Let's Switch Things Up with Mitch Murder's New Synthwave Masterpiece
Let's Switch Things Up with Mitch Murder's New Synthwave Masterpiece
The Swedish producer returns with his first full length in six years with a fun nod to the city pop genre
Check This Out’s Tuesday New Music Reviews have been relatively guitar-heavy this last month, while I've explored different genres in my Instagram reviews. With a warmer breeze in the air, I’m ready for some spring cleaning and branching out with something different in the newsletter.
This past week, Johan Bengtsson, aka Mitch Murder, released Then Again, his fourth full-length album of synthwave deliciousness.
With the release of his first EP, After Hours, in 2009, Murder was one of the primary reasons for the rise in the genre’s popularity. Combining 80s nostalgia with modern production, he has had a prolific decade. Besides his album-length releases, Murder has released a ton of EPs and compilations while also composing for film and video games, including Kung Fury and “True Survivor,” the movie’s single from David Hasselhoff.
His last album Interceptor was my first exposure to his work and has been one of my most played albums of the previous five years.
On Then Again, Mitch Murder is still in the 80s, but this time looks to city pop for inspiration. A wide-ranging Japanese genre, city pop was the term for the country’s new music that was more western-influenced in the late 70s and throughout the 80s.
“Skybound,” the album’s opener, is an excellent example of this modern take on city pop. After the sound of jets lets us know Murder is taking us for a ride, a wide range of synths take over with a soft rock-funk rhythm led by the slapped bass.
Other songs that follow the city pop influence include the beachy jaunt of “Ocean Parkway” and “Twilight Marina,” a piece perfect for sunset with your Bartles & Jaymes or Seagrams.
Not one to stay in one genre, Murder moves throughout the 80s and early 90s, looking for all things funky. The jazzy “Star Club” should be the song for the next Rainbow Road on Mario Kart while things slow down on the John Carpenter-esque “Frost.”
The lead single “Body Talk” takes a pumped-up approach to the “Axel F” years of film soundtracks, and when I hear the title track “Then Again,” I’m waiting for Alan Thicke to show up in a Members Only jacket.
Even with all of the other projects that Murder has released since Interceptor, this new album was well worth the wait. From the beginning to closing track “Someplace Else,” he’s created a real cohesive vision that stands above many other releases in the synthwave genre.
Combined with its awesome cover art by Arseniy Chebynkin, Then Again is a hazy trip back to the 80s, one that will bring back many memories, real or not.
Then Again is available now on Mad Decent.