Since joining NYC’s Human Pitch label, excitement has only been building for Seoul-based duo Salamanda‘s first proper release for the label. Titled ashbalkum, it’s no exaggeration to say nothing else in 2022 sounds quite like it. Experimental and accessible at once, distant yet intimate, Salamanda rush forward and recoil by turns.
Their latest single “Catching Tails” is the perfect example, taking full advantage of their delightfully unusual filtered vocals and a chiming, rotating musical backdrop, showing shades of everything from Meitei to múm. Ultimately, however, it’s a concoction that’s entirely their own.
Grounded in a close friendship, the pair push their music further into delightful abstraction with ashbalkum, entering a surreal world of sound. Written during the bizarre summer of 2021 – a time which still saw strict social distancing procedures in their native Korea – it captures the struggle of our current reality by pushing back against it, by providing an escape to somewhere between dreams and their own creation.
Check out “Catching Tails” below, and look for ashbalkum come June 10th (pre-order/save).
