Ramona Lisa - Arcadia (video)

Caroline Polachek, the prolific frontwoman of Chairlift, the Dev Hynes, Jorge Elbrecht, Washed Out collaborator, and Beyonce songstress is materialising once again, with a new solo project by the name of Romona Lisa. Based on this first single, Polachek (or Lisa) is in the business of conjuring up misty Avant Garde melodies centred around synthetic pads and haunting vocalizations. This nouveau sound swirls somewhere between Gregorian chant and Vashti Bunyan. What is it that Polachek is pining for? No one knows. But one thing IS for sure: this new LP is bound to be to riddled with mystery....

Snowbird - Porcelain

The glittering flames that are the legacy of Cocteau Twins, have been rekindled with this haunting ballad by Snowbird. Stephanie Dosen, who's vocal territory is somewhere between Erica Foster and Elizabeth Fraser, joins former Cocteau Twins mastermind, Simon Raymonde. With this jam I keep hoping some spectre of a guitar is going to jangle into the foreground, but instead we get a few wisps of a piano, played beneath Dosen's voice. This is not a club banger, but it is pretty neat!

Japan - Ghosts

One of the most aptly titled creep-pop songs of the last 40 years, Ghosts demonstrated a complete metamorphosis for Japan from Avant Garde Glam stars to nuanced New Romantics. Ghosts was released in 82',two years before Depeche Mode, put out similar sounding and slow building Blasphemous Rumours. Relying on virtually zero rhythm section, the song unwinds around a series of unconventional synth patches and David Sylvian's esoteric, baritone vocal delivery. Despite its bizarre melodies, this single proved by a top 10 hit, one of only 2 that the band ever had. Bellow is a terrific 'live' performance of the track where Sylvian seems to glow with a ghostly hue, as the haunting tune floats out into the ether. DIG IT::::