August 21, 2021 — When we started our retrowave biweekly, Yestermade Fortnightly, we knew there might be some roundups devoid of exciting releases. Thankfully, this is not one of those! In fact, it has been a relatively musical two weeks since last, with new tracks popping up from recognizable names in synthwave, plus a surprise or two.

Sure, it may be a light load of excitement, but that simply gives us more time to enjoy the tunes spun by the talented artists featured below. Now, onto the good stuff:

Fury Weekend Brightens Up the Room with New Track

Pop on over to Fury Weekend’s Bandcamp to find Belarusian artist Arseni Nikonov’s latest release, the NUTRONIC remix of ‘Illumination (feat. The Anix)’, making waves. Originally born out of a collaboration between Fury Weekend and The Anix, ‘Illumination’ is a powerful synth track that relies on melodic vocals and a synthesized rock sound. The NUTRONIC remix is a heavy-hitting dynamic track that phases between rhythmic notes and an intoxicating electric guitar riff. Before the ‘Illumination’ remix, Fury Weekend had a hand in adding a new feel to Monflame’s ‘No Matter (feat. Kirill Babiev)’ for a more powerful sound.

The NUTRONIC remix of ‘Illumination’ is available on Fury Weekend’s Bandcamp and our playlist ‘Vocal Retrowave’ on Spotify.

LeBrock Gets a DEADLIFE Remix

Synthwave duo LeBrock first released ‘Hollow’ in May 2020, and the sound was a wonderful integration of power ballads and retrowave. It was the perfect trip back to the 80s, but another United Kingdom-based synth artist, DEADLIFE, saw an opportunity to fit an unexpected layer of creativity over the original track, hence ‘Hollow (DEADLIFE Remix)’ is a dystopian take on LeBrock’s original track. While the vocals remain intact and LeBrock’s signature sound can still be pinpointed, DEADLIFE’s futuristic take on the track gives it new life with a different type of energy as can be heard on LeBrock’s Bandcamp. There is an interdimensional and otherworldly atmosphere to the remixed version, as strong notes back up the powerful vocals with fervor, and of course, we saw it fit to add to the Yestermade™ darkwave playlist on Spotify.

In other LeBrock news, the pair has a fairly busy September ahead of them, with the 2021 Fuse Tour running from September 2 to September 19 across the United Kingdom. Tickets are currently on sale for shows in Southampton, Manchester, Glasgow, Bristol, Swansea, Newcastle, and Leeds.

New Kalax Track Promises to Take Hold

‘Never Let You Go’ is the embodiment of laying on dewy grass with someone close to your heart, staring up at the twinkling summer sky. Written and performed by genre mainstay Kalax, the track is a nostalgic trip to an age when our idea of retro was still fresh and new. The cherry on top of that trip through time is the perfectly placed saxophone, which kicks in to boost ‘Never Let You Go’ with some unexpected gusto. Kalax has remained true to himself with the new track, matching the tone and pacing of past releases. Also, ‘Never Let You Go’ is a nice break from the more powerful sounds of other releases featured in this Yestermade Fortnightly, as the material is soothing and lovely arranged which is surely why it also works as an instrumental. Both versions of ‘Never Let You Go’ are available on Kalax’s Bandcamp and, again, on the Yestermade™ Spotify playlists.

Kalax is more than just a retrowave artist. On his official Twitter (@IAmKalax), he has been soliciting to score an indie video game, movie, or TV show to help fund his fourth album.

Getting Lost in a Dream

Just in time for this roundup, Czech Dreamwave artist Marvel83’ dropped his latest track which is a dreamy escape that will be his last “musical contribution” for 2021. ‘Remember When’ is certainly not the kind of song you would listen to while operating heavy machinery. The track is soothing, with the gentle addition of a saxophone providing only brief moments of energy, providing a stark contrast to, say, the songs on Marvel83’s earlier album, In a Different Time, that delivered a more electrified and dystopian sound.

Again, ‘Remember When’ is a peaceful arrangement, the kind you listen to while sipping champagne in a comforting bubble bath. While it may be too sleepy for some, the song is a nice break from the usual, amped-up beats of other artists. Oh, fans might also enjoy Marvel83’s surprise concept album, Atlantis, which Yestermade™ reviewed not too long ago.

Though ‘Remember When’ was originally slated for a September 10 release date, Marvel83’ opted to drop the track nearly a month early and start his music sabbatical.

Marvel83’s ‘Remember When’ cover artwork.

Artist to Watch: The Secret Chord

What might be the perfect sound to end the week? How about the uplifting sounds of The Secret Chord — surely a strong candidate, with the Swedish-based retrowave project having dropped its newest album Vanilla Sundae Coconut Apocalypse in July on, you guessed it, their Bandcamp, and it is definitely the sweet and sugary quartet of tracks one would expect — solely based on the song titles, and it is safe to say ‘Vanilla Sundae Coconut Apocalypse’, ‘Summer Days Summer Daze’, ‘Bikini Atoll’, and ‘Skytrain to Thailand’ round out this summertime release, each one bringing its own unique sound to The Secret Chord’s delicious apocalypse. Especially ‘Bikini Atoll’ is worthy of mentioning, the song plays heavily into the theme of nuclear radiation, which the real Bikini Atoll unsurprisingly became known for after 23 atomic bomb tests.

As always, the retro and synthwave scenes are burgeoning with creativity and drive. Yestermade™ looks forward to bringing you, our dear readers, even more goodies. Until the next Fortnightly, get on the Yesterwave’s Spotify playlists — and stay tuned.