Not every day do you get to hear music from a duo borne out of “experiencing acute shared hallucinations in a seemingly haunted motel in Montana and enduring a series of show cancelations, forest fires, and other freak incidents.” But that’s exactly what prompted Laura Callier (a.k.a. Gel Set) and Whitney Johnson (a.k.a. Matchess) to band up for a slew of live shows, and eventually, an album.
Now, the two electro artists are about to release their newest collaborative tape as Simulation, Death’s Head Speaks, coming June 21 via Hausu Mountain.
Callier and Johnson, known for introspective synth-driven dance music and meandering ambient noise, respectively, together deliver a vision of deconstructed-yet-melodic avant-garde sonic playgrounds, somehow concurrently hinting at choral music, EBM, and industrial. While both share vocal and production duties equally, Callier takes care of the electronics while Johnson handles the more traditional instrumentation. All in the service of laying out “a view of modern life equally blessed and encumbered by the capabilities of constant interconnectivity.”
The tape (as well as its digital image in the obscure “MP3” format) can be pre-ordered here. Below, listen to the first fragment that’s been made available, slowly-enveloping “How the Universe is With You.”
Death’s Head Speaks tracklisting:
01. Canceling/Smoothing
02. The Wind Touched Your Face
03. Everyone Goes Down the Spiral Staircase
04. The Reverse Can Be Said
05. How the Universe Is With You
06. If the Light Cannot Escape