Brett Callwood
The Soft Moon Rises Over the Regent: Since 2009, Luis Vasquez has been creating dark wave, post-punk music in Oakland as the Soft Moon, and it’s consistently thrilling. His latest album, Exister, just dropped this September, and it’ll be great to hear his new stuff at the Regent.
“The whole point of this record was to share every emotion that I feel,” said The Soft Moon’s Luis Vasquez of Exister in a statement. “No two songs are the same. It’s about existing in the world as a human being and experiencing many emotions and experiences throughout life. Exister is my way of saying ‘I’m here, deal with it.’”
According to the press release, “The reason the album exists as such a personal one for Vasquez is because his life underwent a lot of changes throughout its creation. He left Berlin, his home of many years, and moved to the Joshua Tree to find some space musically, and personally, during lockdown. ‘I had a ton more freedom than I’ve ever had,’ he says. For one, he could actually play drums, which he’s never been able to do before due to space constraints. Even his first album, which was typified by his whispering vocal style, was because of his neighbor situation. In the Joshua Tree, he could unleash himself and let rip and the clearest, and most symbolic result of that, is the prominent, powerful vocals of Vasquez that truly capture someone gaining confidence in their own voice. ‘I always complained that I never had enough freedom to do everything I wanted,’ he says. ‘This time I literally had everything at my disposal.’
The Soft Moon Rises Over the Regent: The event takes place at 8 p.m. on Friday, November 25 at the Regent.
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