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Song Premiere

Listen to the Raw Power of The Serfs’ “The Willows”

Don’t fall into silence
The river too is rising
The willows are sounding with desire

The southwestern Ohio band, The Serfs, have returned with force for their second LP, Primal Matter on Dream Recordings. Known for their sporadic, yet concise, music—that is sometimes tough synthpunk, sometimes lo-fi techno, other times stripped down post-punk—The Serf’s first single, “The Willows,” from the Primal Matter is no different.

“The Willows” has a unconstrained, sheer power that emanates throughout the song as the snare crashes and echoes, colliding with metallic accents and heavily delayed vocals. There’s an eerie cloud that settles over the song to add an ominous element, a curious contrast to its upbeat foundation. With a similar dark rambunctiousness found in The Jesus and the Mary Chain‘s oeuvre and the primitive and raw synths of The Units, “The Willows” is a one-two punch.

Listen below:

Drawn from the lineage of their Ohioan forerunners (Devo, Pere Ubu) who just couldn’t seem to be pinned down in terms of their bizarre and wonderful art, The Serfs are a trio that found a certain underground notoriety from their previous LP, Sounds of Serfdom on Detriti. Catch them on the West Coast this February to celebrate the release of Primal Matter, out February 25th.

2/23 Oakland – Elbo Room
2/25 San Diego – The Whistle Stop
2/26 Los Angeles – Catch One

Order Primal Matter on vinyl, cassette, and digital via Bandcamp.
Follow The Serfs and Dream Recordings on IG.
Andi Harriman

Andi Harriman is the author of "Some Wear Leather, Some Wear Lace: The Worldwide Compendium of Postpunk and Goth in the 1980s." She resides in Brooklyn, New York where she writes, DJs and lectures on all things dark and gloomy.

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