Shades: Clear Motions
Shades: Clear Motions– Shades are a 4-member band from Boise, ID. Drawing inspiration from chill wave artists like Small Black and Washed Out, Shades make their strong debut on Synthemesc. While chill wave is still in it’s infancy, there’s always going to be room for someone with a new perspective. But, while Shades’ style can be compared to the aforementioned bands, they do manage to establish a distinct sound and vision that set themselves apart…
In fact, you could say they’ve taken their favorite elements from chill wave in general and molded them into something entirely their own. While tracks like Run Up and Y.G. United had bouncier bass lines that reminded me a bit of Toro Y Moi, tracks like Call The Cops and Ghostlike had lighter and airy qualities to them that were absolutely gorgeous. Then you look at tracks like Posture Pt 2 and Hard Fall and you see a more basic side to them where they favor straight-forward beats and synths. As the record progresses, it becomes apparent that if there’s one thing you can say about Clear Motions is that it’s anything but one-dimensional.
All in all, Shades’ debut didn’t disappoint me in any way. On the contrary, it exceeded every expectation I had and is one of the easiest listens I’ve experienced this year. To their credit, Synthemesc has easily become one of the most impressive places to find new and ambitious electro talent and Clear Motions is yet another prime example of that. Emotion-driven chill wave with infectious beats and melodies…9.1/10
Builds.