Syntaks
(Ghostly International)
The surplus of featherweight guitar tones and gentle beats on Syntaks' debut LP for Ghostly should garner Slowdive references by the truckload. Shoegazer talk fits this Danish duo well, and Ylajali's long-lingering synths trail on for miles, never disturbing a soul.
Syntaks cribbed the name Ylajali from the late 19th century book Hunger by Norwegian writer Knut Hamsun, whose legacy remains clouded due to his promotion of German Nazi ideology. Hamsun's poisonous politics haven't prevented literary circles from celebrating his artistic vision, which is precisely where Syntaks aimed when they recorded Ylajali down the street from the Nobel Prize winner's writing room.
Ylajali is less difficult than debates over Knut Hamsun. In piecing together their mild ambient pop, Syntaks members Jakob Skøtt and Anna Cecilia piled on late 90s synth sounds until everything was serene and liberally textured. They stray only somewhat from the Cocteau Twins' crowded backyard for the Kompakt-guided "Buio Omega" and "Blue Sunshine". Cecilia's vocals are soft and wordless on Ylajali, fusing perfectly with the album's blanket of swirls and delicate guitar lines. While the formula is successful, it's dissonant trials like "The Shape of Things to Come" that land Syntaks on a more sinister and provocative avenue of contemporary shoegaze - even if the Slowdive tag still sticks.
Standout Tracks: "The Shape of Things to Come," "Phantasmogoria" DOMINIC UMILE
