Following their successful "Years EP", the Guelph, Ontario, dreampop duo, is making a new strong impression with this 7inch, proving again that they completely stand apart from the swarming chillwave scene and are probably promised to a bright future.
I was doubtful at first listen because these two songs are less a love at first sight and need just more accommodation time before revealing their nuances and strength, and leaving me, in a state of bliss.
"Floating into the Night" era Julee Cruise is an obvious reference but far from being an emulation, Nicole Nouvion's presence and vocal performance add an authenticity and a strength Julee Cruise never reached. Still dreampop & ethereal but more laid back, Memoryhouse delivers here two wonderful indie melodies, confirming the previous praise.
There is definitely an alchemy between the vocals and the music and I'm sure that if the two were separated, the magic wouldn't work. Denise can translate something mysterious with ingenuousness, her voice is both seductive and saddened, vivid and efficient. The comparison might be out of style of color but it's a feeling I also have with Ben Gibbard, the leader of Death Cab For Cutie. Both are not intimate or personal in a too emotional way, but they share is a strong incarnation of artists alive, graceful with the colors of their voices, concerned and clear-sighted.
But Memoryhouse wouldn't exist without the subtle, efficient dreampop compositions of Evan Abeele, secrete intelligence and sensitivity, who knows and masters his classics from both 4AD & Darla catalogs, and who started to add his own ones to the list. If you have your little foibles for The Cocteau Twins, Auburn Lull or Slowdive, Memoryhouse is the perfect place to go.
Already a classic indeed.
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