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We are lucky at Onyx to have the premiere release of the video with single “Luftmangel,” from Vlimmer on the Blackjack Illuminist Records label. Berlin local, Alexander Leonard Donat is a man whose energy knows no bounds, as this new single does not appear on the brand new album, Zersch​ö​pfung, that dropped at the end of August, but rather a track that did not vibe with the rest of that particular album, yet worthy of its own release.

Donat’s vocals, as always for me in these recent releases, really make his music a bit special and there is no exception in “Luftmangel.” The bass laden electronic undertones, serve to highlight the throbbing and pulsating synths, a juxtaposition of heaviness versus buoyant light. Those dark accents just make your senses quiver in delight and you can hear a harkening back to early Gary Numan.

‘“Luftmangel” (German for “deficient air”) is about my grandmother and her final days. She didn’t opt for any life-prolonging measures when she was diagnosed with pneumonia on top of feeling absolutely exhausted due to decrepitude. One day before she died, lying in a hospital bed, she told me that she had a nice life and she was ready to go, which was pretty overwhelming for me. I was the last person ever she had a conscious conversation with, and I’m grateful for that. The song was initially written for the “Zerschöpfung” album, but at the end it didn’t fit the mood and, with a heavy heart, I decided to throw it off. However, to me it has some kind of old school, original Vlimmer vibe circa 2017/18, and I’m happy to release it as the new single.‘ – Alexander Leonard Donat

It is those dark tones that gives us the foreboding of something emotionally overwhelming and watching a loved one leave this realm is a sadness we bear and yet there is a gratefulness in being privileged to having them in your life. “Luftmangel” comes to us all, but there is so much beauty to behold in a human life and, indeed, in the single from Vlimmer.

Music | Blackjack Illuminist Records (bandcamp.com)

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In another era, Diane Dubois and Kevin Hunter, were part of the UK goth scene, that parted ways in the 80s, and fortuitously reclaimed that friendship during the covid pandemic, forming the project Lunar Paths. The end of August saw them release their latest independent single, “BURN“.

The looping and abrasive electronic samples and synths set the background for the echoing vocals of Dubois, as she goes from whispers to full throated and delicious croons. All the while, Hunter’s rhythms set the pace ranging from tribal through to thumping out the driving time signature.

I can’t deny that this Lunar Path track, while very experimental in nature, definitely reminds me very much of early Siouxsie and the Banshees, who also were extraordinary pioneers of post-punk music. “BURN” was written by the duo as they conversed about the fires raging in Greece, where Dubois has a home. An idea about the world on fire has given us a track that can set you ablaze, from Lunar Paths.

BURN | Lunar Paths (bandcamp.com)

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https://www.lunarpaths.com/

https://www.instagram.com/lunar.paths/

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The goth-synthpop princess, Miss FD launched the single “Distractions” in August, out on the label Quantum Release Records. Not only does Miss FD compose, sing and produce, but she always has something interesting to impart through her music.

Synths wail like sirens, for there is an emergency at hand. The urgency is free flowing and Miss FD’s vocals leave you with no uncertainty that you proceed at your own peril. There is a gruffness, wanting to draw your attention as the driving rhythm gives you focus from the distractions of the everyday.

A cry out to humanity, for the sake of the planet to recognise the fact people are causing mass effect destruction, that will take themselves out and a good chunk of the creatures we share the planet with. Miss FD is channelling the voice of the Earth, because it cannot, but you can be sucked into her “Distractions“.

Distractions | Miss FD (bandcamp.com)

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Miss FD : Gothic, electro-industrial, synthpop, and oontz.

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They say Brisbane is a place out of time, and the Killtoys are a proud Meanjin band, back with their latest track “Another Realm,” as they serve up their concoction of heavy and dark on the rocks. This track is the second of a trilogy, where the first single, “Blind God,” introduces you to the story of a human corrupted….tainted by vampiric blood and his struggle as he falls from the world he knew.

The beginning is a simple guitar and vocals, where you start to hear the unnatural joy replacing horror, as a monster realises that he is no longer constrained by human law, which is when the track rushes forth on doom laden wings. The drums and electric guitar vie for dominance, while the vocals are unsettling in their intensity.

“Another Realm” follows the tale up with the fiend, taking up the mantel of Prince of Darkness, conceding that he has lost the vestiges of humanity. The vampire staring off into the bloody night for the cover art has been created by the talented duo of Obscure Medium, whom are also based in Brisbane, and create some really rad horror toys/dollies and art pieces for those with an eye for the grimly beautiful. The track contains unholy vampires, blood/power lust, plus guitar riffs and intense vocals that early Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath would have been proud of. What is there not to like about this track? Not a damn thing!

https://www.facebook.com/Killtoysband

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https://m.soundcloud.com/killtoys/another-realm

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For those getting into the dirtier industrial metal of the 2000s, Sweden’s Deathstars has to come to mind. “Blitzkrieg” was a single off their second album, Termination Bliss. Fellow countryman, Fredrik Croona, aka Against I, has covered “Blitzkrieg,” released on September the first.

August also saw the release of Against I’s first album, Carnival of Excess, however, “Blitzkrieg” is not one of the tracks and appears to have been recorded on a whim by Croona. Whatever, it is a harsher, more stripped to the bones version…. or is it? It carries the same intensity, but there is a heavy electronic pall pervading and the vocals are screamed over all, because in the end this is Against I with “Blitzkrieg,” which overwhelms the enemy in a singular swift strike, taking you by storm.

https://on.soundcloud.com/AuQp9

https://advoxya.bandcamp.com/album/carnival-of-excess

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In January of 2023, electronic musicians, R. Missing (USA) and Levingtquatre (Belgium), released the single “Death In A Constellation“, but August has seen the track given a second breath of life via a remix, from the Norwegian Antipole, aka Karl Morten Dahl.

That delicate guitar work, so prevalent in Antipole, trickles over your senses, invading that space under your skin that raises goosebumps. R. Missing’s vocals are sweet and light as air, lulling you into an intoxicated stupor, and the electronics are never far from the surface.

The original version is definitely a more electronic affair, whilst the remix has a far more warm quality, and I think this gives it a very intimate feel. Also, it is produced by Pedro Code, of the equally wonderful IAMTHESHADOW, and that darkwave touch shines through. There is a simplicity to the whole track, which is just divine to listen to, echoing in the depths of a star cluster… a dark shoegaze dream that is “Death In A Constellation,” the Antipole remix..

Merch | R. Missing (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/rmissingmusic

https://linktr.ee/rmissing

Music | Levingtquatre (bandcamp.com)

http://www.le-vingt-quatre.com/

Music | Antipole (bandcamp.com)

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Gee, you get to the weekend and the outlook seems dismal? Do you have an abnormal fear of gnomes and strange alcohol? The double sided single “Synkkyyden Ja Lonkeroiden Vaikutuksesta” by TerrorroT featuring TFG (TONTTU), will probably instil the appropriate levels of terror, while you belligerently rock your body in the naughty corner.

Like a bad dream on acid, “Lonkeroiden Oikeudesta Tonttuvapaaseen El​ä​m​ä​ä​n” burbles at you in a crazed manner. What does it all mean? Only the gods of lost souls probably knows

Ahh, the delicate vocals of TFG sooth your heated brow in “Synkkyyden Vaikutuksesta Kasitykseemme Tontuista“. The gnomes could be suffering the worst hangovers of their cantankerous lives….I am of course guessing, but he does not sound like he is having a picnic, unless the picnic is in the seventh realm of Hell. Please ask the gnomes for details on this party. Cranky bastards.

Synkkyyden Ja Lonkeroiden Vaikutuksesta | TerrorroT feat. TFG (TONTTU) | PANICMACHINE

https://digital.panicmachine.com/

https://terrorrot.bandcamp.com/

https://nodevotionrecords.bandcamp.com/

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Night Tongue might be based in Los Angeles, but, Carisa Bianca Mellado (vocals, bass, synth) and Andrew Dalziell (vocals, guitar, cello, drums) are originally from Australian shores. However the darkwave group would not be complete without members Elle Haert  (synth, keys, vocals) and Jessica Reuter (drums, vocals), and August 18th saw the release of the single, “Human Things“.

Left to right: Elle Haert, Carisa Bianca Mellado, Andrew Dalziell, Jessica Reuter

This tracks threw me for a moment. It was like travelling back in time to the 80s, to when 4AD brought us the cream of the dreamy shoegaze and dark indie bands, such as Cocteau Twins. The vocals are delicate and floating, both entrancing and seductive, drawing you into a world of where we have passed the veil. The Dalziell’s guitar adds to the otherworldly swirling flight of fantasy.

Medallo’s singing is angelic and when entwined with the vocals of the others, becomes like spun gold thread of an intricate spider’s web capturing your ears and imagination. “Human Things” return to dust and maybe the unknown might reclaim us, but you can still enjoy the tenebrous sounds of Night Tongue…. while you can.

Human Things | Night Tongue (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/nighttongues

http://nighttongue.com/

https://www.instagram.com/nighttongue/

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Should you dare slip into the wooded areas of Marietta, Ohio, after dark, you might happen upon the ambient and industrial musing of Pressed Flowers. Blake Pipes is the man bringing forth the electronic magic/madness in the single, “The Ascension.”

‘I composed “The Ascension” using, among other things, the sounds of hammers on large nails, the sounds of vehicles barely able to bear the weight of their load, and a mess of synthesizers. These elements were each stretched to their limits and sculpted carefully into place. In the track, there is a choice to make, a choice to stay or to go. The choice is made to go. The path forward is not necessarily a pleasant one, but neither is the path back. Too often, we can only hope to outrun what we try to leave behind.’ – Blake Pipes

This track is saturated in growing dread, from the scraping metal into the nails being knocked in. There is a near Hitchcock shower scene , which prevails and then collapses into what could be described as the warblings of an estranged classical orchestra, which is oddly satisfying. It is an intriguing use of elements and experimentation. There is a horror filled majesty with “This Ascension” by Pressed Flowers.

http://pressedflowers.bandcamp.com/

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In 1997, The Cure released the iconic Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me album, and on that album was the track “All I Want“. Now, in 2023, Now After Nothing, have covered “All I Want” and released it as a single. Matt Spatial and Michael Allen of Now After Nothing can also lay claim having Carl Glanville (U2, Joan Jett) doing the mixing and the mastering by John Davis (Placebo, The Jesus and Mary Chain), while the guitars are courtesy of Mark Gemini Thwaite (Peter Murphy, Gary Numan) and Howard Melnick (Astari NIte).

“I’ve never been one for recording covers but ‘All I Want’ holds a special place in my heart. I instantly gravitated toward the song when I first heard ‘Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me’ as a kid. I was captivated by the sound and the multiple perfectly woven melodies. Years later, I thought about the feel and energy of the song during my first attempt at song writing. I gave my first song the working title ‘Sonic Goth’ as, in my mind, it sounded like Sonic Youth meets The Cure. Truth be told though, what I ‘wrote’ was a blatant rip-off of ‘All I Want.’ The noobish-ly named ‘Sonic Goth’ never came to be a fully-formed song, and likely never will. Rather than rip of the original, it makes more sense to pay homage to it even more blatantly. So here it is…my cover of The Cure’s ‘All I Want.’ Oh, but in my version, it’s ‘Doll’ not ‘Dog’ – I am an aspirational feminist, after all.” – Matt Spatial

The guitars have a heavier, more modern sound but ring true to the original, and the synths add an air of floating graceful darkness. The vocals by Spatial don’t try to emulate Robert Smith because, honestly, no one sings like our eye liner wearing floppy hero, and this works really well, giving an authenticity of becoming a Now After Nothing track… even for just a little while. The essence of a dream for this is “All I Want.”

All I Want | Now After Nothing (bandcamp.com)

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