Turkish darkwave duo She Past Away ended their short U.S. run Sunday at the Echoplex, lending more to the ethereal atmospheric compositions of Part Time Punks in Los Angeles. Are certain cultural conglomerates leaving your soul empty and hungry for something more? Let the opaque aesthetic lead the way. Post-punk renews the webs around those mental record shelves.
Opening the night was the LA-based Aurat, synthwave duo whose Pakistani-American vocalist Azeka leads a black mass in Urdu. Her flowing gown of pitch darkness is accented gently by reflective bracelets and occasional beads. All were at attention as the band rattles the ground with heavy bass, resonating upward into the ribcage, the results of a charming ritual, no doubt. Stoicism took to rhythm guitar halfway through, introduced by our vocalist. By the end, the room is shook. Have we been resting on this act this whole time? Let’s put an end to it right now.
Listen to the recap via Sketched Sounds’ Podcast
Following Aurat was Texas duo (are you sensing a trend?) Twin Tribes. Heavy melodies reoccupied the murmuring room all the way back to the bar, where shadow dancing peppers the floor. These are notes new wave of the past so often missed. Nevertheless, we trace this progression in sound like a fossil record as the band play their 2018 full-length Shadows in its seeming entirety.
By now the cholo goths of our fair city are chiming in from the crowd. “Get it papi! Get that shit!” punctuates the night between tracks from one side of the floor while a voice from the other end declares its love for Joel Nino, Jr. on strings. “I said I fucking love you, Joel!”, the voice reassures as it evokes a smile from the musician. The audience is primed and ready for what comes next.
The long-awaited She Past Away took the stage around 10:30 to deafening applause. The Turkish duo (see?) released their third full length, Disko Anksiyete, this year to praise across the board. There is a darker approach taken by these guys in both vocals and percussion. There is something about listening to music in a foreign language that changes the game entirely. Abrupt lines are pushed through the mic in the band’s native tongue, leaving many of us to wonder if Duolingo offers lessons in Turkish. Ekmek ve su is not their style. What She Past Away offers is an exotic cuisine for a room void of entry-level goths. We are all on the same page here.
Check out more photos from the night, all by Justin Bieggar.
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