The Gods of the sequencer have another devotee with “Sophomore” by Lovataraxx supplying enough evidence that retro influenced recidivism can revive the ghost of minimalism synth pop once more.
This is a style thing, of course, and there is no doubt that Lovataraxx have style. It’s a dressed in black and red lipstick kind of style but that’s the kind of style that the night people will always relate to and these ten songs duly resonate with the robotic precision of the mighty sequencer as their locked to the loop dancefloor influences merge coldwave into the glamorous, strobe lit, world of the champagne drinkers. However, there’s more to Lovataraxx than just computerised beats and, as they bounce effortlessly between languages whilst drowning themselves in a sea of reverb, their substance becomes evident. Their cool is not cold and, even if they seem driven towards some intellectual goal, Lovataraxx manage to make all that they do verge on the hypnotic.
Some might have expected “Sophomore” to be a somewhat bleak exercise in exorcising the sound and styles of the past yet Lovataraxx prove that, even whilst doing just that, they can still be cool for cats.