Description
Release date: June 12th 2025
Label: Slow Motion
Emerging from the Italian West Coast and the mind of Violet Poison, Diana Berti lands on Slow Motion Records with ‘Like A Pierrot In The Night,’ a record that traces their Proto-EBM silhouette and dives deeper into the murky depths. With sprinkles of chimes and the guttural force of affirming low ends, Berti pieces together a rich tapestry, casting an ethereal light on darker industrial tones.
Opening with the piercing punch of drums in ‘Dreams We Never Had’ the rasp of the bassline lowers the pace and nods to the ethereal melody to follow. These enigmatic riffs echo around the mind, holding you in synthesised safety. ‘Washing Your Tears’ follows with tight claps that hit hard and the yearning strain of beautifully layered pads. Their dissonance is harnessed expertly, blurring the lines harmoniously to create a rose-tinted soundscape of the past. Berti’s distant emotive vocals meander through the track with echoed spoken words creating subtle flashes to electronica of the mid-nineties. The key changes just over halfway, keeping our attention satiated and allowing us to stumble further into Diana Berti’s twilight-lit domain.
The drums throughout ‘Like A Pierrot In The Night’ sit in a unique space, maintaining the allure & charm of Italo but with Berti’s dynamic rust & esoteric edge. ‘Valerie’ begins with these very drums and the elusive tight decay of the bass, creating an echo with the kick when it’s at its tightest. Chords glide into each other, and claps flourish. Berti’s vocals respond to the FM style synth chords with cold-wave flair to be tastefully juxtaposed with melodic chimes.
This emotive record, filled with unexpected sonic twists and turns, culminates in ‘No Retreat No Surrender’. The fittingly menacing title echoes the stern bass arps and eerie synth stabs. Muted guitars flow in, adding their early 80s tone, while light organ pads sit on top. ‘Like A Pierrot In The Night’ combines Diana Berti’s endless strengths as a composer, highlighting these strengths with emotionally impactful sound design and enigmatic rhythms.
