Cloaked in the persona of Litronix, Los Angeles artist Kevin Litrow (Dance Disaster Movement) – has reinvented himself as a powerhouse solo act. Channeling the fire of The Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir with a side of Oingo Boingo, Kraftwerk, Talking Heads, and Devo thrown in for good measure, Litronix is on a mission to clear our lungs, protest Big Tobacco, and save the planet with the highly catchy “Choke The Smoke.”
Litrow’s poetic commentary on the track takes on the guise of a Don Draper speech from early Mad Men:
“This is a story about cigarettes.
The anti-cigarette institutions will be very happy about this video.
The cigarette companies will be very disappointed with this video.
But they shouldn’t be.
We all know smoking is bad for you.
But people do it anyway.
They like to choke the smoke. Sometimes it’s fun.
Like playing a game. A dark game. Like Russian roulette.”
Brimming with a quintessential L.A. ambience, Litronix’s music resonates with an aura that could only be conjured in the glamorous cityscape where palm trees sway and the silver screen dreams flicker. Amidst the surreal milieu of individuals lost in a smoky haze, drawn to their various nicotine indulgences like moths to a flame, a remarkably catchy tune rises, punctuated by a peculiar and compelling rhythm.
This hazy track recalls echoes of a forgotten epoch, striking a chord that reverberates with the peculiar charm of the 80s’ PBS cult classic, Square One Television. Choke The Smoke ends with a tasty key change as it rants about the dangers of smoking. It’s a testament to the allure of a bygone era, presented through a modern lens; a fusion as brilliantly paradoxical as the city that birthed it.
Put down that lighter, friend, and put on your dancing shoes instead. Watch below:
Kevin Litrow has been in many bands throughout his life such as the legendary Dance Disaster Movement, Radar, and 60 Watt Kid. In 2012, however, Kevin found his true heart to be his own one-man music machine called Litronix. With two records under his belt and currently recording the third, Litronix creates pop structures and dynamic layers of analogue synthesizers, open tuned guitar, subsonic bass frequencies, heavy poly-rhythmic electronic beats, and soulful vocal melodies on top.
Kevin’s stage performance is a spectacle that hypnotizes the spectator to either ‘think deep or dance hard.’
“Every subject has a deep meaning or a story to tell,” Litrow insists. “Invention and innovation through the minimalist tools that are given is an important value for music and art alone.Looping, if done right, is an art achieved for a special category of innovation.”
Litrow has shared the stage and toured extensively with acts such as Egyptian Lover, BEAK > , Ariel Pink, Broadcast, Vinyl Williams, Geneva Jacuzzi, Peaches, and many more.
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