Label Negative Gain Productions, is dropping the new Hasswut album, Sauerstoff, on April 25th, but March sees the release of the title track as the first single and, indeed, first taste. “Sauerstoff” is German for oxygen, while Hasswut, who have been around since 2013, are from Alicante, Spain, with members Daniel NQ (vocals), JaviX (guitar) and Zufo (keyboard-synth/backing vocals).
Aggrotech vocals always sound extra gruff when sung in German and Hasswut pours it on heavy and thick, just like the unrelenting beats. The guitar is a chainsaw, throwing down the metal, which leaves the synths at odds, brightly highlighted and as light as oxygen.
In the vein of Rammstein or Hocico, Hasswut mix metal with industrial and a pinch of techno synth, getting both something you can dance to as well as bang your head. Do I know what the lyrics are about? Nope. Does It matter? Absolutely not. Inhale the “Sauerstoff.”
Laurent Audouin (bass, keyboards, programming), JulienBrevet (guitar, keyboards, vocals, programming) and VincentLechevallier (drums, percussion) make-up Nantes based post-punk band LOWPKIN. Their new single, released at the end of February, is called “Vacancy.”
There are electronics keeping time with the drums, but the guitar stands out as it wails in the chorus. “Vacancy” has this really silken feel to it, as if it might have been a track from the past, especially with the guitar and vocals, yet it is the programming that makes it modern. Very danceable and, more so, I just found ‘Vacancy” truly enjoyable. The French are so good at cold new wave styled music and LOWPKIN follow in this tradition.
DanielEdgar, DavidBattrick and GeoffTripoli make up the US electronic band Monody, and February 21st saw the release of the EP, AbandonedWisdom, out on DistortionProductions label. The EP is seven tracks long and is comprised of four original songs and three remixes by guest artists.
With AI creeping further into our lives, there is a healthy fear that they will take over human contact, but not be working in a human’s best interest. This is the theme of the darkly smooth “ArtificialIgnorance,” which says the road was laid with good intentions that have been distorted. The clean vocals are easy on the ears, as are the synths. Second track “Drowning,” further drags you under the spell of Monody with the echoing singing and danceable rhythm, The “Drowning” is about choosing the best or easiest way for yourself, by feeding others to a system that doesn’t care about these individuals and groups. When this happens, we will all go down with the ship and message is probably more important than ever.
“Stand” has a lovely gravitas and has the feel of a self perpetuation rhythm device as the beats thrust the song forth. For me, this is about finding inner strength and the synths burn so brightly. The Hitchcock movie Gaslight is where the terminology began for making someone feel as if they are losing their mind, though it is all deflection and lies. There is a slightly oriental tone in the beginning of “Gaslight” and it is both intricate in sound and subject matter.
GeoffPickney (Tenek/CycloneEye/TheNine) remixes “Drowning” and I have to admit he has really changed up the whole track where the electronics kind of have this DepecheMode edge. You just know the “Stand” remix by RedLokust is going to be kicking as the beats are doing overtime and the creepy growling vocals invade track. Crane11 remixing “ArtificialIgnorance” tricks you at first into thinking this is going to be an extremely laid-back affair, though it is still stripped back and heavy on the electronics.
Abandoned Wisdom is a carefully crafted EP, with a lot of thought going into vocals, synths and textures. Monody to my ear, almost sound like they could be from Europe, in the ilk of bands such as De/Vision and Beborn Beton. Perfect future synthpop.
Warsaw is a hotbed for darkwave music, and Grief.Christ are hitting you with their 2025 demo, called Make me wish I couldn’t beg.
They have mastered the ability to create a pall of claustrophobia in the creeping “SinnerMessiah,” that oozes the intent of a want-to-be saviour that cannot leave the entrenchment of death. An air of insanity taints “Safekeeping” with clattering electronic rhythms and fuzzed out vocals that wind over the retro science fiction sounding synths. “Child of hate” is going to grind you up and spit you out with the whirring drone, and yet it is not the fault of the child. It is a modern litany of pain and hopelessness, culminating in the ultimate end.
Blood and bone are good plant food and the track “Blue blood makes the roses grow so red” suggests that the more upper class the blood, the better the quality. A duel of female and male vocals are the present reminder of a relationship gone very wrong. Final track is “Push me back,” and it echoes the sentiment of “Blue blood makes the roses growso red,” reiterating the ideas of blood and roses, and for me, pays homage to the Bjork single “Army of Me.” in the turbulent rhythm and humming electronics.
This is a name your price on Bandcamp and that is pretty good for a five track EP. Most tracks average out at about three minutes, with each entrenched in heavily morose imagery combined with an industrial edge. This is Grief.Christ and Make me wish i couldn’t beg(demo 2025).
Lo-fi grit-ware is a new genre for me, so here is Dead Atlantis, from the USA, which is the project of Jeffery Carrico. The newest single is called “Whitewash.”
I am pretty impressed that this style of music is not done of a computer and does not contain any loops, but rather what you hear is basically all done live when recorded, apart from the drum machine. The noises Carrico wrings from his synths is incredible. The oscillating, whirring and creating a vastness that only experimentation can do.
The vocals waver between yelled punctuation, impassioned singing and guttural growling. All this and the lyrics are about mental health, where doubt colours every move, thought and breath. given power by those vocals. Pretty good this lo-fi grit-wave stuff and so is Dead Atlantis with “Whitewash.”
US/Swedish band Normoria, released their second EP, WelcomeToNormoria, at the end of 2024. The EP is made up of five tracks, and three of those include guest artists in the form of ErkAicrag (Hocico/RabiaSorda), Nysrok Infernalien (AlienVampires) and MATTHART, who join Angel Moonshine (vocals), Johan (bass) and Gustav (guitar).
Your introduction is an instrumental, which is also the title confirming this is going to be an electronic journey. We think of colonialism as something that is in the past.. history that we should be learning from, because it destroys lives, cities, countries and even civilisations. The track “StolenLands” is not just about the past horrors, but also the most current ongoing wars and genocide. Featuring the vocals of Aicarg, it is a fierce cyber industrial song, sung in both English and Spanish, and whipping you up with its frenetic energy. The last lines are ‘Corran defiendan sus tierras que vienen las bestias listas para atacar,’ which loosely translates to ‘Run, defend your lands, for the beasts are coming, ready to attack.’
The man with the most wicked moustache in all of the British industrial scene, MATTHART features in “Paralyzed.” Why am I not surprised that this track is about alien invaders, but none the less, those tricky space beings are tormenting people in their sleep. Moonshine vocalises the distress of abduction, while HART’s emphasis on the chorus word ‘paralysed,’ bringing home the crushing affect of no control.
The fourth track is the intro piece “DividedColors,” which is slow and laboured, as Moonshine builds up the anticipation for the last track which is the main “DividedColors” featuring Infernalien, and it is a big finish. Brash and bold, “DividedColors” stands between hip hop and industrial, and this alone is a comment on what the track is about. This is a timely reminder that being a fascist, believing in some weird racial purity bullcrap doesn’t cut it in the modern era, so Moonshine and Infernalien growl this out to the world as the music pounds out to reiterate the theme. The EP is very current with its ideals and spot on with its delivery, plus three very danceable tracks, so Welcome To Normoria.
Chiasm’sEmileighRohn is based in the US, and Jean-Marc Lederman of TheWeathermen/GhostandWriter, is from Belgium, and together they form the electronic duo Rohn-Lederman. The latest EP, StealTheLight, is made up of four remixes of the title track “StealTheLight,” as well as two bonus tracks.
There is the StefanNetschio (BebornBeton) mix which is languid and warm in tone, He always seems be bring a delicate simplicity to his remixes. The next version is by NoemiAurora (HelalynFlowers) which starts slow and full of longing, echoing and poignant, but underlying an electronic strength. The looping and bleeping Aiboforcen remix has been given a space like feel with the synths creating a veritable soundscape for Rohn’s singing.
“HearMeFromSpace” is off the March slated new full length album ForbiddenPlanet, but only on the vinyl. It is a magical piece combining breathy vocals with eclectic noises and rhythms, which conveys the emotions of wanting to come home. The fourth version of “StealTheLight” is from SarmenAlmond (ManInMotion), and they have introduced an air of seduction. This could be the combination of the funky nature of the electronic mixed with the whispered lyrics. So, we come to the last track which is the unreleased “Boing Schlepa Schlepa Boing Boing,” and yeah, I’m thinking it doesn’t really mean anything, but rather it is fun to say, and this is a spoken word piece with the synths low in the mix. Would not suggest listening to this track when high, as it might cause a brain aneurysm, otherwise this is a nonsensical fun track.
Rohn-Lederman have gathered a wonderful talent pool to give their take on one track, and as always, it is amazing to hear all the different takes people have when it comes to a remix. Not one sounds the same and each exudes a different atmosphere. This is cool electronic music in Steal The Light.
Danish project M73, said ‘em sieben drei‘, have released a bootlegged remix of MarvinGaye’s 70s track “What’sGoingOn.” It is a song that is now half a century old, but for JohnMirland (M73), the lyrics speak volumes, especially now as the world feels as if it teeters on the edge of an abyss.
Mirland is a master of rhythmic noise but his tastes in music are vast. He has taken Gaye’s famous Motown track and given it a far more electronic feel, though the original funk shines through, and Gaye’s iconic tones are the lynch pin.
Historically, “What’s Going On” was written by Marvin Gaye after the Vietnam war had come to an end, and veterans had come home to find they no longer fit in, traumatised, criticised and unwanted. Those lyrics are pertinent today, as they say open your eyes, so you can see what is happening, and that in the end love is strong when we don’t give into hate. It is perfect and M73 have lovingly modernised the Prince of Motown. It is name your price on Bandcamp.
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.
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.
Onyx Music Reviews 