Pia Fraus
Plastilina EP
Clairecords
Estonian shoegazers Pia Fraus follow last year’s debut In Solarium with this 5-track EP, ascending even further into dream pop territory. Picking up where My Bloody Valentine left off, the sextet allow for a more tonal and lush presentation than Kevin Shields ever did, with vocals and instruments all drowsily crashing into one another. Here Pia Fraus are more song-oriented than on their debut, but their sound is still heavily indebted to the introverted shoegazers of the early nineties (and the band could probably play anything and still sound good). The former art-school students are still only in their early twenties, and their playing is infused with far more hunger and controlled chaos than we’re used to from today’s regularly droll shoegazer folks. Pia Fraus might want to further explore the potential for dynamic diversity on their upcoming full-length album, but for an EP, this is as diverse and rich as one could possible hope for it to be.
Claire Records: http://www.clairecords.com/