In the realm of ethereal feminine vocals over rumbly, sparkly machines, Canada is giving Scandinavia a good run. Similar in genre to Grimes, Austra and Braids, yet distinctive in her goal is Hamilton’s Jessy Lanza, getting a big assist from Jeremy Greenspan of Junior Boys. Synthesizers were strange, then dominant, oppressive even in the 1980s. To this generation, they are bargain gizmos to be made new, with conventional melody an afterthought. On “Fuck Diamond,” loops get repeated but with continuous variations hard, soft and deep. A deep dance groove finally surfaces on “Keep Moving” as if to show that’s just one way to feel it.
This article appears in Oct 3-9, 2013.