Mini Review:
No Colour
‘Drive All Night’
End Transmission Recordings
The word drive and synthesizers seem to go hand in hand these days, as No Colour can attest on their latest EP ‘Drive All Night.’
No Colour, the Philadelphia based duo of Sean Green (vocals/lyrics) & Kevin McTague (production/sound design), deal in mood and the slow burn, choosing to build their songs layer by layer, synth by synth, and by utilizing the philosophy of addition & retraction. The group toes the line of many dark genres, from electro-goth to witch-house, with film-score like structuring.
“Black Veil” gets the album off to a thumping and sci-fi-like start and only gets more sinister as Green’s treated voice enters the fray. The vocals, atop the menacing sound bed, create an uneasy feeling, but in a Blade Runner-ish type of way.
“Fingers Crossed” gets downright dancey and benefits greatly from a burst of instrumental bliss, leading to some of the record’s most straightforward moments, while the wide open New Age meets New Wave of “Secret Devotion” brings in a whole new vibe. The most somberly paced track on the EP finds Green looking inward over McTague’s soundscape and channeling that inner Gahan/Gore ideal of faith & burden.
Early single “Pale Spectre” finds the duo dipping their toes in witch house’s blackened waters, further expanding upon their brand of electro goth-gaze. Dealing in blown out synth-scapes, “Pale Spectre” exudes some Cliff Martinez-like eeriness as Green laments: “This room is cold like midnight / An awful time of day / I stare at my reflection / But feel no recognition.”
“No Love Here” closes out the album in subtle and creepy fashion, with spoken word vocals looming over humming synths, creating the audio equivalent of the EP’s cover photo, dreary & nostalgic.
What No Colour accomplish on ‘Drive All Night’ was creating a space where specific sounds, clipped memories, and mood combine to overhaul the senses one song at a time.
