PureVolume

Members: Nick - vox, guitars, programming, miscellaneous instrumentation.

Paul - synths, programming.

update 02.10: [ cell 7 ] - RE:COGNITION now available through the FiXT store of Celldweller : FiXT

update 01.10: debut album RE:COGNITION available now : itunes : amazon : emusic : rhapsody : special edition CD pack coming very soon!


Post-Prodigy industrial pop? Broken robot funk? Depeche Mode being mugged by the Aphex Twin in a dark alleyway? Take your pick.

Mesh the emotional vocal melodies and song structures of 80s alterna-electro-pop with abstract concussion beats and miscellaneous noise, and you might have a vague idea of [ cell 7 ]. Scientific synth bleeps, the occasional orchestral instrument and some sharp but rusty machine guitars complete the picture.
Standing primarily in the darker side of the musical spectrum, [ cell 7 ] has an aggressive, industrial edge that is offset by a highly melodic and atmospheric sensibility. The themes are not necessary melancholic or negative, just introspective and sometimes a little ambiguous to the listener. The rhythms are fractured, complex: never conventional but always danceable. Sometimes entering distorted cyber-breakbeat territory, other times offering a stuttering IDM skeleton to a track. Lush layers of organic and synthetic instrumentation sit within the track, with potent yet textural vocals above. Strains of Dave Gahan, Trent Reznor and David Bowie are traceable in Nick's tones, but there is also a dirty edge that implies a few 90s Seattle influences. Bleeding, metallic guitar is not used in the traditional rock sense - more as an impact device to tear through the mix.

Paul and Nick have been friends since the age of 5, growing up in the hills of Perth, Western Australia. Both received classical training, Paul on piano and Nick with violin and viola. The obligatory teen rebellion against this led to equal parts rave, techno, electro, goth, alt-metal, pop and noise influences - these were meshed together to create the new sound of [ cell 7 ].
West Australian Music Industry [WAMI] award winners 3 years in a row, [ cell 7 ] have contributed tracks to a number of compilation records, featured on TV soundtracks and were commissioned to create theme music for short films and events. A limited edition mini-album was released, selling out in under 72 hours. Now splitting their time between Perth and Amsterdam in the Netherlands, the band has finally released their debut full-length CD, re:COGNITION.

Nick and Paul have worked for years in spectacularly pedantic style: tweaking, remixing, refining then discarding and starting again, then losing half the work in hard-drive supernovas. RE:COGNITION is a mix of reinvented song fragments completed with the latest production technologies and their own personal maturity. The music possesses an almost Vernian steampunk appreciation - visions of velvet, absinthe and arcane machinery sit alongside sci-fi digital precision/corrosion and a sense of melancholic optimism. RE:COGNITION shows [ cell 7 ] as a band with the perfect blend of past and future.

Update - April 2010: radio interview with Nick of [ cell 7 ] via phone with Josh at DarkEssence radio 4ZZZ. We talk about the RE:COGNITION release, REM, @FiXTstore, living in Amsterdam etc etc. Listen here


::links::
[ cell 7 ] on Virb
[ cell 7 ] on MySpace
[ cell 7 ] on Twitter
[ Nick ] as a PureVolume listener
[ Nick ] as a Last.Fm listener