Gem Club – In Roses (Hardly Art)

Gem Club - In Roses (Hardly Art)

Sean Meehan

Might make you cry, but like, in a good way.

Most of Gem Club’s songs follow a pretty simple, yet powerfully emotive formula: synth and vocal tracks are looped over the slow, almost drone-like cello playing of Kristen Drymala,, which is joined by Christopher Barnes’ piano playing and warbly, soft vocals. Though Barnes says he doesn’t intend for his songs to be sad, every track on “In Roses” is solidly melancholy. The two musicians behind Gem Club, both classically trained, first played together at an 80s theme party, where they played slowed down and inevitably somber interpretations of 80s hits. The only remnants of that decade on “In Roses” however, are in Barnes’ extremely vulnerable and emotional lyrics, which doubtlessly owe a lot to 80s sad-sack pioneers like The Smiths and The Cure, but probably owe more to the more recent and more melancholy music of Antony and the Johnsons or Perfume Genius. As it turns out, that particular singing style pairs very well with Drymala’s soft, understated cello playing.

RIYL: Perfume Genius, Antony & the Johnsons, Low
Recommended Tracks: 4, 8, 11