Holy Strays “Serenade”

13 Sep 2013 — Henning Lahmann

Parisian artist Sebastien Forrester is surely not one to rush things. After a mind-boggling early tape on Not Not Fun in 2010 (which was named one of NFOP's top 30 releases of that year) and two critically acclaimed 7" singles on NNF and London's Morning Ritual Recordings in the last two and a half years, we had to wait until now to finally see the highly anticipated proper debut EP of his project Holy Strays. "Serenade" is the first track off of Chasm to be unveiled, and Forrester's artistic development during the last years is unmistakeable. Where the tropical, sweaty and dense sounds of his Hyperion tape were still drowned in misty hypnagogic hiss that made comparisons to early period Sun Araw seemingly inevitable, the ethereal vocal samples that signify "Serenade" and guide us through the track's propulsive rhythms are out in the open and crystal clear. When the strings rise for the final part, a certain similarity to the work of Forest Swords becomes obvious in terms of arrangement and ascending tension (Forrester even did a gripping Forest Swords remix a while back), although the overall approach remains unambiguously his very own. If "Serenade" designates the path Forrester has taken, then it was absolutely worth the wait.

The Chasm EP is out October 14 via Demand Vinyl. You can pre-order via Rough Trade now.