Marion Belle Live Debuts Sam Mehran Collaboration “Melt” At Vocal Warehouse

“…Prior to his untimely death in 2018, noted musician Sam Mehran was working on a collaborative project with Marion Belle a/k/a “Fatal Jamz”. Almost a year after Sam’s passing, five of those collaborations were finished, mixed by Mehran friend and SSION collaborator Nick Weiss (Teengirl Fantasy), and released on August 16th, 2019 on an EP titled Marion Belle + Sam Mehran Present: Melt.

Marion has stated:

“It became important for me to finish it bc the songs are the story of our friendship and he is eternally alive in them. I know he is watching and I know he is with me.”

On this evening, Melt would have its debut performance.

The sonics expressed by Marion and company were lush and moody. It is a surprising departure from the noise rock that Mehran and his band Test Iclces released over a decade ago or the lo-fi psychedelia of Outer Limits Recordings’ repertoire. It was quite lovely. It was a soulful wave of alt-rock/new wave.  Think if The Smiths, Sade, and Erasure had a love-child that was raised in the late 2000s. That’s the vibe I got.

Marion gave a strong, dramatic performance. The muscles in his midriff clearly tense and taught with every emotive belt he sang.

Of the music Marion has said:

“I think that our bond was profound because we both felt, after all we had each been through, we had been brought together for a reason. And that reason was to help each other to not give up. Sam lived and created in a different way. It was actual magic.”

Magic was made on this night.