Dandi Wind

Unlike the majority of the bands featured in Systems of Romance thus far, today's band is very much alive and well, keeping mutant synthpunk alive in a new era. Hailing from Canada, this band seems to make little sense at first glance...piercing high pitched synth notes at obscene levels, harsh yet thin electro-beats pulsing like broken machinery, and a female vocalist laced with in-the-red distortion shrieks and screams a strange combination of what sounds like nursery rhymes certain times, biblical passages at others. This band is frantic, but beneath all the chaos lies an incredibly catchy simplicity, a controlled medium in which this band thrives perfectly.

I had the pleasure of catching this band in the flesh just about a week ago, and in person they are easily just as frantic and chaotic- perhaps even more so. A tarted up duo (there was once a live drummer in the band, but no more); one sat behind a rack of keyboards and drum machines controlling the sounds, while the singer provided a spastic full-cardio workout in a blue sequined dance suit, complete with twirling faux-fur props. She swung the microphone to dizzying heights, twirled and broke lit candles from the wall, and thrashed around in the audience, not missing a single beat. I haven't felt so threatened, yet so compelled to dance at a show in a very long time...

Dandi Wind has one album and one EP under their belt, with plans to release their sophomore effort later in the year. For today's consumption, I've uploaded a track from their first record, entitled Concrete Igloo, as well as the first single from its soon-to-be-released follow up, Yolk of the Golden Egg. Enjoy!

download Dandi Wind- 'Utopia Now'
download Dandi Wind- 'Adolescent'

For some visual accompaniment, here's the full band performing 'Baying of the Hounds' live in a tunnel:



...and this is a clip of the show I caught on July 6th at Galapogos, a NYC art-space/venue...The audio quality of this video is a bit compromised, but for a more raw portrait of the band, here's a performance of 'Apotemnophilia.' You better believe I was in right in the front...



For more information, tour dates, purchasing information, and general nonsense, Dandi Wind's homepage can be found here.