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When we started Silber, we were inspired by Lycia, a band from the desert in Arizona, one that was changing the way we felt about & listened to experimental music. Lycia combined ambient & sometimes harsh soundscapes with a punk aesthetic in a way that no one had ever done before. Their unique sound became a part of who we were & remain to be today. We are pleased to present the final release as well as a series of re-issues by our long time mentors. - Brian John Mitchell & Jon DeRosa
 

About Lycia's Empty Space

Empty Space is a work of dark, atmospheric, post-punk, comprised entirely of treated guitars, bass, & drum machines. It is perhaps Lycia’s closest brush with making a pop-oriented album, though the cold rhythms of the vintage drum machine are just pieces of a much larger picture. Mike’s whispered, desert-parched musings duel with Tara’s more ethereal vocals & land atop shimmering, melodic, treble-boosted guitar lines. The result is a sound that’s more Durutti Column than Cabaret Voltaire, & more Chameleons than Joy Division, but always recognizable as Lycia.

In this way, Empty Space is a return to the original atmospheric post-punk style Lycia helped birth back in the late-80’s, before 1991’s groundbreaking Ionia & 1993’s apocalyptic A Day In The Stark Corner. The return to form was made authentic by the involvement of original member John Fair (drum programs) & longtime member David Galas (bass), who once again teamed up with Mike VanPortfleet & Tara VanFlower to create what would be this, the final Lycia album.

About Lycia's Estrella

Estrella was Lycia’s last proper studio album (Empty Space was unfinished and Tripping Back Into The Broken Days was recorded and mixed as an Estraya release).  The songs on Estrella were originally written in 1996 & fleshed out over a fifty show tour.  Eight years later, Mike VanPortfleet has revisited the songs to remaster them using the engineering skills he’s improved over this time as well as the improvements of technology to make a definitive version of the release uncompromised by the hands of others.  The artwork has been restored to the original version, unaltered from the artistic vision meant to match the music.

The goal of Estrella was to mix the lush orchestral sound VanPortfleet had developed over the previous eight years that had culminated in Cold with the more up-tempo rhythmic style of Wake & the unreleased Byzantine era.  Estrella also marks Tara VanFlower’s move to primary vocalist & lyricist, enlarging the band’s ethereal fan base.  Estrella became an instant hit within the darkwave genre, but now is the time to realize it’s a classic that transcends genre barriers.

Lycia Discography

Empty Space
CD Album 2003 | Silber 032
9 tracks, 42 minutes
$12 ($18 international, $5 download (256 kbps, ~74 megs))
: Listen to the track This Is The End
: Press Release
: Reviews
Estrella
CD Album 2005 | Silber 040
11 tracks 57 minutes
out of print

: Listen to the track El Diablo
: Press Release
: Reviews
Cold
CD Album 2007 | Silber 061
9 tracks, 58 minutes
out of print
 

: Listen to the track bare
: Press Release
: Reviews
Lycia: The Burning Circle And Then Dust The Burning Circle And Then Dust
CD Album 2006 | Silber 048
18 tracks, 57 minutes
out of print

: Listen to the track Pray
: Press Release
: Reviews

Lycia Links
Mike VanPortfleet
Tara VanFlower