Peaking Lights
The Madison, Wisconsin based dub pop psych duo of Peaking Lights has been described as “sounding something like the bastard child of Forest Swords, Zola Jesus, Tom Tom Club and Nite Jewel.” This husband and wife duo—A.C.I.D aka Aaron Coyes and Indra Dunis—have channeled their lives dedicated to music, touring, and pushing artistic boundaries into a band that reflects their relationship; a sum that transcends its parts. Finding themselves in a cross country move from the Bay Area to a house and barn in rural Wisconsin, working with Aaron’s home built synths, effects units and rhythm machines, Peaking Lights established a sound all its own, fusing influences as wide ranging as Afro Beat, Disco, Psychedelic Rock, Synth Pop, Krautrock, Reggae and Noise into songs that are as smooth, lush and elegant as they are propulsive, rhythmic and noisy.
Peaking Lights recordings were initially showcased on Night-People Records cassette releases, along with a debut full album Imaginary Falcons in 2009, which brought the band to the attention of the underground music community. Imaginary Falcons quickly gained praise for its distinct lo-fi qualities fusing analog electronics with blown out psych guitar flourishes, with Indra’s warm drifting vocals providing an unexpected serenity.
The duo went on to explore a sound related, but not fully indebted to, Jamaican dub pioneers. This resulted in a second album 936 a recording that saw Peaking Lights merging its influences more fully into rich, explorative electronic sonic territory. 936 retained many of Peaking Lights lo-fi electronic techniques but boosted the overall depth of sound to create a record that was lush in its use of analog delay, deep bass, rhythmic creation, and stunning yet simple vocal beauty. 936 was released on Not Not Fun Records in 2011 garnering even more critical praise for the band. Pitchfork called the record “wonderfully detailed…carefully plucked, arranged delicately.” The album was followed by two remix EPs this January. Peaking Lights will be announcing a new recording soon.
