’s not singles here. Every cut
is a deep perfect cut. Ok , self, be professional, I’ll try.
Face Meets Glass – I suppose if there is a “single” this is it. Such a lush and vibrant song in a dark tone. Here you can definitely hear the Echo and the Bunnymen comparison. It’s just slick city streets, black leather jackets, the coolest girl in the room dancing alone. If Ian McCulloch, Peter Hook, Iggy Pop, and Gary Numan were hanging out at a club in Berlin at 1:47am this would be the song they would listen to.
Let it Grow – Here the Post Punk edge is let off the chain. This bassline is as thick as a slow river. An elegant builder full of background guitar and stabbing single note keyboards that just keep getting layered as the song progresses. Flavors of New Order smashing Technique into Movement. Why did no one think of this before?
Slaves – All these days that you fear, there’s no god, only what you had to offer. Holy shit this is a burner. The simple slashing guitar riff, that bassline that just rolls over you like a Mack truck. I could hear this song 200 times on repeat and it would never lose flavor. It drives on the edge but in a medium tempo. This is the song I want to play while doing a jewel heist in a black turtleneck in New York while the revolution begins. (Note:Since writing this review I have definitely listened to this song more than 200 times)
Overall this album is a true modern day classic. It’s ambitious, perfectly executed, and full of homage. Actors are leading the charge in a Neo-Renaissance of dark wave music. If you don’t know about this album yet you need to get it immediately and be in on what is becoming a movement in modern music. Find this, love it, hold the vinyl in your hands and spin it many times.
Wait, there is more? Yes our own Rachel Pool got a chance to do this insightful interview with a Jason who we love dearly.
(Rachel) Explain, in ten words or less, the music scene in Vancouver.
(Jason) It’s a thriving hotbed of talent.
(Rachel) What made you choose the name, ACTORS?
(Jason) It felt just interesting enough. All the good names were taken and Duran Duran Duran was too long.
(Rachel) Does that name allow you some security in your songwriting? Was it by intent to create a lyrical fiction? How much of your songs are written from life experience?
(Jason) A name means less and less as time passes. It’s not something I think about. All the songs are written from life experience although it’s not 100% autobiographical. Sometimes you just need a visual and a good rhyme.
(Rachel) Describe the original formation of Actors. How did musicians of your talent level come to together into one singular vision?
(Jason) We are all friends first. It just made sense for us to fall together with ACTORS. We respect each other and everyone has something special to contribute. I couldn’t do this with just anyone.
(Rachel) Bands of brothers and sisters: what do you argue about most, as a band?
(Jason) We don’t really argue. I snore so I’m pretty sure the others members have wrestled with the idea of holding a pillow over my face in the middle of the night.
(Rachel) How do you feel about remixes? Are they necessary to band networking? Is it comfortable to have other bands interpret your music, and how do you deal with what you may feel is an inaccurate rendition of your song, or indeed one which may have captured the spirit/leitmotif better?
(Jason) I’ve recently started doing remixes for other artists again. It’s fun. I haven’t had anyone remix an ACTORS song since the first single Post Traumatic Love. I don’t think they are “necessary” but I do love to hear different interpretations of songs. Sometimes a remix will be better than the original.
(Rachel) If you could have any band/musician remix one of your songs, who would you choose?
(Jason) I would love to see what David Lynch would come up with. Maybe he would just light one of our records on fire and record it burning.
(Rachel) How did you find music? Did you grow up with musicians, or did a certain album or artist inspire you to create music yourself?
(Jason) It was always around. The radio and music videos on tv. Bowie was the first big inspiration for me. Ziggy Stardust > Let’s Dance > Scary Monsters, in that order.
(Rachel) Your album has been considered by many to be one of the most important releases of 2018, does this shock you? What is a best case scenario of what you want to accomplish in 2019?
(Jason) I wanted to believe that if enough people heard these songs that the album would find an audience. I had learned to temper my expectations over the years so the reception this time around was initially hard to believe. Best case scenario is we keep touring and continue to create opportunities to connect with more and more people. We plan on releasing our next full-length album in 2020.
(Rachel) There has to be at least one of you who is a Cat Person™ . Freyja Six Beans(our cat) sat on our computer desk and had to be forcibly removed several times while we were playing your album. How can you explain your animal magnetism?
(Jason) You’re very intuitive. We love cats. I’m sorry you had to forcibly remove Freyja Six Beans on our account. Can animal magnetism be explained?
