Starset Debuts Acoustic Version Of ‘Die For You’ Ahead Of ‘Vessels 2.0’ Release

The Inquisitr is excited to debut an acoustic version of “Die For You,” the latest track from multifaceted rock band Starset, off the band’s upcoming Vessels 2.0 — set to release on Friday, September 28. The forthcoming opus serves as the deluxe version of the band’s 2017 sophomore album and features several re-imagined, acoustic, and remixed versions of songs, along with an unexpected cover, for a total of nine new tracks.

“Vessels 2.0 is the expanded edition of the band’s Fearless Records debut and builds upon a schema where futurism has become fact and imagination is opportunity. The deluxe collection is a prolific precursor to the band’s third album, due out next year,” the accompanying press release said.

Hailing from Columbus, Ohio, Starset is an interesting project, helmed by an interesting — if seemingly unlikely — frontman in Dustin Bates. In addition to designing the band’s signature, all-encompassing sound, Bates is a Ph.D. candidate in electrical engineering. He’s also co-writer — partnering with Peter David — of The Prox Transmissions, a Marvel Comics graphic novel that’s another component of the overarching Starset Society storytelling schema, under which the band’s thematic music and other creative media fall. The band’s mythos springs out of Bates’ love for astronomy — did I mention he’s conducted research for the U.S. Air Force and has also taught at the International Space University in France?

Starset recently announced that the band will be sharing a new track from Vessels 2.0 each week until the album is released. This week’s offering is the acoustic version of “Die For You.”

Fans familiar with the original, album version of “Die For You” might be given pause by the thought of the broodingly atmospheric, heavily-layered and immersive song being redone in an ostensibly low-tech fashion. And it’s true that the songs are entirely different animals; that’s not a bad thing. The acoustic re-imagining of “Die For You” is a stripped-down, minimalist take on the original with strings replacing the heavy use of synths, giving the track a lighter, almost uplifting feel. While Starset is known for its heavy electronic influence, taking the song’s basic framework in a more Neo-Luddist direction has produced a sound that’s unexpected but enjoyable.

Prior to releasing Vessels 2.0, Starset will perform a string of dates in Japan’s Zepp Tokyo at the beginning of September. After that, it’s back to the band’s hometown in Columbus for the album’s release. Additionally, Starset will be trekking across Europe in late October.