ASTER - 'Unaware Bliss'
Photograph © Coco Collective
Emotions are a fickle thing. That grief should be so intrinsically linked with euphoria is a testament to this. That Glasgow-based songstress ASTER should not just be so astutely aware of the fact, but be able to channel it also, is a testament to her ability as a songwriter.
Four minutes of otherworldly folk-pop, ASTER’s latest single ‘Unaware Bliss’ is ethereal as it is understated. A statement of intent (‘Unaware Bliss’ is the first taste of a forthcoming EP) self-produced over lockdown, it seeks to explore that strange feeling of euphoria often experienced in the early stages of grief (in this case the inevitability of the end of a relationship), and in doing so has crafted not so much a song, but a soundscape - a gently unfurling sonic tapestry in which the peaks and troughs are as emotional as they are musical.
Ever mounting towards its hauntingly discordant conclusion, ‘Unaware Bliss’ treads a fine line between soaring optimism and cloying claustrophobia; the glacial spaciousness of its electronics offset through angular and erratic guitars, their inherent jaggedness the mountains that pierce an otherwise soft skyline.
Often, above all else, ASTER’s vocals soar. Spectral and hypnotic, they provided an added layer of vulnerability to a track which is both elegant and imposing in equal measure. Of course, through its very nature ‘Unaware Bliss’ will certainly find its detractors, and it would be hard to imagine the Adidas ad Bucket Hat contingent getting excited about something so effortlessly understated. That said, it shouldn’t pose any sort of issues for ASTER, after all, why drink Dark Fruits when you can drink champagne?
Words of Dave Beech