The Mietus Touch – Transcendental Souvenirs | Psychedelic Synth Dreamscapes

Joseph Mietus is the Chicago-based multi-instrumental project, The Mietus Touch. Having worked on his debut album, Transcendental Souvenirs for some time now, the talented act has finally released it. With 7 songs, spanning a little over 23 minutes, this highly integrative album seems to break boundaries and explore Synthwave.

Beginning the album on Digits, we have a very relaxed, synth-heavy track that seems to take away all my problems in life. Let me just start off with how smooth Mietus’ voice is. It’s smoother than warm butter and will absolutely melt your soul. The instrumental is so rich and full that keeps getting better with every instrument. The guitar solos really have me swooning. The drums and synth seem to keep the tempo going. The synth also creates a nice backbone to the chordal structure. This track is nothing short of a relaxed dance track that will keep you going at a festival.

However, once we move into Send Soul, we’re met with a darker atmosphere, an even slower track that seems to expand on The Mietus Touch. Mietus’ vocals seem to be this warm light that guides you through the track, sort of like Damon Albarn in Gorillaz. More so because Mietus has this psychedelic glamour to his music that seems to give me some pretty vivid hallucinations in my head. There’s something misleading about his music and how it can keep your mind active even though it is in a relaxed state.

Moving on to Edge of Heaven, we have a dance track again. I love the little clap percussions in between bars. The vocals seem to occupy a more stereo space on this track, which gives it this little split that sounds so good. I like that the synth is usually the chordal backbone to The Mietus Touch sound. It provides a great depth that is usually left to the bass to fill. However, the music as a whole is a little incongruent, but that’s what makes it great. Like how Kevin Parker does with the entire Currents album for Tame Impala.

When we get to Last Lost Look, we reach this level of relaxation that has you feeling like you’re floating through space. There’s this lingering sense of futurism in the track that I’ve only ever heard from Gorillaz. I love everything about this track. The vocals, as calm as ever, guide you through the journey as the instrumental plays with you. The synth, arpeggiating away, gives you this ethereal feeling that comforts you in the oddest of ways. The high frequencies really stand out on this track, but the bass, as subtle as it is, creates a strong contrast that gives the track much-needed depth.

We then arrive at You Got Me, a track that starts with the drum track but is quickly met by the synth. These two elements are what comprise The Mietus Touch sound. A track that really does its best to relax its listeners almost sketchily like Crystal Blue Persuasion. However, the lyrics are really wholesome. I love this track. It’s easily my favourite on the album. The shakers add some really nice percussion. But if your track has silly noises, it’s got my vote.

The penultimate track, Maybe I’m a Coyote, is easily one of the more psychedelic tracks. The instrumental is this spacey, synthy, dreamy atmosphere that explodes colour in your head. I will never knock The Mietus Touch and his guitar work. I’m in such awe of how well he navigates the fretboard. Creating melody lines and counter melodies that work together to create perfect harmony.

Finally, the last track on the Transcendental Souvenirs album, Moon River. This is Mietus’ own take on the classic Moon River by Henry Mancini. The track showcases The Mietus Touch sound in absolute perfection. I can’t tell you how amazing a job Joseph Mietus does on this track. You’re just going to have to listen to it yourselves!