The latest from makers of ‘electronica with soul’ Scenius is a haunting moving track. It does this despite – and let’s be honest incredibly skillfully – being made up of some strident retro synth sounds.
A big part of this is Fab Nau’s vocals which are filled with quiet emotion. The other part is the use of subtly warped synth sounds – which have me in mind of Eno, Foxx, Japan and Blancmange – synth washes that sit way way back in the mix and a slow pulsing rhythm. But while their music uses both the instruments and feel of the first wave of electronic music in reality their influences cross the years right until now. Influences that perhaps the duo acknowledge in the song – ‘we like old and we like new’.
What the song is about they haven’t said; so it’s over to us to make our interpretation. For me, and I may be wrong, at least part of the song is about them. But on the other hand, it seems to have some wider meaning.
This is a deceptively simple song on first listen but the more you listen you begin to go deeper into the sounds and words; until it is firmly embedded in your head. This is classic electronica with something all of its own; soul, heart, feeling and a haunting beauty.
The info
The duo is composed of UK producer Steve Whitfield (The Cure, The Mission, Yann Tiersen…) and French singer Fab Nau.
Following a series of singles released in 2020, Scenius’s debut album received worldwide critical acclaim and radio plays.
In 2021 they remixed tracks for BlakLight (US) and Projekt Ich (DE) and got remixed by Nature of Wires (UK), Klammer (UK) and Black Boiler (FR). The duo also contributed that year a track to the Generation Blitz compilation
In 2022, Scenius – initially a studio project – have become a live band, playing a series of gigs in France. A live EP was released in May along with the complete video footage of their very first gig.
The duo is now finishing the last tracks to their second album due out in January 2023.
