Electro duo Death Rattle impressed us with their last EP “HE&l” which channeled the energy of Sleigh Bells and Zola Jesus. However, with their second EP “Fortress,” the band have taken a side step into the darker corner of the genre creating majestic soundscapes and haunting electro-pop melodies.
Each track weaves and blends into one another with Helen’s haunting vocals entwined within the ambient melodies. “White Ropes” is a calm start and feels more like a comedown track rather than a triumphant start to an EP.
However, before you know it, Death Rattle surprise with brilliant crescendos and walls of noise—this isn’t the quiet start they’d have you believe, the duo are building, layering, painting a picture with sound.
“In Time” is bleak and dystopian, but by the time we hit “Fortress” we’re in for a real treat. The general tone of the EP is dark and shadow,y but “Fortress” adds a cinematic feel that the first two tracks are missing. Helen’s ghostly vocals sit gently over an eerie soundscape and you’ll literally feel the hairs on the back of your neck raise with trepidation and excitement.
It’s uncertain whether this darker path is one which Death Rattle will tread in the future but it’s a good departure from the sickly sweet electro-pop that’s become common place. Death Rattle’s “Fortress” is a deep chasm of emotion and darkness, utterly sublime. This EP definitely proves the duo are pioneers of their genre.
