The debut album by the Berlin post-rock trio Leoprrrds is called Hot Like Lava, and in approaching this title with hermeneutics we have found that it describes the sound, the essence, and the genesis of the band very aptly. Leoprrrds are “hot” as in fresh, new, boiling, but without losing touch with the center of the earth, with primordial slime, with the roots of their preferred artistic form: rock-music-critical post-rock music. With Leoprrrds, we hear the now and we hear the past (keyword: Forever) in remarkably harmonious accord. When Maya Shenfeld, Victoria Larsson, and Ian Tilling take to their guitar, bass, drums, and vocals, we hear a band that knows to respect each of the three Rs in their name—specifically, with a pinch of Sleater-Kinney, a touch of Raincoats, and a hint of Young Marble Giants. The trio’s songs are built on juxtapositions: claustrophobia meets harmonious cooperation; nonchalant understatement meets vivid theatricality; a DIY attitude and the intimacies of the underground and the rehearsal space are contrasted with ever-sensitive arrangements. And of further note: the aforementioned release found a perfect home (and one that we represent happily and regularly at this festival) on the Berlin label Späti Palace.

https://spaetipalace.bandcamp.com/album/sp015-leoprrrds-hot-like-lava

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