Light Asylum - Shallow Tears

Few voices in modern darkwave hit with the physical force of Shannon Funchess, and “Shallow Tears” gives hers exactly the kind of monumental backdrop it deserves.

Released in 2012 on Mexican Summer, “Shallow Tears” arrived as the lead single from Light Asylum’s self-titled debut album. By then, the Brooklyn duo of Shannon Funchess and Bruno Coviello had already established a formidable underground reputation with In Tension, but “Shallow Tears” showed how much larger their sound could become without sacrificing its darkness.

Coviello constructs the track from brooding synthesizers, programmed percussion, and a slow, relentless electronic pulse. Against it, Funchess delivers a vocal performance that towers over the arrangement. Her voice carries the gravity of classic goth and post-punk while possessing a soulful power rarely heard in the colder corners of synth-driven music. The contrast became one of Light Asylum’s defining strengths: machinery underneath, unmistakably human emotion above.

“Shallow Tears” is unusually spacious for a dance track. Rather than rushing toward release, it allows tension to accumulate around Funchess as she moves between vulnerability and command. The result sits naturally alongside darkwave, synth-pop, EBM, and minimal electronics, yet never sounds beholden to any one scene.

The B-side, “Genesis,” makes the 12-inch even more compelling. More propulsive and severe, it pushes Light Asylum’s electronic foundation toward the dance floor while retaining the imposing atmosphere surrounding their best work. Together, the two tracks provide a concise introduction to the opposing forces at the center of the duo: intimacy and enormity, melancholy and physicality, human voice and machine rhythm.

This original 2012 Mexican Summer 12-inch single captures Light Asylum just before the arrival of their debut LP, when the anticipation surrounding the duo was reaching its peak.

More than a decade later, “Shallow Tears” remains one of Light Asylum’s defining recordings: a towering piece of dark electronic music driven by an unforgettable voice and a synth line that seems to stretch toward the horizon.