BALVANERA

The most recent release from Balvanera is a darkwave post-punk pleaser. Still, if the back beat were more prominent on the opening track, Medium, it would be an EBM track. But it sits in the background, like a bullet train in the distance barely discernible above the rumbling from the approaching storm. The fast BPMs and tight drum kits get even quicker on Gleams, however. Here, drum strokes sound more like a quickly shaking castanet creating a dark wave post punk mashup. Picture mohawks, leather jackets, pins, patches, rivets, chains and new rocks all sharing the same dance floor. The pace slows significantly on Scene, where the real brooding begins. The dancefloor becomes the province of posing and gesturing of aesthetically sensitive creatures of the night. New Ways might be called New Waves for the retro sound. Tide is more of the same with some interesting chord and octave shifts over its mere 1:22 length. My Mind Against Me returns to the “I want to be an EBM song” attitude of the opening track. But for the undercurrent of deep minor chord gloom, it might be just that. The beats are sharp and hit hard, certainly capable of conjuring some stomping, albeit of the depressed nature. The electronics and sequencing build all the way through Rust like they are in a hurry to hide the dead alien carcasses at the back of the warehouse. How Much Does the Body Resist finishes off the album with perhaps the most complete sound out of all the tracks. Of all the potential dance tunes, Balvanera present on this album this last one has the gravitas to actually get people out of their seats and onto the floor.

Charles “Chuck” MOORHOUSE
27/06/2022