Fake A Smile
“Fake A Smile” by Nisus Cede and XHVIL is the 27th installment in the expansive Single Series from New York City’s eclectic Onamazu label. The Onamazu Single Series established a pattern for dark wave anthems and raw electronic experimentalism of the highest quality, but “Fake A Smile” is a more acoustic, sensitive offering that smacks more of Coldplay than Nine Inch Nails.
Netherlands native and Onamazu affiliate Nisus Cede, whose name is Latin for “attempted murder”, combines a most musical mind with a set of production chops that betray his very modest SoundCloud profile. The drum machine percussion he’s put together on “Fake A Smile” could easily be mistaken for the real thing – full of variation, fills, and crisp cymbals. The acoustic timbre of the drums pairs perfectly with the guitar and vocals tracked by Cede’s associate XVHIL, all of which is arranged along with a twangy stand-up bassline. “Fake A Smile” feels like new ground for the growing New York City collective Onamazu, which seems to be diversifying it’s offering with every new release. Hopefully the label’s future includes more of these unique, melancholic pop stylings from the Netherlands.
