THE ARTIFICIAL SEA –
city island
(CD, Travelling music)
This
record starts with the same drum pattern that „La La Love You“ from the
Pixies (from „Doolittle“) uses and then singer Alina starts in the same
soothing croon that Kim
Gordon often has, and that lays down the basic coordinates for
„city island“ in some ways – though through the next ten tracks a lot
of different, wonderful and exciting things happen that would make it unfair
to pinpoint The Artificial Sea to these two poles only. These are just
associations from the first five seconds of this album, but very strong and
depicting ones, so they are put right in the beginning deservedly. And
anyway, these poles are so far apart that a whole globe fits in between.
Enough space for any good band to find unique and unexplored areas to dwell
in. And they find it about thirty seconds later.
The
Artificial Sea is a Brooklyn duo of Kevin C. Smith programming and playing
instruments and a female singer called Alina. This band structure of
programmer / singer has become something of a standard in the last years all
around the world. It depends on the abilities of the programmer and the
vocal range of the singer to get the music out of the usual downbeat,
laidback lounge crooning that rolls on by nicely in the background or is
quickly being used as a backdrop to the clicking of cocktail glasses and the
hiss of mature conversation. Dinner music – what a despisable (if
necessary) world of music. The artificial sea are fortunately able to stand
on their own. I see them in a small club, dim tables and artificial candles,
all faces focused on them. Way better.
Smith’s
music is simple yet depicting and effective. He sometimes uses only small
arrangements, working with a drumbeat and only some sounds on top to open
free space for singer Alina to explore the full range of her croon. (for
example on „things we spent“). Then he introduces real instruments,
guitars, a lonely saxophone in the background and else, and builds layers of
sounds with a strong Massive-Attack bass line. The atmospheres range
from laid back gentle afternoon (rainy ones preferred) to hinting at
claustrophobic urban nightmares (for example „the light of 1.000
televisions“ or the one track using vocal samples instead of the singing
voice: „better living“), though they never stray into truly disturbing
territorry. So, yes this is electronic music with a strong urban background
and an interest in the downsides and dark corners, but it is not Johnny
YesNo. Maybe because Kevin C. Smith works out his music late at night after
work in his private apartment and doesn’t want to disturb the neighbours.
Without
the singing, though, this would be interesting but not as fascinating and
intriguing as it is. Alina croons and sighs, sings and wails. She is on the
lookout for her own voice somewhere between aforementioned Kim Gordon and
Bjork, which is fabulous, because neither are traditional singers but
focused on being individual and unique. Alina adds sparks and emotions to
the music, from the gloriously shining first track „gloryhole“ to the
retracted, introverted closer of „milemarker“.
