From the opening note of MSEA’s “Mouth of the face of the sea,” the stage is set. A pained, reverse-delayed guitar calls out to the listener, but the pounding, grimy drums kick in before a response can be constructed. From there, the track blossoms into a haunting tapestry complemented by Maria-Carmela Raso’s chilling vocals. “How do we remove all of the dirt from our past?” asks MSEA. As the lyrics dive further into regret and grime, the instrumental swells and explodes into an iconic chorus that my mind could not abandon for days.
The soundscape of the chorus asks, “What would it sound like if Goldfrapp was inserted into the Matrix?” — in the best way possible. The reverb of guitars and synths creates an unsettling air, though one that quickly retreats as the vocals again take centre stage. As the track crescendos towards its climax, wailing background vocals and even greater layers of ghostly synths burst open into a beautiful equilibrium between beauty and discomfort, as self-described by MSEA.
The track turns into an unnerving scene featuring blood-curdling strings and grinding synths. Should MSEA’s new album, Our daily apocalypse walk, bear this same horror pop flame, then it will be promising indeed.
