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.
Dark alternative music doesn’t seem to have any borders as to where it originates in the world and even the language used. Good music transcends all it feels, when everything is conveyed through sheer talent. Label Musica Tenebris are based in Warsaw, and they have released the four way split album Warsaw After Midnight, that features Polish gothic/deathrock bands Marie Laveau, Natures Mortes, Eat My Teeth and Nameless Creations.
The set list is arranged in blocks for each act, and first off the benches is NaturesMortes with four tracks, “Liar’sWeb” is the most recent release for this group, and indicative of their goth rocking style. You will be swept up from the beginning with the swift paced rhythm and ghoulish signature guitars, all the while being serenaded by the tortured sweet vocals that give no quarter and full of conviction.
Screaming fuzzed out guitar is utterly and instantly attention grabbing for the track “SaltInMyEyes,” by EatMyTeeth. The lead singer’s vibrato style is unforgettable, especially when he hits the high notes. as she almost seamlessly melds into the shrieking guitar. Discordant and rousing, all at the same time and a shout out to the drummer massacring the skins.
Natures Mortes (Facebook)Eat My Teeth (photo Sophie Louise)Nameless Creation (photo Lukasz Larakczyk)Marie Laveau (Facebook)
I get a really interesting vibe from NamelessCreations, and their use of electronics gives the track “Pain-Powered Machine” an early 80s feel, almost AlienSexFiend like, and strengthened by vocals. The music is relentless, swamping your senses like a kaleidoscope with the pulsating psychedelic assault, and this is just one of three tracks.
From the crypt comes MarieLaveau with four treats, and they are going to cast a spell on you with “AreYouBlind?“. These guys ooze European gothic cool and this latest single harkens back to stylings of France’s CorpusDelicti. The lead has a lovely dark quality to her voice and everything about this song is alluring from the classic goth rock guitars through to tight rhythm section.
Personally, I have always had a soft spot for sampler albums, and I have put that down to getting a taste of different styles and band, which opens up new musicians to further investigate. This is a great compilation from a scene that is obviously burgeoning with talent. Yes, I have picked one track from each band, but these are just the ones that first off caught my attention and in all honesty, the whole album is chock full of deathrock goodness. It is a delight to listen to these brilliant gothic aficionados from Poland and now, after falling deathly in love with Natures Mortes, Eat My Teeth, NamelessCreations and Marie Laveau, I want to visit Warsaw After Midnight.
IngaHabiba and PeterGuellard are DeathByLove. Signed to label DistortionProductions, these Polish veterans of the gothic-industrial scene, released their debut single on January the 31st, called “StrongInside.” Habiba has been involved in music since she was sixteen, with her long term project being Lorien, while Guellard has been involved with bands such as TheElectricHellfireClub, Venus In Furs, Mace, and Dichro, as well as a producer and lead in his own band Blitzkrieg.
The Middle Eastern influence is undeniable, exotic and alluring, a nod to Habiba’s ethnic roots, their tendrils wrapping themselves around the electronics. They are not a constant companion, rather gently tantalising you and more so, it is Habiba’s vocals that will hold your attention. From breathy spoken word, to brash and throaty singing, she is the focal point with synths her supporting undercurrent.
The lyrics are extremely relatable, because it is about how leaving yourself open to others can lead to trauma, yet if you close yourself away, you will possibly miss out and suffer loneliness. So, in the end, finding the strength within, often means you are growing as a human. The music traverses cultures, and delves into inner working of the human psyche, mixing trip hop with industrial, tinged with darkwave. DeathByLove are going to make waves with the highly danceable “StrongInside,” and the added bonus is two extra remixes included.
MetropolisRecords dropped the single “Sharing Skin,” by NightRitualz on January 31st. Vincent Guerrero IV is Texas based NightRitualz and in March, his self titled debut album will be released. Interestingly he has coined the term ‘fuckwave‘ to describe his cauldron of mixed styles such as goth, electronic and EBM.
‘Fuck Wave’ is anything horny, erotic and sensual that just makes people feel good,” he explains. “I feel like my music puts people in that mood and allows them to just be themselves without judgement of any kind. Another reason is because, at the end of the day, ‘Fuck’ what everyone thinks. We only have one life, so spend it doing stuff you like and that makes you happy. I see it as an empowering term.‘ – Vincent Guerrero IV
A simple guitar and echoing fuzzed vocals greet you, haunting with the slow drawl, telling of a longing of the heart for another. Like a call to arms, the rhythm kicks in, speeding up the world around this track, and you can hear the delicate synths in the background twinkling. ‘Sharing skin and secrets‘ is cherishing those intimate moments whether that is sex or telling secrets they would never share with anyone else. NightRitualz understands that most people long for that attachment but also the fact that humans motivation comes from that which brings joy. I think the description fuck wave is very apt, for it is a dark and sexy serenade in the form of “Sharing Skin.”
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 are going back to February of 2024, when the album If Blood Comes First was released by Dallas based Happy Phantom. This five piece is made up of songwriter JackieLegos (vocals, guitars), ZackBigalow (drums), ColbySias (percussion), JoshPrater (keyboards, synth), PhillipSozansky (bass guitar) and BrendanLadan (guitars).
It is important that the first track off an album grabs your attention, and “A StrangerWalking Shadows Through the Dark” has this in spades, from the sparkling intro, which continues through, and emotion filled jangling guitars, that harkens back to TheCure. Even Lego’s vocals remind one of RobertSmith, lending it to the feel of the legendary album Pornography, which will continue throughout. The title track is a swirling and echoing piece with the synths at the front in a winding classical soundscape domination, only broken by the vocals and occasional guitar. The lyrics in “If First Comes Blood” are beautifully poetic, and where does a relationship go to after we pass this mortal coil?
‘Waiting for the night and captured by the moon saving our goodbyes it’s over much too soon there’s nowhere left to hide when she comes to my bed with nothing but a lie dancing in my head…‘ – If First Comes Blood
“No Illusions” has great bass lines and the mood of the whole track is almost joyful, yet the lyrics tell of a loss where one cannot stay as the situation is eating them up, but they want to because of unreasonable hope. Let me guide you to track six, “I Dare To Love You,” with its booming drums rolling and subtle guitar. The conjoined voices could be a coven’s chant and the wonderful imagery of dancing on graves in a passionate tryst with a ghostly lover. The rangy guitar work is a throwback to early Cult in the track “Lust,” which is about the lack of emotion compared to love that requires as much give as take.
If you haven’t guessed, If Blood Comes First is about finding another dark soul that completes yours, bring the ultimate overwhelming gothic romance and the devastation of being bereft of that person, which leaves you a husk of your former self that yearns for what was lost. I think this album is heavily inspired by real life and also The Crow, which is about devotion, but on a deeper level, trying to be worthy enough to embrace love in death or knowing when you have to let go of those feelings that drag you under the waves of grief. Legos has professed that this is his favourite album so far, and we can hear why. If Blood Comes First is a brooding and heart wrenching ode to love, in the ideal sanctuary of a forever romance, set to a gothic serenade by Happy Phantom.
As I write, California is on fire, and Vince Grant, the man behind LA project The Sea At Midnight, sent me an email about his new single, “Our Beautiful Destruction,” and all proceeds from the song will be donated to victims.
Was this track written before the fires? The vocals wrench at my insides with the lyrics about the world being consumed in flames and Grant’s voice is truly gorgeous and swept up in the whirling guitar and synths in the chorus.
‘burning so brightly against the night sky the ashes are raining sparks and ashes are all that’s left the smoke hides the pain of all that remains of our brilliant destruction our brilliant destruction smoke hides the pain‘
My heart aches listening to this track. I live in a country where every Summer is a terrifying wait to see if bush fires will take hold…. the last huge infernos being in 2019. Lost lives, lost property, watching both wildlife and domestic animals perishing. “Our BrilliantDestruction” sadly seems to encapsulate this situation perfectly. If it were released without the LA fires, it would be considered a evocative song, but currently it means everything. It is name your price on The Sea At Midnight’s Bandcamp, so I encouraged you to give a little to help in “Our Brilliant Destruction.”
Antipole, aka Karl Morten Dahl, from the currently frozen land of Norway, and ParisAlexander of the not quite as cold UK, have just released a new single. This post-punk/coldwave track is called “Sad Lover(Desolated),” and I am not sure if this ties into anything, about seven years ago, they had another song called “Shadow Lover.”
My breath slows as I take in the drum machine beats with the bass guitar’s deep rumbling, which is old school post-punk in the style of PeterHook (JoyDivision), drawing you in. The lead guitar work is seriously sublime, and delicately echoes, supported by the equally lightly winding synths. Alexander’s vocals are smooth and subdued, reeking of cooling dusk, and yet still intensely moving.
The music video is shot between the snowy pine forests of Norway, and an old church in England, with an attached graveyard. This heightens the stark reality of loneliness and inevitable death, but it also pulls into focus that “Sad Lover (Desolated)” is also about realising that snow covered scenery is beautiful, or that there is an austere dark peace around the tombstones of those long gone. It is finding the elegance and grace in that which could be seen as desolate. Antipole & Paris Alexander have delivered another perfect track in “Sad Lover (Desolated).”
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.
Berlin based three piece, Dina Summer is made up of vocalist Dina, and DJ’s LocalSuicide and Kalipo. They have dropped their new single “Hypnotized” off the new second album GirlsGang, which out on January 24th on the IptamenosDiscos label.
Clattering rhythms greet you, only to be joined by plectrum driven bass and Dina’s recognisable spoken word, until her dulcet tones graduate into singing in the chorus. The electronics are bright next to the sultry vocals and rumbling bass.
The deep post-punk influenced bass guitar and Dina’s singing are indicative of what you might expect of the new album of the group, as they explore post-punk and synth-pop. “Hypnotized” is a sensual, 80 inspired track which will have Dina summer making you burn on the dance floor.
Onyx Music Reviews 