Austra – Beat and Pulse (extended)
Everyday I fall in love…with music and if you only knew what I desire to do with this song.
Next time someone asks me what kinda music I listen to, I’m gonna answer “beat and pulse” solely based on this song which makes me wish all electronic music paid more attention to creating polyrhythmic layers. Beat and Pulse is an aptly titled musical homage to a previous genre, (hint: remember the days when people were happy but dressed like they were depressed?) the goth 80s. The beat is pure old school cold wave electronica, the pulse relentless and the amazing vocals by Katie Stelmanis are flavored with Siouxsie-like echoes combining to create an overall sinister kind of mood. Is a goth revival coming too? Let’s skip the goth moniker and call it Witch House (sorry, but that stuck). It’s true, I was a goth kid at one point, isn’t it obvious? That’s what happens when you’re a little mocasa Chicana living in Boyle Heights and your kinda-hippie parents move you to the suburban wasteland of Rosemead (sorry, incorporated South San Gabriel). Things happen, or they don’t happen and you’re bored and then you listen to KSPC at night. Then you dye your hair black and start wearing clothes from the thrift store and end up dancing with some flailing arm moves that surprisingly, get you almost voted “Best Dancer” for the eighth-grade yearbook but instead it goes to the more popular girl who likes to freak. Uh, where was I? Yeah, this song is a really good nu-goth, synthwave, darkwave, witchy kinda tune that makes me wanna dance, flailing arms and all.
It seems the best music these days is coming out of cold weather spots, Austra are from Toronto, Canada. The amazing things you can create when you’re stuck indoors.
The cleaner sounding, dirtier version!