AntiQuark, Sky Dancer

Hungry Eye Records

Review by Kent Manthie

The other day, someone turned me onto a relatively new band, AntiQuark, and their new CD, Sky Dancer, out now on Hungry Eye Records. AntiQuark is threaded by electronica, rock, pop and a kind of new-new wave style. Their first single, if you want to call it that, “Man From Mars” has a techno-club, dance beat behind a sensible pop melody.

The Atmospheric ethereality, notwithstanding, AntiQuark are a combo of pop music players nonpareil. The first track, “Man From Mars” was probably recorded as a label-catcher or radio-friendly fare, as its pop sensibility shows, but when one digs deeper, like “Planet X”, which mixes a mission control-to-spaceship radio contact sample with swirling sounds and an edgier beat, a song destined to be remixed infinitely for loud, danceteria club mixes. Besides the space connotations it evokes, “Planet X” also has a very sensual output to it, there’s something to it that would definitely bring two hot, sweaty club kids together in a feverish dervish sort of dance. “Shameless” is a sweaty, swinging minuet that oozes sex and is driven entirely by synths and drum machines.

The vocals on Sky Dancer remind me a little of The Wolfgang Press, but with a much more trance-inducing, mesmerizing, spaced-out, melting environment style.

Other songs worth mentioning are “Drawer 4”, another song that digs deeper into their electronica side along with “Planet X”, the latter of which starts out with samplings of mission control-to-spaceship radio transmissions and has an atmospheric, ethereal vibe to it that also gets all hot and bothered, with heated up sensuality and is sure to bring together two ecstasy and liquor-fueled club kids together.

Another song which leaves the space junk (ie, old satellites, orbiting scrap metal, etc, nothing to do with their awesome touch) behind and goes straight for the heart is “Aldila”, a slowed down, breathy sex storm of a song, just perfect for making love to, with its big beats, its quiet synth waves and whispered Italian lyrics, it is another kink in anyone who thinks this band is a one-song combo.

But it is a one-woman band. The entirety of AntiQuark is Ant Dakini, who founded AntiQuark in 2001 and since then has recruited SergioO to add the sensuality of his vocal style, which was a good move.

Besides being an innovative transcendent musician, Dakini is also a marine biologist who specializes in shark biology. So, she is a busy woman, to say the least, but a very studied woman as well as gifted with musical greatness.

Keep on listening and you should be tempted to buy the Sky Dancer for your next house party or for the next time you’re out clubbing and bring home some that special someone.

-KM

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