If there is a hallmark element to what we broadly term the gothic sound, it is the twin attack of those driving beats and relentless bassline working in unison. Hear that, and you are unmistakably in a recognizable place. Of course it isn’t as simple as that, and as anyone who has heard their recent album, F.I.V.E. (Fear Increases Violent Emotions), will be aware, Christine Plays Viola is a more complex beast than such a simple tag can cover, but it’s a start.
It is perhaps their ebb and flow between that gothic launch pad and more alt-rock guitar highs, the interplay between darkwave digital deftness and analog post-punk anthemics, lulls and crescendos, darkness and light… or at least an ever-shifting blend of shaded sonic hues, that defines the band’s quintessential sound.
As the video explains, this is the soundtrack to a surreal journey into the night, the lone driver fleeing his past, his memories, his demons as the world around him becomes ever more shattered and surreal.
Deliberately left off the F.I.V.E release, though very much part of that story, “At Last, I Found You” is not only a fantastic conclusion to that song cycle, it is the perfect introduction to their tour, kicking off in August and seeing Christine Plays Viola gigging across Poland, Spain, England and Germany with more dates to be announced.
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