London 'gloom-pop' trio hit new symphonic heights with brutal third single
8/10
Slowly but surely, the London fraternity are gradually warming to the icicle works of powerful electronic art-rock blasting forth from Creatures of Love, a trio that has previously issued a pair of singles and an EP (released as far back as 2009). Soundwise, they've got harder, more glacial and, live, a damn sight tighter since the earlier days of the comparatively polite strains of that six-track debut, enough for The Joy Formidable to give them a support slot on their 2011 tour.
Following the early 2012 limited-edition single "Barbatos", a menacing and dramatic epic that became even more of a thunderous proposition after a 'Hazlittized' remix started to do the rounds on the net, "Vakkula" is an altogether harsher prospect. If 'tombstep' was a genre, then this is it personified. Kicking off with a clockwork glitch rhythm, before those trademark synth-stabs come hammering in with singer Bonita McKinney's traffic-stopping pipes in full vocal regalia, this free download (out 24th September) is a taster from upcoming 5-track EP "The Boy Crimes", due out towards the end of 22nd October.
At 5 minutes in length, it's probably a world away from what 6 Music might thrust upon its listeners and seems better suited to being piped out of a dank alternative bar in Berlin, than the hipster utopia of North London - that is a compliment, by the way. That said, "Vakkula" pisses over anything coming out of most radio-stations and label showcases at present and marks something of a benchmark for other icy synth acts to follow. Don't believe me? - see them launch the single at Dalston's Victoria on 25th October and find out why that forthcoming EP should be on your must-have list. Single of the week.
For further information about Creatures of Love live shows, head to Allgigs here.
To grab your "Vakkula" download, go to their Bandcamp page here.
Watch the official video on this page......
8/10
Slowly but surely, the London fraternity are gradually warming to the icicle works of powerful electronic art-rock blasting forth from Creatures of Love, a trio that has previously issued a pair of singles and an EP (released as far back as 2009). Soundwise, they've got harder, more glacial and, live, a damn sight tighter since the earlier days of the comparatively polite strains of that six-track debut, enough for The Joy Formidable to give them a support slot on their 2011 tour.
At 5 minutes in length, it's probably a world away from what 6 Music might thrust upon its listeners and seems better suited to being piped out of a dank alternative bar in Berlin, than the hipster utopia of North London - that is a compliment, by the way. That said, "Vakkula" pisses over anything coming out of most radio-stations and label showcases at present and marks something of a benchmark for other icy synth acts to follow. Don't believe me? - see them launch the single at Dalston's Victoria on 25th October and find out why that forthcoming EP should be on your must-have list. Single of the week.
For further information about Creatures of Love live shows, head to Allgigs here.
To grab your "Vakkula" download, go to their Bandcamp page here.