Ice Choir - Afar [CD]

80's production married to 19th century poetic influences, simultaneously disengaged and deeply personal, Ice Choir's debut album 'Afar' revels in the multiple contradictions it presents to listeners. This is a record that sounds like it was tracked thirty years ago in a $5,000 a day studio: all sheen, synths, compressed guitars, and digitally revived vocals. Yet it's as bedroom and laptop as any; written and produced on the road and out of suitcases for the past twelve months by Kurt Feldman. Indeed, part of it's genius is this unyielding commitment to subverting expectations. Rather than engaging in crude revivalism, Afar challenges conventional perceptions of 80's techno-pop, highlighting it's musically progressive and literate roots and re-imagining them to create a startlingly original sound.