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Let Some Ember Scratch Your Weird Synth Music Itch with Their New Song "The Thrashing Whip"

Enough with the art school shtick and the iPad metal, here's some industrial-edged synth pop that's actually good.

The synth revival that happened over the last 50 or so years was fun. French label obscurantism, disaffected vocals, and apolitical haircuts; people were dancing, and the L train ran on time. It would have been churlish to complain. But, still, something was missing. We had the bleeps, we had the bloops, but we didn’t have the bangs or the crashes. It was all just a little too up above it when all we wanted was to get down in it. Much as I like to apply my dreadlock extensions and blast Ministry around the house like it was free needle day at the shooting gallery, I don’t relish a return to late period Wax Trax either. I like the bleeps and bloops a LOT, and I get enough bad thrash at home, thanks. So there needs to be a middle ground.

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Some Ember is that welcome middle ground. Some Ember is the California duo of Dylan Travis and Nina Chase. They’ve been releasing excellent sometimes aggressive/sometimes ethereal synth music rooted in both industrial and pop for a few years now, along the way gaining respect from bands like Wax Idols and Dum Dum Girls. They—and, I’d argue, bands like Youth Code and Bestial Mouths—are a welcome respite from both the Too-Cool-For school and the metal dudes who just discovered that they don’t have to pay a drummer if they scream their bland nihilisms into an iPad. Plus, Some Ember look more like high elves than fascists. I can’t tell you how much this means to me.

I want to dance (well, I don’t, but people I like very much do), and I want my existential pain translated into song. So I want bands like Some Ember. God bless their New Romantic riding a Skinny Puppy hearts. Sorry. Point is: The songs are great. You should like them like I do. They were nice enough to share a track, “The Thrashing Whip,” from their forthcoming album with us.

Some Ember’s self-titled full-length comes out on Dream digitally May 27th, and the LP comes out June 10th. Stream "Thrashing Whip" below: