Putting the finishing touches on a run of sold-out U.S. tour dates, the acclaimed duo known simply as Shades (Alix Perez and Eprom) are proud to share their newest single in “Dark Wing.”
This is the first single off of their upcoming album, From a Vein— slated for a late-summer release on Perez’s acclaimed 1985 Music imprint. The forthcoming 14-track LP marks the pair’s first full-length album since In Praise Of Darkness, released on Deadbeats in 2018.
“This album found us experimenting with new production techniques and exploring collaborations with other artists. It’s a continuation but more refined body of work and an exploration of wider sonic fields more diverse in terms of influences, including ambient, field recording, soundtracks, as well as pushing our own vision of modern electronic music. The album was primarily conceived in Portland during the onset of the pandemic, which gave us plenty of time to focus in on the music and dial it in.” – Eprom & Alix Perez
A weighty piece of far-left-field halftime, “Dark Wing” is an uncompromising trip through the very lowest ends of the sonic spectrum. It’s a track that’s menacing by design, with celestial chords and alluringly eerie drum breaks leading listeners into an urgent descent through filthy low-end fervor.
Primed to take their experimental approach to new heights, the single and forthcoming full-length album showcases Shades’ sonic innovation, production prowess, and raw energy; further cementing the duo as two of the most exciting and inventive in contemporary bass music.
Shades is the collaborative project between legendary producers Alix Perez (Belgium/NZ) and Eprom (USA). Shades exemplifies slanted grooves, a deep pocket, and hard yet graceful composition. A steady stream of releases since 2015 has seen them exploring the outer fringes of bass music and its intersections with influences as wide-ranging as hip-hop, drum and bass, experimental electronic, and dark ambient.
Aware of each other’s music for some time before meeting, Perez and Eprom first crossed paths at the 2013/2014 Northern Bass festival in New Zealand. The following summer they found themselves together again at Red Bull Studios LA while producing the Foreign Beggars’ Modus EP.
This studio session led to further collaborations between the two producers and soon Shades was born. XLR8R have rightly said that “it is music that’s not only a legitimate full-frontal assault in the same vein as tunes from that golden era of gluttonous bass and synths, but that embraces that ethos while giving it a more polished feel”. Shades continues to push the boundaries of experimentation in their forthcoming 14 track LP titled “From a Vein”, releasing this summer on 1985 Music.
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