Lia Hide - The Missing Fourth Guest (2022) Hi-Res

Not exactly Americana music this 8-cut CD drips influences that may result in having listened to Kate Bush, Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil, Jarboe (The Swans), Dead Can Dance & Laurie Anderson — among some others.

Lia Hide is the prolific lady of Greece's dark, progressive, alt-pop scene Her latest effort, The Missing Fourth Guest, to be released via Conch Town Records, is the fourth album by the Athenian avant-pop artist.

The Missing Fourth Guest borrows its title from Plato's 'Timeaus' dialogue opening line and discusses the emotional struggles of the recent Covid19 pandemic and lockdowns, human mortality, and the modern man's place in the Universe. The album contains eight tracks, and in addition, a three-fold major work in the form of a sonota.

Hide's classical music training is evident. Her songwriting is simple, pop, structured and lyrical, yet bears progressive music elements, embedding glitch and jazz fragments, cinematic guitars and orchestral layers, electronic sub drones, and industrial noises. Her virtuosity on the keyboard and the lyricism of her songwriting, along with her amazing solid rhythm section experiments on song lengths and arrangements, playing around with radio-friendly landscapes and post-punkish elements. She writes about adulthood, social injustice, existential crisis and broken hearts. Her singing is as always precisely articulated, versatile through strong high notes, ethereal softness and velvet depths. The dark post-wave affair is brought to life by Hide's lyrics, the music and arrangements created by Hide and bandmates Aki'Base (bass), and George Rados (drums). Additional musicians on the record include Stelios Chatzikaleas (trumpet), and Dennis Morfis (guitars).