Hazing streams brilliant debut EP Joy Void

The four songs contained within were composed largely at night, and the loneliness of the 3am hour is palpable at times beneath the blend of drum machines, warped synths and guitars, and restrained vocals. But there’s also a quality of twilight, a sense of the moment of recognition that the sun is sinking beyond the horizon and won’t be returning for a while. “Hey honey let’s go quit our jobs/with your father’s money we could buy a house/live in the city like we always talked about” he sings wistfully on closing track “What Youth”, defying the dark.

Like his labelmates in Lung Dart, Hazing has buried conventional pop leanings in these unconventional structures. Though the keyboards on “North Pole” seem to be in a constant state of decay and regeneration, like a radio signal picked up from the past, the track is almost danceable. The same could be said of “What Youth”: for all of its longing, there’s a hit buried in its waltzing beat. The effect is that of finding a long-warped tape from a bygone era and realizing you’ve discovered a hidden gem. But Hazing won’t be hidden for long.

The artist had this to say: "These songs were written and recorded last winter, just after I had returned to Ireland after spending some time in Canada and decided to start making music again. They are the result of late nights locked in a cold studio with a guitar, a few synths and a little electric heater. After I finished the songs I showed them to a couple of friends, but was unsure what to do with them, until a while later Max from Happy Valley Records came across them and offered to release them on his label. Now living in London, I am busy working on new material and a live set that I'll be debuting soon.”

You can preorder the album digitally on iTunes or on tape via Happy Valley Records. Get to know Hazing on Facebook and Twitter.