Siren Section’s Separation Team marks a triumphant return after more than eight years, delivering a full-length album that is at once immersive, textured, and emotionally compelling. From the opening moments of Construct, the listener is drawn into the duo’s meticulously crafted world—a blend of post-punk grit, shoegaze lushness, and glitch-driven electronics that establishes their signature “glitchgaze” sound. James Cumberland and John Dowling demonstrate a rare ability to merge experimentation with accessibility: layers of swirling guitars, textured synths, and fractured beats create tension and release, pulling listeners through moods that range from contemplative melancholy to kinetic energy.
Across the 19 tracks, Separation Team balances conceptual ambition with human emotion. Songs like Bullet Train and Medicine juxtapose driving rhythms with hazy, hypnotic melodies, while tracks such as They Will Never Find Us and Marker explore a quieter, introspective dimension, emphasizing the duo’s capacity for cinematic, emotionally resonant moments. The album thrives on contrast—the glitch elements introduce a sense of unease and unpredictability, while the shoegaze textures offer warmth and expansiveness, creating a listening experience that is both disorienting and oddly comforting. Even when the arrangements are dense, there’s clarity in how the layers interact, showing a careful attention to composition and dynamic movement.
Separation Team is as much a visual and conceptual experience as it is a sonic one. Siren Section pairs the music with glitch-inspired visuals and surreal design, crafting a world that feels familiar yet subtly warped—a reflection of the existential themes threaded throughout the album. Tracks like Minotaur, Deer Hunter, and Timeghost illustrate the duo’s willingness to explore narrative and abstraction, turning each song into a vignette within a larger emotional and philosophical landscape. By the time the album reaches Five Fifty Five, listeners are left with a sense of resolution tempered by ambiguity, a hallmark of Siren Section’s artistry. This is a record that rewards patience, inviting repeated listens to fully unpack its depth. Separation Team is a masterclass in merging texture, emotion, and innovation, establishing Siren Section not only as veterans of experimental rock but as architects of immersive musical storytelling in the modern age.
Spotify, Sound Cloud, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, Bandcamp
English