Flicker

Death and Vanilla return with ‘Flicker’, presenting their unique pop music that defies categorisation. Housed in a beautifully austere post-ironic de-constructed sleeve; ‘Flicker’ is a modern reflection on these difficult times. World crises notwithstanding, they return reborn, re-arranged and revitalised after assimilating dub reggae, the motorik spirals of Can, the modal meander of Philip Glass and The Cure’s dreamier pop sounds; plus the twice removed symphonic ambience of Spiritualized and Talking Heads under heavy manners from Brian Eno. By osmosis their period of transition since 2019’s much darker ‘Are You A Dreamer?’ has hatched new eclectic electronica anthems riddled with melody lines, and layered for lush love. Forming in Malmö, Sweden, Death And Vanilla gravitated towards vintage musical equipment; from vibraphone, organ and mellotron, to tremolo guitar and Moog synthesisers. Soaking up soundtracks from the 60s and 70s, listening to library music, kosmiche, French Ye-ye pop and 60s psych, Marleen Nilsson, Anders Hansson and Magnus Bodin were fashioned by the city’s austere industrial past and flat pack present, and all in the shadow of the Orsesund Bridge that links their dreamworld to mainland Europe and a darker reality. “Deploying vintage instruments in their quest for melancholic utopia.” Electronic Sound Death And Vanilla at once sound like everything is possible; but nothing else at all. There is a flicker of hope for everyone.

In the decade-plus during which Death and Vanilla have been making records, they've helped carry on a tradition of psychedelic music spearheaded by groups like Stereolab and Broadcast in the 1990s that fits snugly in the middle of the Venn diagram where eerie soundtrack music meets bright indie pop, moody indie rock, and chugging proto-prog as invented by the Germans in the early '70s.

It’s not easy these days to distinguish yourselves from a crowded field of talented dream pop artists, but Swedish outfit Death and Vanilla have been ardently doing just that since the release of their self-titled debut in 2012.