This year we saw several Wave producers embarking on new sonic journeys. Some have flirted with drum&bass, some with phonk and others have dabbled in trance and other declinations of four-on-the-floor rhythms. ÆSTRAL is one of the heavyweights of the scene involved in this trend, and his new EP, Last Dance, fully embraces these latter genres. Mainly known for his highly cinematic wave cuts, with Last Dance the Polish producer turned the tables, delivering a project that indulges in the borderline between progressive house and melodic techno.
“For some good time, I felt stuck with making music, everything felt the same and sounded the same making the typical Wave sound I was so used to. I felt the need to change the trajectory a bit” ÆSTRAL tells us about the nature of the project.
The three singles that preceded the full release of Last Dance, ‘Regret’, ‘Despair’ (one of my favourite songs of the whole year), and ‘Affection’ (a beautiful Rufus Du Sol-like ballad) were already a clear and unequivocal manifesto of the direction taken by ÆSTRAL, but the three unreleased tracks that complete the EP further enrich and broaden the project’s scope.
“I feel like Last Dance is a mixture of everything in my head. There’s techno, there’s a house tune with STAHL (Hope), witchwave and even some dark witch house with enjoii (Grief). I wanted the project to be an experience!” ÆSTRAL adds. “As any other artist, 90% of the songs you make never come out to the outside world and at that time, most of those unreleased material was four to the floors tracks and experiments with analog sounds. After a while, I told myself, “Why won’t you just release it and see how it goes?” I’m happy I did it. The reception from the fans has been nothing but warm so far.”
In addition to the roll out of the three singles, over the past few months, ÆSTRAL has been busy taking his EP-themed show, LAST DANCE:LIVE, on tour across Center and East Europe, playing in cities like Warsaw and Eindhoven.
For long-time fans of ÆSTRAL’s signature sound, however, there is nothing to fear. Although touching upon new genres, the beloved aery and melancholic touch that characterized his previous creations is deeply rooted in these six songs as well. “I feel like dropping EPs and albums is kinda like getting tattoos, some people give them meaning and some don’t. To be honest, I never do, but in this case, I did give Last Dance a meaning. It’s supposed to feel like that last dance you might have had with somebody you loved, someone important. As the tracklist says, from the beginning to the end, from Affection to Grief, it’s a whole process that most humans have to cope with at some point in their lives. I tried my best to portray these emotions in my own way.”
Listen to Last Dance below or on your favourite streaming platform.
