Canadian three-piece Austra apparently draw on inspirations 'as diverse as Puccini, riot-girl, and Nine Inch Nails' to craft 'an addictively dark dance sound' that showcases founder member and singer Katie Stelmanis's 'incredibly evocative vocal stylings.'
In fairness, this is a pretty decent debut single, and while I don't detect much Puccini or riot grrrl in the mix, 'Beat and the Pulse' is definitely likely to appeal to fans of Nince Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, and so on. In short, the 'goth' crowd who are partial to a spot of electro-disco with darker shades. The other tracks that make up this release, 'Energy' and 'Young & Gay' are a tad eurodisco and a tad monotonously derivative respectively, salvaged from mediocrity only by Stelmanis's distinctive vocals.
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Of course, it's also fair to say that Austra's sound is very voguish, and the last two years have given us a glut of female-fronted electro acts. Do we need any more? Perhaps not. Ok, so Austra are a lot better than many of the electro-poppers who've hit the mainstream, but then, they're not as good as Zola Jesus.
Austra Online
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