The voice was the first instrument humans managed to master, one that’s common to almost all forms of music. So it’s not all that surprising musicians are continually finding ways to reshape and repackage the voice with the technology of their time. Lately electronic music producers, especially those in the UK bass music scene, have shown renewed interest in the voice, particularly in manipulating it to somewhat alien ends. Danish four-piece When Saints Go Machine picked up this pursuit for “Pick Up Your Tears And Run,” the lead track from their forthcoming !K7 debut release, Fail Forever. Falling somewhere between the club-oriented James Blake and Todd Edwards and the indietronica sounds of Four Tet and Caribou, the track pours forth with bubbly vocal notes and lyrical lines, sounding like the coolest a cappella choir this side of Glee. But the whole thing seems much more special when the voices coalesce in a surging stream of melody above deliberate half-step percussion, making me want to categorize it as some kind of future pop. Whatever it may be, it’s certainly an appealing appetizer for the group’s upcoming releases. Our thanks to When Saints Go Machine and !K7 for making the track available.

Download: When Saints Go Machine, “Pick Up Your Tears And Run”

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