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Many Australian musicians are amazingly talented, and Melbourne’s Body Maintenance, saw in April, the release of their debut album Beside You, with the vinyl LP out on Drunken Sailor Records and cassette on Unwound Records. Now I am going to tell you that if you love post-punk music, and if you haven’t listened to Body Maintenance, then maybe you aren’t as cool as you think you are.

The tendrils of “Silver Yarns” wind around you and unleash the gorgeous guitars, that run and take flight. The vocals are within the mix and yet still ring clear, and you know that any song that mentions sinners and martyrs has got to be good. In fact it is an amazing start. It is a gothic gun duel at high noon in “Circles“, or at least the dark spaghetti western guitars say be there or be square. The synths swirl between and you wonder where the rattle snakes are hiding.

“The Spiral” feels like the most glorious vortex, berating your ears with tribal beats, and that is at complete odds with the far more reticent and thoughtful “Time Enough” that curls within your chest, like a hand gripping your heart. The bass guitar steadily pushes forward in “It’s Theatre“, and again those synths soar in your ears, which has a beautiful chorus and the guitar playing that could take your breath away.

The title track is the heavenly forlorn “Beside You“, which is about dedication no matter where it leads, and it has the air of freefalling. “The Fools, The Frauds” is verbose and has tinges of Virgin Prunes. The rhythm section pulls this track tightly in, while the guitars fight to contain themselves, all the while caressed by the vocals. The vocals in “Ends” catches your ears as does the big guitar sound and before we know it, there is the last track, “A Compliment“, which wanders in the ether of ghost like memories, gently roaming the shadowy paths.

Damn… how do I summarise this album. It is like chills down the spine due to the familiarity of the style, as it reminds me of British post-punk bands from another era, especially Play Dead, Danse Society, Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and closer to home Ikon and The Church. Probably because it is very much guitar driven, with the use of reverb and pedals, and yet for me, it is the fact there is an air of magic in Body Maintenance’s sound, so richly dark and so invitingly warm at the same time. I am sure their influences are far more modern, but my hot take is Beside You is a brilliant post-punk album by Body Maintenance and I can’t wait to see what they do next.

Beside You | Body Maintenance (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/unwoundrecords?mibextid=ZbWKwL

https://www.unwoundrecords.com/

https://www.facebook.com/DrunkenSailorRecords

http://www.drunkensailorrecords.co.uk/

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July 13th marks the fourth single, called “Well Of Wishes” from Naarm (Melbourne) based band Society Of Beggars, which is off the very soon to be released debut album Levitator. Members Yianni Michalopoulos (vocals), Dimitrios Michalopoulos (guitar), Tom ‘Dibi’ Di Biase (drums) with Zoë Alexa (bass) make up the band that has been playing and touring since 2016..

The bass and drums are the driving force, giving the track a heavy rock focus, while the guitars waver between galvanic and sinuous. The vocals both melodic and gravelly, tell the story of how you can’t spend your life wishing, otherwise you never act to create reality. The lyrics in particular, are beautifully crafted jewels.

There is a sweeping graceful vastness in what I would describe at a touch of 70s Black Sabbath, mixed with something that is so tangibly Australian rock. “Well Of Wishes” is a precautionary tale of living for the moment instead inside one’s head, and giving one’s self to the darkness of the well. This latest single sees Society Of Beggars definitely rocking in style.

Well of Wishes | Society of Beggars (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/societyofbeggars

Society of Beggars – Official Website

https://www.instagram.com/societyofbeggars

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The lads from the Gold Coast hinterland are back with a new single. Which lads do we speak about? Why the Aussie duo, Atticus Chimps, and the track “Eyes Speak“.

Grungy, and almost Black Sabbath inspired riffs, the rock and roll is laid down nice and tasty. Have you had fun with me?, is the chorus that plays through your head, in a not so playful jibe at the powers that be.

“Eyes Speak” is this really nice thumping, meaty chunk of heavier boogie rock’n’roll, nice and tasty, proving that Atticus Chimps have the ability and talent, when it comes to changing up their sound.

https://www.facebook.com/AtticusChimps?mibextid=ZbWKwL

http://www.atticuschimps.com/

Space Exploitation | Atticus Chimps (bandcamp.com)

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It is cold and light doesn’t last long during the day currently in Brisbane, Australia. Creatures of the night, Killtoys have crept out, and the 31st of May tolls in the release of the new single, “Blind God“. The trio of Mick Bristow, Stav Tsolakides and Bevan Bancroft have been steadily building their own sound since 2020.

There is an amazing echoing quality and the guitar beautifully rings out, reminding me of the early 90s gothic second wave of bands. Bristow’s singing absolutely gives you the chills and in the pit of your stomach you can hear the nightmare. Yes, the terror is in the form of a night hag infecting your dreams and on another level, it is also dealing with one’s inner torment from the past..

“We’re thrilled to be releasing ‘Blind God’ to our fans around the world,” said the band in a statement. “This song is deeply personal to us, and we hope that it resonates with listeners who have experienced the same feelings of fear and helplessness that inspired it.”

The anguish is palpable and a music surges with the call and response making the track hugely anthemic, and definitely something that would go off live. Killtoys are fusing gothic rock with garage grunge, and the track “Blind God” may just eat you alive……

Killtoys | Facebook

Killtoys (@killtoys_official) • Instagram photos and videos

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Weimar is an experimental industrial EP in three parts, by Brian Tibbs of Chicago. A little bit of background on Weimar, that not only is it a city in Germany, but it became in 1919, the German Reich (Republic of Germany), which also heralded in the rise of the Nazi Party

Part 1 is “Dream, Reminisce and Secession“. that starts off light and airy, with dreamy chimes, yet then it seems to have a darker level below… That darkness is so low key that the listener might not realise, considering this track full of sparkling synths. The menace of what is to come, starts to flower in “The Fruits Of Ingenuity“, as the music snakes along, the light absorbed by the encroaching storm The music bleeps and bleats, becoming almost insistent, clashing and claustrophobic. The piano wanders aimlessly, before the interspersed harsher electronics beats, let themselves be known, and that dalliance with the off-kilter synths in Part 3 called “Agnosis And Rupture“. There is a digital distress in the second half of this track and a foreboding in the dominate piano, amidst the screams and cries.

I don’t think this is that far a reach to correlate a musical comparison of the rise of political powers that seek to remove human rights in many countries, and how the Nazi’s came to power under the guise of being a country’s great saviour. What are they saving people from? From threats that they have deemed relevant and supported by zealots. Brian Tibbs has brought you Weimar which is thought provoking and a journey into the socio-political rabbit hole, through a combination of industrial married with experimental classical music.

Weimar | Brian TIbbs | Brian Tibbs (bandcamp.com)

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Deep Sleep Atlantic are back with their second single “Blue“, which was released on May the 12th. Travis Marc and Daniel Perez are changing things up with the addition of saxophone by guest musician Dave Mouton.

Photo by Mikey Valencia

There is a plodding nature to the beginning of the track, a kind of going through the moves of daily life, while the vocals reach out, seemingly putting on a happy face. A song about depression, when you can no longer face the day. It really takes off in the chorus, and the culprit of this misery is revealed. The saxophone is absolutely mesmerising.

The music video has its premiere on the 19th of May, but in the meantime, you can enjoy listening to “Blue” or sites like Bandcamp and Spotify. This track is definitely nothing like the first single, “Bipolar Tendencies“, which had a far more darker edge, where as “Blue” has embraced that New Orleans’ grass roots soul and blues, and mixed it with an 80s pop swagger of say Duran Duran or Japan. Touch the “Blue” with Deep Sleep Atlantic.

▶︎ Blue | Deep Sleep Atlantic (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/deepsleepatlantic?mibextid=ZbWKwL

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Never ones to sit on their laurels, the crew of Beauty In Chaos (BIC), with guitarist Michael Ciravolo, firmly at the helm, have been joined by Julian Shah-Taylor (vocals/synths), for a brand new single, “Kiss Me (Goodbye)“. Just adding to the mix is long term BIC collaborator Michael Rozon on bass/piano/drum programming and drummer Pete Parada of Face To Face and The Offspring fame.

Photo by Tish Ciravolo

There is an 80s electronic vibe throughout this track, though the guitars most certainly are at the fore, in the rich, surging chorus. Everything will turn out fine, sings Shah-Tayler, even if we are watching the world burn, so with the sweet lyrics and up tempo lilt to the music, you can believe him.

Shah-Taylor might be channelling the Thin White Duke, aka Bowie, especially in conjunction with the video. There is something warm and familiar about “Kiss Me (Goodbye)” that really resonated with me and maybe it is the 80s/goth glam feel. The track is both delicate and stirring, and the vocals are perfection. “So “Kiss Me (Goodbye)” as there is only Beauty In Chaos.

KISS ME (GOODBYE) ft. Julian Shah-Tayler | BEAUTY IN CHAOS (bandcamp.com)

http://www.beautyinchaosmusic.com/

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May 5th saw the latest single for Irish lads, Arctic Lights, made available to the public on Bandcamp and May the 12th for other streaming platforms. Edward Butt and Liam O’Callaghan are Arctic Lights, 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 Arctic Lights has so far released, have been indie pop/rock jewels, and “Somebody” is no different.

Somebody | Arctic Lights (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/ArcticLightsCork

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The late Burt Bacharach 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 Mach FoX (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, “New Dead Wave“. If you were in doubt, this was a horror themed release, there is the guitar filled “Little Monster“, 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 “Let Us In“, where there is actually a liberal amount of glam rocker style in the offering.

“Garden Of Rust” kind of reminds me quite a bit of the Ramones when they wrote “Pet Cemetery” 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 Alice Cooper 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 “The 4th Kind” 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.

New Dead Wave | Sonikdevil & Mach FoX | Mach FoX (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/machfoxband

https://sonikdevil.bandcamp.com/music

https://www.facebook.com/SonikdevilOfficial?mibextid=ZbWKwL

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Italian band Codice EGO has dropped their EP, Rainbow’s End on April 21st. This three track EP, is the journey of one band member, who found himself confronted with an illness that no one could diagnose and faced with his own mortality.

The title track, “Rainbow’s End” is the first single and is full of a slinky cool vibe, and smooth vocals lending themselves to the Portishead sound, while the throbbing guitar settles below, occasionally breaking out in flourishes. “Errors And Repairs” has post-punk jangliness wending its way through the ebb and flow of emotions in a period of time of being unable to fix the human machine but the most important component is convincing the brain to move on. The last track is the male voiced “Contriver“, the electronics are at the fore with the rhythms pounding from the drums and in an amazingly powerful ending. The survivor looking at what they have gone through.

Post-punk mixed with shoegaze and an understated degree of electronics is a part of the concoction that makes Rainbow’s End so easy to listen to, yet the vocals, fuelled by the ocean deep lyrics, for Codice EGO that make it all gel perfectly.

https://en-gb.facebook.com/CodiceEGO/

https://www.instagram.com/codiceego/?hl=en