Exposé Online banner

Exposé Online

Not just outside the box, but denying the existence of boxes.
Covering music from the fringes since 1993.

Reviews

Melt Motif — A White Horse Will Take You Home
(Apollon Records AP111, 2022, CD / LP / DL)

Melt Motif — Particles. Death Objective
(Apollon Records AP153, 2023, CD / LP / DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2023-05-01

A White Horse Will Take You Home Cover artParticles. Death Objective Cover art

Melt Motif is an international trio featuring two Norwegian musicians and a Brazilian. In some ways, the group fits the trip-hop pattern of a female vocalist and a male instrumentalist, though they have moved far beyond that core, both stylistically and in their means of production, becoming something of a modern take on the band Garbage. Rakel Greve’s voice is of the breathy, ethereal variety, making even sinister lyrics sound like lullabies. Kenneth Rasmus Greve plays keyboards and guitars, and handles programming and production; Joe Irente plays bass and guitar as well as producing. Their music ranges from subtle electronic pop to intense, almost industrial rock, and the contrasts between the extremes make the music endlessly fascinating. Certainly the juxtaposition of soothing vocals and aggressive backing instruments is nothing new, but Melt Motif has a way of doing it that feels really original. One factor that helps is the occasional surrealistic touches, like the warped piano sound in “Andalusian Dog.” And there’s some really cool processing on the voice in “Black Hole.” A White Horse Will Take You Home was their 2022 debut, and it’s chock full of catchy melodies, crunchy beats, electronic twists, and overdriven guitars. And now their sophomore album is here as well. Particles. Death Objective (yes, the period after Particles is part of the title for some reason) brings us another set in the same vein, ten tracks filled with similar creative touches. Ranging from the high energy of “Where I Want to Die” to the moody floating of “I’m Gone” and the plodding intensity of “Fever,” Particles is one of the best pop albums of the year so far, and a great addition to the body of contemporary electronic music.

Filed under: New releases, 2022 releases, 2023 releases

Related artist(s): Melt Motif

More info
http://meltmotif.bandcamp.com

 

What's new

These are the most recent changes made to artists, releases, and articles.