KaS Product
Frosty French coldwave that pairs clinical drum machine pulses with erratic, jazz-tinged vocals. Tense, stylish, and perpetually on edge.
Frosty French coldwave that pairs clinical drum machine pulses with erratic, jazz-tinged vocals. Tense, stylish, and perpetually on edge.
KaS Product sounds like the intersection of a psychiatric ward and a high-fashion underground club in 1982. It is music built on the friction between Spatsz’s rigid, skeletal electronics and Mona Soyoc’s fluid, often manic vocal delivery. The sound is defined by its emptiness; there is a lot of space between the sharp synth stabs and the dry, thudding rhythm machines, creating a sense of urban claustrophobia that feels both sophisticated and dangerous.
What truly distinguishes them is the 'jazz-punk' DNA brought by Soyoc. Unlike the robotic monotone of many of their synth-pop contemporaries, her voice leaps from a sultry whisper to a theatrical shout, mimicking the unpredictability of a live wire. The guitars don't provide chords so much as they provide texture, appearing as jagged shards of noise that cut through the hypnotic, repetitive electronic loops.
Start with the album 'Try Out' to hear the rawest realization of their vision. It captures a moment where the DIY punk spirit met the burgeoning world of affordable synthesizers, resulting in a cold, brittle masterpiece that still feels modern. It is the perfect entry point for anyone who finds standard 80s pop too polished and prefers their electronics with a bit of grit and neurosis.
KaS Product are a French electronic duo. Their music has been considered part of the French cold wave and electropunk movements. Formed in 1980, the duo consisted of Spatsz (Daniel Favre) on electronics and rhythm machines with Mona Soyoc on guitar, vocals and piano. Spatsz worked at a psychiatric hospital previously while Soyoc worked with a jazz band before meeting Spatsz. Their music is done in a similar minimal electronics and vocal style akin to Kaleidoscope-era Siouxsie and the Banshees, Suicide and Soft Cell. The press compared Soyoc's voice to that of Siouxsie Sioux. Their first and second albums were re-released with bonus tracks. Try Out was re-released with five bonus tracks: "Mind", "Seven", "Doctor Insane", "In Need", and "Malena". By Pass was re-released with four bonus tracks: "Scape", "Sweet & Sour", "Crash" and "Party". All of the tracks on both CDs have been remastered. Gorgeously provocative duo of Mona Soyoc and Spatz who released a couple of singles on their own punk label, then signed to RCA which seemed a remarkably odd union, which produced two blindingly brilliant albums, 'Try Out' and 'Bypass' that found the haunting, mad vocals hemmed in by and stretched out over the alternately boiling/icy keyboards, the shattering chatter of arching/dive bombing guitar and stabbing electronic rhythms. - Mick Mercer On 1 February 2019, it was announced that Spatsz had died. He was 61 years old. Per videos on YouTube with a 2022 copyright, now KaS Product Reload with Thomas Bouetel (machines) and Pierre Corneau (Basse) joining Mona. Their Facebook activity is current as of September, 2024, and they have several live videos on their Youtube channel from 2024 concerts in France. A new album, Reloaded, is due to be released at the end of March 2025.
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