MP3: Magenta Skycode - King of the abstract painters

There's quite a few American acts that aim to emulate the lush sound of the Beach Boys, but no one can nail their glorious melancholia quite like the Scandinavians. Magenta Skycode may lack a Hal Blaine to call their own, but that hardly matters when you got everything else required for a pop/rock symphony. Unlike Mandorla, who sound more like a convincing tribute (albeit a very good one, it must be said), these Finns go beyond the cutesy, sunshine pop to mine the darker undercurrents that made "Pet sounds" so unforgettable. Perhaps it's my overactive imagination, but I think there's a profound sadness to that album that oft goes overlooked and unrecognized. Magenta Skycode gives me that same feeling

In other Magenta Skycode news, will be celebrating the band's 5th anniversary on March 15 with the vinyl reissue of their first album "|||||" ("5 bars") on 180g LP + 7" with two extra tracks, packaged in a gatefold sleeve including full lyrics, liner notes and so on. The label will also be reissuing pre-Magenta Skycode act This Empty Flow's 1996 debut "Magenta skycode" (see the connection?) on April 27 in a limited 2xLP edition, the first time the record has ever been released on vinyl.

Magenta Skycode - King of the abstract painters