Spotlighting new releases from New Brunswick artists. This week we look at new music from Tactus, Gary Flanagan and Querious. Prog-metal, an 80’s throwback and some seriously dark ambiance.
Matt Carter
Tactus – Fade
Tactus finished off 2018 with a new single that blends ferocious intensity with beautiful melodic undertones – two elements that have come to define the group’s output since the release of their debut EP, T. Released on Christmas Day, Fade (which also includes an instrumental version of the track) finds the group delving deeper into the world of progressive metalcore, confidently tracing new paths in complexity while retaining the palatability of a top 40 hit. It’s a fine line they seem to traverse with ease.
Gary Flanagan – Son of Parkway
The 1980s called. They want Gary Flanagan back. Too bad. They can’t have him. We need musicians like this and Son of Parkway is just one reason why.
Self described as “a trip back to the era of shopping malls, arcades and long ago youth”, Flanagan’s latest full length release explores the wide range of tones that defined an entire era of pop music, right down to the gated reverb pulse. Guided by the almighty synth and a vocal delivery that lands somewhere between New Order’s Bernard Sumner and the B-52s’ Fred Schneider, Son of Parkway is the audio equivalent to leg warmers, shoulder pads and turtlenecks…but in a good way. It’s a total party.
Querious – Parade on Main
With so many musicians releasing synth and software based music these days, it’s becoming increasingly more difficult to isolate those few releases that offer something a little different. Thankfully, Parade on Main, the latest from Moncton experimental project Querious breaks the monotony. This six-track album released January 5 (all 55+ minutes of it) focuses more on exploring sound experiments than trying to recreate predictability. It’s dark, and bleak and downright scary at times. If your life was a suspenseful thriller, this would be the soundtrack.
If you have new music on the way and would like to be considered for a future edition of Midweek Music Mix, send us the details at gridcitymagazine(at)gmail.com
