The Light Asylum

The Light Asylum is a 4-piece band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin (my former residency when I attended UWM and later MATC) featuring Anna on vocals/piano, Adam on guitar/synth, Josh on bass, and Samuel on drums. I first heard of The Light Asylum late last year on Sensuous Enemy's EP Parity  with their remix of the song "Intentions". Of course I quickly sought out their music online. You can hear more of their songs on their Myspace page. Here is some more tracks to hear on soundcloud they are so worth listening to.

I was fortunate to receive a copy of the band's promotional cd which consists of 5 tracks.
01. Ghosts in the Darkness
02. Bloodlet
03. Pretty Leash
04. Dying In Your False Reality
05. Omerta (dope stars inc. remix)

The first thing that struck me when I first listened to the cd is the quality in the production value. I was definitely impressed that the promo cd did not sound like some cheaply made piece of plastic that sounded like it was recorded with a boombox and a microphone. The production is top notch which makes the whole listening experience quite pleasurable.

The songs themselves are excellent, especially the last track "Omerta (dope stars inc. remix)" which really stood out with me. I think the song itself really showcases Anna's vocals the best. She has a very powerful set of vocal chords. The first track "Ghosts in the Darkness" reminded me quite a bit of the Kidneythieves with their ominous industrial beats. The track is an instrumental interwoven with samples. It eventually segues into the next song "Bloodlet". "Bloodlet" picks up where "Ghost in the Darkness" leaves off but with Anna singing on the song. I like the addition of the piano combine. It adds a nice touch to the song. When I first listened to the track, I couldn't help but think Kidneythieves and maybe Alfa Matrix's Helalyn Flowers. "Pretty Leash" is another great track. I love the aggressive guitar riffs. The mix of techno and rock reminds me of the band Curve on their final two albums Come Clean and Gift, and a little of Chicago's i:Scintilla. Anna's polished vocals reminded a bit of Toni Halliday minus the enlish accent. "Dying In Your False Reality" is another strong track from the band. Like on "Omerta", Anna's vocals really shines on this track. The woman can really sing her heart out. I am duly impressed. The song also has some solid pop hooks.

If you can get your hand on The Light Asylum's promotional cd, I definitely recommend doing so because it is a taste of what to come from this terrific band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. From what I have been told, the band has a full length album coming out later this spring so I would watch for news on that via any of their social networking sites (in which I posted links to at the beginning of this blog).

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