X Best | Missax 24 04 22 Laura Bentley Dads Downstairs

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The title is a playful mash‑up of two recurring motifs in Missax’s catalog: the domestic, almost cinematic image of a father lingering in the hallway, and the relentless pursuit of “the best”—whether that be a beat, a love, or a moment of self‑realisation. In an interview with SynthWave Monthly, Bentley explained that the phrase “dad’s downstairs” was a literal reference to the cramped studio she shared with her father while recording the demo. “He’d be in the kitchen, humming along, and I’d be in the basement trying to coax the perfect synth line,” she recalled. The “× Best” part, she added, was a nod to the band’s habit of tagging their most experimental tracks with a multiplication sign, signalling a collision of ideas. missax 24 04 22 laura bentley dads downstairs x best

From the opening bar, the track plunges listeners into a low‑frequency rumble that mimics the thump of a basement subwoofer. A glistening arpeggio, built on a 7‑note Lydian scale, weaves through a syncopated drum pattern that feels both human and machine‑crafted. Bentley’s vocals sit atop this foundation, layered with subtle vocoder harmonies that echo the “downstairs” motif—each line feels like a call and response between the present and a memory of a father’s humming. When creating content around specific scenes or videos,

The production, handled by longtime collaborator Max “Pixel” Ortega, employs a technique known as “parallel compression” on the bass synth, giving the low end a punchy presence without sacrificing the track’s airy ambience. The result is a soundscape that feels simultaneously claustrophobic (the basement) and expansive (the quest for “best”). “He’d be in the kitchen, humming along, and