New Artist Alert: Listen to Nocturne Blue’s Cover of Yaz’s ‘Winter Kills’
L.A. act Nocturne Blue have just released a cover of Yaz’s Winter Kills. They takes the 80’s synth pop duo’s darkest track into an even more nocturnal hazy direction, drawing on goth, shoegaze and ambient rock.
This gauzy, noirish flavor is the band’s stock in trade, as stated on their website:
Nocturne : a work of art dealing with evening or night;
especially in music : a dreamy composition.
French, adjective, nocturnal : from Latin nocturnus.
Frontman Dutch Rall explained to me why the band chose the track, and about their upcoming full length project Circle Around The Synthetic Sun;
I wanted to record ‘Winter Kills’ as a sort of warm-up within the
Nocturne Blue project: channeling World Party’s method of recording a
Prince track to break in a studio session. And rather than collaborate
with the most renowned or meta-data rich name I could call upon, I thought
this would be a lovely excuse to play again with my childhood bandmate,
John. We’ve loved and performed this song together on and off since we
were 17… and no one knows you like when you’re that age. Plus, he’s the
only guitarist I know who loves Kevin Shields more than I do!
Being that Winter Kills has always been my favorite Yaz track, and one that doesn’t get as much love as their bouncier pop fare, I was particularly excited to discover this band’s trancey take on the original.
Winter Kills is available to purchase on their bandcamp page, and Rall stated that proceeds go to a worthy cause; 50% of every download sold of this track from the above link will be donated to the National Art Education Foundation, which seeks to “improve the conditions of teaching art, promote the teaching of art, and encourages research and experimentation in art education.
And the band has also graciously offered 10 lucky SLIS readers a chance to win a free download of the track. We have 2 ways to win, and rules are below.
TO ENTER: Follow us on either Facebook or Twitter. On Facebook, like and comment on our Nocturne Blue post that mentions this article. Or you can enter via Twitter, and tweet the hashtag #Nocturnebluewinterkills. Winners will be chosen at random and will be sent download codes and how to redeem.