4/11/2023 0 Comments Wavemaker song![]() ![]() Ummagma: Alexander Kretov & Shauna McLarnon.Īnother Russian talent, Morozov, proposes his own radical change that reminds me, rather magnificently I should say, of OVO-era Peter Gabriel. There are a lot of moments on this one, like for instance the use of a rolling guitar lead-in at around 33 seconds, that make it a totally necessary addition to the record. Russian producer Oleg Mezherovsky offers up a kick ass version of the tune with disco/synth vibes that change the tune and ditch its original atmosphere, whilst capturing an entirely new sonic landscape. The Sputnik remix, in stark contrast, seems to contradict itself a little too much for my liking. There are a lot of subtleties on this version that make it quite fantastic, I might say. This mix removes a lot of the shoegaze elements and adds a trippier, more synthetic rhythm and clears up the vocals, bringing them to the forefront. First up is the Malcolm Holmes/Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark remix. I can just totally hear Eddie hollering this one out at full volume atop Stone and Mike’s guitars and unleashing a new concert favourite.įollowing these tracks, is the radio edit of the single, “New Born,” and no less than four very interesting remixes of that same song. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a cool tune as is, but it reminds me so much of Pearl Jam, it’s shoegaze execution just kind of wars with that vibe. The final original track is “Overdrive,” a fast-paced tune that would sound quite wicked if Pearl Jam covered it. The latter is a minory groove laced with heavily distorted guitars and brilliant sonic textures toward the end. I especially like the keyboards during the track’s introduction. The former presents a wonderfully morose drift through sci-fi country before lifting into dreamier stratospheres. “Blizzard” and “Shades of the Cosmos” are Roman Kalitkin solo tracks. The distant and haunting wailing of lead guitar kicks in just over halfway through to give everything a U2-meets-shoegaze kind of feel. The second tune, “Light Scheme,” is a duet between both Ummagma members and features some really memorable melodic guitar work. The nearly monotone melody is surprisingly catchy while staying low-key enough to allow the rest of the instruments to bleed together into a pool of intelligently composed shoegaze. Opening things up brilliantly is the first single and title track, “New Born.” Featuring beautiful keyboard work, soaring, atmospheric guitars, and glorious deadpan contralto vocals from Ummagma’s Shauna McLarnon, “New Born” is an instant shoegaze/dream-pop classic. In truth, there are five original songs here, two straight Sputnik tracks and three more featuring Ummagma, and the remainder of the album is filled out with several remixes of two of the ones featuring Ummagma. While New Born is billed as a full-length record, I’d more accurately label it an EP with bonus material. Kalitkin and the members of Ummagma lost contact over a decade ago when the latter moved out of Russia, but have reunited to bring us this interesting new release. The band quickly received attention (including that of our parent publication, Wave Maker Magazine) after releasing two full-length records in 2012. On the other side of the coin are Shauna McLarnon and Alexander Kretov, comprising Whitehorse-based Canadian/Ukrainian duo Ummagma, who feature prominently on the record. Sounds of Sputnik is the shoegaze/dream-pop project of Moscow-based alternative musician Roman Kalitkin, and our subject, New Born, is his debut solo album release. With increased tensions between Russia and North America as of late, I find it truly amazing that such a rift (if there is any, beyond whatever the fudge is going on between the political powers-that-be) be bridged by great, passionate, artistic music. A fine example of this is the subject of today’s review. Sure, music history is littered with great one-off projects that didn’t stand the test of time because of band infighting (Zwan, Badger, Audioslave, to name a few), but I like to think that for the most part, music and art are able to dissolve borders and other barriers better than almost anything. One doesn’t follow forward-thinking music without learning that music very often triumphs over people. ![]()
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