Greek band Strawberry Pills have announced their debut full-length called ‘Murder to a Beat,’ which comes out on October 30 via Inner Ear Records. They have also shared the first single Porcelain Face. Listen to the single via YouTube below.
The gothy synth duo from Athens (consisting of Valisia Odell and Antonis Konstantaras) explore the full spectrum of the dark sound and create tracks inspired mainly by the 80’s minimal movement and post punk, with a few electric and goth elements added.
The group’s upcoming debut album is heavily influenced by everyday life in the city of Athens, social issues and of course, the violent turns that love and romance can take.
Antonis says about the song: “Love and hate walk holding hands in the dystopian playground that is the basement of a maniac. Porcelain Face is (in our mind) an audio horror film set in the ’70’s and we treat it that way. It’s narrated by the perpetrator while the victim is caught in his/her web. What happens next? We don’t know, or do we?”
The album title is inspired by the queen of crime, Agatha Christie. The idea is that right before a live performance Strawberry Pills were poisoned, but by whom? Who of all of their songs protagonists did it…?
‘Murder To A Beat’ combines elements of fiction, horror, death and romance. Everything is pervaded by darkness, mystery, cynicism and enigma. Massively inspired by various forms of art. From film noir and crime fiction to the art movement of symbolism (Gustave Moreau) and photography. For example “Voyeur”, the opening track of the album, is an ode to Guy Bourdin’s voyeuristic photography while “Porcelain Face” is about an alluring femme fatale.
Sonically, with this album Strawberry Pills aim for a fresh dark sound while paying homage to the ’80’s.
‘Murder to a Beat’ track list
1. The Voyeur
2. Private Nightmare
3. Verbal Suicide
4. Enter the Void
5. Dreams
6. Porcelain Face
7. Icarus
8. Set to Rise Again
Format: A limited edition of 200 Vinyl LP, Digital
Preorder on: https://inner-ear.gr/shop/https://orcd.co/murdertoabeat
More about Strawberry Pills?
Strawberry Pills is a group from Athens/Greece. Their music is a mixture of dark electro, minimal wave and coldwave.
Valisia Odell and Antonis Konstantaras are the two sole members. They have both been part of Phoenix Catscratch, with whom they released the album ‘Nectar & Wrinkles’ (Dead Scarlet Records). Two of the band’s songs were included in the soundtrack of “Alpes” by the Oscar winning director Yorgos Lanthimos.
After the band’s demise they collaborated on various projects and decided to form Strawberry Pills in 2019.
In February of the same year they self-released Verbal Suicide, their first official single. The song gained the attention of many producers and got airplay on some of the country’s most popular radio stations (Best-FM, En-Lefko, Sto-Kokkino and more), introducing the duo to a wider audience. The song was also played by radio producers around the world.
Up until now, they have performed in many Greek cities and well known venues and festivals (Saristra Festival, Ziria Festival and more) with artists like THE KVB (UK), The Soft Moon (US), The Velvet Condom (FR), Oberst Panizza (DE), Lena Platonos (GR), Blaine Reininger (US), Acid Baby Jesus (GR), Minami Deutch (JPN) and many more.
According to Nick Driva’s book, “Release the Bats: The Story of the Greek Underground Dark Scene”, Strawberry Pills is one of the best up and coming Greek dark acts.
