SERENADES & DAMNATION (vinyl)

Description

For their first album 'Serenades & Damnation', DEAD CHIC continues to explore the hallmarks that have defined the band's identity until now. From the very first notes, there's no doubt, it's DEAD CHIC: cinematic flights of fancy, wide-open spaces, humidity, grit, and class: it's dark and chic. Ennio Morricone's ghost still hovers over the tracks, jolted by fuzz, sonic explosions, and incantations. Yet, the band pushes the boundaries even further and continues to explore unexpected horizons by drawing, notably, from Latin culture to create armies of creeping percussion, which one could imagine hearing on a procession night during the Day of the Dead in Mexico City. DEAD CHIC also turns eastward by inviting Istanbul-based singer Tugçe Senogul on a track as languid as it is epic, 'Mirage'. Listening to the 11 tracks, it's clear that this blend of influences is a leitmotif for the band, which draws on these sounds to create its own concoction, its own codes, and seeks to emancipate itself from a well-digested Western rock heritage. The live recording at Black Box studio (a true rock temple), captured by Peter Deimel, manages to transcribe the quartet's fire. The recording is enhanced by Flavien Van Landuyt, who delivers powerful mixes, highlighting the band's strong artistic choices. The listener is thus plunged right into the middle of the studio session with the four musicians, punctuated by a few exchanges heard here and there between takes, testifying to a precise and precious moment. DEAD CHIC thus delivers an intense, rich, and surprising debut album. From the depths to the highest peaks, 'Serenades & Damnation' is an immersive journey, an epic that has something sacred about it, in its intensity and fervor.