SEEKAE

ARTIST – Bio

The force now known as Seekae came together in 2006, when primary school alumni Alex Cameron and George Nicholas, then fresh out of high school, met again after eight years by chance. Alex introduced George to his then-bandmate John Hassell, and the three, who had all been conducting bedroom experiments with electronic music, decided to start making noise together.

For the next two years, the trio, first as Commander Keen and then as Seekae, honed their sound, fusing elements of IDM, hip-hop, indie pop and ambient post-rock into an entirely original brand of organic electronica the three dubbed, only half-jokingly, as ‘ghetto ambient’. At the same time, the band set about finding ways to bring their downbeat electronica alive on stage — to translate midi signals and digital bits into something compelling and alive. It didn’t take long. Soon, word spread through Sydney and beyond of Seekae’s wholly intoxicating, unpredictable live show, a mix of live instrumentation and pre-programmed electronics that makes use of everything from drum machines, synthesizers and samplers to melodicas, guitars, drums and glockenspiels.

Seekae – Blood Bank (Single) by Rice Is Nice

In 2008, after a couple of years of recording, Seekae released their keenly awaited debut lp, The Sounds of Trees Falling On People. A strikingly assured collection of intricate, dynamic electronica, Seekae’s debut lp was rich in its detail and, at 73 minutes, ambitious in its scope, running through 8-bit electronica, buoyant pop, ambient wash and surging, noisier workouts. The album was met with near unanimous acclaim, with Rolling Stone calling it ‘as ambient and mesmerizing as an iced-over forest’, and Sydney radio station FBI dubbing it one of their best Australian albums of the decade.

To support the release, Seekae played a host of sold-out headline shows, as well as supports for the likes of PVT, Broadcast, Cloud Control, Decoder Ring, and Midnight Juggernauts, their ever-evolving live show garnering them a growing fanbase and an award for Best Live Act at Sydney’s 2009 Music Arts and Culture Awards.

After recording an ep of remixes — which took in signature reworkings of local lights Pivot, Ghoul, Megastick Fanfare, Parades and Bearhug — in 2010, Seekae headed into the studio to record the hugely anticipated follow up to The Sound of Trees Falling On People. Where their first lp was recorded in patches, Seekae’s sophomore release found the trio working more deliberately. ‘It was more thought-out,’ Nicholas says. ‘We thought about how the album was going to flow and what kind of tracks we wanted here and there. It felt like we were doing something a bit different, something that’s a bit more original in the context of electronic music as a whole.’

Never short on ideas, the band toyed with a lot of different approaches when making +Dome. ‘We thought, “Let’s make an album with just guitars, drums and a synthesiser, and no computers,” and then we were like, “Let’s make a pop album,” and then we thought, “Let’s just try and make a really strange, weird album that’s more experimental, but with a few more radio-friendly tracks — basically do what we want instead of trying to mix too many genres together.”

True to their makers’ intentions, +Dome is a more experimental record than its predecessor, but, being a Seekae lp, it retains the warm, immediate charms that have endeared the band to so many. From the opening jittery, precisely processed guitars of ‘Go’, to the glitch-pop of ‘Blood Bank’, to the droning strings of ‘Underling’ and the gorgeously spare closer ‘You’ll’, +Dome is the sound of a band unwilling — some might say unable — to stand still.

+Dome’s 12 tracks reflect the band’s far-reaching passions, from the 808- and bass-heavy club sounds of the new decade to the scenes and sounds of Tokyo, Berlin, Chicago and London. Shot through with samples and field recordings collected over two years of writing, touring and recording, +Dome is an album that demands and rewards repeat listening.

2011 will see Seekae take +Dome on the road, first in Australia and then in Europe, with the band planning a stint on the Continent later this year that promises to bring this remarkable band to much wider notice.

SEEKAE +Dome DELUXE EDITION – RIN011X

About the release

Sharp-edged, glacial, organic electronica **** – MOJO MAGAZINE
Paying homage to the sound and textures of Tokyo, Berlin, Chicago and London, +Dome blends live instrumentation with electronics and samples collected over two years of performing, touring and writing. Composing every sound and song with meticulous detail, from sub bass heavy rollers to intricate guitar riddled interludes, Seekae transmit their developed pallet through a long player that is both rhythm orientated and at the same time self reflecting.

SEEKAE +Dome – RIN011

About the release

Paying homage to the sound and textures of Tokyo, Berlin, Chicago and London, +Dome blends live instrumentation with electronics and samples collected over two years of performing, touring and writing. Composing every sound and song with meticulous detail, from sub bass heavy rollers to intricate guitar riddled interludes, Seekae transmit their developed pallet through a long player that is both rhythm orientated and at the same time self reflecting.

SEEKAE – STFP – RIN006

about the release

The band’s style sifts between ambient; glitch and hip hop, and surfs between the varying electronic sounds of Xela, Boards of Canada and Telefon Tel Aviv via the pop affability of Hot Chip. Somewhat appropriately, Seekae have dubbed their sound “ghetto ambient”. Originally released as a limited edition Double disc with 5 bonus remix’s of sydney bands including PVT, Ghoul and Bearhug.

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