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Sonnymoon – 2012
Sonnymoon - 2012
Plug Records: 2012
“From outer space in the future directly to your eardrums.” That’s how Sonnymoon describes itself on Facebook, and nowhere is that more apparent than on their latest EP, 2012. While die-hard fans were surely hoping for a more proper (read: full-length) follow up to 2009’s Golden Age, this set of songs will certainly suffice in the meantime.
However, Anna and Dane don’t exactly pick up where they left off. Where Golden Age was quick, melodic and calculated with Anna’s lyrics lofting up into thin air, 2012 is sharp, slow and experimental, relying more on ambience and sonic aesthetics than actual song content. Anna’s vocals have slowed, in some instances, to stark contrast with the hasty drum (dare I say IDM) sequences.
On “Goddess” the percussion takes center stage over ambient vocals, which rest comfortably in the back. Just when you think the song is set to gallop, it doesn’t. It stalls. But this is all very much by design as the listener soon falls into the synth-powered, ethereal “Machinery” which goes so far as to cut clanging metallic sounds into the drums (which again are forged into the forefront of the music).
The highlight here comes on “Near Me”, which comes as close to a FlyLo clone as I may have ever heard. The track stays fresh as it stops and goes, changing tempo, all while Anna coos longingly in the distance.
The result is a sense of tension that has the listener on edge, just waiting for the album to blast off only to find out that it never leaves the ground. That’s not to say this is a bad EP – in fact quite the opposite; 2012 is the epitome of beauty in destruction.
That said, this EP will please those who liked Sonnymoon’s previous work, so long as you’re expecting to be able to let this music sit in the background. Those who want music that they can study and analyze may want to search elsewhere.
3.5 out of 5
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