Man, what a time to be alive if you’re a fan of synthwave. There’s artists like Mr Kitty and TR/ST continually killing it, groups like SURVIVE getting mainstream attention through Stranger Things and the master of horror himself, John Carpenter, putting out fresh and compelling sounds…hell, The Faint even released new music this year as they celebrated their seventeenth anniversary.
And now we have Scandroid, the brainchild of Celldweller’s Klayton which is described as his “love letter to the ’80’s” and boy is it! And so much more. It’s noir! It’s synth! And yes, that ’80’s air is there also but let’s not just harp on that because Scandroid also dwells in the future as much as it gives nods to the past.
But I digress.
Let’s get this out of the way first: Forget Scandroid’s rad cover of the Tears For Fears classic “Shout”. Sure, it’s amazing. We get it. But this album has so much more than that so let’s focus on that then.
If you’ve ever wondered what the Escape From New York theme would sound like if someone came up with some appropriate lyrics then opener “2517” is your definitive answer. From there it’s blissful amounts of programmed beats and synthetic atmospheres beginning with dance-tastic “Salvation Code” and ending with the Tron-like instrumental, “Singularity”.
Sandwiched between those awesome slices of synthesized digital bread are a plethora of tracks that won’t give fans a chance to rest their dancing shoes. Whether it’s Klayton’s smooth croon during the driving “Aphelion”, the smooth sax that permeates throughout “Atom & E.E.V.” like a Glenn Frey jam off the Miami Vice soundtrack or the absolute wall of synthetic sound that “Datastream” brings, Scandroid will definitely not leave you hanging in the new awesome sounds for your earholes department.
Scandroid is out now! You can get yours here and here. And for the nostalgia seekers (You know, peeps who like physical products), head here to get it.