Hamilton's blackwinterwells Leads Glitchcore's Growing Wave on 'Stone Ocean'

BY Teodor ZetkoPublished Oct 20, 2020

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Within the highly collaborative, uber-online glitchcore scene, community is coded through collaboration; online engagement keeps the score. Success is merited by the friends you make along the way and the skills you teach each other. While some major artists try to mask the countless teams helping them achieve their stardom, this crop of young creatives acknowledge every single person involved in the process.

Being a figurehead of the scene and creator of Helix Tears, Hamilton, ON-based producer blackwinterwells provides a platform for rising talent and embraces the scene's many innovators. Every track on her sophomore album, Stone Ocean, features at least one or two prominent glitchcore artists, representative of a roster of talented young musicians. 

Album opener "algae" is a euphoric introduction that, despite its short runtime, thoroughly transports listeners to blackwinterwells' idiosyncratic world. Algae is an apt metaphor for this scene; blackwinterwells is the sun and her fans and friends are the photosynthetic creatures that thrive under her warmth. "crystallize," another standout, is an emotional song about something unrequited and the inadequacy it brings. The disjointed delivery and computerized stutters add texture, and the way that the vocal effects unravel as the song progresses reads like a story.

The album closes with "until i break" featuring Dolly, who is featured both on the first and last track in a cyber-circle of life. This ever-growing community shows the importance of having fun online and working hard with friends, and the power that emerges through teamwork and positivity.
(HELIX TEARS)

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