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CHILLED SYNTH BLISS – TREVOR SOMETHING DROPS A GEM

NewRetroWave — Thu, 20 Feb 2014 22:32:00 +0000

TREVOR SOMETHING – SYNTHETIC LOVE – REVIEW

It’s been a month or so since Trevor Something dropped his highly-anticipated and we are excited to finally get around to reviewing it here on NewRetroWave. Right from the album’s intro Trevor Something drops where he comes from and what he is trying to achieve with the nostalgic sound of loading a tape into a recorder.

And seriously, you might easily mistake this release for something that hails from the days of cassettes and heavy eye shadow. The mood that prevails throughout the album is that of melancholic, droning vocals awash in a deluge of analog synths and pulsating bass.

At times sounding alternately like Pet Shop Boys on quaaludes and Depeche Mode in their prime, there is still a clear chillwave trademark present throughout the album’s tracks. Most of the songs are sung in what seems to be a quartal harmony which gives that slightly dissonant effect. In the end, the impression is less “Miami” as much as “80s UK New Wave”.

Lyrically, most of the tracks cover the wistful territory of fleeting encounters and haunting romantic feelings. As such it goes really hand in hand with the above-mentioned droning vocals. And the arrangements really focus on the voice punctuated only by the drum machine and ethereal synth background.

And while the marriage of these elements is quite happy, the overall finish is not quite as varied and top-notch as some other staples in the vocal synthwave subgenre (if you will) such as Tesla Boy’s debut album. Some tracks seem simply just like rearrangements of the previous ones.

Anyway, the album still manages to produce some outstanding tracks, and there’s a chance you might have heard them in the months leading up to the release as they were also dropped as singles.

FADE AWAY

The third track on the album was already released as a single in December last year and as soon as you hear it, it’s single qualities become obvious. Low-tempo beat, lush chord progression that just ooze longing and unrequited love, it’s all here. First track on the album you might find yourself humming as you’re obsessively hitting refresh on NewRetroWave’s Facebook page.

LOVE YOU AGAIN

Love You Again is perhaps the most atypical track of the album and while I found it veers a little bit too much into the area of Usher-like r’n’b it definitely deserves a mention. For once Trevor is exchanging the guise of the forlorn lover for a suave, sex-hungry bad ass motherfucker who just wants to “fuck her again, fuck her again”. Yes, children, explicit lyrics are name of the game on this tracks which might come as surprising but goes well with Trevor’s persona of a drug-loving swinging ladies’ man.

SOMETHING ABOUT YOU

A truly danceable track, Something About You features a truly bitching bassline and a nice breathy and echoey vocal styling. It’s good to hear Trevor totally head over heels about this mysterious girl – probably wearing a tight glittery dress and ruffled fiery big hair – and I actually wished the song was a little longer in the end. The 16-bit Remix of this track is really fun and wholly recommended (for just $1.50 on his Bandcamp it’s a steal).

SYNTHETIC LOVE

A really cool, chilled track to close the album with, this one includes a nice choir of robotic voices singing about the, well, synthetic love. Whether or not they like it is unclear but it’s all about the mood anyway. Keeping the structure quite simple, Trevor forgoes most of percussions for a focus on the harmonies and creating an almost hymnic feeling.

Final verdict? Like its name, Synthetic Love – although it actually manages to innovate synthwave at times – seems almost a little bit too synthetic at times (mostly due to the vocals). Above all, serves as a nice ID card for Trevor Something and helps to flesh out the mythos of this OD’d 80s musician that came from the dead.

Article written by

FIlip Galetic

http://about.me/filip_galetic

THE RETRO SCENE – WHERE IT STANDS.

NewRetroWave — Tue, 25 Jun 2013 00:26:00 +0000

A LOT HAS CHANGED IN THIS SCENE SINCE 2011. IT HAS RAPIDLY GROWN IN BOTH ARTISTS AND LISTENERS ALIKE. NRW PREDICTS THAT IN 2-3 YEARS TIME, WE WILL BE SEEING/ HEARING OF RETRO ARTISTS SIGNING TO MAJOR LABELS AND SETTING THE SCENE FOR MAINSTREAM EXPOSURE.

BUT THE MAIN QUESTION IS……IS THAT WHAT THE SCENE NEEDS?

WILL EXPOSURE TO THE MAINSTREAM MAKE OR CRIPPLE THE RETRO-REVIVAL?

WE WOULD LOVE FOR POP MUSIC IN 2015 TO BE NOTHING BUT RETRO BLISS ON ALL THE MAJOR RADIOS.

ARE WE DREAMING TOO MUCH?

THOUGHTS?

THE ULTIMATE 80s PICTURE!!!

NewRetroWave — Wed, 15 May 2013 00:17:00 +0000

NOT THE SCREAMER PIC ABOVE….BUT THE EPIC PIC BELOW!!!

AWESOME!!

😉

IS THERE SUCH A THING AS OVER-PRODUCING IN THE RETRO SCENE?

NewRetroWave — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:29:00 +0000

OK, OK, OK

BASICALLY……..WE HAVE NOTICED THAT MANY OF THE LOYAL RETRO FANS OF THIS UNDERGROUND 80S REVIVAL SCENE FEEL THAT SOME REVIVAL ARTISTS MAKE TOO MANY SONGS AND ALBUMS……. AND RELEASE THEM TO CLOSE TOGETHER!

THIS COULD BE DAMAGING TO THE SCENE IF QUALITY CONTROL IS NOT ENFORCED!!! OVERPRODUCTION WILL HURT THIS SCENE PEEPS!

EXAMPLE

IGNORE THE SILLY GIRL ON THE LEFT FOLKS……..FOCUS …….ALTHOUGH THE HIGHLIGHTED GUY ON THE LOWER RIGHT IS BEING DISRESPECTFUL TO THE ARTIST, WHICH NRW DOES NOT STAND FOR, REALIZE THAT WHAT THIS DUDE IS SAYING IS A SEMI VALID POINT. WE LOVE SELLOREKT AND THIS IS NO STAB AT HIS MUSIC OR WORK ETHIC. HE IS A MASTER OF HIS CRAFT! BUT IS IT NECESSARY TO RELEASE AN ALBUM SO OFTEN???……..EVERY MONTH?? THIS GOES FOR ANY ARTIST IN THIS FIELD.

(WE ARE NOT PICKING ON SELLOREKT, JUST AN EXAMPLE)

IT SURELY IS QUALITY OVER QUANTITY…..RIGHT?

WHAT CAN AN ARTISTS GAIN FROM RELEASING ALBUMS IN SHORT TIME SPANS?! A QUICK BUCK…OR A CHANCE TO GROW A REAL LOYAL FANBASE?

FOR THIS SCENE TO LAST AND PROSPER, ALBUMS NEED TO BE SEEN AS GOLDEN TICKETS!!! GEMS IF YOU LIKE. THE MORE OF A WAIT A FAN CAN GET UNTIL THE NEXT ALBUM …….. THE GREATER THE SALES WILL BE FOR THE NEXT ALBUM.

AN ALBUM A YEAR IS JUST FINE MY PEOPLE!!!! LOL

AN ALBUM EVERY MONTH/ 2 MONTHS/ 3 MONTHS IS STRAIGHT OVER KILL!!!! THERE IS NO NEED FOR THIS.

(NOT COUNTING EP’S, MIXTAPES, COMPILATIONS…ETC)

EVEN ARCADE HIGH AGREES MANY ARTISTS ARE DOING THIS

WE KNOW THAT ONCE A PRODUCER IS IN THE ZONE, HE/ SHE WANTS TO PUT OUT HIS WORK AND SHARE THEM. BUT THIS SCENE ISN’T A PRODUCER FOR THE PRODUCER SCENE. KEEP THAT BEHIND THE SCENES.

SHARING SONGS WITH FANS WORLDWIDE AND GETTING RECOGNITION IS THE MAIN GOAL HERE……RIGHT?!

REAL LISTENING FANS WHO WANT TO HEAR QUALITY TRACKS MATTER SOOOOO MUCH! THEY GET YOUR SOUND ABOUT VIA WORD OF MOUTH! HOW CAN YOU NEGLECT THEM?!

FOCUS ON QUALITY…..

AND DJ’S WHO WANT TO SPIN TRACKS TO INCREASE RETRO BUZZ SHOULD NEVER BE IGNORED.

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS PEOPLE?

NEW JUST IN: NRW IS PLANNING ON SOMETHING BIG FOR THE FANS!!

NewRetroWave — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 22:44:00 +0000

YES…YOU GUYS HEARD IT HERE FIRST.

NRW IS CURRENTLY IN THE WORKS OF GETTING A NRW SPONSORED CLUB/ BAR IN BROOKLYN NYC!

WE ARE HOPING THAT ALL PLANS GO SMOOTHLY TO ALLOW FOR A SUMMER INTRODUCTION.

FOR THOSE IN OTHER CONTINENTS…IF THIS GETS APPROVED……WE WILL NEED YOUR SUPPORT TO MAKE THIS A SUCCESSFUL EVENT!!

THE DEMAND FOR THE RETROWAVE SCENE GROWS DAILY AND WILL SOON THE NUMBERS OF CLUBS THAT PLAY THIS MUSIC.

WE HOPE TO ADD TO THIS FOREFRONT.

MORE UPDATES TO COME!

NRW

😉

THIS WEEKS FREE DOWNLOAD IS…

NewRetroWave — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 00:15:00 +0000

NONE OTHER THAN….

LUNAR TROPICS

THE SOUND HE BRINGS IS VERY DARK AND MIDNIGHT NOIR. BUT SO CHILLED THAT…IT’S AMAZING.

TRACK NUMBER 2 IS ESPECIALLY WONDERFUL FOR A NIGHT CRUISE (YUP….WE SAID IT!!!)

ENJOY

The Lunar Tropics EP by Lunar Tropics

SUPPORT – http://lunartropics.bandcamp.com/album/the-lunar-tropics-ep.

THE SOUND OF INSPIRATION SPEAKS WONDERS!!

NewRetroWave — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:47:00 +0000

AKAHANDSDOWN HAS NOT ONLY GROWN IN HIS SOUND SINCE HIS DEBUT….BUT HE HAS NOW PRODUCED ONE OF HIS MOST INFLUENTIAL TRACKS TO DATE!!

ONLY 19 YEARS OF AGE.,…THIS YOUNG GUY IS READY TO TAKE THE REVIVAL SCENE BY STORM!!

LISTEN TO HIS NEW MASTERPIECE.

WHAT A CLASSIC THIS WILL BE!!

NRW

WHO IS THIS 80’s REVIVAL ARTIST?

NewRetroWave — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 00:09:00 +0000

YOU WILL NEVER GET THIS!!!

WHAT IS THE NAME OF THIS MUSICAL ARTIST WHO WE HAVE DESCRIBED BELOW?

(NOT THE ARTIST WHO MADE THE PICTURE)

“THE ONE THAT CAUSES A DISTUBANCE IN THE ORBIT OF A CELESTIAL OBJECT DUE TO HIS GRAVITATIONAL PULL.”

THINK HARD!!

MUAHAHHA

😉

NRW

80’S BABES!

NewRetroWave — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 23:15:00 +0000

HOTNESS