In February 2008, Pinkshinyultrablast took the stage at St. Petersburg’s intimate Money Honey Club, for their first live performance. With a name inspired by Scott Cortez’s group Astrobite and their 2004 LP – they wore their influences on their sleeve, but still demonstrated a clear desire to make meaningful contributions within the shoegazing movement. Subsequent years have seen the trio develop their sound, build a strong relationship with the Club AC30 family and garner critical acclaim from publications such as Drowned in Sound, who call their immersive music ‘Excessively impressive, unexpectedly fast-paced shoegaze’.
Recent tracks find Pinkshinyultrablast tapping an electronic vein and drawing influence from such groups as Japanese alt-pop band Yellow Magic Orchestra. Stop gap single Find Your Saint, released via Club AC30 in Autumn, hinted at their development – with a taut electronic snare, woozy synth motifs and Lyubov’s textured vocal layering.
They shared a track from their forthcoming LP Miserable Miracles and followed that with an Ice Choir remix during the past week. Parting ways with its Numan-esque synth line, the remix of In the Hanging Gardens pulls drum machines to the fore, exploring a dreamy ‘80s soundscape not dissimilar to some heard on Tame Impala’s Currents LP. It further reinforces the band’s new direction and hints toward what will be an album of technicolour vibrancy.
The new record drops on the same night that the band play here in Manchester, with the excellent ‘krautophonic blizzard-wave’ duo Warm Digits opening the show. Sonic voyagers should secure their tickets for 4th May show now, it’s going to quite something to witness!
