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Australian’s love claiming New Zealander’s as our own, and quite frankly, the talented Kieren Hills is no exception. His crust punk, crossed with industrial stylings with the project Schkeuditzer Kreuz, is perched to release a new full length album on the 25th of August, named No Life Left, and a packed tour of Europe, over this September and October (which is well worth every cent). For now, you are able to listen to “Second Life,” the latest single off the album.

Photo by Jeremy Belinfante

Instantaneously, the pummelling, heavy as fuck rhythm grabs your ears, with a taste of black metal gloom, as the claustrophobic pall tries to suffocate the breath out of you. Hills snarls and growls lyrics such as ‘free to kill, free to take a life away’, a protest of the constant gun related killings in America, where the victims and families seem to have no voice. The loops and synths ooze discontent at the failing system.

“I’ve always had a policy of playing anywhere and everywhere with SK. I’ve played in a lot of weird and wonderful places in the last 3 years – in sheds and video stores, in the forest and in car parks, house shows, club shows, in-stores, and pub shows – under bridges and in skate parks.  Anywhere at all. So, I wanted to do that for the video.

I found an alleyway choked with long-dead street bounty – sofas and white goods and old guitars, and pots and pans and cupboards and sheet metal, and building waste and everything that gets left behind when people move on or move up. All long left in the elements to degrade and die. So, I set up there and played to a few friends – interspersing my usual walls of sound with throwing stuff around and bashing on things in the pile, more or less rhythmically along with the music.‘  – Kieren Hills on the video for “Second Life“

The video is beautifully shot/produced by Shaye at DMWC Films, filmed in an alleyway in Sydney. This track hits hard, not only in the voluminous reams of auditory crush, but also the overwhelming disappointment in a society where guns mean more than people’s lives. The vinyl records for the album are already on pre-order from Bad Habit Records (AUS) and Sorry State Records (USA)

No Life Left | Schkeuditzer Kreuz (bandcamp.com)

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Sorry State Records: punk, hardcore metal, garage, crust, vinyl

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Based in Mexico, Edge Of Decipher, have a new single out called “Your Real Name“. I say single, though to my surprise it looks far more like an EP with the amount of songs you are getting. Definitely bang for your buck on this one with the single out on the machina ad noctem label!

The single “Your Real Name” delicately rolls out with Thai spoken word, gradually adding electronic layers, though the lone piano keys are striking in their loneliness. There is no sense of urgency, but only floating in the now. Next is the real version of “Solaris Reborn“, as the unearthly terrestrial soundscape of synths beautifully blooms, while what could be an alien choir sweetens the starlight. Behold the Blade Runner futuristic dread of “Solitary Skies” where there is foreboding in the intense and glitching electronics, the rhythms unable to settle on a permanent beat, leaving you on edge, whilst hopes and dreams are now but a distant memory.

“The Waves” was released as a single previously, but here you get to hear the Sidekick Waves remix and it still has the cool synth ambiance with a funky kick to it. The next three tracks are the “Angel Code” with it’s erratic bleeps and neuro binding asymmetry, the ascending refinement of “Rise Code” and the foreign and exotic tempo “Waves Code“, that whispers into your ears. The last two tracks are instrumental pieces of “Your Real Name“, where that piano is so vividly at the fore, and the stunning “The Waves (Sidekick Wave remix)”, full of future pop mixed with synthwave.

There is always a delicate refinement to all of Edge Of Decipher’s music, and he seamlessly flows from futuristic star wave, into an alien world, prophetic calamity or pieces of heart felt love, all the while collaborating and bring out the best in those he works with. One does not need to speak “Your Real Name” but rather one should listen to Edge Of Decipher.

Your Real Name | Edge of Decipher | machina ad noctem (bandcamp.com)

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Today, we explore the album Lesser Gods by the Los Angeles project BARA HARI, which was released at the end of May, and the limited edition vinyl on the label Re:Mission Entertainment, The exotic BARA HARI is musician and producer Sam Franco, whom is also known for her darkwave and industrial collaborations.

Your ears are greeted by the sublime “Siren Song“. Delicate and short lived, a beautiful warning of the dire events to come. For her name is “Tempest“, she who will bring the ensuing storm to clear away the lies and deceit. Such foreboding in a pop like song, as BARA HARI casts her gaze over those that cause consternation, stalking them down. The guitar is heavy, matched by the thudding drums, for we are given the story of sexual double standards and moral gatekeeping in “Immoral Tales“.

The synths bring in “Violence Rising” and it is indeed about the abhorrent acceptance that it is alright to be brutal to one another. There are wonderful rounds of vocals joined by trumpet. Lust, love and “Looking For Oblivion” is an electronic buzzing gem, that settles in your brain. The buzzing is palpable but wait hold that thought. The next track, “House Of The Devil” is simply huge between the falling vocals and melancholic piano, as Franco gives us the modern version of “I Will Survive“.

Does going outside make you nervous or dealing with crowds bring on anxiety attacks? Maybe you are “Agoraphobic” and as this number plods along, almost unwilling to leave, while the first affirming lines, ‘Started off as a joke Now I can’t walk out my own front door’, fulfil the prophesy. The rock is fused with electronics and “Delusions Of Grandeur” is both angelic and full of angst, while “Easy Target” is a sassy and alluring track. The final track is the superbly dark and disturbing “Immortal” with the chiming keyboards and up beat rhythm, whilst the lyrics tell of the fact that as we age, what made us beautiful fades and many see our worth is only wrapped up with youth.

Fairy tales and fables were often stories to teach people wise lessons, and when I listen to BARA HARI’s Lesser Gods. this album is very much in this vein. Modern fables of not judging others, through to when good people do nothing to prevent evil. Colourful and descriptive language within the lyrics are carried by the melodious electro/indie pop, topped off with the gorgeous vocals of Franco. Lesser Gods indeed when it comes a goddess like BARA HARI.

Lesser Gods | BARA HARI | Re:Mission Entertainment (bandcamp.com)

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Kicking off July with a bang. We are talking the new industrial single “ROTATIONS” from UK artist MATT HART, with the added extra bonus of a remix by SERAPHIM SYSTEM, aka Jon Stancil, from the USA. This is the ongoing human versus machine, cyber saga of epic proportions.

“8 HOURS AWAKE. 8 HOURS ASLEEP. THIS IS THE WAY OF THE TIME MILL.” This is the mantra here, for there is not time for anything, except digging into the ground beneath, for the humans to escape their electronic assassins. The synths are ripe and juicy, while the beats are rampaging, forcing you to move that body. HART’s vocals broker no argument for this is how thing must be, as the shifts rotate through continuously, like a colony of ants, slaves to the rhythm for survival.

The SWAGGROTATIONS REMIX has the massive slamming beats and screaming electronics. It summons a feeling of utter panic, suddenly dropping into drum and bass, before whirling off, pounding your skull into a pulpy mess.

MATT HART’s original version is chock full of scintillating synths, club floor filling rhythms and rounding vocals, building the air of a will so stubborn, one shall do whatever to avoid elimination. With the SERAPHIM SYSTEM mix, we definitely find ourselves with a different beast. Harsher electronics, mixed with dub and dropping bass, combined with the crushing beats. All of this is a reflection of the desperation and even loss of humanity by the survivors…. ah well, at least they are doing it in style, while carrying out “ROTATIONS“.

Music | MATT HART (bandcamp.com)

ROTATIONS (SERAPHIM SYSTEM SWAGGROTATIONS REMIX) | MATT HART (bandcamp.com)

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Murmurs in Space is the rough translation for the new Eleventh Fear EP, Murmeln im Raum. Out on Neris Records, Eleventh Fear is the electro-goth child of Frenchman, Ludovic Dhenry. We last heard from this project in 2022 with the release of the first EP, Waldhexen.

“Drachenblut” or dragon blood, hears Dhenry hissing like the very mystical creature itself, over an amazing, minimalistic electronic dance piece, with grand swirls. The bass reverberates through your chest and the keyboard playing shines through the top of your head in “Hexen des Meeres“. The music is about the watery wenches, the witches of the sea, whom want to steal away sailors and bathe in their blood. There is definitely a chill down the spine with the first serpentine words whispered on a seething tongue for “Wir werden leben“. Low fuzzing tones and vocals are offset by the angelic lighter keys, making the track feel expansive and cavernous all at the same time.

Dhenry’s persona is Eleventh Fear, and he pulls on those primaeval superstitions of what lays in the shadows, awaiting the unsuspecting victims, triggering the imagination. You can almost feel the dankness of the witches, or the greedy harbingers, rubbing together their hands, watching other’s untimely deaths, as they, themselves will never die. The music of Murmeln im Raum is evocative and darkly pleasing, so go check out Eleventh Fear.

Murmeln im Raum (EP) | Eleventh Fear (bandcamp.com)

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German industrial project Neon Insect has released another single as of May, with the title “Implant“. Nils Sinatsch is Neon Insect, whose forte is delving into a cyber-punk future of apocalyptic proportions.

The flesh screams in defiance as the cybernetic additions consume the body, taking away pain and everything else that makes a human feel. Nils‘ gruff vocals are the programmes and nano bots seeking to assume control, as they pulsate through their victim,

It starts with a few changes of enhancement, until the machines decides mankind is frail and prone to breaking. The road to human race’s doom seems to be paved in the industrial dance rhythms of Neon Insect and his “Implant“.

IMPLANT | Neon Insect (bandcamp.com)

https://www.neon-insect.de/

https://facebook.com/neoninsect

https://www.instagram.com/neoninsect/

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Some music projects go on hiatus, but they never truly go away. After twenty years, DC Astro and Martha A. Hoffmann, have breathed new life into their electronic/darkwave band Deep Red, and what better way to celebrate this than with the release of a new single, “Battle Lines” which features Element 104.

The low tones are heavy and bass driven, giving the track a voluminous depth, and a long with the rhythm hurtle this track forward. Hoffmann’s vocals range from whispered to clear and true, just as the synths chime out and spin about a relationship gone sour, and the fight to be able to walk away from other person.

In 2002, the album Chimera was released, which has the original version of “Battle Lines” on it. I can hear why they wanted to, in a way, resurrect this track and give it another run, modernising it. A note of interest is that the mastering was done by Doruk Öztürkcan of She Past Away fame. The over all feel of “Battle Lines” is a big break through track bound for the dance floor, which will ensure we will be hearing more from Deep Red.

Battle Lines | Deep Red featuring Element 104 | Deep Red (bandcamp.com)

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The first half of the year has seen a lot of really great new darkwave albums, and this includes, Crystalline, the latest from Norwegian Karl Morten Dahl, also known as Antipole and Brit Paris Alexander. This album is now out on the Young & Cold Records label with it being recorded between the UK and Norway, and the production, mixing and mastered by Alexander at his Blue Door Studio.

The album starts with “Perceptions“, which is one of three singles and it is a smooth affair between the synths and Alexander’s vocals, raising your heartbeat with anticipation with the rising guitar. “Nightshade” has been known to kill, yet the solemn delicacy of this track might make you want to live just that little bit longer so you might be able to hear “Bleached“, another single. Bleak and creeping with sorrow, but yet you cannot but be mesmerised by the sensual vocals and dirty electronic bass.

The desolate lushness of “Disjointed” brings a delicateness that sets you up for the third single, “Midnight Shadows“, where you can almost feel the spirits are reaching out to you through the echoing and enticing whispers. that draw spectral fingers up your skin, catching your breath. The rhythms knock away and the guitar draws you into its embrace as you share with Alexander, his hope and anguish in “Marble“.

We find ourselves at the gently flowing “Infractions“, bathing in its warm heart. The track has a Johnny Marr glazing with a pop sensibility. The final track is the sublimely elegant “Sentiments” with the low bass electronics balanced by the both the sweet guitar work and high end synths.

The production of the album is clean and so fluid, making it almost ethereal, and yet the tracks will also guide your feet to the dance floor. Paris Alexander’s vocals truly convey a lot of emotion, sometimes bordering on dark seduction, while Karl Morten Dahl’s playing in this conjures reminders of Robert Smith’s tantalising guitar prowess and form. Each track is devastatingly beautiful, unveiling the never ending cycle of the dark versus the light, with hints of all the shades of grey in between, as Antipole & Paris Alexander take you to the places that yesterday’s ghosts still haunt, in perfect Crystalline.

Crystalline | Antipole & Paris Alexander | Antipole (bandcamp.com)

http://www.facebook.com/antipoleband

Music | Paris Alexander (bandcamp.com)

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

https://bluedoormusicproductions.com/

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

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The wizard of techno-industrial dance, Simon Carter, is inviting you to join your weird brothers and sisters in the mystical coven through the latest EP, Initiation. Released at the end of May, Simon has said that these four tracks were cut from the up coming 2nd album with collaborator Fabsi, because they didn’t quite fit the overall sound but gelled well together for the EP.

The curtain raiser is “Seher (Initiation Countdown),” a call to the floor for all the warriors of dance and a taste of what is to come. There is a mixture of psytrance with EBM in “Hexennacht Rave” that interchanges, giving the track ebb and flow, building the energy, bewitching your senses. Big bass beats wub into your chest cavity, cut by the voice speaking at you about reality versus dreams, and you are waiting for your next techno hit in “Dancefloor Delusion.” The last track, “The Magic Coven (Welcome To the Coven),” is slower and pulsating with power, hypnotic suggestion from Carter’s deep spoken words, that you join the witches circle.

May black cats and bats fill your dreams while Carter fills your ears with techno delights of the strange kind, bidding you to indulge in the Saint Vitus dance macabre. Welcome to the Initiation.

Initiation | Simon Carter (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/HumansCantReboot

https://simoncarter.contactin.bio/

https://www.instagram.com/simon.carter_official/

http://www.twitch.tv/sy_carter

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Today’s quickie is from Swedish electronic band, Fatal Casualties. They are Stefan Ljungdahl and Ivan Hirvonen, and we are bringing to your attention a cover of The Cure track “One Hundred Years” with guest vocalist Alex Spalck of Pankow.

This track has always been a favourite of those who love the 1982 album Pornography, and the dark electronics follow this paradigm. Spalck’s wonderfully crazed and mournful vocals capture the essence of the track, while Fatal Casualties manages emphasis the heavy feeling of longing through their manipulation of synths and programmes. The music video is a must watch affair, and this twist on the gothic tune is so well done.

http://www.fatalcasualties.com/

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