Released on cheese-burger cheese orange vinyl. Limited to 250 copies. Download included!
It happened this year in Sweden. Rational Youth reunited for their first shows in Europe in well over a decade, supported by fellow-Canadian, though now long-time ex-pats Psyche. Both artists have a dedicated fan-following, and whether you take ‘Unveiling the Secret’ or ‘Cold War Night Life’, ‘The Crawler’ or ‘Holiday in Bangkok’, both artists have left an undeniable mark on the electro-pop scene both in Canada and in Europe.
We are not really sure who came up with the admittedly kitsch idea of covering the AC/DC classic Thunderstruck, but after seeing it performed live as an encore from Stockholm to Malmo, we were sold. The familiar melody makes a killer analogue synthline, and the vocal performances by Tracy Howe and Darrin Huss are bang-on. Surely, tongues are firmly planted in cheeks on this one, but you've never had more fun, and after all that is what synthpop is all about. It's also a revenge song of sorts: Psyche's Synthpop revenge on all those years of bullying by AC/DC fans for listening to New Wave stuff like Gary Numan while in high school. By having fun with such an iconic stadium rock tune, the artists are bridging a gap in diversity.
The exclusive b-side ‘Underrated’ is an original track that combines the best elements of Psyche and Rational Youth, with Howe's almost deadpan style creating the perfect counterpoint to Huss' crooning. ‘Underrated’ is a spontaneous electro wonder created by Kevin Komoda, and brought to a frenetic final statement on unsung heroes by Darrin, Tracy, as well as Gaenor Howe on vocals.
https://soundcloud.com/rational_youth
http://www.rationalyouth.ca
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdJt545xJA8
