LunaRover – Chimera (2024)
About 10 years ago, give or take, musicians Ben Pelletier and Kevin Rieth began “collaborating for fun”, and in 2024, the pair decided to begin LunaRover. Embracing their diverse influences and styles, Reith and Pelletier find themselves wading into the alternative pop arena with the synth-driven LunaRover. Yet, just as there is dreaminess in the synthy haze, there is an experimental nature to their music. Today, we take a gander at their debut single ‘Chimera’.
Drawing influence from artists like Tears For Fears and Duran Duran, ‘Chimera’ presents wistful nostalgia from the synth-pop 80s. Then again, as I mentioned above, the duo’s experimental nature offers a contemporary texture making ‘Chimera’ both retro and new. Using DIY production, the track is a sophisticated mish-mash of intimate rawness with elegant maturity. Recorded at home, the production only enhances the duo’s eclecticism, experimentalism, eccentricity and obscurity.
Combining the talents of Tench Tillman (percussion and drums) and Artem Zhulyev (saxophone), Rieth (vocals, guitar, synthesisers, percussion and sampling) and Pelletier (synthesisers and sampling), ‘Chimera’ finds a line between organic and electronic. Soft, soothing and fuzzily warm, a sonic synth-pop blanket wraps about you; however, the hit of saxophone and bold drums pulsating in the background give a bit of a shove to its comfort. For me, the backward saxophone used to end the track is the most fascinating and odd element of ‘Chimera’.
Melodically, ‘Chimera’ brings smoothness and beauty in a mellifluous composition. Yet, just as the tune is soft, the lyrics are biting. Tackling the complexities of relationships, LunaRover finds profoundness in the kaleidoscopic lightness. The band explains:
“The lyrics of ‘Chimera’ reflect a past failed relationship, highlighting its fleeting nature with lyrics such as “we were riding a breeze”. The subject comes to terms with the fact that he or she may be in love with the idea of their partner rather than their partner as a person. Ultimately, the subject comes to the realisation that “I can’t be your answer”…”
Find out more about LunaRover on their Instagram, TikTok and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
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