Here at Backseat Mafia we’re not the sort of people to be duped by what’s supposedly cutting edge and fashionable right now – you know, the sort of icy, cool synth pop made by icy, cool people, so we viewed the new single Swayze by Swedish duo I am Karate with a certain amount of suspicion.
The pair Erika Soldh Ahlström and Marta Petterson come from suitably icy climbs, and bring together elements of indie, R&B and hip-hop (beats anyway), and Swayze is indeed a homage to the late actor, and came out on his birthday, August 18th. Filled with echoey electronics and shards of synth work, its pop credentials start with its melody, and continue through the rather lovely, (at times) breathy vocals. Throw in this shuffling percussion and splashes of bass and you’re on to a winner, in the world of icy, cool (and brilliant) synth-pop.
Duped again.
