Review: Borusiade Dives Into A Gritty, Gothic Twilight In ‘Fortunate Isolation’

Borusiade | Fortunate Isolation | Dark Entries

Release Date: 7 February, 2020

Haunting theatrics lurks within the bewitching twilight of Borusiade’s auditory personality; the gloaming of her gothic 80’s synth-pop, gritty industrial and dark techno bares painful truths many of us can relate to, while still shimmering with a dark beauty. 

Borusiade is the moniker adopted by Romanian musician, DJ & producer Miruna Boruzescu. Growing up in Bucharest, Boruzescu draws inspiration from her education in film and classical music; a distinct element that shone through in her sets as she rose to prominence in the early 2000’s, as one of the few female DJs gracing the Bucharest electronic music and clubbing scene – splicing genres into a unique, spellbinding experience.

Since her debut EP ‘Jeopardy’ in 2016, Boruzescu has released a number of EPs spanning beloved labels such as Cómeme, Correspondant, Cititrax, Monika Enterprise, Relish, P-Balans and Dark Entities. The personal, thematic nature of her work encompasses the deepest, and sometimes darkest aspects of our human experience. With the release of her sophomore LP ‘Fortunate Isolation’, Boruzescu delves into our navigation of the world we inhabit – observing how drastically our society and the world around us is changing, the anxiety that accompanies it – yet with the understanding that there is still hope, and the possibilities for new beginnings.

‘Time (No Time)‘ eases in with a dark, gradual crawl; a moonlit atmosphere glimmers with rhythmic percussion, synthesiser beams swelling in a cyber sky – the distant voices of extraterrestrial phantoms looming within full, shadowy clouds. Layers of texture sculpt a barely visible horizon, a twilight venture into obscurity; an ominous presence grows within the swollen, menacing atmosphere. A prominent brassy growl creeps across an uncertain, rocky terrain – twinkling arps glittering as fireflies in a haunting darkness. The eerie tone of the track fashions an ominous foreboding, the melodic rhythms of anxiety.

‘Mirror Hall (This Relief)‘ is doused in nostalgic new-wave bliss; a pulsing heartbeat synth delves deep within the chest-cavity, a bold resonance palpitating within – the gothic feel of 80’s post-punk surging throughout blood red veins; hues of melancholy swirling into a spellbinding dance. Rhythmic claps stutter within the rise and fall of ghostly synths, inhaling and exhaling – echoic, reverb soaked vocal samples cradle a mysterious omniscience, with the track embracing an unearthly aura – speaking to us from within an endless industrial void.

Heavy cosmic bullets open ‘To The Self’, a celestial fire bouncing between metallic timbres; the sonorous clash of percussion guiding the raw grit of a rhythmic industrial clamour – swallowing rapid electronic bullets in an adrenaline fuelled gloom. Vocal samples emerge from the shadows of an eclipse, submerged in an endless nightfall – alien synths fluctuate in an enigmatic whirl, apparitions emerging from the pitch-black night. Elements of dark techno engulf ‘To The Self’ – an inviting blackhole, a willing jump into the gloaming – an energy that is bold and bewitching on the dancefloor, the gothic aura all the more alluring.

Rating: 8 / 10

Feature Image: Borusiade by Dan Beleiu