SCREENSAVER - "EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST" LP

HEAVY MACHINERY RECORDS:

Heavy Machinery Records is proud to present 'Expressions of Interest' the brilliant debut album from Melbourne post-punk specialists screensaver.

screensaver balance frenetic energy with unsettling tonalities to create rhythmic gloom that rides the new wave to the synth-punk. Spending three years in an incubatory state, the band began as a trans-Pacific collaboration between Christopher Stephenson (Spray Paint / Exek) and Krystal Maynard (Bad Vision / Polo) in 2016. By 2019 the pair had recruited Giles Fielke (Low Tide) and James Beck (Personal Touch / Rat Columns) on bass and drums respectively to form the band as it exists now.

‘Expressions of Interest’ is the debut album from screensaver, released on Heavy Machinery (AU) and Upset the Rhythm (UK) Records.

Sonically, the 10-track album is rich and detailed, and pays homage to its era of inspiration: late 70s-mid 80s post-punk and new wave.

From electronic-driven krautrock, to post-punk full of tribal toms and dirge-y synths, to death-disco with touches of EDM, 'Expressions of Interest' is an album that is both fierce in attack and destined for the dance floor.

Maynard’s vocal style is equal parts haunted and commanding, her lyrics exploring themes of social degradation, frustration and repetition, whilst exposing the fragility of our bodies/minds on the whole.

Praise for ‘Expressions of Interest':

“Though screensaver's lineup comes close to a supergroup of Australian post-punk talent, with members who have played in EXEK, Rat Columns, and other acts putting their stamp on these time-tested sounds, it's Maynard's voice that immediately distinguishes them from their peers. A vibrato-heavy alto snarl in the vein of Siouxsie Sioux or Adult's Nicola Kuperus, it's a refreshing -- and imposing -- change from the deadpan vocal style of many post-punkers in the 2020s.” – Heather Phares, All Music

“E.O.I is a potent set of dark post-punk inflected with industrial, motorik prog-rock and other styles, combining angular guitars, buzzing keyboards, driving rhythms and hypnotic song hooks.” Don Yates, KEXP

“Sonically, screensaver are an amalgamation of goth, synth, and post punk. On a macro level The Cure, Joy Division and Siouxsie and the Banshees, are some of vocalist Krystal Maynard’s musical influences as a teenager. However, on a micro level you'll find Constant Mongrel and Nun, UK label mates Es, and almost anything and everything released on Nihlistic Orbs. At the same time, this band is like no other.” - Tristan Birrell, 4ZZZ

“Most bands trying to do this particular sound don’t have this level of attention to detail that screensaver have, in particular I enjoy the subtle and not so subtle use of percussive synth sounds. Great lyrics, maybe not the most uplifting but indeed an accurate representation of the new dark age we live in. ‘When the well runs dry, you act surprised’. Expressions of Interest is a studied, devotional love letter to the bands that have inspired them, not merely a genre exercise.” - James Vinciguerra (Total Control/Trevor)