MUSIC REVIEW: Scenius; new single "Held"

Scenius is a project that has been getting a lot of attention over the last few months. Having reviewed their first two single releases, I am personally very excited about the collaboration between Steve Whitfield (from the band Klammer) and his musical partner Fabrice Nau that is Scenius. Up to this point they have produced what I can only describe as electro masterpieces – very likable tunes that harp back to the '80s in sound but very much feel relevant today.

Their third release is “Held” and this is very different from any of their releases to date. It is a sombre track and mostly instrumental, minimal vocals which come and go late into the song. This feels much more of a mood piece of music rather than the more electro pop feel that we have seen previously from Scenius. This doesn’t necessarily make this an inferior single but it requires a lot more plays than the other releases before it makes sense.

This feels very much like a deliberate move into a more melancholy style from Scenius – perhaps this is an attempt to show how versatile they are or even simply a move in a different direction as they continue to find a sound that defines them moving forward. Many bands have experimented in different areas with their initial releases to position and re-position their music. Kraftwerk as an example did this throughout their career.

The thing that stands out to me more than anything on “Held” is the superb production – this has been something I have noted on all of the Scenius releases to date but “Held” moves this into a new level. The clarity of the instrumentation is as pure as you could imagine and it is hard not to think you are in the room with them as it plays in your head.

Ultimately “Held” is not my favourite release from Scenius at this point but I feel the more I listen to it, then more I will enjoy it. It is a departure from their normal, if it is possible to have a normal with so few tracks released, but I admire them for doing this. It would have been easy to throw out another catchy tune but they are showing there is more to Scenius than that and they are not a one dimensional entity.

Reviewer - John Fish
on - 5/5/20