Altered Zones

Solar Bears' remix of HTDW's "Suicide Dream 3" is full of delayed echoes and tempered with sparsely minimal keyboard, painting a bleak picture of the distant future. The isolating, robotized vocals and lack of percussion lend a feeling of utter weightlessness, giving listeners the sense that they are slowly floating through outer space. --Jasmine Zhu, Altered Zones

MP3: How To Dress Well: "Suicide Dream 3 (Solar Bears Remix)"

Copies of HTDW's Just Once EP are still available via AZ contributor Yours Truly

'SUP Magazine just packaged their recent Solar Bears interview with a special mix curated by the Irish duo, including tracks from Blondes, Ford and Lopatin, John Maus, and Thundercat. Since Solar Bears' 2010 synth-heavy debut full-length, She Was Coloured In, dropped several months ago we've been patiently awaiting something new. The release date for their upcoming album hasn't been confirmed, but Solar Bears' John Kowalski dropped this tantalizing sound bite: "There’s a lot of instrumentation we haven’t tried, a lot chord progressions, a lot of rhythms we haven’t tried, a lot of keyboard sounds we haven’t tried, a lot of guitar tones. The fact we’re aware of the stuff we haven’t done makes it so that the next record will probably sound different." Here's to hoping the album arrives sooner than later.  --Jasmine Zhu, Altered Zones

Solar Bears' Mix for 'SUP MAGAZINE

Grip Solar Bears' She Was Coloured In from Planet Mu right here. Head over to 'SUP to peep the tracklisting and read the rest of the interview

John McElheron of Solar Bears says:
The mix we did is a retrospective of what has gotten under our skin right up to this year. It includes old loves like Primal Scream and Pink Floyd, two groups with a special compartment in our heads and hearts. The track by Dead Can Dance harkens back to a time when we just met in college. Moths is someone we have been really impressed with of late. Definitely one for the future. It ends on a high note, which is always a welcome turn.

Download the mixtape, "Yesteryear," at International Tapes

--Previously

MP3: Solar Bears: "Neon Colony"

Gorilla Vs. Bear posted Solar Bears’ remix of Keep Shelly in Athens’ “Running Out of You” last month, and now KSiA returns the favor on this eerie, melancholy re-working of Solar Bears’ cinematic instrumental “Cub.” One of the strangest and most beautiful things we’ve heard from the secretive Grecian duo so far. --Chris Cantalini, Gorilla Vs Bear

MP3: Solar Bears: "Cub (Keep Shelly in Athens remix)"

For more sounds go to Solar Bears' Soundcloud, or get a copy of last year's She Was Coloured In from Planet Mu

Solar Bears' She Was Coloured In was definitely a favorite last year, making a few year-end lists from the likes of Fact, No Fear of Pop, and Uncut. 20 Jazz Funk Greats wrote about them July, highlighting "Neon Colony." Since then they've been making waves all the way from their native Ireland with remixes of Keep Shelly In Athens and Sun Airway. New, lush instrumenals have also been trickling out too:

Keep an eye on Solar Bears' Soundcloud, pick up a copy of last year's She Was Coloured In from Planet Mu

--Previously

MP3: Solar Bears: "Neon Colony"

"Neon Colony" could have been made by some French crazies in the 1970s, when prog became that all-encompassing juggernaut that vomited liquid shards of over-nourished human psyche all over the place. It was kind of gross, and eventually tiresome. Nowadays, it's always nice when artists take aspects of genres and surprise and challenge you to appreciate something you thought you hated. It's a long process, but eventually you can overcome all prejudice. "Neon Colony" comes out like Subway soundtracking Fantastic Planet. You are going to have to wait until September to hear She was Coloured In, Solar Bears' new LP, in its utterly transfixing entirety. Who says albums are dead? Not the label Planet Mu-- those guys know.

MP3: Solar Bears: "Neon Colony"

She Was Coloured In is out this September on Planet Mu