Pensacola Mist – Want to Believe (2021)
The electro-pop music scene is one of the hardest to break through these days. Some artists are trying to do something completely new, some want to rehash the past, particularly the 80s electro heyday. Some, on the other hand, try to combine the known formulas with more modern touches. Based on their latest (third) LP Want to Believe, Pensacola Mist could be listed in that third group of artists.
If for a minute you thought that this duo of Oliver Payn (lead vocals, bass) and Daniel Lee Cox (synth, guitar, voice) come from (mostly) sunny Florida, you could be easily mistaken. Still, they might be from (mostly) not sunny Northern England, but they are certainly after that happy, warm feel – balmy Florida nights and open-air dance floors, whenever those dance floors can be full. Of just a touch of the darkness the night brings, along with some swamp mist down in Florida.
To be able to recall the best of the 80s electro vibes, you certainly have to know the music from that decade down to a pat and Pensacola Mist excel at that. Tracks like ‘Forget You’ and ‘Bones/Money’ are perfect proof of it. But then, throughout the album, the duo bring in some fine, more current touches, like on seemingly subdued ‘Achilles’. ‘Sex and Violence’ bring in a bit of that mist and the welcome addition of guest vocalist Melissa McNaught, also on ‘Ruining a Good Night Out,’ making an interesting combination of bitter and sweet.
Sure, electro fans are spoiled for their choices these days, but they can’t go wrong at all if they pick Pensacola Mist’s Want to Believe.
For more from Pensacola Mist check out their official website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
