For the past few years, the enigmatic Stacian—a.k.a. Dania Luck—has been a reliable presence in the city’s blipping, booping electronic scene. Influenced by retro krautrock masters like Kraftwerk, Luck embraces the analog equipment of yesteryear and gives the “cold synth” sub-genre a shot of human warmth. It’s bare-bones and ice-cold, but there’s a heart beating beneath. (You can get a taste of the electronic world Luck inhabits Wednesdays from 12-3 a.m. when she co-hosts “Wave Tank” on WMSE.)
Toss in the equally enigmatic Pagan Woman—a.k.a. Billy Dimmitt—and you have the new-ish LUXVID. The duo’s just-released debut cassette is stocked with minimal, chilly electronica that seems perfect for late nights spent staring into the cold glow of a laptop or a muted TV. Tracks like “X” pit Luck and Dimmitt’s washed-out talk/sing vocals against each other to haunting effect, while other tracks like the excellent “ICyUnit” channel a goth/horror-movie vibe and end up delivering something remarkably close to a catchy pop song. The eight-minute “Holy Hell,” however, probably best sums up LUXVID’s sound: stripped-down, chilled-out, mysterious-but-accessible.
Listen to the group’s self-titled effort below, and/or order it on cassette here.