Although this new EP from Dream Bodies is essentially the collecting together of three recent singles into one place, namely “Don’t Look Back, “Eclipse,” and “Dream Hangover,” plus two new pieces, it acts as a wonderful sonic overview of the band to date. While singles are, by their very name and nature, designed to venture out into the world and stand on their own two feet, they generally make more sense when they are seen within the context of a larger body of work, as is the case here.
Intriguingly, it is the two new compositions that front the EP: the short, dreamlike drift of “Blood Moon” and then the title track, a longer piece that balances dark, Bauhausian sonic intrigue with beguiling dance grooves, a blend of slow and seductive melodies riding over more urgent beats. These two pieces are the perfect build into the more immediate vibes of the three already familiar songs.
“Eclipse” is the sound of swirls of shimmering darkwave sound billowing around more direct post-punk deliveries, “Don’t Look Back” runs futuristic EDM energy through shaded and beguiling sonics and rich, Dave Vanian-esque baritone vocals, and “Dream Hangover” is truly cinematic, wide-screen and filmic, the perfect mix of musically graceful and sonically grand.
Darkwave music, which this undoubtedly is, has weathered the ravages of fashion more gracefully than its more obvious gothic sibling, perhaps because its digital DNA was always ahead of its time. Whereas gothic music has been buffeted by fad and fashion, all music of this kind has had to do is stay one step ahead of those who would seek to remold it in their own, diluted and dulled image.
Dream Bodies has always proven, even in their short existence, to be sure-footed enough to remain ahead of that curve.
Slundcloud
Bandcamp
Instagram
Spotify
YouTube
