Stream the project, led by the thumping and crystalline ‘Way Of Life’ now.
In 2018 Los Angeles musician Marion Belle and Test Icicles expat Sam Mehran convened to create a collaborative EP.
Two trailblazers of the LA underground scene whose respective outputs as Fatal Jamz, Outer Limits Recordings and Matrix Metals were largely defined by a deftness for songwriting shrouded in lo-fi sensibility are now presented at a juncture of new-found clarity as melodic hooks are elevated by a glossy and refined production style, all thumping synth bass and crystalline piano chords.
Entitled Marion Belle and Sam Mehran Present: MELT, the project ultimately came to comprise some of the final recordings made by Mehran before his passing in July of last year and following it’s completion with the enlisted help of Teengirl Fantasy’s Nick Weiss, now sees a full release via Total Decay.
The phrase applied to the project’s title traces back to 2017 as Mehran began formulating the blueprint for Melt Records, a singles only label with ambitions to release music from friends and collaborators such as Samantha Urbani, Puro Instinct, SSION, Ariel Pink and Sky Ferreira. Whilst Mehran’s label plans were never facilitated the time to come to fruition, friends including Belle and Katie Rush now adopt the name in continuance of his indelible legacy.
Discussing his relationship with Mehran and citing the early 2000s output of Bad Boy Records as a core inspiration for their creative ideas, Belle elaborates
“I wanted to make something that was grounded in breakbeats and Bad Boy Records production… Very lush and also banging. Sam was instantly one with that and also brought a lot of Spanish styled, classical guitar parts that had links to the people that he loved most like Arthur Lee, Metallica, Chris Isaak, just his own stunning brew.
He shared so many things with me that blew my mind. We were creating in our own secret world and the music was just the byproduct of our friendship.”
Stream Belle and Mehran’s full project including the previously heard ‘Way Of Life’ below.
Marion Belle and Sam Mehran Present: MELT is out now digitally via Total Decay with a limited run of cassette tapes to follow.
This evening Marion Belle celebrates the EP’s release with a listening party at Hollywood venue Cheetahs.
Words by Sam Wilkinson.
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