The duo of vocalist/guitarist Vif Nüte and keyboardist Bes Eirid, better known collectively as VEiiLA, took quite a dive into uncharted personal and artistic territory as the Russian invasion of Ukraine led to the creation of the latest album, Sentimental Craving For Beauty. Not content to support the ugliness of their motherland’s unjust actions, the pair literally packed up their lives and left Russia, effectively becoming a “band without a country,” and documenting their exile and anguish in the album’s 13 tracks of downtempo and darkly ambient electronic; the duo wandered through the hotels of Armenia, their depression contrasting with the album’s initially hopeful stance inspired by the literary works of John Galsworthy, particularly his “Forsyte Saga,” which deals with generational and societal divides and youth overcoming the folly of the past. The band had initially completed half of the album prior to exodus from Russia, scrapping those recordings and starting fresh with new inspiration to reflect the notion that “when everything falls into ruin, when nothing good is left, the only thing that keeps one going is this craving.” Led by Nüte’s sensual vocals, the band also makes good on its very name, which references a Baltic female demon that dwells in the mountains and devours men, luring them by way of song. Released on September 8 via Projekt Records, Sentimental Craving For Beauty is now available in digital and CD formats through Bandcamp; this marks VEiiLA’s sophomore effort after The Nation of One, released in 2020 via Wormhole World.
VEiiLA
Website, Facebook, Bandcamp, YouTube, Instagram
Projekt Records
Website, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram
Ilker Yücel (Ilker81x)
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