.gif’s second album was released on 24th April digitally by audio visual super collective Syndicate, backed with a vinyl released by TAV Records. The latter, a label started by the team at The Analong Vault, spearheads the physical format release following their launch release in mid-2019 of Fauxe’s Ikhlas.
.gif’s sophomore effort is yet another one worthy of a press to wax by the team at TAV Records, with the vocalist and electronic duo persistently honing their fresh and unique dynamism, all while maturing their craft to the next level. Poeticism delivered through brooding intimacy by vocalist Weish is backed by brilliant sequencing of synthesized textures by partner Din – subliminally sending out messages of melancholy, during this current glimpse of near-dystopian times.
The lead track Only You features spoken word and multi-acoustic instrumentalist artist Bani Haykal, cements a true testament of how far Singaporean independent arts and music has come. The album then pushes on, exploring rhythms of trip-hop, post punk and slow driving techno, with production and engineering credits on Syndicate’s Bandcamp digital release page going to Jason Tan.
A notable track, Done (Done Done) features awarding-winning British poet and spoken word artist Usaama Minhas. It is a poignant cross-cultural throwdown reflecting humanity’s collective effort to individually grasp the current situation and the future it may hold for us all.