Belaya Polosa

Belarusian post-punk / synth pop group Molchat Doma have always exuded the kind of brutalist aesthetic of the architecture that adorns their album art. It’s cold, gray, imposing, industrial—and yet there are human hearts beating within those foundations.

The band settled into their new home of Los Angeles to finish writing their fourth album Belaya Polosa, a testament to change in difficult times, a love letter to the digital pulse of the ‘90s, and a technicolor reinvention of the band’s somber dance floor anthems.

From the opening synth swell and drum machine throb of “Ty Zhe Ne Znaesh’ Kto Ya,” to the goth / post-punk austerity of “Son”, to the swirling electronic textures mixed with reverb-drenched guitar flourishes, expansive space, and yearning vocals of title track “Belaya Polosa”- that suggests Depeche Mode at their most reflective or The Cure at their most downtrodden - to the sultry and seductive “Chernye Cvety”— a track reminiscent of Duran Duran’s early ‘90s output in its fusion of dreamy guitars and authoritative mechanized beats — and the interwoven layers of instrumentation, soaring chorus, and melodic sophistication of “YaTak Ustal”, it’s clear that Molchat Doma are operating on another level.