Track Of The Day Tåsen Tea Party
New wave | Post-punk | Indie rock from Oslo, Norway INSPIRED BY JOY DIVISION.
The member of HRK ‘does not hide behind a finger’ as we use to say in Italy, openly clarifying his beautiful obsession.
Personally, I have never been ‘plagued’ by particular fixations, even if I obviously love some bands more than others, mine was more of an aesthetic kind, like the complete collection of all 7 “original singles of the Jam, the Buzzcocks or the Clash, but I don’t think I would have ever been as interested if the covers had been all the same, I still have in mind my disappointment when the first The Strokes 7” with plain white cover arrived in the mail.
On Joy Division I arrived a bit late, attracted, as often happened, given the scarcity of information, by the cover of “Closer” on display in my scarce hometown record shop, and some words on the only monthly underground publication, almost a fanzine, of the time. But I was immediately struck down, one of those rare moments in which a spark lights up, forever marking your imagination and your musical growth, embedded in your memory in clear details; others will follow, until they fade completely into the new millennium. “Closer” was, above all, the perfect fit soundtrack for the decadent gloomy romanticism that often, as a young teenager, burdened me.
But let’s move on to our Norwegian studio project by Tåsen, started out in late 2020 and permeated by the epic, the attitude and the lyrical and sonic aesthetic of the iconic Mancunian post-punk pioneers.
I must admit that I wasn’t too convinced by the band’s early beginnings on Soundcloud, however, a sort of demos, but after having patiently tested and perfected a fair number of songs, the string of 3 singles dropped in the last week, shows of possessing an own meaning and depth.
As a product of a one-man-session, fully digital, except the vocals, the mechanical drum machine takes away rhythmic fluidity, just as it is a big loss the lack of the distinctive bleak melodic hook of the trancey throbbing bass in the foreground, albeit JD’s taut minimalism and the distinctive sense of space are retained, creating a dark, somber and melancholic atmospheric sound, equally intense and moving.
Dire and painful slow burn, “The Next” grows gradually in forlorn intensity and pace, driven by lashing, obsessive beats along with pulsating deep bassline, crossed by an ominous percolating electronic core, and awash in sparse icy bright synth swirls to create a dismal and desolate atmosphere, repeatedly ripped apart by achingly sharp guitars embroidering poignant strident melodies around weak, spectre-like vocals longing in haunted suffering, dissipating desperately into the rapturous tides of fate.
A persuasive and well-crafted debut. Still too early to discern possible personal qualities, but the integrity, emotions and a certain romance of the original have been entirely preserved. Just the dull and monochromatic cover art should be curated more.
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