Laidback synthy disco goodness from the land down-under
Who They?
Analogue synthesist and disco minimalist, Melbourne’s Harvey Sutherland is serving up delightfully melodic jazzy funkers with his band Bermuda, featuring fellow Melbourne types Graeme Pogson and Tamil Rogeon.
Why Harvey Sutherland and Bermuda?
Self-described as “lounge room disco burners”, Sutherland’s latest 12-inch, the double A-sided ‘Priestess/Bravado’ is the first release on his very own Clarity Recordings imprint. ‘Priestess’ is a slow building, nine-minute disco epic with Sutherland’s piano grooves bouncing beautifully off Pogson’s drums, Rogeon’s electric strings interweaved throughout. Then there’s ‘Bermuda’, a delicious rhythmic tune that could have been transported straight from the 80s. It reminds us a little of our own laidback groove merchant Steve Cobby, which is perfectly fine with us.
Tell Us More
He’s been tinkering away since 2013, with a handful of highly-sought after records released on the Echovolt, Voyage Recordings and People’s Potential Unlimited imprints. His earlier work put him on the international radar, with a tour that saw him play Paris’ famous Rex Club, as well as being featured on The Boiler Room. His breakout came in the form of the wonderful ‘Bermuda’ 12-inch, sharing the name with his futurist outfit. Armed with a trusty Juno-60, he’s known for his improvisational live shows which have been described as “an evolving, synthetic boogie exploration”. If his latest release is anything to go by, we’re not averse to a little bit of boogie exploration.
‘Priestess/Bravado’ is out on Clarity/Above Board