Poltergeists is a biweekly feature in which Michael and Wes share tracks that they have had on repeat over the past two weeks.
Michael
Aviator - “There Was a Light (It Went Out)”
“I will not be swayed from curiosity.” I feel such a huge wave of wanderlust sweeping over me, as I start a new path in my life, and strive to make a place for my own personality again after so many months of feeling bummed out and stuck by the scene that we all rant about - not to mention my own life decisions. This song encapsulates everything that I am feeling at the moment. I feel old. I feel like I have stuck myself in a chair, looking out the window at a bright world flashing by in seconds. It makes me want to get up and leave in the best way that I could ever imagine. “I want to see myself that way just one more time.”
Cœur de Pirate - “Pilgrims on a Long Journey”
I found Cœur de Pirate (Pirate Heart) by searching the “French” tag in Bandcamp because apparently I have francophilia lately. I really like the soundtrack quality of this somber piece. The entire album is like this. It is really beautiful music and I feel a strong connection with it. I would encourage you to take a listen if you really like instrumental pieces or soundtrack music.
Wes
S U R V I V E - “Hourglass”
I kind of got off my outrun kick a while ago. The genre seemed to be getting overinflated with boring cyberpunk tracks that all sounded like too close of variations on a theme, and not enough original, interesting takes on the theme; alternatively, it was going hard on Stallone, when I wanted Carpenter.
I don’t think that S U R V I V E self labels as outrun, and maybe that’s why their music seems to speak to me a little easier that most outrun these days. The beat is constant, unflinching four on the floor, with just these little plucks of bass and lead playing away at your ears. There’s nothing aggressive about it, at least not aggressive the in way that Carpenter Brut or Perturbator might be. It just pulls you along with its little plucks and morphing pads, rife with analog drift. “Hourglass” is night drive music at its best.
L'Enfant De La Forêt - “The Birth of All Evil”
Speaking of Perturbator! It was always clear to me that James Kent had some very clear industrial influences in Perturbator, and through his side-project L'Enfant De La Forêt he is letting those influences show through a little more.
“The Birth of All Evil” is an excellent example of Kent’s talents at building atmosphere; this talent, I believe, is the key to his success with Perturbator, and it arguably shows through more evidently in L’Enfant. When you strip away the outrun excess of Perturbator, you’re left with haunting textures morphing into each other. It gets you moving to the edge of your seat, waiting to hear what happens next. If Perturbator is a soundtrack for a Johnny Mnemonic style thriller, L’Enfant De La Forêt is more Bladerunner; it gets into your head.