Tense push and pull electronica
Who They?
Tehran-born Düsseldorf arts school graduate Parissa Eskandari and Berlin microsystems developer Paul Brenning, a synth duo walking the tightrope between pure electronic pop and much artsier concerns. They met in south Germany and are now based in Berlin. Proving her leftfield credentials, Eskandari has previously worked with Markus Popp’s enduring Oval unit.
Why Pari San?
The synthpop music highway is littered with duos and you’d be forgiven for thinking we don’t need yet another one. Pari San’s approach is a bit like watching two chess players locked into an intense psychological battle – Brenning holds Eskandari’s more wayward tendencies in check by drawing her enthralling vocal dexterity back toward pop, while Eskandari stops things from sounding too clean. Without that, the duo’s music would sit comfortably alongside any number of cookie cutter electro-inflected pop acts. It’s that tension that makes Pari San’s music refreshingly odd. Who has the upper hand might ultimately be explained by the sleeve image for their debut EP, wherein Brenning appears to be cut to pieces and thoroughly deflated.
Tell Us More
The duo’s self-released EP is everything you’d expect given that underlying tension – thudding electro pop, crystalline melodies, bucketloads of introspection, a bit of sensuality, processed vocals that seem to occupy a world entirely of their own and opaque, impenetrable lyrical themes. They even find space to bash out a cutesy, soulful duet that suggests this might be more than a professional pairing.
The ‘Frozen Time’ EP is out on Pari San
