In this teaser for his new EP, WORLD VS BRAIN, Lucas Chantre (a.k.a. WORLD BRAIN) presents a beautifully crafted sonic architecture, fusing the sounds of his inner and outer worlds into a retro-futuristic soundscape. The music radiates a timeless quality that never feels nostalgic for nostalgia’s sake.
Kumisolo takes the lead vocals with a buttery voice that seems pulled from a Nouvelle Vague daydream. She playfully channels the melancholy of French chanson with a cool, understated magnetism. Her daughter, Miyo Okamoto, provides lush backing harmonies to lend the song a distinctly ’70s pop sensibility with a faint folk-song undertone. Underneath, cinematic string progressions intertwine with shimmering synth-pop textures to drive a gently restless ebb and flow. At the same time, an opposing basse alterné bassline locks directly into the electronic groove. Kumisolo’s vibrant, airy flute lines then slice through the synthetic landscape, taking on a more psychedelic character as they flutter over the melody. This adds an organic breath to the track’s hazy, oneiric atmosphere.
Beneath its playful sonic world, this is ultimately a song about connection: an inner reality becoming tangible only when another person enters it. A signal is sent, a bottle reaches the shore, and a dream becomes real through encounter. Fittingly, the collaboration itself began with a chance encounter: Chantre met Kumisolo at one of his shows in Paris last year, and later she joined him on the track, bringing her flute into the arrangement, while her daughter Miyo added backing vocals.
“Life in theory” forms an auditory mirror: a delicate love song born from the meeting of two inner worlds. In the end, the song itself is the message in the bottle—a small piece of inner reality sent out into the world. Ready to pull it from the shore?
Take a listen to “Life in theory” below.
Written by Daniel Puelma Day
