We have a very good feeling about Limerick, Ireland’s Rokaia, whose debut release seems a harbinger of things to come.  See | Dwell may be a short beginning, but it’s a strong one.  Like Ian William Craig, Holly Herndon and Katie Gately, Rokaia operates in the realm of textural, melodic voice, a sub-genre within the larger realm of experimental voice.  The outer edge of experimentalism tests the boundaries of listenability through scream and guttural snarl, but artists such as these win us over with sheer beauty and grace.

It’s easy to put Sea | Dwell on repeat, as it comes across as a series of waves that never crash.  Layer upon layer of Rokaia’s voice slide gently over their predecessors, while manipulations in the lower register provide the base.  Using electronics to chop, stutter and loop her voice, the artist provides an impression of obsessive composition and precise control…