Yep that’s a kid wearing a Chewbacca mask. Totally adorable, right?! Well, this is the cover of Active Child’s new Curtis Lane EP (Merok), and its just as creepy and lovable as this photograph implies. Active Child is Pat Grossi, a Philadelphia Boys Choir alumnus, who layers Antony-esque choral harmonies over luscious synths and drum samples. Grossi’s bold instrumentation reminds me of M83 with a darker, more New-Orderly underbelly.
Active Child have a couple hard-to-find releases under their belt (a cassette, Sun Rooms, on the tape-only label Mirror Universe, and a 7-inch on Transparent), but this EP is totally worth your record-finding efforts! On track 3, “When Your Love Is Safe,” Grossi’s haunting vocals reverberate against a foggy soundscape of 80′s neon synths and perky hand claps (or booty slaps?)! And the siren swells of “Wilderness” are downright terrifying and enchanting.
Check out the vid below for a taste of Grossi’s talents as a harpist!
About the author
Music Director - Our music director takes more dance classes than academic classes, collects noisemakers, sups on soup in the wintertime, and still finds time to read Susan Stryker's "Transgender History" to KZSC's pet seahorse.
Oh yay!