2021 has started off as a productive year for Opaque, with a number of prospective tape releases in the near future on various labels and a handful of self-released bizcard CDrs just released. The bizcard CDrs were made available in two batches. The first was released on 18 March and featured four bizcards with a 5-minute track on each: Vanessa Hong In Black Moncler; Black Duvetica Diadema; Duvetica Heze Yellow Hooded Puffer Jacket and Moncler Daos Iridescent Hooded Quilted Shell Down Jacket. Continuing much in the vein of other recent releases, the emphasis is dived evenly between Moncler and Duvetica. The walls presented here range from sparse crackles to full-on wall blasts, as inspired by the materials that provided their themes and which was then further reflected in the visual design: ambient crackling and pink hues for the gently iridescent Moncler Daos, rapid and harsh blasting for Vanessa Hong In Black Moncler – taking inspiration from the shiny, belted, mega-puffy jacket, vinyl pants and heels, and further reflected in the bold type and aggressive orange of the visual design.
The second batch of bizcards was released on 26 March and also featured four bizcard with a 5-minute track on each: Moncler Armoise I, II, III and IV. Evidently, this whole batch was inspired by the magnificent Moncler Armoise model – so further delving into the Moncler obsession professed in series both dedicated to the brand as a whole (the previously concluded Moncler Series trilogy and the ongoing Moncler Worship series) as well as the microfocus on specific models (the various iterations of Total Alpin Worship spread across various releases and formats, all dedicated to the Moncler Alpin). The visual side of the Moncler Armoise series is defined by a singular format (distinguished only by the colour schemes and, of course, the pictures), of which the microfocal particularity also extends into the naming conventions, using the same titles for each of the tracks, which detail the exact make and composition of the jacket. There is certain potential for extending the series with further volumes. The CDrs of this second batch were hand-stamped with an Opaque stamp.
The first batch of bizcards is sold out. Some copies of the second batch of bizcards are still available through the Opaque Bandcamp. Of course, all releases can also be streamed there.
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