After an exclusive premiere with V13, Los Angeles based alternative duo The Division Red have released their newest project Chroma Compute across streaming platforms today. In Chroma Compute, The Division Red dials back their hard rock and alternative roots showcased in their debut album, 2019’s The Speed of Light, opting for a more electronic approach carried forward in their 2020 EP Arcade. Though at the same time, the band judiciously uses the “wall of guitars” sound, borrowing from classic and modern progressions.
The sophomore album release ranges thematically from track to track, resulting in a record that rocks out and delivers dance grooves at the same time, but is also conscious of making these blended styles work together in harmony. The ten track journey takes listeners through a wide array of emotions, weaving unique and enchanting melodies backed with the band’s signature guitars and electronic beats.
Tracks such as the lighthearted anthem “This Life is Beautiful” to the sultry and symphonic “Paris Café” are all artfully intertwined in Chroma Compute, resulting in a record that embraces experimentation with familiar ideas, but never falls victim to stale tropes. Lead vocalist and producer Daniel Houlemarde wanted to make an album that embraced modern electronic instrumentation and samples, but was also rooted in the analog domain and feel of a certain time.
“Before this record, we listened to a lot of early synth rock and late seventies, early eighties stuff…bands like Missing Persons, early era Depeche Mode and the new (at that time) YES lineup with Trevor Rabin as some examples. We were fascinated by that era of transition from what would be considered classic rock and disco into what was becoming the original new wave and modern pop-rock movement that dominated radio. We were heavily inspired by that sound and added a modern touch in the form of modern guitar progressions, samples and just overall recording techniques.” – Daniel Houlemarde of The Division Red
When big guitar rock meets alt-pop and electronica…you get The Division Red. Built on the foundations and inspirations of those genres, producer, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Houlemarde and guitarist/producer Colin Fraizer add their own unique and interesting twists — creating epic and catchy sonic structures that are both memorable and more importantly…interesting.
While formed in 2018, The Division Red released the Crossfire EP, and followed up in 2019 with their debut full length album The Speed of Light. The worldwide pandemic hit the duo hard in 2020, both personally and professionally, but that didn’t stop them from releasing the Chris Crummett (Dance Gavin Dance, Emarosa) engineered Arcade EP which included the synth rock inspired “Radio” and “Contact”, two of The Division Red’s most successful tracks to date.
