Vancouver Synthpunks Phuture Memoriez New LP "Play Cobra"

Phuture Memoriez is a dark synth-pop-punk band from Vancouver BC and is composed of Marc Blaquiere and Jessica Blaquiere. Their third release, Play Cobra, is a concept record dedicated to the musical improv game Cobra. Created by jazz legend John Zorn, Cobra utilizes a series of hand jesters, cue cards, drawings, etc. and a conductor leading a group of improv artists creating noise, chaos, and beauty. Phuture Memoriez used each of the 10 chapters in the Cobra manual as inspiration, pulling all of the lyrics and song titles for each of the 10 songs on their new album Play Cobra, creating song titles like Mouth Yellow, and Ear Blue. Aiming to create a hypnotic listening experience, all 10 songs are the same tempo of 138 BPM. All songs were written, recorded, and mixed by Jessica Blaquiere (Synth/Pedals/Sampler) and Marc Blaquiere (Vocals/Bass Guitar/Sampler/Production) and mastered by Doug Fury at Fortissimo Sound in London, Ontario. The band describes the album as “our best record to date, the cobra’s bite is intoxicating!” After Play Cobra was completed, Tylor David joined Phuture Memoriez on guitar. Tylor’s guitar compositions offer an enhanced live version of the Play Cobra songs, providing rich texture, tone, and harmonics.

The songs on the LP are short, fast, visceral blasts that are rooted in early punk and hardcore and have elements of Krautrock and foundational industrial music. Each track is an explosion, an expression of internal turmoil and angst against discordant hooks and symphonic feedback. Phuture Memoriez’ sound transitions constantly - not surprising because of their desire to test new sounds, tools, and techniques, which range in quality from lo-fi to professional level. They use tools like the Akai MPC Live, a cohort of digital/analog synths, pedals, noisemakers, electric bass guitar, among others, and vocals affected by other-worldly tones and textures. Their sound has been described by some to encompass “twisted tones and haunting synth vocals, pulling the listener down into a shadowy soundscape”. In other instances, some say Phuture Memoriez is “grungy with a metallic edge”.

Phuture Memoriez evolved from their past project Jerk in the Can. They have released two albums with Play Cobra being the third of their series of concept albums. The first album was inspired by Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, the second album highlighted the concept of death and dying, and the third is inspired by John Zorn’s musical improvisation system Cobra. Phuture Memoriez consider their projects to be full multimedia experiences. Their music comes first and foremost, but their visual elements are just as important, using lights and video projects to tie the experience and mood to the music. Visual elements come out through costume, theater-style performance, album and poster artwork, the use of lights, and music videos and projections. Phuture Memoriez’ music videos (many of them stop-motion animation) have been featured in numerous film festivals, including a gauntlet round with Spike and Mike at San Diego Comic Con. They are known for shooting guerilla style music videos and immersing themselves with crowds and the public. They’ve also welcomed new AI tools like DALL-E 2 into their arsenal. Phuture Memoriez are playful with videos and produce them with as much diligence as their audio recordings. They use techniques that range from lo-fi webcams run through coded programs like Max/MSP, to guerrilla shot go-pro videos, to time consuming stop-motion animations.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/phuturememoriez/
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/phuturememoriez/?hl=en
Label: http://www.nervewrackingcollections.com/
Bandcamp: https://phuturememoriez1.bandcamp.com/music
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0xX7HI6zFKn6Y5FDKwN8K9?si=UKvvpXlGRCO4-JWhCEgKuA

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