Burnt down utopias and urban paranoia, Hidden Horse are back with their second album. “Incorporeal” is the follow-up to 2022’s “Opala” and the band’s first release on vinyl. Composed by João Kyron (keyboards/electronics) and Tony Watts (drums), long-time friends and collaborators on different projects, the most prominent one being the exotic and dreamy Beautify Junkyards (Ghost Box). As a duo they’re a totally different game.

Playing live regularly after the release of “Opala” offered them the possibility to explore a more freeform approach to their sound. Their live sets were often unpredictable, focused on the communication dynamic between the trio (Ana Farinha joins them on their performances) and where they could be led to, instead of reinterpreting the songs. “Incorporeal” embodies that attitude, it is a less confined album and it is not worried about being referential or even self-referential. They finally discovered how to expand the hauntology dynamics and free themselves from design restraints.

The album feels lighter, fluent, more optimistic. It remains thematically close to the eternal sci-fi discomfort, imagine Burial living in Lisbon, Portugal. João and Tony feel free from any doubts they might have had in the beginning of this project and are now more confident about how Hidden Horse sounds and unpreoccupied about the narrative: it is rock oriented but dressed as the electronic / dance music they would like to listen and dance to. Guest slots from Arianne Churchman (“The Tape Spool Within The Horse’s Mouth”) and Clothilde (“Espectros no CCTV”) offer a new range of feelings and confirms how Hidden Horse’s music evolves into new grounds when accepting new ideas and voices. “Opala” was a trojan horse to come out – of the pandemic? – and play. “Incorporeal” feels like the real deal.