released January 1, 2010

thank you Lane Hooker and die Stasi
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"Debut single by this solo project of Miami's Ricardo Guerrero makes me think this is what Carlos Giffoni has really had planned all along - classicist BEF-style electro-pop, backed with something a bit more Residential, dancey and, uh... sailor-ish." -WIRE magazine, by Byron Coley for Size Matters section


"Gentleman of leisure Ricardo G, serves up two Flexi Pop style rulers complete with twists, turns and a BIG personality. Its always summer in Miami, and that shines through on "Polar," a true-blue a-side. "Nowhere to Run..." bubbles and bristles under a lathering of paranoia. Two lovely and odd tracks with screenprinted covers." -Die Stasi


"South Florida is the home of the DIY/synth odd who goes by the name This Heart Electric and this is his debut. The first side had me thinking of a thrift store version of Suicide entering orbit with acts like Mattress. And then I flipped this over and holy crap what a great song of primitive min synth hypnotics. A hit!" -S.S. Records


"This Heart Electric is Miami native Ricardo Guerrero composing/recording everything himself, but taking a more interesting approach than many bedroom recorders of the modern era. Meaning he's not reliant on the lazy echoed vocals and lo-fi fuzz many recent "artists" have floundered about in. "Polar" is a strange little British electro-pop tune with impeccably dramatic vocals and some exotically flavored percussion. Wonderfully evocative of neon beach night-life somehow. "Nowhere To Run..." has a slightly futuristic bent, but he brings the weird levels up with some falsetto vocal stylings that start as girls murmuring and increase in volume after an abrupt pause where he starts in with the high pitched warbling himself. Lots of background chatter and bleeping, I swear I hear the Vincent Price laugh from Thriller sampled in the mix somewhere in there and it's all suspended in a determined and bossy motorik beat. A rather fascinating little record that reminds me slightly of a classier and dancier Pink Noise.(RK)" -terminal-boredom(dot)com


"This Heart Electric's "Polar", off the A-Side has an amazing balance of tone that is equally scarily accurate and completely sincere. It's referencing every previous era, and Ricardo pays homage (?) recreating the whole expansive mess with nothing but a tape deck. It's so off it could be a long lost relative to Ariel Pink." -Jason Dean for 7inches(dot)blogspot(dot)com


"Part-time Animal of the Arctic, Ricardo Guerrero gives us a heavy dose of sun-fried synth-pop, just as good as any early Depeche Mode or Moev demo might have sounded. One of Miami's finest musicians and a good guy to boot." -Radio-Active Records


"Nothing sounds sweeter than new vinyl from Miami. We’re thrilled to carry the debut EP from Ricardo Guerrero’s (Animals of the Arctic, hahahelp!, Death To The Sun) This Heart Electric solo project, on Ohio-based label die Stasi (also released the Electric Bunnies/Pink Reason split 7”, not to mention records by Zola Jesus and U.S. Girls). A true single with a bombastic, gloom-synth A-Side (love the howling vocals), and a more subdued, home-taper (Ariel Pink, Dino Felipe, etc) viber on the flip. An essential document from Miami, Florida at the end of the beginning of the new millenium." -SWEAT Records


"This Heart Electric: "Polar" and "Nowhere to Run" seven-inch (die Stasi)
Ricardo Guerrero is a man of many hats. He is the cofounder of electro-punk duo Animals of the Arctic, curator of the annual local music showcase Death to the Sun, Psychic Youth collaborator, and minister of the low-end (he plays bass) in the band hahahelp!. What else could you ask for? How about gloomy, goth-night synth punk? Your wish is his command. The debut single from Guerrero's This Heart Electric solo project is an exciting next step in the project's development. Up to this point, THE has existed as a one-man, press-play-and-spazz party MC. The tunes have always been there, but this 45 (complete with a big ol' fashioned hole in the middle) finally puts them on proper display. It's essentially the perfect single: a scorcher on the A-side and something a little more subtle on the flip. "Polar" is a genuine dark party banger, pairing slinky boogie synthesizer licks with percussion that achieves the perfect level of Latin/tropical rhythm without taking a spill off the corny cliff. The vocals are great too. Guerrero's got a lil' Ian Curtis caught in his throat, but makes the style his own by substituting despair with soul. The B-side, "Nowhere To Run," is a little more subdued and a little crunchier. But what it lacks in tempo it makes up in depth. Byrne/Eno style flourishes (well-timed boops and beeps) and the diseased falsetto that eventually comes to the forefront both cement this bad boy as the realest deal possible. Score This Heart Electric's single through Die Stasi." -Matt Preira for Crossfade feature in Miami New Times


"NEW BAND OF THE WEEK! Insound staffers seek out new music constantly. Between the hundreds of music submissions we get per week and the new bands and labels we're always reaching out to, we stumble upon some really great stuff. Each week, we will be picking one lesser-known band that we particularly love. This week, Meghan has her own personal Halloween dance party with This Heart Electric. This Heart Electric is probably one of my favorite new discoveries! I am typically not one for synth-y music, but This Heart Electric has won me over. A-side, "Polar," is dark but still upbeat; this track could fit into any 80’s-themed dance night – it’s a mash-up of video game inspiration and goth vocals. The B-side, "Nowhere to Run," is more lo-fi and pretty spooky with the combination of distorted vocals and a gloomy beat. The two-and-a-half minute track speeds by and even gets me into the Halloween mood. (Perhaps it wouldn’t if it weren’t mid-October, but I still consider it to be a good thing!). I can’t stop myself from listening to these two songs over and over again, and while I am not much of an expert when it comes to this genre of music, I think This Heart Electric is really promising, and I’m totally psyched to have found this record!" -Meghan Galewski for Insound(dot)com


"Today’s music of interest comes from a DIY South Florida synth-pop outfit called THIS HEART ELECTRIC, which I’ve come to understand is just one person, although I could be wrong. This is his debut release of any sort, and it comes from the die Stasi imprint out of Ohio. Included on the 7″ is two brand new tracks, combining for a total of nearly 6 minutes of oddball, dance-worthy synth jams. A-side “Polar” kicks off with some glamorously familiar sounds, possibly reminding you of your favorite Nintendo or Sega games that you used to play and love with all yr heart. The synth sounds may or may not also remind you of a Wintry, snowy atmosphere, which could by why this song is called “Polar”. Flip on over to the B-side for another poppy synth jam, only this time it’s riddled with all sorts of sound effects, ranging from siren-like shrieks and the singers eerie, uneasy voice. If you don’t believe me, you should check out both of these songs below from the 7″." -styrofoamdrone(dot)com