PRESS

"Spellbinding. Each song on the record is a journey in itself. [...] Haunting and seductive [...] invokes somber post-punk and dark psych driven by a bassline straight out early 4AD releases that weaves its way around a shock of icy guitars and quivering synths." - post-punk.com (USA)

"One of our favorite albums of this year. "Trópicos" is an intriguing album from the start. [...] always all of this is nuanced by the charisma of its architects, who demonstrate their active and constant creative ability and their evolution towards new sonic landscapes, as well as giving us a demonstration of passion and serious work, which adds some notable key characters in the conception of this album, and [...] produce a result, a repertoire that harmonically melds together, and that will continue to have new echoes around the globe." - Parlante (CL)

"Gloomy, hypnotic and bilingual melodies to enjoy melancholy. There is a certain charm in the conception of [melancholy and nostalgia] that musically is a daunting task that Seatemples managed to shape. [...] ["Trópicos'] walks through the musical facets that have been embedded in the hearts of the most inveterate melancholic music lovers. [It] will surely open the way to playlists around the world. They deserve it. (8/10)" - Indie Rocks! (MEX)

"Trying to make the worldviews of artists such as Bauhaus or My Bloody Valentine converge in the same act, in perfect harmony. And boy do they do it. [...] As if their music had been conceived years ago, in the distant past, and its echo reached far horizons of our present and future. Their cinematic proposal kisses the drama and generates an addictive fear that, far from provoking an immediate repulsion in the listener, generates that voluntary submission in order to unravel the enigmas of their art." - Sound And Vision (MEX)

"It’s a record hurtling towards an impressive credibility: urgent, fat-burning, unripely poetic. The rewarding experience is that articulated chords are not rendered through byzantine schemes: they envelop you through dreamy, pyretic postcards from the past You never had . Yet It’s still traumatizing you so much. [...] It deeply touches you, but leaves you afloat. It will be a constant fondness dominating the album, which flies high in its own boundless sky." - Quaquaversal (UK)

"The music of the quartet is an idiosyncratic and intense mixture of darkwave, psychedelica, dreampop, post-punk and shoegaze - as if Sisters Of Mercy would jam together with My Bloody Valentine in a smoky little basement rehearsal room. [...] With "Trópicos" they have succeeded in creating a multi-layered work that breathes the atmosphere of acts like Joy Division, Bauhaus, Cocteau Twins or The Jesus And Mary Chain." - TONSPION (GER)

"Captivating and beautiful [...] "Trópicos" is undoubtedly a great odyssey from the first to the last song. A unique sound with its captivating nostalgic and timeless hypnotic melodies." - Revista Rocanrol (CL)

"[Neo-psychedelic elements] interweave several layers of sound, atmospheres and textures based on wistful and timeless melodies. Seatemples create a nebulous veil of soft and ethereal melodies, which swirl around in a beautifully melancholic haze [...]. Songs like "M.I.S." reveal the esoteric touch and content that outline salvation, hope, second chances, and multiverses." - Underdog Fanzine (GER)

"An adventurous trip [consisting of] the melancholy of floating shoegaze and the gloomy atmospheres of darkwave. [...] Although there are reminiscences of bands like The Cure, Slowdive, or My Bloody Valentine, the songs have their own character and personality." - Automatique (MEX)

"A fantastic shoegaze album" - Eleven Pop Songs (GER)

“Combines the very best of darkwave and post-rock. That means: The wonderfully electronic drums set the beat, the vocals have all kinds of reverb, the guitars and synths create large, wide, crazy textures. On the whole album it is easy to let go and immerse yourself in another world - or dance. [...] crazy how incredibly well bands manage to capture the spirit of a sound and interpret it in their own way. Seatemples' songs could just as easily have come from the UK 25 years ago. All the more fascinating how consistent and independent it sounds without any hint of chasing trends." - Luserlounge (GER)

"Has an intensity and a variety of sounds that mesmerizes and leaves captivated from the first to the last track with dense environments and cathartic lyrics." - Projecto Alternativo (POR)

"An elegant album whose sonority is gradually conquering the listener's heart. Seatemples overshadow the melodies with feedbacks and noisy landscapes that easily create a harmony in the midst of chaos." - Threshold Magazine (POR)

"Summons and associates different genres of which it ensures the perfect osmosis." - Muzzart (FRA)



ENGLISH:
Depending on the angle from which you’re approaching the new album by Chilean band Seatemples, “Trópicos” is a modern shoegaze album, as much as it is a darkwave LP or a post-punk record. You can clearly hear where the influences are coming from, yet they are seamlessly patched into something excitingly fresh. “M.I.S” and “Ecos” start out with the hazy guitars shoegaze lovers expect from the likes of Slowdive, while the drum machine delivers stoic post-punk beats. It then is the heavy bass in “Holograms” that creates an immensely thick and heavy cloud of sound and one of the album’s highlights. Another standout track is “Nightfall”, were Seatemples know how to combine their seething gloom with beautiful, at times almost heartbreaking moments. The chord progression in the chorus, especially the final dissonance is magnificently executed.
It becomes evident that Daniel Knowles (mixing - DIIV, Amusement Parks On Fire) and Maurizio Baggio (mastering - The Soft Moon, Boy Harsher, Holygram) were chosen wisely and for a reason. The latter must definitely have had fun working on the terrific “Beagle 185” which implements an (early) Soft Moon feeling into a dream pop context.
The band says, “Trópicos” bears its name from the mapping of different geographical latitudes within a variety of hypnotic nuances and atmospheres with dreamlike cathartic lyrics in Spanish and English. - It is an enigmatic crossover not many artists in these genres are able to create.


DEUTSCH:
Je nachdem, aus welchem Blickwinkel man sich dem neuen Album der Chilenen um Seatemples nähert, ist „Trópicos“ ein modernes Shoegaze-Album, ebenso wie eine Darkwave-LP oder eine Post-Punk-Platte. Man hört, woher die Einflüsse kommen, aber sie fügen sich nahtlos zu etwas aufregend Frischem zusammen. "M.I.S" und "Ecos" beginnen mit den verhangenen Gitarren, die Shoegaze-Liebhaber von Slowdive erwarten, während der Drumcomputer stoische Post-Punk-Beats liefert. Es ist dann der schwere Bass in „Holograms“, der eine immens drückende, heavy Klangwolke erzeugt und damit eines der Highlights des Albums schafft. Ein weiterer herausragender Track ist „Nightfall“, bei dem Seatemples ihre brodelnde Dunkelheit mit schönen, fast herzzerreißenden Momenten kombinieren. Die Akkordfolge im Chorus, insbesondere die finale Dissonanz, kriecht unter die Haut.
Dass Daniel Knowles (Mixing) und Maurizio Baggio (Mastering) mit Bedacht gewählt wurden, ist deutlich. Letzterer wird Spaß daran gehabt haben, im famosen „Beagle 185“ ein (frühes) The-Soft-Moon-Gefühl vorzufinden, das hier zu Dreampop weitergedacht wird.
Die Band sagt, "Trópicos" hat seinen Namen von der Kartierung verschiedener geografischer Breiten innerhalb einer Vielzahl von hypnotischen Nuancen und Atmosphären mit traumhaften kathartischen Texten auf Spanisch und Englisch. - Es ist ein enigmatischer Crossover, den nicht viele Künstler in den genannten Genres so erschaffen.


Originally released on August 21, 2020
CD version available on Icy Cold Records (France)