Get Spooked by the Spectre of Totemo and Her Song "Host"

It's an oft-repeated horror movie trope where we find the protagonist wax-white with terror, eyes wide and flashing, clutching a candle, match, or other unreliable light source which reveals nothing of the horrors hidden in the darkness just before them. You know that the scare is coming, that the ghost of a dead girl is about to whisper in the star's ear, or in the case of The Conjuring, the creepy kid is going to clap twice a hair's breadth from their face —and yet still, you the viewer, jump out of your skin.

Well there are several things about Totemo's debut track "Host" that make me think of scary movies:

1. The repeated incorporation of the creepy creak of a wooden rocking chair or attic door.

2. The super subtle demonic rumblings at the top of "Host" that add a barely perceptible but entirely necessary eeriness to this composition.

3. The fantastic clarity of this Tel Aviv singer's vocals and the intimate manner in which she delivers them. In this song Totemo is the spectre lingering at your lobe, whispering encrypted nothings.

Musicially "Host" hangs in that inky space that envelops Massive Attack, Portishead, BANKS, iamamiwhoami, and SOHN, and this track—only her second ever—is a tantalizing, assured, and captivating cut.

Heavy As My Dreams is out on 11/3 via BLDG 5 Records

Kim watches way too many horror films and she's on Twitter - @theKTB

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More stuff to read and listen that's tailor-made for fan of Totemo!
Meet SOHN: He's All About "Positive Nihilism"

BANKS - "This is What it Feels Like"