machine saints from denmark

Listening to KEXP this past Saturday evening my ears were treated to a band that caught my attention within the first few notes of their song - although I also have to hand it to Michele Myers for setting them up nicely with a little introduction explaining how excited she is about this “new” (to the States at least) band from Denmark: When Saints Go Machine.

When Saints Go Machine - Kelly from Cosy Corners on Vimeo.

When Saints Go Machine has made lots of their music available on the interwebs. In fact, if you like them on their Facebook page you can download their three song EP for free. Or you can head to their soundcloud page and have a listen to the songs from their EP as well as a couple remixes and their new single Kelly (music video above).

Fail Forever by When Saints Go Machine

What’s harder to find is information about who they are. Paste magazine did a nice little write up about them and their forthcoming album Konkylie last week. It says the band is made up of four high school friends. Each of them had their own very different sounding projects they were working on before they decided to start working together. With members coming from electronic backgrounds, others from techno/house roots, and still another from an obsession with the mixture of jazz and “neo-soul." It took a minute for the group to find their stride Paste says- what sound did they have to offer as the best possible outcome of their collaboration?

I agree with Paste that the “easiest way to describe the band is to say that they sound like an electronic band with all of the emotion of a folk singer.” Their vocalizations and lyrics are emotional - at times haunting and others beautiful. This against the upbeat, danceable percussion and synthy electronic melodies result in the something that made me stop what I was doing and take note.

Currently the band has a small tour in Europe (France, Germany, Great Britain, etc.) with no dates in the states listed so far. I’m hopeful with the buzz that’s starting to pick up, however, that it won’t be long before I’m standing in the line outside an LA venue to see them.