Robin Kester - Honeycomb Shades

Debut album by Dutch artist Robin Kester. Her experimental pop exudes a hazy euphoria and dark tension; the thrill of your synapses firing on all cylinders before turning into fully-formed thought. Garnering widespread attention for her mini-album This Is Not A Democracy last year - including airplay on BBC6 - Kester has drawn a wide range of comparisons ranging from Portishead and Broadcast, to Julia Holter. Drifting between the outer ranges of chamber pop, electronic music and psychedelic rock, Kester writes wholly adventurous music. Having moved around from town to town a lot as a child, many of her songs reframe past impressions into wandering reflections, often inspired by specific moments and sceneries.Opening cut Fries And Ice Cream'', for instance, exhumes a childhood memory once lived through a rose-colored lens, now altered by new facts. Through the caverns of its sinister trip hop atmospherics, Kester is clawing for a source of nurturing light. The limber indie pop of Leave Now, - which premiered on Lauren Leverne's BBC6 show - tells the tale of a chaotic trip to Vietnam, a rude awakening of new sensations going into overdrive. An amazing record Stephen McCauley - BBC Radio Ulster I think this is great - Guy Garvey (Elbow, BBC 6 Music), Really beautiful stuff from Robin Kester - Huw Stephens, BBC Radio Wales. Such a lush, gorgeous listen. The wonderful Robin Kester. Absolutely stunning on every level - Shell Zenner, Amazing Radio (Record of the Week).