Showing posts with label Ummagma. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ummagma. Show all posts
May 7, 2019
Jan 25, 2018
Dec 3, 2017
Sep 22, 2017
Jul 17, 2017
Ummagma - LCD EP (2017) pre-order
Who says that you shouldn’t meet your heroes? Ummagma did and the result is
a stunning remix that also acts as the lead single for their forthcoming ‘LCD’
EP. After Robin Guthrie heard their track ‘Lama’, which originally
appeared on the band’s debut album ‘Antigravity’, mutual
friends put the band and the Cocteau Twins multi-instrumentalist in
touch. The result is this wonderful new version of the song, which sees him not
only re-arrange and re-mix the song but also add his own guitar parts into the
mix.
Ummagma are a band whose unlikely back story matches and
perfectly explains their mercurial music. Shauna McLarnon, a
vocalist from the Yukon wilderness and Alexander Kretov, a
multi-instrumentalist from small town Ukraine, met in the suburban sprawl of
Moscow after pursuing many solo adventures and exploring unusual pathways.
Bonding over their shared musical interests and fascinated by each other's
divergent musical backgrounds, Ummagma began as an affair with love and sound,
their relationship soon developing into both a musical and factual marriage. In
2013, Ummagma won the Alternative Eurovision on Amazing Radio,
representing Ukraine among 23 countries.
‘Lama’ exists in an alternate dimension of ambient drifts and
sonic textures that wash over you in gentle waves and then recede back into a
sonorous, twilight world of fading vapour trails of sound and vocals, seemingly
found between reality and possibility. This is a sound that Guthrie and his
fellow Cocteau Twins helped to pioneer and evolve throughout the 80’s – a sound
that still informs much of his work, though here, his trademark feedback
drenched guitar sound is used more to shimmer rather than shatter, to chime
rather than slash.
Ummagma ‘LCD’ involves not only one,
but two legendary musicians, the other being maverick electronic musician Dean
Garcia of Curve and SPC ECO fame.
Earlier this year, Ummagma co-released the 'Winter Tale'
maxi-single with yet another 4AD dreampop pioneer – A.R.Kane.
“I grew up listening to Cocteau Twins, Curve, and so many bands
from the 4AD and Creation labels, and then later introduced them to my husband.
He learned of them late, having been born in the USSR. We feel incredibly
honoured that Robin Guthrie and Dean Garcia have shaped several of our tracks
as they personally envision them,” says Shauna McLarnon.
As a calling card for the four-track EP to follow, ‘Lama’ is a
perfect sonic snapshot, capturing the bands core sound, their ambient heart,
and the often smoke-like musical sculptures they create. Dream pop, it would
seem, is deliciously back on the menu.
Ummagma ‘LCD’ will be released on September 22 via Label Obscura (cassette)
and Somewherecold Records (CD), and
is already available for pre-order on the duo’s own Bandcamp.
Mar 24, 2017
Jan 6, 2017
Dec 16, 2016
Oct 5, 2015
Oct 13, 2014
Ummagma - Kiev (Remixes) (2014)
Despite some heavy turmoil in Ukraine, synth pop post-punk crossover duo Ummagma are showing a solid footing, looking forward to a brighter future for Eastern Europe and humanity in general. In this release, this Canadian-Ukrainian team is observing their freedoms – exploring the root of today’s problems to create beauty in the face of hostility.
‘Kiev’ is not just the capital of Ukraine and the epicenter of massive civil unrest this year – this is the name of the duo’s new release, where they rise above the decay and mayhem encountered in that country to embrace diversity and beauty, while taking their music in new directions. Essentially, ‘Kiev’ is a message of hope.
Here they follow up their double A-side Rotation / Live and Let Die single and ‘Lama’ extended EP (released May) with an amazing package featuring the original ‘Kiev’ plus 9 remixes from 9 fantastic producers from nearly as many countries, celebrating the splendor of the original composition in their own unique styles.
Auxiliary tha Masterfader transforms the duo’s work into an Italoesque electro-disco-pop gem. A Copycat‘s handclap-dream-pop version is tender as a peach skin with a retro summer groove factor. Statickman‘s synths shoot like laser guns into the retro-synth future. A Copy For Collapse goes for a more experimental, industrial approach, while David Garcet‘s trippy chillwave edit brings downtempo bliss. Mikael Fas dishes up a beautiful trance-imbued deep house version. Celebrated Japanese chillwave artist Haioka takes everything to the next level with sounds reminiscent of an angelic playground. Sounds of Sputnik presents a stripped-down 90s indie version laced with synth-guitar harmony. Brazilian electro-child Mind Movies delivers a fragmented, dubby and loud breakbeat adaptation that probably comes closest to the actual stat e of mankind if we could listen to its rhythm.
The outcome shows that what is the end for one person may be the start for another. Even more important, it shows that beauty can blossom even in the midst of ugliness.
About Ummagma: Since forming in Moscow in 2003, this Canadian-Ukrainian duo has been living between Ukraine and Canada, simultaneously releasing 2 debut albums in 2012. In 2013, Ummagma won the Alternative Eurovision, hosted by Amazing Radio, from 21 countries and repeated the feat in 2014 on Pure FM. They received 2 awards at the 2013 Australian Independent Music Video Awards, often feature in The Scottish New Music Chart, and landed a full-spread feature in Rolling Stone Russia. Ummagma has also caught the attention of Robin Guthrie (Cocteau Twins) and Malcolm Holmes (OMD), who have remixed tracks for forthcoming release.
Aug 20, 2014
May 15, 2014
Apr 2, 2014
Feb 7, 2014
Nov 19, 2013
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