There’s an appealing simplicity to the music of Spaces of Disappearance for, despite being ostensibly an electro pop band, this Chicago duo don’t quite play it by the sequencer.
“Ode To Joy”, for example, sounds initially like an overlapping collection of misaligned loops – which it actually is, of course – but the true intention develops as the song progresses. That intention? To disconcert your ears. Your brain will think you can dance to it but your feet will soon determine the deeper truth. “Strangers on A Train”, by comparison, runs down a straighter track with a destination of desperation apparent from the laconic vocals of Elaine Davis.
The downbeat feel is further reinforced through the primitive “Media” although there is a hint of sunshine evident by the end of the song. “Unsaid” is in a similar vein so it won’t lift your spirits far either.
Being minimalist electro pop, Spaces of Disappearance have settled for simplicity but at least they have avoided the dance floor death disco that afflicts so many others in the genre. However nothing here will make you smile as Spaces of Disappearance are just not that kind of band.