Ë Rebours - Vanish (Final Joy Records) |
Coming to classy goth rock, Ë Rebours have a word or two on the subject. The project of Ian Stone, Ë Rebours is based on his varied guitar work and indie-like vocals, lifting the weight of a full-on goth experience. In fact, this is more Wayne Hussey than anything else on the market, but the trouble is that it does lack the full multi-head and instrument input of a full band for this source material to be convincing and involving. Imagine a cross between lightweight Brit goth rock and German darkwave, partly marred by nearly continuous lyrical content and little articulation of the arrangements to accommodate dynamism, feelings and all that would make this nothing more than routine and uncompelling listening. www.maurautius.com - www.finaljoyrecords.com |
Gianfri |
Aere Aeternus - Humanity Needs No Funeral (Kaosthetik) |
Carrying such a merry title as Humanity Needs No Funeral, the first full-length release of Aere Aeternus is no jolly synthpop in case you were wondering. The 11 tracks for just under 50 minutes of running time, offer a deep state of disturbance in the form of cruel ambient swimming in an ocean of darkness. Ritualistic passages form the basis for the grand part of the compositions, taking the listener up for a ride through their innards and minds, while offering biblical one-liners such as Life Is Nothing Else but A Parody. Aere Aeternus' soulscapes are dramatically frightening, the right companion to this parody we call life perhaps (should you share such inclinations), but also very entertaining for those who do enjoy the evergreen thrill of desolation, fear and possibly misanthropy. The tracks work very well on such levels, and lots of work has clearly been invested in making this not sounding like every other droning dark/death ambient project out there. Ideas abound across the length of the work and the articulations are always moving, if slightly, while whispered ghastly orgasmic voices give yet another level of expressiveness to the whole opus. It is certainly no Garden of Eden in Aere Aeternus' world and perhaps titles like Hatred to My Last Breath will remind you so in due course, as the ongoings get nasty with deepening signs of industrial horror. I like the way they sum it up in their Epilogue track subtitled Not Exactly Reinventing The Wheel and surprisingly featuring an acoustic (or so) guitar mantra. Not only they probably never aimed to, but there was no necessity at all. When it comes to interpret the foggiest side of us poor humans, there's much out there to explore and Aere Aeternus have a firm grip on most of that. Get this for a good fresh outlook on our weak spots and for that forbidden aural pleasure. www.aereaeternus.com - www.kaosthetik.com |
Gianfri |
Attacks The Darkness - I Am The Gatekeeper (Self-released) |
This is quite a bizarre project, not least for the way it is presented it. From the front cover to track titles such as There Is a Body In My Freezer and I Don't Have Any Answers, you do wonder about the sanity of the conspirator in charge, a Mr. David Inden of Petaluma, CA. Attacks The Darkness spits low key electronic dissonances and minimal arrangements, with add-ons made of improbable atmospheres and repetitive passages, going on over and over, sometimes just for about too long. There's no predicting what comes up next and some of the programming sounds shaky, although I suspect it is by design rather than by accident. The substrate is made of electronic minimalism, but David likes to mix and match a variety of elements, yet I can't help feeling the best comes with the arcade game type of electronics of Laughing All the Way To the Skeleton or Unto the Darkness rather than the botched experimentalism of My Cassette Player or Cardboard Robot of Destruction. There's no denying a good dose of open mindness is required to get through this atypical work as the type of experimentalism animating the project lies a bit on the side of joyful alienation, which is not the easiest feeling to endure. Perhaps if the album cover would have conveyed a more focusing message... www.attacksthedarkness.com |
Gianfri |
Attrition - At The Fiftieth Gate (Two Gods Records) |
Two decades on and one of the main classic works of the British since long lost darkwave electronic school barely shows a wrinkle. That's twenty years down the line. Out of the beefy Attrition discography, At The Fiftieth Gate is one of the 'bodyest' electronic releases, a full bodied work combining innovative electronic elements, cold grooves and an out of the boundaries subtle guitar work that has still lots to teach to newbie experimentalists of the new centuries. Martin Bowes warm and gritty vocal narration has since muted into a trademark. Having to make do without the help of Julia on this album, he fulfills the vocal role on his own -less gritty than ever-, and the album was clearly built entirely around that, resulting into one of the most upbeat (or the most upbeat) albums ever in the band 25-year span of a career. Not to be forgotten is the input of the early Belgian EBM culture, as he album was produced back there and then under the controls of a certain Ludo Cambderlin (The Neon Judgment anyone??) and it does certainly feel so. I am confident that this album will already be part of the collection of a large fraction of the band aficionados and those into the early darkwave developments, so is there a reason to update the treasured possession to this brand new release? Well, there are some, the updated mastering for one, but more than that, it's probably the 8 extra tracks sourced from singles of back then that would mostly appeal to fans and novices alike, unless you owe them already, of course. In fact, the whole new series of re-releases of Attrition's classic on their own label is a great way to experience the timeless output of Mr. Bowes' timeless creations whether you are a seasoned fan or a novice or anything in between. www.atrition.co.uk |
Gianfri |
Attrition - The Jeopardy Maze (Two Gods Records) |
Another one in the series of re-releases of British electronic pioneers Attrition, The Jeopardy Maze is yet another classic work concocted by Martin Bowes using his arsenal of sharp yet well measured electronics and classical-tailored elements, such as a prominent viola and trademark operatic vocal backing by Julia Waller. Originally released just before the turn of the century, this is one of the defining works as far as the widespread perception of Attrition is concerned. The minimalism and geometric stiffness of the dark electronics on offer clashes head first with the erratic strings and Julia's vocal wordless lucubration, while the cementing factor sounds to me like being Martin's own gritty and measured narration. The approach is tabletop dancefloor tainted by running experimentation. The outcome is simply outstanding, a work destined to age very, very slowly, if aging at all. And what with a synth-driven rendition of the hymn God Save The Queen? What for, we don't know, but the world of Martin Bowes has been always a few steps ahead from common understanding. Which is why nearly ten years down the line we can listen to The Jeopardy Maze as if it were released yesterday. Or tomorrow. www.attrition.co.uk |
Gianfri |
BAK XIII - Ultima Ratio Regum (Urgence Disk) |
BAK XIII are slowly mutating. The premiere electro nostalgic, yet futuristic Swiss outfit are back with another album packed with electronic bizzarria. Melting the eighties spirit into a cauldron filled with EBM, old school electro and fresh twisted pop elements, the trio happily navigates the river counter-current, spitting plain worded cynicism over happy-go rhythms and catchy melodies, typically better suited to light weight themes of short term interest. BAK XIII these days amount to a microcosm. Enter it to see your surroundings through a distinctive looking glass, most definitely inspired by true-life experiences. I like the batting rhythms, I like the downbeat meltdown numbers, I like the finely crafted electro-pop melodies, even the addition of raucous guitars -luckily well tucked in the background- I like the minimal approach to electronics and the constant push to the dancefloor. Lyric-wise, their jumping between social themed and plain careless content might seem a bit disorienting, as it does to me, but I reckon that like all of us to some extent do, they enjoy drifting from the angering reality back to a world of fantasy, romanticism or hero-worshipping (I Love my C-64 anyone?). Ultima Ratio Regum is certainly the most varied and less straightforward production by BAK XIII, and by virtue of this, probably the longer lasting to date. www.darksite.ch/bakxiii - www.darksite.ch/urgences |
Gianfri |
Barbarian Pipe Band - Rota (Barbarian Release) |
A unique combo of pipers and drummers hailing from Northwestern Italy, at the foot of the imposing Alps, the Barbarian Pipe Band is set to fully satisfy your traditional music needs, so long as you love pipes of course. Consisting of three pipers playing a wide assortment of instruments and two drummers adding tribalism to the compositions. For a group active since about half a decade only, the Pipe Band sound tight and steaming as a train, taking their instruments for a breathless ride for close to 55 minutes on this album. Their compositions are said to be a combination of traditional Scottish, German, Occitan and Piedmont pieces and not being a connoisseur, I stand by the info. Rota is a rollercoaster of tunes that leaves little space to breathe and digest the work unless you are fully tuned to it in the first place. The instruments are captured in crystalline fashion, perhaps betraying a bit the nature of the songs, with stereo panning wonders that sort of clash with the genuine nature of the product one is bound to expect. We are talking traditions dating back several centuries after all. I enjoyed the rare instances in which human voices are heard as these really add an indispensable layer to connect orchestrations to listener, especially if you're not actually witnessing a live performance, which is the way to really get transported to the real essence of this music. And yes, Barbarian are a genuine street-playing outfit, although they are well equipped to play proper stages as well. Lovers of traditional music take note, the Pipe Band might be terrorising a village near you anytime soon! www.barbarianpipeband.com |
Gianfri |
Bisclaveret - Amalgame (Zoharum) |
Perhaps not the best introduction to Bisclaveret, Amalgame features 8 remixes of 3 tracks and a new song co-produced with Loverdozed. More than remixes these are radically new interpretations, covering a wide range of styles and mostly leaving little of the substance of Bisclaveret in all truth. Ritual and dark industrialism abound, and so do more goth-oriented approaches, rhythmic spells (Endraum vision of Insane in God being a case in point) and also digressions over to minimal electronica, as in the Bisclaveret vs. Loverdozed proposition, All Things Lost. I see this more as a sampler themed around Bisclaveret that a remix album in its own right. This does not certainly deter from the value of the material featured at all, but it might prove a bit disorienting or, indeed, disappointing were you to expect a new full featured Bisclaveret album. Having said that, Amalgame is sitting on my optical drive since quite some time, and I struggle to remove it from that privileged position! www.bisclaveret.com - www.zoharum.com |
Gianfri |
Blank - Impact Zone (Artoffact Records) |
A duo form Italy standing for straight and clean EBM that if the joy of steaming party animals. Impact Zone is the band second full length for Blank, while a few EPs on Artoffact and self-released had contributed to raise the profile of the project, not to mention a long string of compilation appearances and remix projects. Blank's dance-electronics are very much linear, graced by catchy melodic lines, a taste for what makes you move and compression to boot to bring out the bite. In there creep a few potential dancefloor classics as well, somehow bringing back "memories" of the nineties brand of EBM that has since almost disappeared from the panorama, without leaving any palpable void to be honest. The Maze and Der Mate, as they love to be known as, play their role with competence and, even though they sound is on the verge of qualifying as retro, they have an appeal that connects them back to the minimal EBM scene that flourished in Italy back in the days or the no-frills yet high impact of some of the Dive inspired crosses between pop end EBM. So put your dancing clogs on, as we love to say, and Blank will serve you well! www.mechanoid.it - www.artoffact.com |
Gianfri |
Del Rey & The Sun Kings - Battleship Potemkin (Trakwerx) |
A revisited score to the 1925 classic drama Battleship Potemkin, a silent classic dating back over 80 years bearing the name of Sergei Eisenstein as director. Mr. Jackson Del Rey does indeed capture in full glory the tension and ongoing drama of the original action. Better yet, the compelling work works on its own very well, even if decoupled from the images or imagery evoked by the motion picture. The ambitious exercise Del Rey set upon turns out to be an open showcase of talent in texturing with definite moods the different episodes, or chapters if you want, of the film. The winning weapon turns out to be a seamless integration of judicious synth and sampling and live instrumentation. Some of the most dramatic sequences, in fact, call for a more industrial type approach, whereby the finesse of stringed instruments can be forsaken for dirty samples and banging rhythmic, adding to he immediacy of the score. Wailing violins and cellos set against bleeping synth patterns do offer an edge that lifts the work up from the usual dragging on of some scores drawn by the numbers. Occasional martial drumming or ambience sequences re-enforce the tension and degree of intensity of the proceedings, with the side effect of generating appeal to those who appreciate tonal shaped soundscapes beyond their intended meaning or design. See titles as Suddenly... The Czarist Soldiers for a taste of exactly this type of sonic imagery, not to mention the subdued Morricone inputs. Time for acoustic guitar passages before the final barrage of war rhythmic sealing off a great work of cinematic industrialism that deserves considerably more than a casual listen. www.trakwerx.com |
Gianfri |
Desiderii Marginis - The Ever Green Tree (Kaosthetik) |
Mr. Johan Levin aka Desiderii Marginis is an icon of the industrial ambient scene from the Northern lands and The Ever Green Tree is one fine example of the arts and crafts on offer from this Cold Meat Industry disciple. This mini album dates back to 2005 and was originally released on vinyl, while this silver disk edition came about a couple of years later. A peaceful meltdown of industrial banging, rattling and swooshing, melodies with classic undertones, synth drones dressed up by finely evolving filters and general knob manipulation. As the title and cover artwork might suggest, the album is dark, yes, but hardly scary in truth. There is space and volume to the ambiences, even an acoustic guitar opens up the work, suggesting you might have mixed up disks after all. No mistake indeed, Johan hardly stops at the same post too long and The Ever Green Tree is the one to catch if you're feeling in a lightweightly oppressed mood. Indulgence in dim lights. |
Gianfri |
Different State & Sigill - Spazmatic[k] Spell (Zoharum) |
The obscurely named Spazmatic[k] Spell is the split work of Different State and Sigill, two experimental projects hailing from Poland. Having cleared up a bit of naming obscurities, I'll go straight to state that the music featured in the 8 tracks (equally split by the two projects) is as much enigmatic as the names involved are. Different State populates the first half of the album with 4 tracks that are pure lo-fi excellence, not to mention the wide range covered in terms of arrangements and general working thematic. The solid vocals of Ear are amongst the highlights here, while electronics, synths, beats and electric guitars across the four tracks offer a sound palette that would struggle to find a place in any "conventional" industrial release across the board. Progressive industrial for lack of a better word, highly inspired and not much derivative, if at all. Sigill shift the paradigm towards ambient soundscapes, moving from the meditative to the cosmic to the purely outwordly. †ber human presences find their way into the compositions, quirky electronic loops underline the way for over half an hour of pure cathartic entertainment. Again, the trodden path is widely avoided here, sign that we are safely navigating safe waters on this enigmatically named release. I like the way fresh inspiration is laid bare in front of the recording machines on this release. No frills, just the sincere mind journeys translated in equally mind inspiring compositions. www.zoharum.com |
Gianfri |
Echoes Therein Gale feat. Kenji Siratori - Virgin Clone EP (Self-released) |
Quite an interesting collaboration this one between Echoes Therein Gale who are a Greek outfit prone to dark electronics of ambient nature and Japanese schizo writer and experimental musician Kenji Siratori. Mr. Sartor contributes lyrics and vocals to the six tracks that make up Virgin Clone, mostly enigmatic spoken word in his native language, very intriguing indeed as imagination runs wild upon listening, picturing what he might be going on about, specially for those who have become familiar with his uncontrolled fluency and self-penned form. Echoes Therein Gale provide a mid-tempo backdrop of dark and atmospheric electronics, very cold, yet dreamy at times, such as in the closing title track. Admittedly, the two building block of this simple work function very well together. From the opening track, it's evident that the tension of the vocal delivery complements in extraordinary fashion the fluent electronics, slightly reminiscent of acts such as Actus. Only regret comes from the fact that this is over way too quick, as the atmosphere it manages to build very quickly is well worth much more that the mere 26 minutes on offer in Virgin Clone. echoestg.50webs.com |
Gianfri |
Experiment Nnord - Traumsequenz (Self-released) |
A fine album of electric wave is the second full length by Darmstadt based Experiment Nnord. Trasumsequenz moves at a pace through atmospheres close to that minimal wave the German are undisputed masters of, and stir in even some NDW influences to boot and a bit of goth rock as a side dish. The melting pot is not always too convincing, although they fare very well most of the times. I guess the reason why I find Traumsequenz a bit hard to digest at once lies with some wild production choices, like over the top panning and of Rudiger's and Angie's vocals which result in a fatiguing listening, not to mention their prominence over the whole mix which tends to shadow the fine arrangements. There are fine numbers, specially the midtempo ones, featuring well-crafted synth lines and effects and electric guitars to blend in seamlessly. Unfortunately the excessive use of multiple vocal tracking on many songs ends up backfiring as it diverts attention from the otherwise well effective arrangements, spoiling the nice atmospheres developed from track to track. Having said that, I think that Experiment Nnord have a huge potential just waiting to erupt one way or the other. Just not off the twisting of the pan pot! www.exnnord.de |
Gianfri |
Flint Glass - Circumsounds (Tympanik Audio / Brume Records) |
Over the course of the past seven Gwenn TrŽmorin has gained an undisputed reputation both as founder of the dark electronics label Brume Records and as an accomplished artist himself, operating under the moniker of Flint Glass and also co-operating with Nicolas Van Meirhaeghe of This Morn' Omina in the Tzolk'in project. Even with only three albums under the sleeve, Flint Glass has become a staple name in the scene of dark electronica, partly due to the many collaborations undertaken by Gween in the form of re-mixes and a long string of sampler appearances. Circumsounds addresses the wish of many fans to get hold of the re-mix projects of Flint Glass at once, collecting 15 such tracks on the disk. The qualities of the subtle industrialism, the clean electronics embroideries, the carrying rhythms and the dim atmospheres that are part and parcel of Flint Glass unique sound, shine throughout this disk, making it also a very good introduction of the project to new listeners. It would be difficult, impossible indeed, for me not to recommend this album to fans of electronica and rhythmic industrial. www.tympanikaudio.com - www.brumerecords.com |
Gianfri |
Fractional - Come Mierda (Brume Records) |
An electronica project made in Belgium, Fractional lives between rhythmic electronica, breakbeats, subtle ambience and a touch of ever needed industrial. From uptempo, through ambience to breaks, a catalogue of inspired and inspiring synthetic effects to titillate the ears of the adepts, the rather unattractively titled Come Mierda is an intriguing journey that never stalls, rather moving into varied fields of the industrial electronica as the work develops. I tend to favor the more atmospheric numbers over the breakbeats, but to the author credit is the fact that it all integrates very well from track to track and even the darker and more experimental moments such as Sibi or Krthstr are so well integrated that they manage to release your mind from the grip once leaving way to more conventional electronics and rhythmic tracks. There's a substrate of twisted elements, mostly sitting in the background from track to track that give another thread of continuity throughout the work and give this work a direction which is quite unconventional overall. A titillating project, waiting to be discovered from the vaults of Brume Records. www.brumerecords.com |
Gianfri |
Genre Peak - Preternatural (In-code Music) |
When Genre Peak debuted with Ends of The Earth they were met by your truly with an enthusiastic review (see Darklife Online v.X.5) and the release of Preternatural was nothing more that a conformation of the fact that Martin Birke's hard work is paying off very well indeed. If Ends of The Earth was an uplifting listening experience, Preternatural is even more so, as the project has acquired new collaborators -including a female vocalist- and the blend of infectingly clean electro-pop and electronica driven ambient becomes even more refined and inspiringly crafted. The 13 tracks featured offered a caressing mid-tempo journey down silky avenues touched by a veiled melancholic sheen yet never sound down-lifting in any respect. Genre Peak world is coated in a subdued dark atmosphere, occasionally dressed in brighter tones as it happens on the more upbeat and pop-ish tracks, although even these retain a sense of clean minimalism that really projects the word upbeat into an entirely different scope. A subtle guitar work is blended in so seamlessly, a casual listener would not even notice that guitars feature at all! This is the beauty of Genre Peak, a multitude of intricate arrangements, specially in the rhythmic section, a finely crafted work in the sound design department, cinematic content, pop ballads, guitars and sound effects, all worked in a such an ingenious way to sound as simple and enjoyable as possible, making the listening experience really much easier to the casual listener, yet leaving the discerning one a wide scope for discovering the wealth of content offered by this outstanding album. www.genrepeak.net |
Gianfri |
GrandChaos - Open Source (Urgence Disk) |
Minimal electro with a nostalgic old school touch is a good summary of Open Source, the first full-length by this Belgian project. The tiny rhythms are infecting, the treated, cavernous spoken vocals complement the essential synth lines in "early days" fashion, and, although I have mentioned the word 'nostalgic', I do really think that this genre is alive and well these days, with few dedicated artists that can hardly be pointed to as copycats of one another, despite the tight rules to play by. Did I mention female vocoded vocals as well?? Open Source isn't certainly a groundbreaking work, but its freshness yields it a dignified place in the field, not to mention that each and every track strongly advocates a rush to the dancefloor, at least those dancefloors back in the days when synth lovers needn't necessarily be drugheads on bad trips through synth presets in order to create music to move to. Yes, well pre-nineties! While I enjoy repeated listening of GrandChaos, I hope to hear more of this project some time soon again. www.grandchaos.be - www.darksite.ch/urgences |
Gianfri |
History of Guns - Issue Six: Archive One (Make It Look Like An Accident) (Line Out records) |
Rough, or better said underpolished? They would shoot at me! History of Guns is the most polished of the rough or unpolished sound, let's put it like this, OK? This is a collection of tracks from across the band career, I gather. So, what's the band career made of, I hear you ask. Well, Google is your friend, I say. But I prefer to listen through these nine samples of the band output to understand the bunch has the numbers to appeal to the arty-punky-gothy types. Meaning that they have energy, play guitars, are smart enough to integrate crafty electronics within, plus they are fronted by a mildly crazed vocalist (hey, don't shoot me no more!) who is a fulfilling asset to the band energetic output for the crazed floor. They are no Alien Sex Fiend by a long shot, but then again, I don't think they aim to. They do have a different scope, or so I hope. A taste of pure eighties waves surfaces as well. Let's not forget this is a compilation after all. All good feelings are blown by the last track (actually populating a third of this release) a nonsensical rant of ambient connotations, that would need a standalone release to be taken any seriously (or the equivalent of it). Issue Six is stray bullets across the dark alternative scene. Duck for cover! www.lineoutrecords.com |
Gianfri |
History of Guns - Acedia (Line Out records) |
Back on the topic of History of Guns, I found their latest release landing on my doormat and was very curious to check it out. In this 42 minute incarnation, the band thought fit to go guitar-bond, which isn't necessarily a bad thing in any way. Or is it? Ten tracks dripping with energy, setting aside for most (but not all) of the work the electronic trickery that made a difference in what I ad heard before, retaining the crazed vocals, very distinctive and characterful and generally sounding fresh in inspiration, which can hardly be said for many guitar based formations these days. It's hard these days to come across bands who manage to push forward a certain attitude without sounding badly contrived or entirely out of the basket, but History of The Guns seem to be playing just themselves and excuse them if they are out and about in 2008! Acedia is raw energy, or, as said before, polished yet raw energy. Imaginative riffs and breaks, pulsating drumming and basslines, they are a sort of compendium of elements that find place in a few of the genres driving the underground. Spanky-punky perfectly suited to a nostalgic moshpit this time round and let's wait for what's next to come! www.lineoutrecords.com |
Gianfri |
Individual Totem - Mothfly (Artoffact Records) |
Back towards the end of the nineties, German duo Individual Totem had a swift rise to the higher levels of a thriving electro/EBM scene and become a staple name of the genre. By then, the scene had already slipped into the generic, only for a few acts to liven it up vigorously, Individual totem being one of such. As it happens, circumstance after circumstance, they subsequently eclipsed themselves back out of the spotlight, only to re-emerge a decade later on a Canadian label, turning the wallclock all the way back into a world of beats and synths mixing hard electronic elements with a certain level of implied (or less so) depressive romanticism (Totalausfall anyone?). Tracks as Surrender, Panic, Breakdown, are blistering examples of a work that might have been a good ten year in the making, but feels as it was sitting on a shelf that long time, waiting to be magically resurrected. Mothfly has a thing or two to teach us, namely that fashions are the killers of good content and I'm happy to be sitting here listening to this greatly structured album of emotional EBM, even though it's a bit of a dŽjˆ vu in places. www.artoffact.com |
Gianfri |
Individual Totem - WWW EP (Artoffact Records) |
Apparently, there was a short run of the WWW EP to go with Mothlfy, although this is mainly a digital only release. Remixes of the title track abound (4 out of the 11 tracks featured), boarding on the redundant, but this certainly makes it a DJ friendly release. Generally more upbeat and dirty gritty that the album, the hour-long journey has an obliged destination, universally known as "dancefloor". So don't put this on unless you've put to bed your children and turned on the strobelights. www.artoffact.com |
Gianfri |
JŠgerblut - 1896-1906 (UMB) |
A delicate yet asserting voyage back to exploring the roots for this formation combining the talents of Anton Knilpert of Thorofon, GeneviŽve Pasquier, Giuseppe Tonal Tikki Nagual of Tonal Y Nagual. Evocative neofolk and lots of experimentalism, subtle industrial elements, make this collection of 19 tracks a pleasant listen all round, with its misty atmospheres conjuring up the spirit of old popular tales and rituals, its gentle folk ballads and mysterious sonicscapes. The pedantic attention to the detail in the sparse production is very indicative of the value of the line-up and these days, it rarely gets better than this, resulting in a seamless fusion between elements that have been often tried together, but rarely with this outcome. I would not let the label neofolk either deter or over-excite in this context, 1896-1906 is neofolk and isn't at the same time. It's a blend of elements that are already quite strong on their own and spring to new unexpected life in this album. Ritual for the masses? Or for few elected? Either way, I truly enjoy immersing myself in this journey through times and lands unknown to me, still making them so close to heart. www.umbkollektif.com/jagd/jagd.html |
Gianfri |
Kim Carsons - Kim Carsons (HauRuck! SPQR) |
A shadowy project fitting the foggiest side of the spectrum when it comes to dark ballads, Kim Karsons' is a welcome new figure in an arena that is well populated with well-equipped competitors. Luckily, this is no voice cum acoustic guitar dŽjˆ vu, but a rather sophisticated work in which the soul of damnation comes straight to the fore and works on seducing the listener with caressing soft-gloved hands, while the fire rages beneath. They cite as influences names such as Johnny Cash or Nick Cave, just to give you an idea, but also the likes of Neil Gaiman or Joy Division, so there's an ongoing theme here, and it's painted in black. The four ballads featuring on this CD-r packaged in a neat 7" sleeve, are somber and measured, slow and melancholic and, although they pack references to many authors in the genre, they stand out perfectly well on their own account, also on the strength of a measured yet palpable amount of experimentation. One for the cold nights, and the whiskey. www.hauruckspqr.com |
Gianfri |
Les Jumeaux Discordants - Les Jumeaux Discordants E.P. (Misty Circles / HauRuck! SPQR) |
Another fine example of intellectual mixtures of classicism and ritual, multi-lingual poetry, captivating darkness all around. Les Jumeaux Discordants hail from Northern Italy and belong to that area of experimentalism made of multi-lingual exploration paired with cold-wave and infected with bits of classicism and ritualism. The kind that spells spiritual elevation, or so. The mood is dominated by captivating female vocals ranging from recitation to liberating chants, while the music around it offers a calculated minimalism offering soul-lifting solemnity in sinister surroundings. The duo work well on building legacy atmospheres -they are not quite retro (yet!)- bringing back to the modern days sounds and feelings long lost in the rat-run the life has generally been turned to. A nice hint of horror cinematic themes opens a further door to those into the sinister for the simple sake of it, the linear escapism through the front door. There's a lot of skewing punch packed in the 26 minutes of this EP, a mere recommendation to check this out does not really do justice to the power emanated by this work. Looking forward to live shows. www.artcraf.it/mistycircles - www.hauruckspqr.com |
Gianfri |
Lux Interna - [A Lantern Carried in Blood And Skin] (Projekt Records) |
A nice collection of tracks out of the 4-album strong discography aimed at getting Lux Interna know in their homeland courtesy of Projekt Records. The leitmotif of most of the album lies in the acoustic guitar which gives the band the instant neo-folk feel. But letÕs not forget the band early recording, which were shiny examples of the most beautiful dreamy darkwave ever produced. Lux Interna walk over to more spiritual grounds and their acoustic ballads feed on romanticism and neo-classicism, featuring a plethora of instruments whose measured use spells the band delicate feel for reaching into their audience most sensitive channels as opposed to pouring down genre music by the numbers. With male vocals halfway between Nick Cave and Michael Gira and sensual female counterpart by Joshua and Kathryn Gentzke, the band work their way tapping into the weaker spots of us romantic souls, through weeping violin and cellos, chimes, jingly mandolin and piano arrangements, creating soft and touching pieces that transcend the genres and project the listener into meditative moods, introspective soundscapes and ultimate dreamy escapism. Lux Interna have made a name for themselves in Europe with releases on Eis & Licht and a number of compilation appearances that have made their name familiar with more than a gothic type audience. A lovely compendium for this band that has been out there long before many others who might superficially seem to navigate the same wavy and soulful waters. www.luxinterna.com - www.projekt.com |
Gianfri |
Midnight Syndicate - The Rage (Entity Productions) |
At long last, Midnight Syndicate have come round applying their cinematic proficiency in music to a true soundtrack, which was naturally to be expected after having graced for over a decade their audience with a plethora of soundtrack-like works. True to their mission, the motion picture in question is a horror thriller, fitting like a glove Ed Douglas's long running pinch for the goth and horror shade of entertainment. The Rage is in essence quite different from what we have learnt to love from Midnight Syndicate. The theme is not strictly gothic, and the nature of the subject calls for outbursts of drama, pounding sequences and intense passages, along with the most atmospheric and very dark soundscapes that set the general tone of the scenes. The preoccupation of the artist is now shifted from making sure the music evokes images on its own to create music that fits images that already exist, and as far as I can hear, Midnight Syndicate have passed the test will top marks, confirming that their name is indeed synonymous for the darkest soundtracks since the turn of the century! www.midnightsyndicate.com |
Gianfri |
Mimetic - 1998-2008 (Les Arts Minis) |
Sometimes it's unbelievable how quick time seems to go by. I remember writing the first time about Mimetic some 10-odd years back and here I am today, spinning this little compendium of Jerome Soudan works. A decade of beats, accomplished electronic music, rhythmic industrial but also spells with ambient, theatre music, soundtracks. Looking at the freshness and diversity of Mimetic output these days, you can tell he is a s fresh as when he begun this adventure, besides being perfectly able to never sound dated or out of his times. It seems like yesterday, but ten years are a long spell and quite a few out there haven't aged, or better said matured, nearly as well as Mimetic has. Scrolling through the beat-packed tracks (of which there are a fat 14!) on this disk, one of the most evident features of his music is the tightness of the rhythmic, no surprise for a man who is a trained orchestral percussionist and a drummer in the first place. Mimetic works as well with the pounding beats as he does with subtle micro-rhythmic, he can drag you instantly to the dancefloor or seduce you with subtle experimentation and intriguing sound design. The particular disk I'm discussing in this review is a promo-only affair, but fear not as there's lots to go in this ten anniversary, the latest being a book plus double 3"CD release including 10 unreleased tracks "auto-sampled" from Mimetic own discography. Plus lots of film music. And lots to come! www.darksite.ch/mimetic |
Gianfri |
Namenlos - Sturmundrama (Self-released) |
Sturmundrama is quite an ambitious album, as the name may already suggest. The Italian duo made up by Federico Gallina and Sonia Asciutti going under the monikers of Friedrich Lestat Namenlos and Siren Obscene conjure up stormy scenarios employing an un-orthodox combination of musical elements. Dramatic orchestrations are underpinned by industrial elements, touches of gothic, classical inputs and dark-electro bastardizations. All driven further up the adrenaline path by the passionate vocals by lady Siren, part sung, part recited, living up very well to the dramatic part she represents. The mixture cited above might seem quite bizarre and I have to confess that it gets a bit overwhelming here and there as little breath is given to the listener by keeping the tension value constantly high, but aside from this the path ridden by Namenlos with this release is quite an interesting one. Perhaps pushing some of the in your face arrangements back to within certain limits would help in keeping the listener attention glued to the otherwise well conceived tracks, while I find myself often distracted as the sonic barrage skips through the neural centers of attention. The occasional use of guitars helps to ease the pressure a bit, but ultimately I find that a large part of the harshness characterising the whole work is due to the synthetic emulation of classic instrumentation, which could be tuned for better impact. All in all, the ideas of the stormy duo are very valid, their pinch for their theatrical transpires from the arrangements, while it's apparently confirmed by their live performances, and I think that with a serious polishing job on the arrangement/production side, Namenlos will ride far. www.namenlos.it |
Gianfri |
NFD - Deeper Visions (Jungle Records) |
Another step into goth-rockdom for this outfit who set themselves to sort of replace The Fields of The Nephilim. But that's not the whole story and, in fact, NFD are slowly but steadily imparting their own fingerprint to their production. Deeper Visions has undoubtedly been stitched up with songs recorded at different points in time and featuring uneven sonic production and seems more an attempt at re-launching the band to potentially new audiences than a next step in their production. In other words, this does feel wholly like an EP, albeit a fully generous one. A couple of pumped up goth rock numbers soon give way to more atmospheric tracks, which is really where the band give their best. As expected, there are references to the likes of The Mission, while the Nephilim ghost is there to rightly stay, but that's inevitable, there's only so much you can play with within this genre. Where the band seem to try out a new approach is in the closing remixes of When The Sun Dies (also the opener goth rock hymn) and Caged. Here the sound is "modernized" by electronic textures and kick-ass guitar riffs, and I'm not sure this is where this band should be heading to, but that's just my opinion. Tracks like The Unforgiven give probably a better idea of the band capabilities in creating enveloping atmospheres, while Senses Alive is another Mission rip-off dressed as German darkwave, only marred by a terrible sound quality. A demo perhaps? There's a beefy video section on the CD as well, very useful to newcomers to see what this all about, what with cowboy hats and all that suggestive imagery... All in all, this feels like an interim release to keep attention alive and to get feedback to a few possible future development of the band. Faithful goth rockers and the large population of darkwavers will certainly be attracted to this work, although more discerning heads might be tempted to give it only the occasional listen. www.nfd.web.com - www.jungle-records.com |
Gianfri |
Nordvargr - Pyrrhula (Cold Spring) |
As far as doom ambient is concerned, Nordvargr is certainly at the forefront. Churning out music under a number of monikers, he is hailed as a sort of master of darkness. The atmosphere on Pyrrhula is certainly of foggy doom, with horrific drones dominating the scene while the vision turns slowly to a black and white canvas on which images of surreal desolation get projected. Demon-like voices join the hellish parade, opening the work to a menacing dimension that is simply hard to get by with at daytime. The suggestive images evoked by the eight tracks on this album are best perceived in pitch-black darkness. The amount of experimentation on offer is extraordinary. To make this point clear, Pyrrhula is not 45 minutes made up of a long dark drone split into sub-drones of slightly varying pitches. It is pure bleakness, moving in and out of sub-conscious perception, wandering on to soothing shores or damned hill paths. All captured by the mind of the author and ported onto this little shiny disk for our aural enjoyment. www.nordvargr.com - www.coldspring.co.uk |
Gianfri |
Nunbient One - Just Another Dark Age (Troopers for Sound) |
Nunbient One have been working hard on the themes (cultural recession anyone?), including a finely crafted name for their project. Joff Winks and Matt Baber work on their own projects and have thought worthwhile to team up for responding to the new dark age that is upon us. At a first listen, I just don't perceive that statement as transpiring from the music on offer. Just Another Dark Age is 40 minutes of well-crafted electronica, integrating organic instruments and some interesting treatments. Soundscapes do little to conjure up visions of hopelessness and, as a matter of fact, they are better off this way. Ambiences and rhythmic spells work their way through the album. The mood gets more somber on the second half of the work and besides being fully enjoyable, I find it quite soothing and even reassuring. So this is probably the case of an album best enjoyed without a press release. As this is the case with the vast majority of the listeners out there, Just Another Dark Age is well thought of ambient electronica employing to good end non electronic instruments and showing a character of is own. Moderately experimental and certainly of little darkness throughout. Let that not be a deterrent from exploring this intriguing creation. I'd let the closing title track summarise it for me: caressing mood exploration. www.tfsrecords.co.uk |
Gianfri |
ODRZ - ODRZ05 (TIBProd) |
Another peek into the mad world inhabited by ODRZ, this time in the form of 'distorted' television reality. Another concept exploited by the Italian project, this time being filtering and power-processing recordings off TV broadcasts to create a nightmare of an experience sonically speaking. I would guess this is a stand against certain characters, such as TV slavery, that are integral part of our 'evolved' life history as humans. That's only a guess, though, who knows, maybe they are avid consumers of the medium and this is simply an homage? Either way, I cold have appreciated this more without knowing what it was all about and, in fact, I do enjoy the hour long troubled journey through harsh-noisy, high-frequenced escapism that is sculpted onto this disc. The total lack of structure is though a deterrent and some might find listening to an hour long of chaotic noises objectionable, even the most trained ears. I'm a bit split about this, as on the one hand I do like the unrestrained experimentation, on the other, I find it growing tiring in the long run. I guess a dose of subtlety in conveying the noise message is missing this time round, perhaps the result of brute force processing over the source material. Most of ODRZ07 is stuff most typically used in short doses to bridge main muais (or otherwise) compositions, so ODRZ are inverting the spectrum of focus here. No doubt an interesting concept, but it might take some further development to get full listening marks. My guess is that a live action based on this theme would be of a much higher impact in general. I was intrigued though by the Profondo Rosso theme cropping up at some point. Was it really aired on 22nd Feb 2002 (as all the source material is supposedly from)? www.odrz.org - www.bek.no/~tibprod |
Gianfri |
Offering - Into The Hive (Self-released) |
This new release by the Offering is a finely crafted work that sees the Cambridge outfit leaded by Mark Sheppard at a new height. Miss Kara Sultan has re-joined the band, gracing this album with her expressive vocal abilities, ethereal and sensual with Mark's occasional vocal contribution warming the scene even more. There is something definitely sensual about this release, which goes well beyond Kara's vocal work, though. The elaborate guitar work is classy, the subtle synth layers add to the lush, the arrangements are limpid, there's no sign of clutter, yet another prove that less is more in many circumstances. There's lots of trip-hop driving the 38 minutes of this album, with very little ups and downs, but it never feels like a rehash of the same theme over and over, on the contrary, each track builds up its own little world then leaves place to the next in a seamless flow of inspired continuity, without any peaks. Although there's no denying that the infecting groove of the opener 48 Hours In Tokyo is definitely a highlight. I don't see Into The Hive breaking through the charts, but then again this is because it lacks all the annoying defects of the stuff that makes up to the charts these days. So keep on with your style. Do your thing! www.theoffering.co.uk |
Gianfri |
Ouroboros - Vanitas (Prime Unit Records) |
Ouroboros is one of many projects lead by Marco Grosso, a multi-faceted artist and author with deep interests in Alchemy and Esoteric matters. Vanitas is his second full-length work under the Ouroboros moniker and is a work of perfectly enjoyable dark nature. Ouroboros ambiences are fairly elaborated and by far removed from the conventional drone rule that governs the large majority of genre works out there. Vanitas is sinister at best, its hazy atmospheres are worrying and liberating at once. It is an excursion through states of mind usually repressed in our day-to-day life routine. Each of the six tracks featured tells a story of its own, moving between ritualistic soundscapes, jazzy ambient and soprano euphoria. A curious 12-minute ritualistic rendition of Depeche ModeÕs Enjoy The Silence is probably not the best item on the bill, but the cold elaborate mindscapes of Sanctuaria certainly is. Runes Holder is a clear and frighteningly powerful tribute to Claudio Dondo immortal project Runes Order and seed Claudio himself contributing keyboards as a matter of fact. Saturnus Philisophorum is pure magic, the missing link between our day and night time dreams, while the closing Black Sabbath is pure horror, celebrated in a highly stylish fashion. Vanitas is a synth voyage through levels of consciousness not freely accessible around the clock. I like the no-nonsense, no-frills approach of the author, who seems to put substance over form. One for the night dwellers. www.primeunit.co.nr |
Gianfri |
Recondita Stirpe - Nessuna Letargia (HauRuck! SPQR) |
A dive back in time to recover certain traditions and lost identities, a stint of nostalgia. Recondita Stirpe are an outfit out of Genova, Italy who work with a repertoire of acoustic instruments, including guitars, accordion, trumpet and percussion in addition to synth backdrops, to create dark ballads ranging from folk and popular to dark and melancholic, to war-themed ones and even a tango. There's a certain parallel with bands like Ianva, which can only be a good thing, but the parallel starts and ends in that both bands consist of extended line-ups (RS is a 9-piece) of virtuoso musicians, and feature distinctive male voice and the obligatory primadonna. There are little gems on this album, starting with the title track, featured towards the end of the album, or Notturni Rivali, one fitting well the neo-folk tag, or the beautiful accordion and classic guitar ballad Il Sibilo di Giano, featuring enchanting vocals duets between Christoff and Carolina, perhaps the best cut of the album. I can see this album appealing to a large cross section of audiences, from the Death in June type of apocalyptic folk followers, to more classical oriented listeners to those into pure neo-folk or martial themes. More of this please! www.reconditastirpe.com - www.hauruckspqr.com |
Gianfri |
Roy-Arne Knutsen - Fjords (Silence Is Not Empty) |
We've learned to love the Northern-inspired dark ambience escapism of Mr. Roy-Arne Knutsen and his latest release, Fjords is perhaps the most imposing of the lot. Not in terms of wallclock though, as the two tracks featured amount to just over 18 minutes of airtime, but certainly in terms of suggestive sensorial stimulation triggered by the glorious droning soundscapes that so well describe the subject presented. If only he would have taken the time to further substantiate this feel with matching graphics, which, I assume would be readily available to a native Norwegian as he is. It's hardly possible not to be transported to the calm, quietness and imposing majesty of these natural wonders while listening to this work in dim lights. I really think the only downside of Mr. Knutsen releases is their running time, way too short to imprint their feel for long enough to make a real lasting impact. www.silence-is-not-empty.com |
Gianfri |
Run Level Zero - Arctic Noise (Artoffact Records) |
And another grand return to the dance/EBM scene courtesy of Artoffact, Run Level Zero are back in hard-hitting electro fashion, perpetuating the legacy of high profile acts such as Front Line Assembly or Skinny Puppy. Arctic Noise is just short of one hour of dance tunes propelled further by hard beats and catchy melodic phrases. Euro electro dance at its best, the Swedish outfit is a positive melting pot of influences, cementing in a flawless mix elements of the EBM, industrial and synthpop genres. Anything electronic and synth has been big in Sweden as long as I care to remember, and Run Level Zero fit this tradition like a glove. Their leaning towards the Canadian own heritage of hard electro makes them even more of an intriguing act if you are into deep beats, geometrically layered synths and catchy vocals, now distorted, now boy-band all the way... ops, I meant synthpop! Well, some will remember improbable terms such as future pop or such invented by those with little to grasp about music and I'm glad their pens ran dry, and I'm also glad to report that this latest Run Level Zero album, while not being anything close to a revolution, is a very enjoyable cavalcade that will suit well those with itchy feet and trembling hearts... Rub them in the dancefloor, I say. Both of them! And say thanks to Run Level Zero. www.runlevelzero.com - www.artoffact.com |
Gianfri |
Sagittarius - Songs from The Ivory Tower (Clod Spring) |
Following two self-released works, Sagittarius -the brainchild of Mr. Cornelius Waldner- land a deal on the prolific Cold Spring label. Songs from The Ivory tower is a valuable collection of piano and voice ballads, embellished by quiet and sparse classical string arrangements and occasional acoustic guitar. Remarkably crossing freely between neo-classical and neo-folk, Sagittarius comes to he fore as a relative novelty in the genre, with fresh sounding and soulful compositions, whose cleanness and gentleness work well in the context of such a tormented genre. The full bodied warm vocals are definitely one of the stand-out assets of the work, but least we forget support contributions by a number of "genre" artists , ranging from Forthcoming Fire to Rose Rovine e Amanti to HERR and Seelenlicht, or the fact the most of the lyrics are in fact German poems, giving that strong bitter taste that finely clashes with the sweetness of most of the minimal acoustic arrangements. Drifting between melancholy, nihilism and bucolic dreaminess, this is a perfect companion to a fireplace winter gathering of unrestful souls. Recommended. www.coldspring.co.uk |
Gianfri |
Silence & Strength - Opus Paracelsum (The Eastern Front) |
The second full length release by Silence & Strength is very much removed from the sonic realm of their first one, Le Divin Cagliostro, but Mr. Friedman keeps intact the primary appeal of his way of working, which lays in is very personal approach to composition. Opus Paracelsum inhabits the ambient realm, but not the conventional one. This is not dark ambient as such, but an obscure voyage into he bizarre, the haunted, the mysterious, unexpected and utterly unpredictable. For one thing, and this will come as a fat surprise, they have ditched neofolk altogether, moving boldly towards eclecticism and forward looking experimentalism. Opus Paracelsum is avant-garde on all counts, encompassing elements of various genres, with ambient and industrial being the dominant ones, and not neglecting a good presence of underworld creatures leading the game on a couple of tracks and instilling a highly twisted sense of othewordly/underwordly that projects the work on to a very intriguing level. It's not until halfway the hour-long work that recognisable instruments make an appearance (but not for long), adding another twist to the plot. There are no rules Silence & Strength abide to, most definitely the way forward if you ask me. By no means an easy listen, by all means a rewarding one. www.theeasternfront.org |
Gianfri |
Syn- / E.5131 - Manolo on Juliet (Prasca) |
A heavy-handed concept work by two avangardists of the France scene, Manolo on Juliet sees Syn- and E.5131 joining forces on an arty venture made of challenging episodes of non-pop inspiration. Layers of soundscapes conjured up by Syn-, encompassing lots of experimentation and gravitating around the ambient side of the spectrum are ridden by dramatic texts, recited in French for maximum impact by E.5131. Manolo on Juliet makes for quite a challenging hour-long listen, given the experimental disjointness of the different chapters forming the work. Often set against acoustic guitars, the potential impact of the texts is lost, unless you are a French speaker, which tends to confine the work to a regional audience. But even when your grasping of the words is adequate, the next step, making any sense of it all becomes even more challenging than you'd hoped. Art Noir at its edgiest, I find this album a though exercise in prose and music, as vocals and underlying accompaniment are basically disjointed and hard to combine in any way that does not take large amounts of imagination specially if you're not within the walls of a theatre were you can possibly get visual feedback by the sort of characters that star in this work. www.prasca.org |
Gianfri |
Tearwave - Different Shade of Beauty (Projekt) |
Tearwave bring into fashion the days of shoegazing, with an album made of liquid guitars flowing underneath the dreamy vocals of Jennifer Manganiello. Do we really need a rehash of mellow-tuned shoegaze? Not for me to decide, but I must point out that the potential emotional power of the tunes on offer is washed out in the long run by the 77-minute playing time of the album, during which, frankly, not too much happens outside the tested and tried formula. The band sound lies their fundaments firmly over 80's wave, so admirers of that sonorities take notice: Tearwave do it with class and they even throw in a cover version of Ÿber-classic Under The Milky Way in case you hadn't noticed. Moreover, their every note spells dreamy darkwave on every beat and bar which I understand has quite a following still, mainly among the goth crowd. However, it does lack the innovative punch of bands like Slowdive who did this all many years ago and left an indelible imprint on a certain type of sound. To their credit, Tearwave play the role with a high degree of technical competence, so if only they would refrain from trying and filling every single spare block on that silver disk... www.projekt.com |
Gianfri |
The Spirit Girls - Forever Free (Trakwerx) |
Out of LA is this peculiar outfit whose extravagant production cannot be passed upon. An unduly crossover of genres from pop to psych rock to folk/cabaret, narrated by disconcerting female voices, punctuated by cello lines, psychedelic guitar work, splashes of accordion and moving through sonic landscapes that are weird indeed. I don't know if a mix of Sonic Youth and Alien Sex Fiend (not sound, but attitude-wise) could sound inspiring to you (or anyone for that matters), then again, I'm quite positive that description amounts to pure nonsense anyhow. Although there aren't sonic innovations as such, the oblique approach to combining such diverse and in-homogeneous elements is avant-garde per se, just imagine innovation by breaking the codes. In all honesty, I rather prefer those few tracks where they sort of stick to the script and the strange combinations are set aside, but that's not for lack of spirit of adventure (or is it after all??)... For example, I prefer to cradle in the security offered by sweet and innocent sounding vocals as opposed to fiendish interpretations, both of which are on display across the 10 tracks of Forever Free. Now, being not the most conservative when it comes to music choices, I wonder if I'm missing some of the best messages carried forward by this work. And I am not even saying I don't like it! Although I do find some of its weirdest moments a bit weak in all truth. www.trakwerx.com |
Gianfri |
Thomas Watkiss - Of Victory And Victim (The Seventh Media) |
Thomas Watkiss works on layers of abstraction to convey his less than reassuring signals of ongoing or impending catastrophes. At least, this is my first-hand interpretation of the tortured soundscapes of Victory And Victim, the fourth album for this audio/visual experimental artist from the USA. The album develops around sets of droning backdrops and creepy effects, situating it firmly within the drone/ambient/experimental cradle of artists who love to portray images of desolation and general discomfort. Thomas imaginary soundscapes are actually occasionally inhabited, mysteriously if you like, as the traces of presences do not necessarily takes us back to life forms, but something more abstract, yet with a pulse of its own. The indulging in weird sound effects gives the work a seriously experimental edge and although not necessarily the most original of all, it shows Mr. Watkiss craft in sound design is up to the task. Sometimes delays become a bit overrated in the context, but I suppose that a less critical listening, one more focused on the sensorial impact of the sound creations rather than on its technical detail would render that comment redundant. I have a pinch for titles like The Orchestra Will Sink with The Ship and I must admit that the cinematic scope evoked by the title is very well met by the sound that makes up this particular track. Elsewhere, the album does have a soundtrack feel and, like it's the case for many ambient productions appropriate visuals are always well adaptable, although the advantage of purely listening to it lays in the ability of the music to conjure up images for the listener, so the listening experience becomes highly customised as the music can impact on different levels different people and the possibilities are endless. This isn't perhaps the most groundbreaking work in the genre, but really, how much ground is left to break when dealing with dark/death ambient? Of Victory And Victim works well on the imaginative layer of our perception and even when it becomes more explicitly dramatic as it does towards the end of the album with titles more explicative such as Preparing His Bow, it still instills a sense of mystery as to what is actually going on and where is the action located after all. Whether on heart or any other unknown dimension, I find this album very appealing for those circumstances that require evasion and little mental journeys to re-establish balance. Or throw it off, in fact, depending what the starting point was in the first place. www.thomaswatkiss.net |
Gianfri |
The Venus Fly Trap - Human Fly - CDs (Spiral Archive) |
Paying tribute to the masters of psychobilly, The Venus Fly Trap inject a good dose of their own branded electronic psychedelia into the Cramps timeless classic. If you are familiar with the band production you can instantly understand what we are on about. It's hard to twist such a twisted track in any good way, but they manage to, and get over the challenge with flying marks. A video to the track is a nice bonus, while a "b-side", shows a very good direction for the VFT, a classic bodied upbeat dancefloor tune, situated right in between the good old rock'n'roll days and a rightly careless interpretation of the present through a stormy contemporary interpretation. A fantastic pre-sample of what's hopefully to come, new from their camp. www.spiralarchive.com |
Gianfri |
Valvran - Valvran (Self-Released) |
Valvran main agenda makes a firm point of harmonizing cultural heritage along with the intrinsic magic it inspires, and the place and time where we live now. Traditional Nordic songs, ballads and legends are the main driving force behind the Copenhagen-based combo, all filtered through a beautifully integrated mix of ancient instruments and state of the art treatments and electronic layers. All graced by sensually capturing female vocals that are very versatile, seducing and heart warming at once, driving along the ups and downs of the music with matching personality. A range of moods is explored through the work, with impeccable taste in choosing the best way of shifting seamlessly between them. One of the highlights, Krunmmi, is a stormy ballad underpinned by tribal percussion, one that calls for frantic dances along the stretch between the lake and the forest. Marsk brings a concert of nature, evoking mystery and forces of life with its beautiful progression underpinned by subtle sampled beats of contemporary nature. Two of my personal highlights, but the band strong personality and their obvious mastery of their instrumentation ensure that there's no weak moment through the eleven tracks spanning a full hour of playing time. I recommend this work without hesitation to all those for whom music still is a great companion to heart feelings. www.valravn.net |
Gianfri |
Violet Tears - Breeze of Solitude (Ark Records) |
Violet Tears come home with an album on Ark Records, after a spell with Fossil Dungeon which gave them a first taste of international exposure. Breeze of Solitude is officially their second album and moves firmly towards soothing darkwave, where guitars and keyboard layers play an equally important role, and the backbone is a rigorously solid bassline, as in the best tradition of the genre. Carmen De Rosas vocals range from classical to ethereal and is her talented execution that adds a conspicuous shimmering layer over the band compositions. As we've been used to expect from them, there are many influences by The Cure, not only in the guitar work, but also bass and synth lines pay homage to Smith's band, but Violet Tears cleverly build atop their various influences and manage to sound neither dated nor nostalgic. Despite the melancholy inspiring title and content, this is the most upbeat work of the band to date, suggesting a dynamic evolution that is by all means a testament to the fact that the 4-piece from Bari, Italy are an evolving reality, despite their goth/darkwave nature might suggest the opposite. As ever, I enjoy the odd track in which Claudio Contessa contributes deep dark vocals, in this case the only song sung in Italian and also he most upbeat number of the work. He is majestically backed by ethereal work by Carmen, the real primadonna of the show, although the track is a bit inconsistent in the arrangement solutions. I am not sure Violet Tears should push the bpm over a certain threshold... As I have appreciated the previous works by the band (cmp. previous reviews at Darklife), I must admit that Breeze of Solitude is a considerable step forward and if you are enchanted by bands like Arcana or Collection D'Arnell Andrea, have a pinch for cold waves of dreamy solitude, or are moved by neoclassicism, dim your lights and take a journey to caress your soul with Violet Tears. www.violettears.com - www.arkrecords.net |
Gianfri |
Welten Brand - The End of The Wizard (Napalm Records) |
It was about 5 years since the release of In Gottes oder des Teufels Namen, including a few line-up changes, when Welten Brand came back with The End of The Wizard, a sensual work of violin, keyboards and piano, warm (goth-like?) male vocals paired impeccably with female atmospheric lines, over rock rhythms and, hey, no guitars! In all truth, pretty simple in instrumentation, which puts the focus on the songwriting skills of band mastermind and fonder Oliver Falk, who is able to create deeply romantic and magic atmospheres, drawing on neoclassical and orchestral elements and adding a wealth of variety. With a judicious use of vocals and atmospheric synths, which are a far cry from the trite stereotype of male/female duetting over improbable backdrops crossing over everything as much as improbable as, yes, that dull metal clichŽ. Glad Welten Brand are well over that, as the End of Wizard conveys a lot more emotional, romantic, and, yes, even gothic musical messages, making it an instant favorite for those for a repulsion for redundant guitars and a pinch for soft, dreamy, intense and emotionally gratifying music. Add subdued medieval and folk touches and an ingeniously clean and linear production that makes full justice to the outstanding vocals and is very much instrumental in achieving the final result and you have a product to definitely look up to. www.weltenbrand.li - www.napalmrecords.com |
Gianfri |