Take 5 With Darkroom Data

We got a glimpse into the music powering the Indie Electro-pop duo Darkroom Data and their latest offering, ‘Fall With You’.

Darkroom Data sees Irish vocalist Gillian NoVa and Brazilian composer Márcio Paz come together to create atmospheric, genre-bending music. Drawing on their diverse musical backgrounds, they’ve cultivated a signature sound: a moody brand of nocturnal synth-driven pop and velvety vocals that constructs a cinematic ambience. ‘Fall With You’ fits seamlessly into their catalogue, building on their sound with driving basslines, generous layers of synths and smooth R&B elements.

We got two favourite songs from each artist, and one chosen together, to get more of a feel for the sounds influencing their artistry- check them out below!

Reich & Darwin – Chassol
Mårcio’s first pick is a soundscape that goes through jazz, Steve Reich, through Milton Nascimento’s Brazilian Clube da Esquina and meets the Carnival of Martinique in a delicious collage of rhythms. It reminds me of several moments in my life, like an adventure of sounds that brings back fragments of images and past encounters.

Diamond Day – Vashti Bunyan
Vashti Bunyan released her debut album, ‘Just Another Diamond Day’, in 1970. The album sold very few copies and Bunyan, abandoned her musical career. Her title track from the album ‘Just Another Diamond Day’ is Mårcio’s second pick. When I came across the album about 10 years ago, I had the experience of listening to something so simple, sublime and beautiful. I was happy to allow the delicacy of Bunyan’s arrangements to invade these dark times with a beauty that was so unique that it could not be understood by its own time.

Tenso – Maria Beraldo
Maria Beraldo’s songs are brittle, with short poetry, where each little word unfolds into senses and meanings. Her track “Tenso” the selection of both Gillian and Mårcio, brings echoes of a wild instinct, somewhat indomitable and beautiful. A long time favourite of Mårcio’s, Gillian fell in love with this artist during the early days of working on the Darkroom Data project.

Doomed – Moses Sumney
There are certain voices that seem to open a secret passageway to the divine, the spirit world, a kind of universal energy. Gillian’s first artist pick, Moses Sumney has one of those voices and his song ‘Doomed’ is one of those songs. Existential, spiritual and so human are the questions he asks in earnest helplessness ‘If lovelessness is godlessness will you cast me to the wayside?” “Am I vital if my heart is idle?’. The arrangement is minimal and atmospheric, enhancing the reflective and healing powers of this beautiful track. It’s a track I often listen to on quiet walks alone in the woods. It has a very grounding effect.

Ocean – DYVR
In times of personal sadness, somehow it is songs and stories of loss that best soothe our souls. They make us feel less alone and help us to sit with the sadness, let it in, find the secrets and the beauty within it. Gillian’s next track is by queer artist and activist DYVR. It is a deeply personal love letter that describes the haunting feelings experienced when a lover is out of reach. The object of desire finds a way into dreams, into ‘each song on the radio’, and into ‘the long ride home’. The music is sparse but swells and glides like velvet to build that late-night yearning atmosphere. This song reminds me of past city lives, wending my way home through noisy streets after the clubs empty out.

Be sure to check out their irresistible earworm ‘Fall With You’, available everywhere now!