It's difficult to decide whether to Toronto chillout duo Southern Shores are reviving the Balearic beats of the 90s (or even the late 80s, you can hear acts like The Beloved in these tracks) or whether to consider them part of the recent chillwave explosion. Or are they just a less enigmatic and dreamy cousin to jj's similarly inspired Mediterranean beats and sparkles? The answer is probably all three. 'New World' is their second EP and any of these tracks would slot onto a Ministry Of Sound chillout compilation from any point in the past couple of decades. The sounds are all very light and soft-focus, the beats are gentle and slightly dubby at times and keys and vocals drift in and out giving the EP a very fluid feel, almost as if the gaps between the songs are just there as a token gesture.
As such it's difficult to dissect the separate songs. There are subtle differences; 'Sankasa' almost explores old-school hip-hop of the variety that Nenah Cherry incorporated into her early work. 'New Love' a swirling fog of sounds held together by the beat upon which they're entwined. This EP is a summer hangover cure in musical form with the likes of 'Flashes' and 'Purple Skies' washing through you and requiring little effort from your recovering mind. 'Breathe' takes us right back to the beginning of the genre, that piano line being a continuation of hundreds of similar tracks that have passed before it. If you're a bit depressed that the leaves are turning brown and the nights are drawing in then Southern Shores have just the right kind of refreshing sounds to take you back to those warm and sunny nights and keep the glow of summer burning just a little bit longer.
Southern Shores' website
Pre-order the EP
For more news, reviews and downloads follow The Sound Of Confusion on Facebook or Twitter
soundofconfusion@hotmail.co.uk
No comments:
Post a Comment