Industrial technoist hits the catwalk
WHO THEY?
DRIFT. is British-Italian producer Nathalie Bruno, who’s been releasing music under that name since 2015. After the intense techno-pop of her ‘Black Devotion’ and ‘Genderland’ EPs on Italian label Avant!, she released her debut album, ‘Symbiosis’, in 2020 on Hamburg’s Tapete label, which was a decidedly more left-field affair. Earlier this year, Bruno released ‘The Nature Of Things’, consisting of a 30-minute piece entitled ‘CTRL//Algorhythm Of Love’ written for designer Mona Cordes’ ‘Cellusion’ show at this year’s London Fashion Week. Bruno also works as a model herself.
WHY DRIFT.?
‘Symbiosis’ is an enthralling assemblage of hard-edged, lo-fi futurism, channelling both the industrial electronica of Chris & Cosey and the haunted melodics of Broadcast, with Bruno’s voice darkly hypnotic throughout. ‘CTRL//Algorhythm Of Love’ is something else entirely – a journey into the dark heart of the dancefloor. The glimmering, bass-heavy trance of its opening section could be classic Underworld, while its ambient centre is genuinely Eno-esque. And then it all kicks off again as a Berlin School-style banger. It’s terrific. “When I began creating the music for the show, I initially thought it would be for a traditional catwalk,” says Bruno. “It wasn’t until Mona asked for more ambience that I understood it would be an improvised dance performance. Doing sound for fashion or film has always been a dream of mine.”
TELL US MORE…
Bruno is in the process of completing two more records, both different from what’s gone before. “One will be European-sounding, I guess – lots of drum machines, electronics and a few tracks sung in French and Russian,” she says. “The other is sparser and more textural – otherworldly songs with hardly any drums.” But Bruno is in no rush to release them. “All I can say is that my music is constantly evolving, reflecting my own evolution and life experiences.”
‘The Nature Of Things’ is out on Bandcamp
