Daph Veil is thrilled to reveal “Bloodsucker,” the new single from Austin musician Paula Laubach’s project Daph Veil. The song draws you in and then unfurls into a collage of sound that refuses to be tied down. It’s a song that breathes, moves, and strikes with tension, an auditory manifestation of the intense, all-consuming relationship to which it is dedicated.
The fascinating intro draws the listener inwards before being abruptly cast out by a fierce impact of drums and gut-wrenching production that reflects the turmoil bubbling there beneath the surface. It's this balance that reflects the tenuous relationship between the public persona, the polished exterior we present to society, and all its expectations and, conversely, the closet hell of our own layered mind-world. The layered vocals only intensify this split, producing moments that are at once cozy and jarring.
Recorded with Matt Parmenter at Austin’s Ice Cream Factory Studio, “Bloodsucker” is further testament to Laubach’s fiercely DIY ethos. Paula played almost all of the parts herself, turning only to Joe Valadez for drums. Contributions from lyricist Rebecca Price intensify the emotion at the song’s core, threading a tapestry of metaphor that cuts as sharply as the highs in the track’s thick wall of sound.
What’s so interesting about “Bloodsucker,” however, isn’t how firmly it refuses to lend itself to the program. It glides deftly from alt-rock strut to shoegaze haze, brushing against electronic and blues textures. The result is a sprawling, genre-crossing work that resonates long after it’s over, like the memory of someone you aren’t supposed to desire but can’t forget.
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