May 5th saw the latest single for Irish lads, ArcticLights, made available to the public on Bandcamp and May the 12th for other streaming platforms. EdwardButt and LiamO’Callaghan are ArcticLights, and “Somebody” is the name of the track.
Do you chance to dance with the Devil when the music stops? Those rich indie tones of the jaunty guitar, combined with a decent paced rhythm, are the backdrop to the succulent vocals. Their logic is, if you release the inner beast, there is a time that the music on the dancefloor will stop and then you are going to have to dance with the Devil. There is always a price to pay. Everything that ArcticLights has so far released, have been indie pop/rock jewels, and “Somebody” is no different.
51 Pegasi is the designated name of a Sun that was once called Helvetios and 51Peg is an industrial rock band from Washington. They released their first album back in 2000 called StrangeAppointments and now in 2023, 51Peg unleash latest album named A/Version.
Kicking off with the mood filled “TheDistanceBetween“, which is a bit like an industrial version of StoneTemplePilots, where the synths wail more so than the guitars. “CursoryRhymes” is a swelling and emotional track with imploring vocals, which is at complete odds to “RootsIntoSand“, as the ancient mysteries of the Middle East merge with the industrial, as a beast that can not be stopped, forever invading. The modern era is the age of the “DigitalDisease“, where computers mean you can exchange information and thoughts across the globe, yet this hasn’t translated to harmony. There are big vocals and soaring guitars throughout.
The beginning of “InReturn” actually made me think of the wonderful Japan but then the rock explodes this reminiscing, searing with vehemence. “Werewolf” could simply be about the shapeshifters, but I think the deeper meaning might allude to the animal that resides inside every human, under the skin, waiting to come out if we let it. It is a slower and more thoughtful number. The last track is a cover of the BillyIdol single, “EyesWithoutAFace” where musically and especially vocally, 51Peg give a very Idol performance, without a need for the female backing singers.
For me, it was odd hearing a cover of the BillyIdol’s “EyesWithoutAFace“, which is one of his slower songs, because most bands seem to cover “RebelYell” or “WhiteWedding“, so that is a refreshing change. In a way, this is true of the whole album, as I was not sure of what it would sound like by the description but was delighted how well the different influences meld together. The band cite Nine Inch Nails, Ministry, DepecheMode and GaryNuman, yet I also hear Stone Temple Pilots, Faith No More and an undercurrent of 80s electronica. A/Version by 51 Peg is a nice slice of hot industrial rock.
4000Records is a label in Brisbane/Meanjin, championing local acts, and one of their latest releases is from fhae. EllenaRamsay is fhae, and the album sombrethorax, an ambient folk and experimental offering.
Photo by Amber Ramsey
The first track “soul” is hazy and almost a religious experience that floats with the vocals not necessarily the focus but rather an added tone that stirs within your chest. There is the gentle guitar in “body” strumming in a soundscape of echoes or the mellow, yet ghost like “drain” that slowly trickles past your senses.
The track “loveyou” is simply electrifying with the stringed instruments in the background while Ramsey’s vocals gorgeously ring through, stunning you into submission through the exposed beauty. It leads into the equally sweet “earth” with its multi-layered vocal track, creating a perfect choir . You can feel the building urgency in the instrumental track “emergency” or be immersed in the languidly moving “disappoint“.
In all, there are twelve tracks, with a few instrumentals in the mix. I can see why there are comparisons to the legendary CocteauTwins due to Ramsey’s dreamy and honeyed singing, very much in the vein of ElizabethFrazer. The music of sombrethorax feels as delicate as spiderwebs and entwined with fhae’s vocals of such elegance…. enough to invoke goosebumps in an angelic folk driven extasy.
MikeSmith is also known by his project named Fiction8 and he has produced the new EP, LifeIsFiction by BowEverDown. The EP contains five original synth inspired tracks that walk on the dark side of life.
“LifeIsFiction” is the jaunty start to the EP and there is a subtle 80s vibe to this track. A sweetness tempered by memories and the delicate ideal that life is not real. Oooh, the guitar in “SeasonsChange” struck me being very much in the vein of WallOfVoodoo, while the electronics dance through with Kimberley’s vocals.
Next we are “SomewhereInTheNightfall” and the beautiful synths flow forth. A tale of being more than the people that try to control us and when we do escape, they are nothing but a spectre. “ReadyToDie” is a meatier track, even with the music swirling, there is a seriousness lurking beneath and speaking of serious, the last track is the “HowIWishYouWereDead“. That title basically speaks for itself. The lament of being involved with the wrong person comes through in the vocals, while the synths soar like they have been given wings of freedom.
Church. Photo by Kimberley Bow Ever Down
Often, things that happen to us don’t seem real, or we create a narrative to escape the sadness, poverty, or crushing expectations of life. So, LifeIsFiction and the production is spot on by Smith, so clean and magical. The title track and “How I Wish You Were Dead” are probably my favourites and for those who are wondering about the cat on the cover, created by Ange Battiste… that is Church, and she is there to give a bit more joy with Bow Ever Down.
Norwegian, ErlendEilertsen of EssenceOfMind, is about to release the second album under the project name LightsA.M., on the AlfaMatrix label, called StoriesWithoutWordsVol. 2, on June the 23rd. However, we get our first listen through the single “NotReadyForThis“.
An element of foreboding and lament is in the electronics, as they waver and chime through the instrumental track. Ancients drum whilst the low murmur of the droning electronics is in stark comparison to the gentle synths, that hold the lilting melody of what has passed. Subtle, beautiful and memorable is “Not Ready For This“, which you are utterly ready for by Lights A.M.
There is some really brilliant darkwave music coming out currently, and the Antipole &ParisAlexander album, Crystalline, out on Young&ColdRecords, on May 12th, is most certainly one of them. However, for now, sate your cravings with the latest single, “Bleached“, out on the 27th of April.
“Bleached is about a lost soul battling darkness and light. They still have an optimism and so strive for a more positive future. It is also set against a backdrop of Brexit and current social and economic struggles in the UK.” – Paris Alexander (Brighton, UK)
“We wanted to combine nasty-sounding moody synthesizers with ethereal guitars.”– Karl Morten (Antipole) (Trondheim, Norway)
From those first smooth synth lines, you just know who this is. The guitar strikes true and clear, and when you hear Alexander whisper,’takeme‘….well, just damn. You can hear the murkiness Morten mentions that creeps under your skin, while the rhythm carries you ever forward into the crumbling city, beneath darkening skies, hoping for something to change. “Bleached” is the darkwave dance noir, and it is a thing melancholic beauty from these bards of shadows, Antipole & Paris Alexander.
The second GirlsUnderGlass single has been released with video, called “DreamYourselfAway“, in anticipation for the new album Backdraft, out on DependantRecords. Original singer, TomLücke, re-joined the band in 2016, after leaving back in 1989, which has brought back those wonderful vocals that greeted us on the first GirlsUnderGlass releases and this track can be found on the Deluxe Version of Backdraft.
“It is a positive outlook on life in the present and in future. The text asks to deal with the important issues now and with confidence. The song is directly linked to my time with GIRLS UNDER GLASS back in the days, but it is also connected through the 1980s vibes within me to the present. To me, it nearly appears as if the days in between have never existed. I regard this song highly as a present and it moves me very much to see it being released as a single.” – TomLücke
There is a thrill that goes down my spine and I can’t decide if it is from the ringing guitars, the thumping bass or the succulent keyboards, but Lücke’s vocals definitely lend themselves to creating a mesmerising track. So builds the hunger for the new album from GirlsUnderGlass.
The late BurtBacharach asked us what do I get if I fall in love, but in reality, maybe he should have asked what do we get when Sonikdevil and MachFoX (Zwaremachine) join forces? For April, it seems to be an EP called New Dead Wave, with FoX as the vocals and Kyle Sonik playing instruments, with the pair cowriting all tracks.
The title track is the starter, and it sets the mood for the EP with a music vibe of that period of time where the 80s melded into the 90s industrial and the unquenchable hunger of the vampiric kind. The possible hint is in the name, “NewDeadWave“. If you were in doubt, this was a horror themed release, there is the guitar filled “LittleMonster“, a rock ode to the female terror in your life that wants to reduce you to a tasty jelly mess. Psychedelic effects and a big rock sound stalks, waiting to “LetUsIn“, where there is actually a liberal amount of glam rocker style in the offering.
“GardenOfRust” kind of reminds me quite a bit of the Ramones when they wrote “PetCemetery” with that very up-beat punk attitude, though this is at complete odds to the far more electronic “Circus Of The Damned” with FoX channelling a bit of AliceCooper thrown in for good measure. The reminiscing of crazier times is the punk “Barstools & Broken Fools” and yet there is a story of loss behind the bravado. Of course, the aliens have not been forgotten about, and the last track is “The4thKind” that almost has horrorbilly feel to it, which is a really nice end to the EP.
Feels a bit mealy-mouthed to call this an EP when I’ve seen albums with fewer tracks on them. This is a recording that runs the gamut of rock from the wham bam glam 70s, punk, post-punk to industrial, with a sprinkling of psychobilly horror tongue in cheek, giving it the spooky flavour of B grade monster movies, which I think are the best sort. The hills might have eyes, but Sonikdevil and Mach FoX have New Dead Wave.
Apparently, the project HabitableMoons is air and atmosphere out of Stockholm, but actually, it is a guy called PeterLindström out of Stockholm and back in January, they debuted the EP, oddly called….well… EP1. This kind of alludes to the fact that there might be other EPs in the future.
“October3” kicks off, with highly rhythm intensive textures layering over each other. The pulsating electronics are almost futuristic in nature. Perhaps this is a date in future that we are awaiting with trepidation. There is the feeling of movement and the build-up of something ancient in “WinterStorm, Baltic Sea“, though it does not seem like a violent storm, but rather swells and ebbs with driving rain. The third track is “CapeBreton, Nova Scotia” and the sounds of gulls and guitar give you a glimpse of sun drenched beach running into the ocean, and early morning when the day is but young. It seems at peace with the world as the land wakes up. The guitar looping could be mistaken for church bells, and we even get to hear the voice of the progenitor, Lindström.
Just a small observation of mine was that the Bandcamp player that you can preview tracks on, was not showing any minutes, nor seconds for any of the three tracks, which is something I am not used to and it kind of gave an air of uncertainty as to how long the tracks went for. Maybe I should pick the word “timeless” as that suits these electronic tracks that conjure up visions with their rhythms and experimentation. EP1 runs for approximately twenty-five minutes, but it definitely doesn’t feel that long, and maybe that is what happens on HabitableMoons.
Australians GerryHawkins (CryogenicEchelon) and Lawrie, aka LawrieMasson (StudioX), are back with a new single/EP for their project AvariceInAudio, called “WarTanz“, tanz meaning dance, on the AlfaMatrix label. 2022 saw the release of the fifth studio album, OurIdolsAreFilth and “WarTanz” is the second single.
Slamming electronic beats, Hawkins‘ gravelled vocals and those warbling synths that breakout during the chorus. They are pounding the dance track into your skull, the motivation to stop being a observer inside your own life, in “WarTanz“. Alien:Nation next have the remix, injecting heavenly synths into the more techno influenced version, though those mammoth beats still blast through, highlighted by the tinkling keyboards.
Lawrie is no slouch nor stranger when it comes to the remix, so the Studio-X mix is hardly a surprise. From the beginning, it is stripped down with the vocals at the fore, with hints of synths and it is amazingly effective, and equally danceable. It might be time to bust a move with the “DownerGrooves“, an instrumental to get on down with, and get on up again, which does not appear on the album.
Brilliant heavy beats, evocative vocals and scintillating remixes…. does it get any better than that? Industrial dance music done right by AvariceInAudio and they are calling you to the “WarTanz” against mundane.
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