Philadelphia-based duo Korine released their second album today, a tight, eight-track collection called The Night We Raise. It’s absolutely beautiful synthpop awash in sweeping, elegant sounds and melancholic lyrics.
You can find The Night We Raise on Bandcamp and Spotify.
We’ve already heard three songs from the album: “Fate, “Cold Heart,” and “Cast.”
First single “Fate” remains the album’s highlight and one of my favorite songs of the year. I adore the simple but mesmerizing synth riff and the way singer Morgy Ramone elongates the last line of the hook: “Dancing in a setting suh-un.”
Final song “Cast” is the album’s title track of sorts, containing the lyric: “I won’t let the world get to me, this is the night that we raise.” It’s a stunning song about meeting someone who left such an impression that memories of them keep coming back, like casting a spell.
Of the songs we haven’t heard prior to the album release, my favorite track has to be “The Last,” a deeply personal song with pulsating synths and lyrics that ache: “I don’t know what is happening to me, a freak.” This is the kind of relatable, painful song I love to listen to alone in the dark while the synths wash over me.
The Night We Raise is Korine’s second full-length album, following 2018’s New Arrangements. Last year, they released an excellent single called “Uncrossed” that was one of my favorite songs of the year.
I expect we’ll see Korine again on this year’s best-of list.
