Plague Pits
Bukolic
self-released
Swiss synth act Plague Pits’ 2023 LP Creatures was an intriguing quantity in the modern synth scene thanks to its combination of original school synthpop sound and socialist politics, recalling early Human League in both form and content. Their follow-up Bukolic leans in on cleaner, more Kraftwerkian electropop stylings, with smoothed out production and greater focus on getting the most out of a decided minimal musical toolset.
Interestingly, the record finds the band putting aside vocals for the vast majority of the cuts. The sole numbers that feature any kind of human voice are opener “Binary Stars” and “Sleep of the Just”; the former using a heavier gated snare and bleeping lead that point towards heavier modern takes on the sound, while the latter falls squarely into the sort of awkward slowed funk practiced by Fad Gadget, complete with sardonic crooning to put its pointed refrain across.
It’s hard to imagine that the rest of the album’s songs would have benefitted from the addition of vocals, oriented as they are to distinctly instrumental forms. “Future Pastoral” summons early electro to mind thanks to it’s syncopated kick-snare patterns and bassline, while “A Thounsand Points of Light” is a kosmische number, with spacey reverbs and delays creating vast empty spaces for its synthlines and soft pads to float through. Those cuts are all fine, if a bit clinical in execution: things liven up when the band allow themselves some rougher and crunchier indulgences, such as the snappy white noise snares on “Blok” and the menacing pulse of the bass sound on “Mécano”.
Like all of Plague Pits’ material, how well you take to Bukolic is pretty dependent on your appetite for the throwback sounds it trades in. If it’s the sort of thing you’re inclined to enjoy, it’s a pleasant listen with a short run-time, efficient in execution and studied in its design.
