Press – TREMOSPHERE

saturated solace: album review by Dusted Magazine

"Tremosphere works from a very nocturnal space, its shadowy sonic caverns constructed out of splayed guitar strums, looming synths and a chilled murmur of singing. The singer, Sylvia Solanas, who also plays bass, piano and synths has worked with Michael Serafin-Wells for four albums now, concocting restless, agitated beauty out of unease. These songs slither and creep, insinuating themselves by osmosis. They might remind you, a little, of Elisa Ambrogio’s soft but extreme dream pop or of Dora Blue’s elusive art song or even Leya’s heat-mirage operas dissolving as you hear them. Echo-shrouded “Along the Way” slips by like silk, frictionless and cool, but it comes from mindset of anxiety and alienation; the artists dedicated this track to the trans community, now more than ever under siege."

Jennifer Kelly Dusted Magazine

Becoming Creatures: review by Phonotonal (UK)

"Tremosphere align themselves, in general, with shoegaze – but Becoming Creatures is an album with a dark edge, some angular moments, and most of all a strong off-the-wall experimental vibe. We have a few Bleach Lab and Just Mustard fans around here and this album is in that wheelhouse, with a flicker of Siouxie and the Banshees and Bunin’ the Ice era Nick Cave. Let’s explore the various sounds on the album through four sonic signposts. It’s sultry and atmospheric in ‘Utopia’. There’s a warm soundbed punctuated by bass, with a piano adding a motif to the edges. Quite possibly my favourite track on the record, it has a certain rise and fall – not a barrage of dynamic chops, but a great heaving ocean that moves with low speed and great power. In contrast, ‘Lady Cardinal’ has some echoing guitar skimming across chugging fifths. The chanting vocal in this song expresses the melodic side of Syvia Solanas. This song has a Juju era Siouxie feel, the subtle keys adding a shimmer of haunting sweetness around the guitars. The fuzz of ‘Lament’ rattles away beneath the bass, like a musical hammer drill. Solanas’ vocal provides the poetic melody and the backing vocal in this brief and strange song. This is one of the oddities on the album, and it’s enjoyable how switches such as this keep you engaged. It’s just over two minutes – like an interlude that clears the palate before the next course. ‘Vanity Project’ has a Courtney Love twist and some good rhythmic switches in the vocal delivery. Musically, it’s simpler than many of the other tracks, and this works because the vocal is the key element. There’s also an oblique hint at Gethsemane Rose’s ‘Proverbial Dogs’ through the guitar, which is unintentional but enjoyable nonetheless. Yes, this album will appeal to shoegaze fans and some interesting references to other genres manifest in brief moments. Tremosphere have delivered an interesting listen with Becoming Creatures."

Fenton Phonotonal

Becoming Creatures on WFMU’s November 2023 Heavy Airplay list!

- Tremosphere Live set on Dark Night of the Soul with Julie (Nov 2023) - WFMU archives

Becoming Creatures: review by The Fringes of Sound (USA)

"Being prolific as they are, Becoming Creatures is Tremosphere's third and latest album, which is even more impressive considering that that Michael Serafin-Wells and Sylvia Solanas maintain an even more commendable output with their work on Bipolar Explorer. While the two projects are related, Tremosphere stands on it own with a unique sound that lean much more into to dark and provocative vocals from Solanis and a much more minimalistic approach to instrumentation from Michael. A key example from this album is the second track, "Utopia."Solanas sings in low and gentle tones with a small arrangement of gentle keys and bass guitar, creating a haunting and beautiful atmosphere that never grows far above a whisper. There are a few tracks in which the influence from the duos other projects comes into view such as on "Lady Cardinal" in which Michael's partiality towards delay-soaked chords appears. It comes across differently though, giving off a vibe of something like a rough and raw recording from The Cure's early days, with Solanas' ethereal vocals floating throughout it all. Much of the album has this quality - less of a shoegaze-y vibe than Bipolar Explorer and something much more akin to the goth and glam of Echo and the Bunnymen, Joy Division, and other similar pioneers. Although these recordings are much more intimate, especially on certain tracks like "Lament" - a track that is almost exclusively the musings of Solanas with little more than a growling bass from Wells. It all makes for a rather exclusive-feeling experience, almost like you are right there as the music is being made."

Lars Haur Fringes of Sound

- "Becoming Creatures": PICKS OF THE WEEK White Light // White Heat Aug-Sept (Italy)

- "Becoming Creatures" in September Bandcamp Recommendations by music writer Ned Raggett (USA)

- Fringes of Sound interview with Michael Serafin-Wells, on YouTube (April 2023)

- Winter Chills: Sylvia Guest DJ set (+ interview) on WFMU 'Dark Night of the Soul with Julie' (December 13, 2022)

- A Fevers of the Mind Quick--9 Interview With Sylvia Solanas (Musician, Writer)

Memoirs of a French Garden: album review by Fog Songs

"I've been meaning to check this album out for months, and I'm so glad I finally did. Tremosphere is the sister band of the awesome Bipolar Explorer, and consists of two out of its three members. Whilst Bipolar Explorer are more of a dark psyched-out trippy textural soundscape outfit, Tremosphere lean more towards moody pop-oriented minimalist alt-rock. Their sound is undoubtedly and unashamedly heavily tinged with the 90's alt-rock/shoegaze sound, but not in a cheesy contrived ''retro for the sake of retro'' way... their delivery seems totally authentic and sincere. The noisy post-rock guitars are minimalistic and raw, and the French-accented vocals are sultry and dreamy and beautiful. In this album, Tremosphere incorporate the fuzzed-out dreamy psychedelia of Mazzy Star, the femme guitar-driven shoegaze pop of Lush, and the wistful downbeat alt-grunge of The Cranberries into their own unique vision and take you on a special top-notch dream ride."

Fog Songs Music Blog

Memoirs of a French Garden is #17 on WFMU’s March 2022 Heavy Airplay list!

"A natural, precious breath; ”All Tomorrow’s Parties” -Tremosphere version prolongs the magic and extends it towards a superior level of perception."

Raphaël Duprez

Music Journalist, France

[Single] Tremosphere – All Tomorrow’s Parties

May 8th, 2020 | Raphaël Duprez

A natural, precious breath; ”All Tomorrow’s Parties” -Tremosphere’s version prolongs the magic and extends it towards a superior level of perception.

Taking on a musical and cultural monument that has transcended generations, Tremosphere gives us a version that is both respectful of its model and intimately thought and interpreted, joining spontaneity to celestial and internal atmospheres. The sensation of living well beyond reality, suspended above our own bodies so as to better rediscovering them.

Musically and cinematically, The Velvet Underground’s ”All Tomorrow’s Parties” belongs to a patrimony that is delicate to the touch of re-interpretation. Yet, Tremosphere take chances with their own reading of this tremendous classic, choosing to keep two of the main elements of its performance: ethereal and entangled voices, solo or in unison, and the saturation of guitars bed both soothing and revealing of our mind conversations. Extending on more than seven minutes, this cover goes beyond the original dimension, relying on Sylvia Solanas and Michael Serafin-Wells’s so fascinating experimentation. This allows the song to see further ahead than the morrow it evokes, to look towards the future, shared encounters and wisdoms that it invites us to discover, if only we give them the necessary curiosity.

The duo accomplishes here its primary aim, articulating its focus on the acceptance of light instead of sinking into the darkness. Where the religious would see souls evangelization, where the fanatic would establish false crusades, where the politics would impose stupid laws, ”All Tomorrow’s Parties” unites pleasure, ecstasy and the urge to see Earth and its inhabitants be on the move for their salvation, in a community. This unknown and majestic body floating above us manages to federate us, ultimately, while also reassuring us with its source of inspiration, inseparable from the material we’re contemplating as it is being sculpted, smoothed, made perfect. Tremosphere opens a door intended for us, with bits of conversations ending the track, waiting for our answer. Tomorrow’s celebrations are waiting and depending on us, on our thanks, on our involvements. During these precious seconds, they are infinite.