Album Review: Bulgarian 5-piece scarlet Captures the Spirit of Alternative Music on Their Debut Album Понтика

I've been reminiscing about the 2013-2015 era of Stereofox for some time now. The days when Iva, Peter, a few others, and I frequently tripped over bands like DIIV, WAVVES, Dune Rats, DZ Deathrays, Day Wave, honestly - the list goes on and on.

These were the good times. The kind that don't deserve to fade into memory and survive only through decade-old write-ups and forgotten bookmarks. I mean, we're always in the good times, but you know what I mean. That youthful, hopeful nostalgia that comes with that sound.

Somewhere towards the end of the 2010s, I feel like I lost touch with the alternative and indie scene. Maybe it was the departure of some of the writers who championed that sound, maybe the scene itself was going through a period of exhaustion, or perhaps Stereofox was simply evolving in a different direction. Or maybe it was just me. Anyhow, what I do know and feel is that the sound never stopped resonating with me. Bedroom pop, new wave, post-punk, and all the countless shades of alternative music will always carry a special flavour. Lowkey, I've been slowly trying to revive and spotlight more of that side of Stereofox again (and the indie experience playlist), and part of the reason is discovering bands like Blood Wizard, soft siren, Senseless Optimism, and the Bulgarian 5-piece scarlet - the reason for this write-up.

Before anything else, an enormous shoutout to the whole team behind the Samodiva Collective, who seem to tirelessly push and be an engine behind the new wave of alternative here in Bulgaria. I was at their showcase in my hometown in Plovdiv back in January, where scarlet, Yanichka Nushi, and Slicr blew my mind. My friend and Fox Tales podcast guest, Stephan Kunze, did a great feature piece on them, in case you want to learn more.

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Without a particularly elaborate story behind their name, scarlet (been researching some interviews), what truly matters about the five-piece is the energy and emotion embossed in their sound. It's the same feeling I found in many of the bands mentioned above, and it's genuinely inspiring to hear it echoed by a band whose members are all still in high school. Drawing from a palette of influences that may feel familiar in the post-punk/alt scene, they manage to shape them into something distinctly their own. Понтика carries sound that feels both nostalgic and refreshingly alive.

While the music can be perceived as melancholic, there's an infectious energy running through the 10-track album, produced by Guergui Linev, who you may know as Kan Wakan (also Samodiva's founder). Needless to say, Guergui, alongside Georgi Stanev and Nikola Nikolov, did an outstanding job making this a cohesive and sonically superb record.

We're not a very vocal-driven blog, let alone lyrics that aren't English, but I am glad I get to spotlight an album in Bulgarian, and while some of you reading this might not understand what Anton (vocals/guitar) sings about, I am sure you'll feel the emotion and the prowness of the music created by him, Mihail (synthesizer), Marin (guitar/vocals), Dimitar (bass) and Stelyan (drums). Hailing from my favourite seaside city in Bulgaria, Bourgas, where part of my family lives, there's an unbreakable connection with the sea and the band's sound. The album's name is derived from Via Pontica - Europe's second largest bird migration route, through the western part of the Black Sea Biogeographic Region. The name also references Via Pontica, a well-known street in Sozopol, a historic seaside town on Bulgaria's southern Black Sea coast. I'm sharing all of these small details because I believe they play a crucial role in forming the sound of Понтика.

As with any other album, I always listened to the album for the first time sequentially and without interruption before figuring out favourites. This one flows nicely and has a few cool surprises that add dynamics to the experience. Absolutely loved the rebellious scent of the opener, "Малкото аз/Little me" and it made me think of Seattle's grunge scene and its legacy from the late 80s/start of the 90s. I reckon the song would make a good soundtrack to a series in the style of Twin Peaks. At the time of writing this, the follow-up, "Пумпал/Spinning Top" is my current Понтика obsession. I like the sudden switch in vibe on here and the positive note of the guitars.

If you're looking for a ray of sunshine and some up-tempo grooves, then the band's debut single, "Слънчоглед/Sunflower" should be enough to make you want to dance. DIIV fans, rejoice!

A special nod goes to the band's rhythm section, which truly comes into its own on another standout, "Под уличната лампа/Under the Street Lamp". The bassline and crisp drumming feel at odds with the swirling guitars and shimmering synths, creating one of the album's most affecting moments, to me that is. There's a beautiful sense of tension and release throughout, making the track feel like the emotional centerpiece of Понтика.

I couldn't be happier for the existence of bands like scarlet in Bulgaria, and I hope the well-deserved greatness happens for these guys and everyone involved in making this a reality.