Ex-Junior Boys’ Johnny Dark expands his electro pop repertoire in association with vocalist San Serac the debut album from Stereo Image – S/T out on the Frog Man Jake label. Writing music together since 2006, this North American duo have developed an impressive sound that takes electro pop on an outing into a fresh new direction.
While I wasn’t a huge fan of Dark’s work with the Junior Boys, which I felt was often a little too cold and impersonal, I was immediately won over by this debut release from Stereo Image. S/T is a release that doesn’t pull any punches, moving both body as well as mind as it re-explores and reinvents eighties electro synth pop.
Nu-electro pop producers often run the risk of neglecting the bass in favour of a cleaner digital sound, however the tunes on S/T manage to get the best of both worlds, staying true to an electro pop aesthetic without forgetting the bottom end.
Serac’s vocals draw comparisons to a Low-era David Bowie or Human League’s Phil Oakey, his clipped singing and spoken vocals complementing Dark’s production througout.
The opening track Clamoring sets the scene for this quality release, a dirty bassline dissected by a digital sonar ping and vocal repetition quickly had me nodding along with the beat. Tracks such as Double Mirror pour on a solid dose of Germanic cool, spoken vocals with backdrop of sharp digital clicks and the usual well rounded basslines. Pack Moves is another standout track on the release mixing Bowie-esque vocal stylings with Moroder style electro production values.
S/T is a standout release that makes the most of the synergies between San Seracs vocal style and Dark’s preminent electro nu-step production and is definitely worth a listen and a place on your personal playlist.
Gordon Finlayson
