Quite a few ‘firsts’ with this one. It is the first time for a while now that we featured an artist from the hfn music stable, a Hamburg-based label that is home to a large number of Danish artists. Well it’s just up the road after all. Glas is their latest signing.
It’s also the first time in NMC for Glas, a female duo that was formed by members of Danish trio Giana Factory. I’m not sure whether they are still there or not – they are promoting this song on Giana Factory’s Facebook page but Giana Factory’s web page is kaput. So this might be a side project or it might indicate a direction they are taking in the future, we shall see.
Meanwhile they remain Lisbet Fritze and Louise Foo.
‘Midnight Fay’ is their second Glas single after ‘Meeting Point’ and they say it lies “somewhere in between dreams and reality, and delves into themes of loss and heartbreak during a trance like state of midnight dancing.”
You know I was only recently writing about the lack of genuinely 1980s-style psychy pop these days and that got my hopes up that Glas might be about to serve some up.
And they were raised further still when I read the song “takes form as a dance with a wise faerie that has seen it all before and hopefully can heal the wounds. Or perhaps lead one further astray…”
And that is where the word ‘fay’ comes from here. An old English word for fairy although also used as a derogatory word in some contexts. You have to be careful what you say these days; perhaps ‘Midnight Fairie’ might have been better.
Anyway, how does the song stack up? It gets underway with what sounds like the opening instrumental to Whitney Houston’s ‘I wanna dance with somebody (who loves me)’ then quickly morphs into a catchy electro pop piece with a distinct 80s synth feel to it and over which a prominent guitar riff has been welded.
Then it changes direction again into a spacey, complex and almost psych/prog-like melodic conclusion. It’s at that point that I got into the whirling dervish dance frenzy with the fairie but unfortunately she didn’t heal the wounds. In fact I’m aching more than ever.
“We hope you feel the vibe” they say. Well I can feel a painful couple of knees, that’s for sure.
I like the construction of this song. It’s unusual and will appeal to those that seek innovation, while not straying too far from the mainstream.
Then I see it was mixed and co-produced by another hfn label mate, Trentemøller, which also explains a lot.
‘Midnight Fay’ is released on hfn music & Playground Music Denmark.
Find them on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glas_dk/
