I don’t need mystic powers to tell you, Brisbane’s Killtoys are back, with a new dark rock single with the ominous title “DoomSayer.” As a three piece, these guys have a huge sound, are brilliant live and well seasoned musicians. Shoutout to Kings Street Studio where the Killtoys record.
Hail thee unto the fluid drums that are setting the pace for this gruesome telling of inevitable futility. Surrounded by the mists that only hold death and destruction, the fortune teller heralds in avenging angels while the bass grimly powers on. The lead guitar cuts through the mire, like a sword and the vocals waver between great loss and acceptance.
Maybe this is blasphemous, however this track has the hallmarks of that Aussie rock flavour, mixed with a heavy BlackSabbath like dirge, which is a combination of that droning bass and rolling drums. The band have cited the brilliant British band ParadiseLost as an influence, and that can most definitely be heard in the guitar work. “DoomSayer” has a glorious depth and if you love your rock then you really should not miss out on the Killtoys.
Valentine’s Day has blasted by again for another year, and for many of us, it is a bah ergh sort of irritation. Finnish dark rock group, Lilith & The Wildflowers, released the single “Tattoo” for this auspicious / suspicious day, but this is no love song.
Distant, echoing guitar beautifully set the stage for the vocals, and her singing sounds effortless tinged in what feels like grief, and hints at just below the surface anger. The drums punctuate the seriousness and everything culminates in a chorus that easily gets under your skin.
A tattoo often acts as a memory and this track is about the recollection of a past relationship, that has left an indelible mark under the skin, that stay with us. “Tattoo” loops and graces us with a story of wanting to get rid of the pain of a previous lover, but are left marked. Lilith & The Wildflowers make a damage heart bleed in the nicest way.
And so there was a convergence of two talents. JemaurTayle (Shelleyan Orphan) and Boris Williams (The Cure) are friends who were brought together by their love of music, which spawned the project Vamberator. Originally, Tayle had been working on a solo album, but had to endure the passing of long time Shelleyan Orphan bandmate CarolineCrawely, then found he had lost focus. Over the years, Tayle had toured with TheCure, and developed camaraderie with Williams. He helped fan the flame of the muse called music, and together brough to fruition, the debut album called “Age of Loneliness.”
The intro track is also a previous single, called “I used to be Lou Reed,” and like the namesake, it has a huge personality, with a complimentary brass section heralding in your immersive baptism for the slightly off the wall Vamberator. Tayle’s vocals are far more smooth than anything Reed ever laid done, but the elements of funk and experimentation are all there, with the idea that we have to find our own place in the universe and our own groove.
Title track, “Age of Loneliness,” is a wonderful mixture of soul sister groove and 60s Haight-Ashbury flower power, tinged with childish wonder. An amalgamation of classical and counter-culture rock, and it just works. At the other end of the scale is “I Need Contact,” and it is a slow piece, crisp and clear, that drags you to your knees with the sheer weight of the bleak sentiment. Another single is the delightful “Creature in my House,” that see-saws with that guitar riff, and lurches with the rolling drums from Williams. So one has to ask, is the creature a real creature, or is it staring out through the eyes of Tayle?
“Imps” is the latest single, and, oddly enough, the last track on the album. It reminds me of the 90s, when bands like Primal Scream and The Stone Roses were hitting their straps, but also paying homage to 60s/70s soul, and artists like The Rolling Stones and Kinks. Maybe this is the true meaning of the album. The loneliness we feel stems from a yearning for something more.. something tangible that is comfortable, which could be places, objects, sounds and people. We delve into our library of memories to find that comfort and Vamberator have set “Age of Loneliness” as a touchstone of influences and what drives them to embark forth, adding their own spin on what they love. It is an album that can be enjoyed by the musician’s musician, and, yet, it is full of soul, brilliant chorus’ and a quirkiness that can capture the average music lover’s imagination. A beautiful friendship between Tayle and Williams has borne a bounty in the form of “Age of Loneliness.”
Dresscode’sDavidBrichard (vocals) and FredHyat (guitars), have started off the new year with the single “FollowMe.” The Belgium duo are wooing you with their take of dark electro-rock.
The melding of electronics with guitar roll seamlessly, the synths brightness reflect the techno style, meant to encourage you towards the dancefloor. Brichard’s emotionally exhausted vocals are crooner smooth and heart felt, while the guitar in Hyat’s hands, tell part of this story going from simple trickling, and then gushing in the chorus. The theme of the track might be about disappointment and an illusionary relationship, where only one person was invested. The music video features the guys on stage, as well as their live drummer FlorianGilot, which might just encourage you to try and get to see them play in real life. The play of sadness against the sparkling rhythms and synths works so very well for “FollowMe,” so check out Dresscode.
We have been anticipating a new release from Aotearoa (New Zealand), darkwave/industrial group Robots In Love, and luckily we have not had to wait very long in the form of the single “Crush.”
Gamer one is up and the bouncing guitar riffs breathe life into “Crush” early on. You can taste the conviction in Rayner’s vocals as she builds the anticipation that peaks in the chorus. The chorus soars with unbridled emotion and charged vocals that entwine with each other, breaking free of all expectations, with Robots In Love taking you on a musical high.
“Crush” is a track of boundless optimism, where it doesn’t matter what life throws up, that hope always springs eternal and this is kind of refreshing. It is about crushing the obstacles in your path and creating new opportunities. In the 90s, ElenorRayner was a member of the industrial rock group Soulscraper, and it feels like she is revisiting this era when both Soulscraper and another Australian band, Insurge were changing the industrial scene. She is still breaking and rebuilding genres along with the other Robots In Love members Alex Burchell and Tony Lumsden. “Crush” has already become a favourite track in the live show and it is not hard to see why.
The Texan psychobilly ghouls, Tricie and the Phantom Punks, dropped their second EP, ILook Good In Dead, in November on the UK label We Are Horror Records. If you haven’t guessed by now, it is all about the horror darling…….
First track, “Haunt Me,” is an expression of love, even if they are some dead poltergeist trying to murder you. It is fast and furious in that cutesy sort of homicidal way. True horror is real life, and Tricie coos and whoops her ode of (un)dying love to serial killer RichardRamirez, also known as The Night Stalker in “Darling Richie.” They reference Disneyland which is a nice touch, as the bass and drums thunder, and guitar crashes. The music video is a wonderful bonus.
The first, self titled EP had the track “GraveyardParty” on it and the band has resurrected it in the form of an acoustic version, which is raw and unapologetic. Sticking to the American serial killer theme, a tribute to the woman who had enough of men’s shit, a song about Aileen Wuornos in the form of “Ho Lee.” I think Wuornos would have appreciated the punk attitude and not painting her as a victim, which lines such as ‘forever scarred‘/’forever hard.’
Like all good punk releases, all four tracks sit between two and three minutes long, but they pack a lot into those few minutes. Tricie has a very distinct voice that sets her and the Phantom Punks up as being very distinguishable when it comes to other female led horror punk/horrorbilly groups. They are punks by name and undead by nature, and everyone needs a little bit of supernatural stabby stabby to spice up their lives.
We knew it was coming. Those Norwegians, Mayflower Madame have finally dropped the new album called Insight, near the end of 2024. They have been threatening this for a while, dropping singles along the way, like bread crumbs, in order to give you a taste but leaving you wanting more. Wait no more, and let the darkness take you.Â
We can not go past the last single, the track, “Crippled Crow.” The band’s signature guitar is there, but also the synths sound like gusts of cold air. The vocals are echoing and, for me, remind me a little of Echo and the Bunnymen. Without warning, drums and guitar fall into a wonderful vortex of noise, where you will want to save this broken ‘crow.’
There is an area in my chest that just reverberated with “Queen of the Underworld.” I am not sure if it is the heavy guitars or lonely piano, or perhaps the accompanying synths, but it resonates and captures feelings of shivering delight. The first track “Ocean of Bitterness” will instantly drag you into the dark heart of Mayflower Madame.
I am going to say that the cover brought back memories of another in the form of the UK’s Play Dead’s album Company of Justice, which is also an excellent gothic release. Mayflower Madame have that Scandinavian cool about them, mixed with a classic 80s post-punk sound, and creates magically dark and sonically expressive gothic music that strays into shoegaze. Insight is a collection of all the singles, yet there are all the other tracks here to discover and this album won’t leave you feeling disappointed.
For many of us, we cannot think of early 80s British post-punk/gothic, without including Leeds band, Red Lorry Yellow Lorry (RLYL). They were an amazing juggernaut, with other key bands such as Sisters of Mercy and The March Violets, giving us dark, guitar driven songs of nihilism from an era that was seeing a great deal of social upheaval, and also a music scene spewing forth a slew of new styles. Something Lorries fans having been holding out for was another studio album. We knew there was one in the wings, but no one, including the band, knew if it was going to see the light of day, having been recorded ten years ago. Not only is that album, Some Kind of Paradise, due for release, there is also the bonus of an EP DrivingBlack, that is out in December. However, for now, the first single has been dropped, which is also called “Driving Black (Ding’s Remix)“. It has been thirty-three years since the last Red Lorry Yellow Lorry single and all this goodness is being brought to you via COP International.
Chris Reed’s vocals are unmistakable with that biting edge of venom matched with near derision, that brokers no arguments, for it is what it is. The percussion is savage between the drums (Martin Henderson) and bass (Simon Archer), that sets the stage for the driving guitars of Reed and David Wolfenden.
The Ding is Simon ‘Ding’ Archer, music bassist for RLYL as well as being a music producer in his own right. There is a coarseness that grates over your skin with “DrivingBlack,” as it is with most music in the past from The Lorries. I think this is due to the fact that the song is so real.. as in you feel it in your bones and it resonates in your head, becoming another integral piece of fabric in memories, because it is a great and gritty rock song. It isn’t long now for those of us who have loved Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and I am beyond excited knowing that the journey isn’t quite over yet.
“NeverSever” is the new single from Norway’s Mayflower Madame, from the album Insight, which will be released on November the 1st on the label Night Cult Records.
There is a haunted tone to the beginning of “NeverSever,” however this track kicks off with the guitars powering up their shoegaze jangle. The vocals call out a regret of walking from a relationship, acknowledging that you can never go back after years. The electronics are the unsung hero here filling those swelling chorus.
There is a cool groove about this track, and the way it flows and builds between the guitars and vocals, very much reminds me of TheMission (UK). You can feel the ache of loss, however, the crashing drums combined with the bigger sound, leads you to believe that there is also acceptance of what is. Wallow in the beautiful gothic melancholy that is MayflowerMadame’s “Never Sever.”
Aston Nyte, lead singer of goth rock band The Awakening, has once again taken on the duty of lead vocalist with US super group, Beauty In Chaos, for the single “Made Of Rain,” which is off their fourth album Dancing With Angels.
Photo by Annabel DFlux
Michael Ciravolo is a master guitarist and the notes drift in a sensuous malady. Meanwhile, Nyte sings from the pit of his being, with the tone grabbing your heart and pulling it out of the cavity it beats in. The lyrical imagery is poignant, stealing your breath with the powerful lament.
Nyte, simply put, has a superb voice with an extraordinary range, and I have to admit I hold him in great esteem along side HIM’sVilleValo. Not only is his singing beautiful, but you feel everything. So easily he causes a visceral reaction and that is what makes Nyte perfect for this track, “Made Of Rain.” The music video is also a feast for the eyes which I highly encourage you to check out.
