Lost Outrider has always blended sounds, both lyrically and stylistically. Blush brings together a special group of artists to deliver an ambitious and experimental album.
Blush is the codename for the girl on the album cover, which was illustrated by Tim Sinfield Illustrations. The band said she is a reserved lone ranger who never felt comfortable to confide in others. The band went on to say Blush tied into the album thematically as many songs are about beauty, such as “Beauty Sleep,” a song about a girl in someone’s dream, a dream that is the closest connection the person has to anyone.
Lost Outrider told the electroscape the band name was inspired by a ship in a Star Wars game and graphic novel Shadows of the Empire called “outrider,” as well as the personal feeling of being “lost” surrounding the band members at the time they settled on the name.
Blush bursts out of the gate with energetic vocals delivered in a deeply personal, rhythmic, and inspired way on “I’d Rather Live With Ghosts” and “Before We Fall Apart”, the latter featuring a collaboration with synthwave artist Wolfclub.
The band told the electroscape they wanted to create upbeat songs to help slower songs stand out. As the album unfolds, it noticeably blossoms into open spaces where the listener can navigate the rich layers of synth and vocals that really shine on Blush.
“Far From Home” teeters on the edge of vocal synthwave and – dare I say – pop country. The song elicits a feeling of lonesomely sitting by a campfire in the woods. The song features collaborations with Kristofer Strandberg and Dan Gorman, who delivers an incredibly melodic guitar solo that plays like wisps of smoke spiraling up and into the moonlight.
The diverse landscape of the sounds on Blush come into focus on “Digital Cocaine” which features quintessential sounding synthwave melodies alongside cyberpunk bass lines. “Mascara” features Anita Kyoda on vocals, who delivers her lyrics with an edge, attitude, and passion, closing out the song asking ,“what is your resolution?”
“I Hope it Hurts Like Hell” features darkwave artist Sidewalks and Skeletons and has tight betas, dreamy – yet dark – synth melodies, a penetrating bass line, and a distorted guitar effect and big bass that close out the song in an intense and dramatic fashion. Lost Outrider noted songs, such as “I Hope it Hurts Like Hell” were influenced by the the strange and stressful time the lockdown in the UK due to the Covid-19 pandemic was.
Blush feels like it was crafted by an architect who constructed a fortress from jigsaw pieces. This sensation stems from the many forces at work while writing the album, including collaborations with talented friends, the bringing onboard of Jordan Samuel as the primary vocalist, and the logistical challenges the pandemic created in laying down tracks. These forces left Lost Outrider with a truly special release.
When asked how Lost Outrider would describe their sound, they said “mostly happy guys with a tinge of neon-drenched doomer aesthetic. You could also say emo synthpop mixed with progressive trance and post rock.” I couldn’t say it better myself.
Blush is available from Outland Recordings on marbled dark green vinyl, compact disc, cassette, and digital. The band told the electroscape they like their music to be available on multiple formats to allow people to listen to the music the way they want to hear it. The physical format allows fans to flip through a booklet or display the cover art in a way digital releases simply cannot.
We asked Lost Outrider what most excited them about the future, and only a quote could do their response justice:
“The impending inevitability of trans-humanism. Soon what we read about in books will be a reality and we’ll spend the rest of our days hiding in the heart of horror. Slowly walking hand-in-hand into oblivion. One last midnight. Oh, and writing more music and being able to play live again!”
Ride on Lost Outrider, Ride on.