The Soft Moon
Deeper (Captured Tracks)
Luis Vasquez, also known as The Soft Moon, has been pumping out darkwave goth-pop since 2010 like it never went out of style. While his records have varied on their ability to reach a wider audience, he has built somewhat of a cult following around his shimmering, inky night music.
Adding to the delightful mystery surrounding Vasquez, he recorded Deeper in Italy at a secluded mountain studio simply called "Hate". Much like his previous work, his presence drifts in and out as he tensely whisper-sings the occasional lyric like, "I'm alive without a soul", (“Desertion”) over gated synthesizers à la Trent Reznor, romancing the dark with the sound of his voice. He channels Clan of Xymox and Christian Death by way of Depeche Mode in songs like "Wrong" and "Feel" with heavy chorus bass and cavernous drum machines.
While there is a LOT of teen angst-poetry in this album (in “Feels”, he asks, "Why am I alive / Why are we alive"), Vasquez knows that every great goth-pop record should have a few.
This is precisely what The Soft Moon does best: channeling carefully curated influences into something that sounds brand new.
Rating: ★★★★
