Salem^(US)

John Holland, Heather Marlatt en Jack Donoghue leerden elkaar kennen in Chicago in 2008 en vormen sindsdien het eclectische Salem. Hun stijl omschrijven is moeilijk, maar de platenfirma heeft het toch eens geprobeerd: "They evoke certain elements of ethereal shoegaze, withdrawn Houston Screw and production qualities akin to the frenetic delivery of contemporary Southern rap and Chicago footwork." (IAMSOUND)Eind september brachten ze eindelijk hun eerste cd King Night, dat door modehuis Givenchy als soundtrack werd gebruikt bij hun fashionshow in Parijs. Hun debuutalbum kan op zeer goede recensies rekenen:"Een gestoorde, verontrustende en uiterst originele plaat." (De Standaard, 23 oktober 2010)"The emotion of it is overwhelming. Sumptuous bleeding noise. Silk beat hurricanes wearing diseased hearts on sleeves. Arresting and aching. Star-crossed music that breaks and re-shapes. Beautiful, shattered. Salem are damaged goods in amazing, soulful, startling ways." (Dummy mag)"You can call this drag or witch house if you like but regardless of its genre tag this is monumental." (NME)"the most alluring thing about the Michigan trio remains their propensity for raw, affecting overtures that almost universally hypnotise." (Opening Ceremony)Je kan 2 liedjes van hun debuutalbum, namelijk 'Asia' en 'King Night', hier downloaden.Ze speelden op CMJ 2010 (de New Yorkse versie van SXSW) en kregen daar goede commentaren:"They played a set as murky and imposing as the smoke-machine haze that enveloped it." (Live@Leeds)"Has Salem opened up a new authentic artistic space?" (Hipster Run Off)"ultra-packed venue" (Prefix Magazine)"Salem was a sight to behold that may actually have an audience in this GaGa-centric time we live in. Creepy atmospherics provided by a shadowy female figure made way for a guy donning a blond wig and white dress who would periodically spit hardcore hip-hop rhymes into the mic." (Paste Magazine)"The combination of smoke inhalation, fear, dark and volume turned out to be ideal, with Salem the soundtrack to a real-life horror show." (NY Times)"It is truly, existentially, transcendent." (Village Voice)"You play as loud as fucking possible, filling every inch of the room with sound so that you bludgeon the stray hecklers to sonic death. The crowd loves it-- adores it." (Pitchfork)"And to add to their mystery, never gave into the audience pleas for an encore." (Sentimentalist Magazine)"Attendees who enjoy their dance music with a good strong shot of doom might find themselves nodding along to their hypnotic beats and twisted samples and concluding that, yes, they do believe in witch house after all." (MTV Iggy)Aangezien ze het zelf saai vinden om gewoon te kijken naar 3 mensen die instrumenten bespelen proberen ze voor hun optredens altijd een speciale atmosfeer te creëren, dat belooft!