Moods pulled apart, then remedied musically. At once personal and intellectual, MS. J blends raw, smoky performance with slick production to create nothing short of a musical conversation. Through a combination of 80s synth-driven sound and 90s trip hop, cut with a touch of blues, jazz and techno, MS. J creates a modern electronic ambience unlike anything you’ve heard before. These are the syncopated moments that give us pause as we walk toward a measure of freedom from self-imposed confinement.
With their shared love of electronica, three distinct personalities merged as MS. J, conceiving a unified sound and story. Co-writer and vocalist, Janice Swiercz, hones carefully urgent vocals, layered over the atmospheric mood, depth and rhythm created by producer and sound engineer, Mark Thibideau. Principal songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Stephen Pilla, composes music flooded with syncopation, crescendo, and even a bit of melodrama, with the desire to share many musical ideas in a space where so many others share only one. What results is an addictive sound that turns left when you’re expecting it to turn right – because, hey, life is like that.
Battledress is MS. J’s first EP release, each track comprised of original patches for every synth, and recorded live – all analog – in Thibideau’s personal studio in Toronto. From the pensive, moody Stand Alone, to the flirtatious Stranger, through to the upbeat, mischievous Jump, MS. J twists a genre you will recognize in one moment, but not in another. You might be tempted to call it a modern take on trip-hop – but upon listening, categories become irrelevant. Indeed, MS. J breaks free from the categories we get caught in, and which hide us from that elusive subject we have the hardest time facing up to: our self.
credits
released January 4, 2016
Mixed at Repairlab, bass guitar by Danielle Duval and Matt Butler, photos by Celine Saki, biography by Mike Dineen
On the gorgeously unsettling new record from Ariahindream, haunting vocal melodies drift through dark, swirling clouds of electronics. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 29, 2023