I Break Horses
Chiaroscuro
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Electronic pop
I Break Horses is well on its way to proving itself as an established electronic duo with the release of its second album.
Chiaroscuro highlights the Swedish duo’s awesome ability to cover retro rhythms with relaxed vocals.
Although almost every song has electronic chords, heavy beats and light vocals, they have a wide range of expressions and tones. Some songs, like “Faith“ and “Berceuse“ contain cut vocals that closely resemble something from Chvrches5 or Charli XCX. “Faith” sounds like a theme song to a Street Fighter-esque video game.
“Berceuse” is particularly interesting because the word itself means “a lullaby in 6/8 time,” but its ominous sound is nothing like that.
Then there are songs like “Ascension,” which starts off with a single sustained note and simple rhythm and ends with a dancey, “99 Luftballons” feel.
The final and longest track, “Heart To Know,” is the only song without a beat — it starts with a windy, scratching sound over a sustained chord, followed by a flute-sounding melody and finally fades to airy chords.
It is the calmest and slowest song, which is a pleasant change from the overall synthesized sound of the album.
A lot of these songs are compared to others or other artists because it’s hard to describe sounds that are only electronic.
However, the fact that each song can be compared to so many different styles merely demonstrates just how capable I Break Horses is of producing varying and interesting sounds.
Lead singer Maria Lindén has a beautiful voice and a great range, while Fredrik Balck’s accompaniment provides an upbeat and interesting contrast.
The sound can make you want to dance and go to sleep all at the same time, which is a refreshing dichotomy. Simply put, Chiaroscuro is captivating from beginning to end.
— Kristina Kokkonos
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