Philosophy On Pessimism is the debut EP released on Translation Loss Records by New Miserable Experience, a project featuring members of Rosetta, Model Prisoner, and Revocation. The quartet pieced together the sum of their parts remotely, using file sharing to bounce their ideas around to one another, and have created an ethereal-sounding record with a foot firmly in the darker regions of the eighties synth-wave style. 

Perhaps named after the 1992 Gin Blossoms record, New Miserable Experience open the EP with ‘The Prophet’ and an eerie synth bassline which has the distinct vibe of a John Carpenter film score. The crystal clean vocals of David Grossman drop into the melancholic but dreamy-sounding song, and if you like the work of Chino Moreno’s Crosses or Greg Puciato’s The Black Queen, then this will be for you.

‘Form And Void’ is super mellow, beginning with a softly toned guitar and simple electronic beat which combine to create a euphoric melody. ‘Philosophy On Pessimism’ replaces the guitar intro with a delicate piano, while for the briefest of moments the track is lifted from its slumber by a commanding spliced guitar lead. As the title suggests the strong clean pop vocals deliver sombre lines such as; “There’s no light at the end of the tunnel, For some of us there’s only pain”. 

And the lyrically bleak outlook continues on the experimentally arranged ‘As Deep As A Puddle’, as Grossman sings ‘Everyone is in a rush to get to nowhere’. Musically this closing track sticks its head above the parapet with some darker chord choices, creating an interesting and quirky piece of music to round off the release. 

Buy the album here:

https://orcd.co/philosophyonpessimism

7 / 10

ABSTRAKT_SOUL_