by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
There’s undoubtably an art to a really great split release, the kind that finds two artists that compliment each other to the point where it brings out the best in one another’s sound (there’s always something to be said for splits that are chaotically different… but that’s for another day). For Hennen (aka Shady Bug’s Hannah Rainey) and Algae Dust (aka Frankie valet’s Alison Setili), their music works wonders alone, but it may be even better together, the home recorded pairing highlighting each other’s differences but making a point of what ties them together, good songwriting and a wistful nature that never feels overthought. The two St. Louis artists are set to release their split cassette via It Takes Time Records (Marbling, Camp Counselor, American Poetry Club) on April 23rd and we have the pleasure of premiering a track from each side.
Hennen’s “Auto-Pilot” is warped and warbly, a tape recording that’s as big on distorted warble as it is on its gently buried vocal melody. Rainey sighs and deadpans, offering a dynamic twist on lo-fi bedroom pop that feels dusty yet beautiful, like finding an old relic from a life previously lived. Algae Dust’s song is build on glowing synths, permeating the mix in a bed of warm tone and skittering drums. It’s dreamy and fractured pop that resonates like light beaming through a crystal into fractals of color. Together the two songs use different approaches to achieve personal reflections - raw and crackling, haunting and despondent, but Hennen and Algae Dust pull from the same emotional depths.