Sometimes hearts don’t mend. They move on to other emotions. Sometimes music for broken moments is needed even when the person’s not fully broken anymore.

Religion of Heartbreak formed out of a desire to make music with a darker dance floor focus. Members of Monta at Odds performed as a trio for their last set of shows and it worked so well the trio spun themselves off into a new entity. The combination of Mikal Shapiro’s vocals and Krystztof’s baritone guitar battling against Dedric’s mechanized beats and dub-inflected bass lines creates a juxtaposition that works in all the right ways.

Where Monta at Odds pursued a psychedelic vision of Synth Pop meets Post-Punk, Religion of Heartbreak delves into the sounds of Darkwave, EBM, and the darker side of Synth Pop. Trading in their black jeans for a darker shade of black if you will. The grooves are there. The songs are clever and always filled with a sense of lost love as we follow our dark hearts.