Thamatic – “Spacesuit”
Thamatic’s new single “Spacesuit”, represents a whole new phase in the Park Ridge, Illinois group’s project. Although the new music is inherently their own — there’s absolutely no mistaking that — one thing that hits you pretty quickly is how much more sonically impacting it is. The narrative is based on “a new story line that deals with the conflicting elements of man, technology and gods before and in future time.” To match that story, the music has an intergalactic momentum that warps the synths, locks down the rhythm, and mixes up the conventions of 1980s synth wave nostalgia, and sci-fi like futuristic elements. All of this with a catchy melody that will enrapture electronic fans across the world. It is a somber story and an arc of pure musical triumph.
Mixed and mastered at Clear Ear Studios by Bryan “Blue” Bolton, “Spacesuit” is a track laden with mystery. and the work required on it delivers a slow-burning adrenaline surge of chain-breaking synths. The mid-tempo nature of the song can’t hide the ominous tolling of the bells, which ring for all of us earthly beings as we face a reckoning at the hands of self-imposed destruction, and have to face a new beginning.
The waves of synth ebb and flow in response to the gravitational pull of the emotional experience. Rarely has a musical project with such a unique name spawned so much great music. Something Thamatic has been doing prolifically since 2017.
Once again, Thamatic has managed to craft a solid track, loaded with intricate instrumentation, clever production trickery, and a futuristic concept. I love when musician can walk the line between nostalgia and futurism, which Thamatic has done consistently up until now. As usual, Thamatic build a tune that is by turn mechanical, organic, and visionary.
The basslines are full and round, while the chord progressions that loop over the backdrop dominate the song. This sort of music is intended for close listening, delivering the mood-inducing sound that Thamatic is known for in abundance, and delivers it with a nuance that’s a cut above their contemporaries.
While Thamatic theoretically fit into the stylistic tendencies of the electronic trend, there has always been something else to their music that gives it more substance, a certain sincerity to their sound that few other electronic acts who accept the titles of alternative, experimental, rock or indie have really achieved in a more compelling way.
Thamatic uses the potential of their varied sonic palette, to craft an almost wholly unique new sound that in itself speaks volumes for the function of retro aesthetic in contemporary music. Thamatic has potentially found their sound, among all the other copycat acts and trend riders.
Managing to blend the accessible rock inspiration of earlier works with their newfound interest in complex electronic layering, “Spacesuit” presents a sound that a vast majority of people can relate to. As far as new beginnings go, this is one of the better ones.
“Spacesuit” is a beautifully contained musical world, where even the video contains a pondered narrative which discusses our attachment to cellphone technology. Thamatic have condensed their sound into a very personal and engaging listen.
The intensity is still there, but with it, an equal amount of eerie beauty and thoughtful sonic introspection. “Spacesuit” is busting at the seams with neo-futuristic attitude and retro wooziness. There’s an emotional resonance here, that’s hard to find elsewhere.
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