Eyeliner Unveils New Album 'brb' + Animated Video For 'Baby'

Recognised globally as a key figure in what came to be known as vaporwave, Luke Rowell (Disasteradio) aka Eyeliner's snappily titled fifth album brb was composed while the Aotearoa MIDI-pop artist was based in Hong Kong. The conclusion of a two year saga and the opening of a new chapter for the now Ōtautahi-based producer / new dad, brb feels like an even more refined crystallisation of ideas explored on 2015's career highlight BUY NOW — worldly yet still refreshingly (or necessarily) upbeat about what the future might hold for our next generation. Subject of an in-depth interview with FutureSounds, standouts from brb for this listener include the strutting mirror glass vistas of 'Uptown Virtual', the inquisitive Mike Post-like melodies of 'The Googler' (this needs to be a TV show immediately), and 'Good Evening's delicately lite, ever-uplifting interplay — "which mixes the sonics and harmonics of Chinese New Year music with elements of Chic".

Eyeliner's longterm collaborator Simon Ward joins the party with bouncy Mario Galaxy-like animated visuals for lead track 'Baby', based on Mushbuh's stylish cover artwork. Out now on strictly limited vinyl LP and cassette (move fast HERE) via UK imprint My Pet Flamingo, brb's all-around excellence has seemingly got everybody talking. Currently "#1 in NZ, #1 in Electronic, #1 in Experimental, #5 in Bandcamp (internationally)," do your eyes and ears a favour and hit play below...

"The new one came out a lot quicker and really isn’t built on older sketch ideas that I have saved up, it’s all new work that I wrote in HK. I definitely hermitted myself in, only really exploring outside in a very anonymous, observational fashion during Covid, and (as usual) expressing how that felt in the writing process helped me metabolize things.

I also lost a few people dear to me at a time that I couldn’t return home because of travel restrictions, so there is a lot of self-reflection in (the album) about that.

I moved from the most vertical city on earth to the flattest. Back to Aotearoa New Zealand, in farming country outside of Ōtautahi Christchurch.

To have some personal space and outdoor space, and to finally see my family was a relief. We weren’t able to return home for two years because of the COVID quarantine lottery, so there is a kind of gag there with the title of the new album”.

'brb' is out now on major streaming services via My Pet Flamingo — limited vinyl LP and cassette orders available HERE.