Song Premiere: VH x RR, “A Little Bit Sweeter”

VH x RR, the new project from synthwave producer Von Hertzog and Cause & Effect co-founder Rob Rowe, will release The Persistence of Memory EP digitally on June 12 via Lakeshore Records.

The EP takes it’s moniker from the intelligence episode of beloved astronomer Carl Sagan’s PBS series “Cosmos.” The idea of intelligence — human, animal, alien, or machine — one topic he featured was the idea of “collective intelligence.” This refers to the collection of knowledge and wisdom contained in things like cities, libraries, and computers. It’s the hive mind’s knowing eye. Nostalgia is a lonely experience without it. Nostalgia is merely an interest and on occasions a soul-shattering yearning to relive the past in some fashion. It’s built upon that collective intelligence as much as it is our own personal lived experience. 

The EP taps into a sonic memory while nevertheless avoiding any cynical pastiches or overwrought nostalgia. It’s a sense of personal and collective nostalgia that draws us in. We hear instruments or arrangements that take us back to the late 1980s/early 1990s to some cherished moments we associate with the likes of Rowe’s project or a similar-sounding act like Depeche Mode. Maybe the lyrics about relationships gone-by serve up reminders of simpler, more manageable times. 

Today, Ghettoblaster has the pleasure of premiering the the sultry dancefloor aphrodiasiac  “A Little Bit Sweeter.” Says Rowe:
“This song explores the dark corners of love where pleasure and pain co-exist.” 

“I don’t usually set out with a vision in mind for a song, I like to let the music take me where it will, but this one was different,” Von Hertzog added. “I specifically targeted the memories from Nocturne Wednesdays (goth/industrial/’80s night) at Shampoo in Philly circa 1999. I remember going there and dancing and seeing friends and I remember how the main floor would vibrate with the bassline. I imagined this song in the main room and wanted the floor quaking when it drops in. I wanted it to sound like it existed in space. In that giant warehouse club where we danced and the sounds carried us through the night. Oh, and I pictured goth kids fucking.” 

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