I make no secret of loving early ’90s music, so I’m being totally spoiled by this shoegaze revival that seems to be under way at the moment. I mean, obviously I’m one of the people who would say that it never went away, but for once the rest of the world seems to be agreeing with me.
It seems safe to assume that Danny Provencher also enjoys early ’90s music. Either that, or he is an artist in the somewhat awkward position of hating his own output. I’m going to just assume the former. He’s been singing along to records since he was a kid – unfortunately none of this formative material survives today – but these days releases luscious, swirly guitar/electronica noise as Under Electric Light.
Inspired by the likes of New Order, The Beach Boys and Slowdive, Under Electric Light has been putting out EPs since 2002, and has just released a full length album, “Waiting For The Rain To Fall”. Clocking in at a little over half an hour, you might describe it as small but perfectly formed. I still tend to insist on listening to albums rather than tracks at a time, so I always appreciate when an artist has put a bit of thought into structure and pacing. From the Jesus And Mary Chain-esque beginnings of “Take Me Away” and the title track, to it’s more Postal Service sounding conclusion (Listen to “Anyhow”, and then “Recycled Air”. Is it just me?), things fit.
As a brief aside: is it just me, or are a lot of bands who are self-releasing in the States getting snapped up by labels in Japan? If anyone mentions Spinal Tap at this point … well, I won’t disagree, exactly. But I do think it’s a shame. The point, though, is that “Waiting For The Rain To Fall” was put out by Fastcut Records in Japan; self-released via Bandcamp everywhere else.
This was my first encounter with Under Electric Light, but I’m hoping it won’t be my last. Have a listen to “Someone Somewhere” below, or do the right thing and head over to his Bandcamp page straight away.
Connect with Under Electric Light: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Soundcloud | Bandcamp
