During their relatively brief career, New York's
Sound of Ceres have charted an intriguing evolution from the waifish dream pop of 2016's
Nostalgia for Infinity to the more abstract sci-fi leanings of 2018's
The Twin. Using the shoegaze origins of their previous band,
Candy Claws, as a stepping-stone to something much more expansive, core duo
K and
Ryan Hover have become known for their ambitious amalgam of literary references, classical influences, and elaborate audiovisual representation. Where their previous albums germinated in concepts by great European thinkers like
Marcel Proust and
Thomas Mann,
Sound of Ceres' third album,
Emerald Sea, has a narrative entirely of their own making. Taking musical inspiration from
Gustav Holst's iconic The Planets suite,
Maurice Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe ballet, and
Lex Baxter's quirky mid-century exotica albums, the band have constructed an elaborate three-act work depicting the ephemeral relationship of two supreme deities. As voiced by Serbian performance artist
Marina Abramovic, the Universe comes to know itself through a succession of interactions with Venus, goddess of love and creator of matter. The latter of the two characters is sung by the band's own
K Hover (known simply as
K), whose gossamer voice navigates the celestial climes as if sprung directly from them. It's heady stuff, for sure, but
Sound of Ceres have already established a panache for world-building, and their pseudo-orchestral lounge pop suites dazzle more often than not. From the puckish refrains of the lovely "Sunday Venus" to the intricate "Arm of Golden Flame," the two characters intertwine amid fascinating compositions that are intellectually challenging but ultimately rewarding. ~ Timothy Monger
