Joy X Libeau-Broken Moon, self-released; 2020

The call came in, and Disaster Amnesiac has answered. Mind you, I have ZERO idea of how Joy X Libeau got my contact info. That said, somehow a promo package of their EP Broken Moon ended up in my email inbox. This Electronic Music duo speaks in said package of collaborating with fashion boutiques and retail shops as means of getting their music heard. Disaster Amnesiac is the last person that would fit into the demographic for those types of spots, mostly on account of being a grubby dude just months short of the Big 5-0. It strikes me that this in itself is a pretty savvy way for a group to get their music heard, that's for sure.
And the music of Broken Moon? It's a really cool Electronic style worked up from the barest of tools: two analog synthesizers, one drum machine, and an Akai MPC. The resultant six tunes feature Minimalist beats and sounds that frame spoken lyrics from one guy and sung ones from one woman. Disaster Amnesiac really enjoys these songs, especially for the sparse Electronic Music modes which they feature. For me, they bring to mind some the early Hip Hop that I was exposed to as an adolescent, along with various strains of Dance Music that I am aware of from being on Boomkat's Manchester-based email list and reading Wax Poetics pretty avidly.
Small sounds pop and bleep into beats that swing in very cool ways, the synthesizers provide dramatic washes above them, and the lyrics are smart and intriguing, along with being astutely delivered. A fave line, "...shame has crumbled the tower/shame has dusted my prowess..." really resonates on multiple levels for this listener.  There's a kind of downtempo darkness within most of the tunes, but the music that frames them provides some light, and, with it, balance.
Broken Moon is a soulful statement that succeeds with creative use of self-imposed limitations. Disaster Amnesiac is puzzled as to how Joy X Libeau figured out to get these tunes to me, but I'm certainly glad that they did and that I got to hear them. .