The downcast Los Angeles synth duo Youth Code have a unique knack for turning EBM tropes and squalling electronics into something truly horrifying. It’s a skill they demonstrated more effectively than ever on their 2016 album Commitment to Complications, but today, with help from some friends, a recent single has been pushed to even gloomier depths.
The original “Lost at Sea” bleakly expressed the emptiness of loss, a sentiment echoed in the shredded remix that the California musician Chelsea Wolfe has just turned in. It begins sparsely, with icy piano lines and effected vocals ringing through the silence. That changes halfway through the song, as the instrumental becomes crushed and mutated, and George Clarke of Deafheaven joins in on Youth Code’s acid-burned screams. In the spirit of the original track, it’s grim and dramatic, but somehow it feels like there’s even less light leaking in—no hope, period.
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The remix is out today and you can listen to it below or over at Youth Code’s Bandcamp. All proceeds from the track will go to Planned Parenthood, a choice that the band explained in an email.
“Thematically the song is pretty transparent as it deals with feelings of loss and frustration that there is no hope for any redemption in the future,” They wrote. “We would like to donate all the proceeds of this song to Planned Parenthood in hopes that people in need of these resources can continue to attain them without ever having to feel lost or frustrated with taking care of their reproductive health.”
Youth Code tour dates:
April 21 London, UK – Koko *
April 22 Tilburg, NL – Roadburn
April 23 Glasgow, UK – Saint Lukes *
April 24 Manchester, UK – Gorilla *
April 25 Birmingham, UK – O2 Institute *
April 26 Cardiff, UK – Tramshed *
April 28 Wiesbaden, DE – Schlachthof *
May 01 Prague, CZ – Lucerna Music Bar *
May 02 Berlin, DE – Binuu *
May 03 Leipzig, DE – Taubchenthal *
May 04 Stockholm, SE – Kraken
*= With Deafheaven
Chelsea Wolfe tour dates:
April 18 – London, UK – Heaven
April 19 – Brighton, UK – The Haunt
April 21 – Tilburg, NL – Roadburn Festival
April 23 – Karlsruhe, DE – Dude Fest
April 24 – Zurich, CH – Bogen F
April 26 – Praha, CZ – Futurim Music Club
April 27 – Berlin, DE – Berghain
April 29 – Athens, GR – Smoke the Fuzz fest at Academy
