Pale Blue House | Deep House 3 Items

Electronic duo Pale Blue return to Crosstown Rebels with ‘No Words’, the second single from their forthcoming album ‘Maria’, with remixes from DJ Tennis and Perel.

Italians Do It Better founder Mike Simonetti and Silver Hands’ Elizabeth Wight’s rich and storied careers within the electronic realm and beyond only elevated further with the launch of their Pale Blue project in 2015, unveiling a series of critically acclaimed releases via Simonetti’s 2MR imprint with plaudits including Pitchfork, Fact and Resident Advisor, to name just a few. Having provided the first look into their forthcoming album on Crosstown Rebels entitled ‘Maria’, scheduled for release on the label later this year, the pair return to open March with the second single from the project, ‘No Words’ - accompanied by remixes from DJ Tennis and Perel.

Detailing the backstory to the record, Simonetti notes both upcoming single ‘No Words’ and the majority of the tracks on the duo’s forthcoming album project were made on the exact synths used to create Jaydee’s iconic 1993 hit, ‘Plastic Dreams’.

Guided by a captivating bassline accented by Wight’s charming vocals, which flutter amongst the mix, ‘No Words’ is a hooky and compelling production that ebbs and flows across its near five-minute duration with effortless ease, capturing the playful nature alluded to by Simonetti. Life and Death head honcho DJ Tennis’ remix arrives next, veering down a hazy yet absorbing path as crisp organic drums and engrossing melodies form around the vocals and journey through light and dark textures.

The B-side of the record belongs to DJ/producer, vocalist and DFA Records favourite Perel, offering a cosmic dive through spacey synths, skittering bleeps and pops, and tough kicks across her take on the production - before distorting and warping the vocals and shifting the emphasis on the ever-evolving electronics across her ‘Dub Version’. Inner Glow takes the controls for Rk18, treating the DJs and dancers to a high grade house triptych. It's a pulsing, exuberant of heads-down & tripped-out jams, tailor made for the night.

Electronic duo Pale Blue returns to Crosstown Rebels with their long-awaited sophomore album ‘Maria’, revealing a spellbinding eight-track trip across electronic spheres.

After forming their critically acclaimed Pale Blue project with their debut album ‘The Past We Leave Behind’ in 2015, Mike Simonetti (Italians Do It Better) and Elizabeth Wight (Silver Hands) have only furthered intrigue and interest in the years since, uniting for a series of expansive EPs on Simonetti’s own 2MR imprint exploring dancefloor-focused acid through to gripping electronica. Having already offered a first look and preview into their long-awaited album return via three singles on the label, with remixes provided by DJ Tennis, Kölsch, Fort Romeau and Perel, mid-May sees Simonetti, and Wight finally reveal their sophomore album ‘Maria’ on Damian Lazarus’ Crosstown Rebels - offering a uniquely raw yet seamlessly polished trip into their idiosyncratic world.

“‘Maria’ is an album of love songs - the good, the bad, and the ugly… The album is written entirely in Elizabeth’s voice. These are all her words - her thoughts, based on her personal experience. When writing this record I took inspiration from classic rock LP sequencing, and tried to dial in on a coherent concept, a natural flow. Although these are clearly techno tracks, one would argue they have more in common with rock music than dance music. I wanted to try make something a little different, verse/chorus/verse tracks but still heavy enough for the club, full of melody and emotion… poppy but not That kind of poppy. Pale Blue has been known to take on political subject matter in the past, but the politics of love is something we can all relate to.” - Mike Simonetti.

Opening with the slow-blooming and beautifully crafted dreamlike melodies of the aptly titled ‘Spells’, the eight-track long-player navigates and traverses the broader realms of electronica through to lighter pop-influenced touches and sonics for an absorbing and compelling dive. ‘Dive’, the first single from the project, provides a hazy but resonant web of polyrhythms and textures guided by Wight’s captivating vocals, while ‘Laura’ reaches for sparkling leads synths amongst sweeping tones and moments of bliss. Offering up change to the aesthetic ‘Ice Is Falling’ is a stripped-back and haunting production as Wight’s vocals carry eerie tones and pockets of space for a hair-raising effort.

The second half of the project welcomes second and third singles ‘No Words’ and ‘Together Alone’, with the playful tones of the former complementing the wistful and floaty soundscapes of the latter for two tracks to keep listeners in a trance. Closing out the package, ‘The New Year’ is a delightfully worked pop-leaning gem built on electronic foundations with a slinking acid-tinged bassline snaking through the mix, before shaping things up with the anthemic and rosy glow of final track ‘The Last Song’.

Further emphasising Simonetti and Wight’s innate connection and bond when creating and crafting music, ‘Maria’ is an exemplary display of the two at their best across a collection of eight productions straddling the electronic-pop border with poise and aplomb.

Pale Blue unveil the penultimate single from their forthcoming album on Crosstown Rebels with ‘Together Alone’, accompanied by a driving and hypnotic remix from Kölsch. Artists with renowned solo careers alongside their ever-evolving journey as the critically acclaimed duo Pale Blue, Mike Simonetti and Elizabeth Wight continue to showcase why their collaborative material is much-loved from all corners of the electronic realm and beyond. Arriving on the heels of the release of the playful and charming ‘No Words’, the pair return to Damian Lazarus’ Crosstown Rebels with the third and penultimate single ahead of their forthcoming album release as they switch up the mood and veer into wistful territories across the absorbing ‘Together Alone’ - backed by a remix from Kompakt mainstay and electronic heavyweight, Kölsch. A carefully created journey across almost eight minutes, ‘Together Alone’ is an exemplary showcase of balance and restrain as delicate melodies and hazy tones float amongst subtle nimble percussion arrangements, blooming synths and Wight’s captivating vocals for a deep dive into dreamy spheres. Bringing his own take to the record, Danish electronic pioneer Kölsch heads to Crosstown Rebels with his excellent crafted ‘I Have You’ remix, as he builds on the original with a powerful and emphatic introduction of anthemic leads, crisp kicks and a warping bassline rooted at the track’s core to transport the production firmly into the heart of the dancefloor.