by on

Michael Gillman (Gillie) and Daniel Allen are the brothers that make up the band Dirt Factory. Gillie is in Brisbane and Allen lives in Melbourne which means since the outbreak of the plague (covid) they have been in lockdowns for well over a year and unable to meet up or play live gigs unless doing them solo. This hasn’t slowed them down one iota because December the 3rd saw the third album released in two years, called Systems Deleted on Brisbane based label Viral Records Australia. Interestingly Dirt Factory almost exclusively use analogue equipment.

MICHAEL GILLMAN & DANIEL ALLEN – DIRT FACTORY

Oh yes from the start you can already hear how good this really is. “Delete The System” growls Allen, ‘fuck your commands‘ over rampaging rhythms that give this it’s bang. Second single, “Microscopic“, has guest, Roger Menso (ex-Dogmachine) on guitar and good grief, this is a new level Dirt Factory. It is a grimy, sexy beast of a song that takes your breathe away and gives you shivers up your spine. Allen sounds like a very angry dalek that has fully gone industrial and it sounds brilliant. Dirt Factory want to “Factory Assimilate” you and quite frankly I can think of worse things to do as the music beast down in industrial precision convincing you that you will obey. There is something symphonic and other worldly about “Hammer“. It experiments with low tones that sound like abused piano wires and high synths in direct opposition, while Allen is the bloody butcher. The original single is “Crash Landing“, because you know they are out there and they have those stellar synth lines and beats. Yes the aliens are here and you can listen to a report of an eyewitness and Allen’s inhuman screams.

Swallow the pill and “Suck It Up” is a dirge ridden number and I honestly can hear far too much innuendo. “Dive” is just a superb piece with sweeping electronics that fritter out and arc around you like electrical tendrils. Soundscape mixed with such hostile vocals. Jethro Hilliard (RAZRWHIP) guests on this track providing drums and sound effects. This has to be one of my favourite tracks on the albums. But wait, they then slam us with “Digital Media” with guitar provided by another member of RAZRWHIP, Johnny Ryall, who nails the electronic fuzzy tones that help propel this forward in real rock style. The next track is all about the animated dead…spooky. “Flesh” is horror inspired zombie fare with glitching beats and vocals as they stalk you. In the “Exstream” they are observing you, surveillance of every aspect of your life and you can be brainwashed but are you too involved in the conspiracies? Final eleventh track is “Ghosts” and this just is just a great bouncing track and probably the most reminiscent of Skinny Puppy and it pumps.

I love what they have done with Allen’s vocals and Gillie is just so talented with synths. This is a monster of an album, again beautifully mastered at NyteShayde by Menso. If this doesn’t get your heart rate up then you might be dead. The really scary part is that I already know that the lads have almost finished their fourth album which is both mind blowing and disturbing all at the same time. Gillman also revealed that the next album is already darker. So before they stab their way repeatedly with rhythmic timing through your chest, do listen to “Systems Deleted” because it kicks arse.

https://dirtfactory.bandcamp.com/album/systems-deleted

Dirt Factory | Facebook

https://nyteshaydemusic.bandcamp.com/

NyteShayde | Facebook

https://viralrecordsau.bandcamp.com/

Viral Records Australia | Facebook

https://viralrecords.com.au/

by on

Zac Pliska and Emily Sturm make up the band known as VAZUM. Their music has been described as deathrock with shoegaze or deathgaze but on the latest album, there has been a paradigm shift. They released the new album titled Unrated V on October 22nd and the theme throughout seems to be the creatures and humans that inhabit the inky night and demonic spaces.

EMILY STURM & ZAC VAZUM – VAZUM

From the beginning, you can hear that his is going to be a different VAZUM album, a more industrial electro sound is creeping in and the “Jester” is a genuinely verbose and grandiose example. The nine minute epic will wind you up in it’s synth laden tentacles, enthralling you. The single “Lycanthrope” very much features Sturm’s vocals in this tale of werewolves and the animals men become. The chorus is a beautiful swirling gothic affair and speaking of gothic, vampires come hand in hand with the genre. “Vampyre” is probably a far more truthful examination of the blood suckers world, where everyone is just a food source to them. A nice heavy mood that smothers us in the dank blood-lust.

Everyone needs a woman pieced together from other’s dead flesh so they can have a “Frankenstein Gurl” though she will more than likely kill you in the end and this tune is a stonking representation with it’s scintillating synths and uncompromising rhythm. The tone turns a bit stalkerish as we join the “Vampire Killer” on his quest to remove the parasites that plaque human kind. There is great purpose to the music and Pliska cannot be swayed by Sturm’s sensual words of ownership and death. The synths waver and Latin is invoked for this is the “Wytch Lych“. The track gives the impression of impending doom if you are not found worthy of the witch’s time and it is a fabulously powerful piece.

For the rest of the album, it delves into a more instrumental and experimental vein. “Fantoms” is full of bells tolling, dark bass tone and creeping synths like something you would find in a Hammer Horror movie as Christopher Lee searches for his next victim. The far more electronic “Wytch Tech“, with Sturm’s sighed vocals could be a modern summoning ritual putting you into a techno trance. Following up is “Summon Her” where there are industrial clanks and screeching, near metallic sounds. You can imagine a thick fog where disturbing not quite human voices can be heard.

There has been folklore tied to the Gypsy people that they have unnatural powers and you will have to make up your mind as you listen to the trap like “Romany Way“. I remember a dark, British children’s television show I watched as a child, where there was an old grandfather clock that would strike thirteen at night and everything would go back to a past life. “Thirteenth Hour” reminded me of this with it’s mysterious wending synths. Your final track is “The Abyss“, a place that is unfathomable and permeates the mind with dread at what lays within, the unknown and music gives it a science fiction overdrive.

Some bands go on and they often lose what drew you to them or the quality just cannot be maintained. VAZUM just seems to be going from strength to strength. They remind me of the wonderful Faith And The Muse except they have a dark gritty core mixing industrial into their music which is making them a hybrid beast of much beauty.

https://vazum.bandcamp.com/album/unrated-v

VAZUM | Facebook

by on

David Lawrie is The Royal Ritual and November, 5th was the release date for the second single “Empires“, that will be on the new album, MARTYRS which is being released in the first half of 2022. Lawrie is the live guitarist with London After Midnight but also a composer/producer in his own right as well as sound engineer for television and movies, experience which he brings to his music,

DAVID LAWRIE – THE ROYAL RITUAL

There is something a little epic about the beginning, the pomp and ceremony of a bygone era. It evokes the images of India Raj and colonization in a movie. The vocals are deep and resonant enough to give you shivers up and down your spine. I am going to assume that the lyrics refer to the Victorian age of Empire, where being British came with a lot of privilege to plunder other cultures and yet there were so many rules to abide by in polite society so as not to lose face or standing. There is in the background a sad version of “Land Of Hope And Glory“, a testament to fall from grace.

There is no empire anymore, as time and world events have wiped it away and only a shadow of a ill remembered memory of something that was glorious. Or was it? Don’t speak of the poor houses, match girls and slums of merry England at the time. Lawrie is looking into the very British psyche of the stiff upper lip and he has found it lacking but more to a point, given us an almost cinematic and thought provoking track.

https://theroyalritual.bandcamp.com/album/empires

The Royal Ritual | Facebook

HOME

by on

There are some albums that come around and they make you stop in your tracks with the pure musical delight they are. Brisbane based Jerm is Stephanie Ganfield and she released her debut, self titled album on October 22nd. Jerm’s style I would describe as experimental electro-industrial with gothic overtones.

The delicate fluctuating rhythm free flows into the distortion and the gorgeously sensual vocals alight it all and this is just the beginning of the album with “White Lies“. It graduates in power and the synths sprinkle down. The single. “Make Your Mind” is a little creepy with the whispered lyrics asking you to make your mind up and yet there is this glorious chorus that sweeps you skyward. “At Night” has an odd syncopation but it works giving the song an even more languid feel, as though there is a hopelessness in the darkest hours of the night.

Her voice is mesmerizing in “Left Behind“, a single released back in 2018 under the moniker Germ, and the electronics just highlight the sweetness and purity of the singing. It is exciting to hear something that is experimental and so stimulating, which brings us to “Gem” with bursts of noise like mini fireworks erupting in the background. Slow and thought provoking with so much movement within the track. There is the brief interlude with the instrumental “Dissect” just before another single, “Brain Candy” and it is just extrodinary. Musically it is beautiful and expansive, with harsh edges, ready to hook into your skin and the concept if you take away what makes a female look feminine, still the sweetness and colour is all in the brain, that which makes you. Final track is “Beg”, that takes on a heartbeat that will, at any given moment, go into tachycardia. A beautiful way to end.

The production is great and the music has such near visible texture and a vibrancy that is breathtaking. As for Ganfield’s vocals, they are true and clear, combined with the darker lyrical content, you could be forgiven for thinking she is an angel who lost her way in this dirty world and to be fair, lucky for us. Even if you are not into industrial music, do not let this deter you from having a listen to Jerm.

https://jermnoise.bandcamp.com/releases

Jerm | Facebook

by on

When the title of an album is You Are Happy, they aren’t asking but rather telling you. Non-Bio have this new album out called just that and it is a harsh industrial look at the modern age. Howard Gardner is the man behind Non-Bio, resident of London and this is the first album release since 2018.

This is your “Induction“. You will obey, you will fear, you won’t question and accept what is given to you. There is no resistance because it is not in your interest… or that is what you are told and that is solidified with “Death To The Beat“, an angry litany of how people have been led astray with false promises and fears. It is heavy and brutal in it’s criticism. “Create Problems” has that great experimental feel with the off beats, adding to the idea that not all is well in the world.

Fourth track is “Crush” and it is full of rhythmic noise, lambasting your senses under it’s weight to push you down. Not as insistent but sludgy and dark is “Collapse Noise” and I am not sure if it is me or are there electronic crows/raven in the background ready to pick over the bones? The instrumental title track, “You Are Happy” is a combination of static beats, hissing electronic modulated noise and verbal snippets taken from speeches, such as Gandhi and the alike on human happiness. I never knew the calorific count of the human body but I do now due to “Zombie Influencer“, so thank you Non-Bio if I ever should feel the need for some soylent green. Creepy and unsettling, Gardner quantifies how much you will satisfy the hungry zombie hordes.

“Nerve Market” has an industrialized, militarized timing and it is about the mechanization of humans and the loss of their ties to what makes them human. Pounding pounding into the ground as you become the dust, as you “Worship Dust” because you are a part of the industrial machine. The instrumental, “Are You Still Listening?” creates the impression of unease by being slightly off as it chirps at you, which leads you into “Positron Pill” and it is abrasively trying to pry your head open and wants you to burn everything. “Really Existing People” could be called the crunch dance track and herein lays the juxtaposition between the gritty sounds and the clinical words.

Such an odd title for a song, “Oppressor, She Loves You” and the lyrics could be from a science fiction and yet this is based in the current world. The drone and constant rhythm lull you into obedience, so you give your all before your disintegration. The theme continues in “Docile Thunder” that does indeed thunder on, wending its way into your ears. Last track, “Taint Of Tomorrow” is driving rhythmic noise that nails home the intent of the album… the expectation that you accept and don’t question.

if you haven’t guessed by now, this is an album with an agenda, inspired by the current policies and political landscape of the United Kingdom and watching others further afield. A commentary on society, where those who have little, also have the most to lose. It may also be a reflection that the population had been cowed into general acceptance unlike the civil unrest of the 70s and 80s which spawned industrial experimental artists like Test Dept, Cabaret Voltaire and Clock DVA. Non-Bio is following in their footsteps, under their own flag of angst ridden, fervour because in times of social injustice and inequality, industrial music seems to come to the forefront. You Are Happy is a great album with a lot of heart and soul and just maybe, Non-Bio will be part of the revolution!

https://non-bio.bandcamp.com/album/you-are-happy

https://www.facebook.com/nonbiomusic/

by on

A new industrial project has hit the scene, with the debut single, “Pews In A Panic“. They are called The Royal Ritual, a solo act featuring the talented David Lawrie. Fans of London After Midnight might recognise his name from being a live tour member, however Lawrie also works as a sound designer for films as well as being a composer/producer in his own right.

DAVID LAWRIE- THE ROYAL RITUAL

From the beginning of the single, the beats are harsh and ring clean, insistent for your attention. Commercial religion is the focus, with its constant demands for money and blind obedience, using and abusing followers until there is nothing left because in the end everything belongs to you, but you belong to me. “Pews In A Panic” is just a really great industrial song that has something to say. The b-side is a cover of fellow Brit and singer/composer Phildel’s “Glide Dog“, that originally was released in 2019, This so different musically to “Pews In A Panic” and yet there is this tone of something brutal under the seemingly smooth surface. Lawrie gives “Glide Dog” the electronic cool treatment and it slips along giving one the feeling you shouldn’t dwell on what lays beneath the surface.

It is really amazing when you listen to “Pews In A Pandemic” and every time you heard a new or unusual sound that isn’t necessarily a traditional electronic one. More than likely and due to his profession, Laurie has more than a passing interest in incorporating left of field recordings to accentuate his music. This creativity only points to the looming album being anticipated as a corker and we are looking forward to hearing more of The Royal Ritual.

https://theroyalritual.bandcamp.com/releases

https://www.facebook.com/theroyalritualmusic/

by on

Brisbane’s Dirt Factory released a new single in August called “Crash Landing” and we are here to let you know it’s of the little green men kind. This is the first single from the soon to be released, third album from brothers Daniel Allen and Michael Gillman who reside in Melbourne and Brisbane respectively.

DIRT FACTORY

You will be regaled by the story of making first contact as the beat pushes you along with a sense of urgency. It is raw and metallic, grating your nerves as you know that they are out there waiting for you. Apart from the person telling his story of a conspiracy to hide that aliens are here, there are really no other vocals to accompany, just the sound of Allen screaming into the void.

There are remixes from proponents of the thriving Brisbane industrial scene. Failed Assimilation guitarist, Cameron Rees gives us a explosive, metal coated version. There is the laid back, laconic remix by Cosmos Synthetics which will take you to a different state of mind. Nyteshade is Roger Menso, a mastering genius and member of the infamous Dogmachine and he brings us an almost experimental feel to “Crash Landing“, keeping us off balance with the changing beats. Exocult is Daniel Allen’s new solo project and also signed to Viral Records. His version has an 80s feel to it with a heavy guitar creeping up from behind.

Suddenly there is a shift in momentum with the HOSTILE ARCHITECT remix heading in a far more dance oriented direction. H.A.’s Mitch Kenny is a man who can do no wrong currently and this is a really glorious remix. Next is the newest band on the block but don’t let that fool you as members are not new to the scene. This is RAZRWHIP with their dream like offering, though this dream is more like a drug induced fantasy. The synth lines from Jethro Hilliard are sublime. Last is not the least. Vargil is the talented Camilla Astrid Strand and her take on this piece is a science fiction techno myriad. It pulsates and is simply joyous.

There is literally something different on every track which means there is going to be something to tickle the tastebubs of everyone that enjoys this genre and is a showcase of local talent. So if this is the “Crash Landing“, can’t wait for the invasion.

https://dirtfactory.bandcamp.com/album/crash-landing-single

https://www.facebook.com/FactoryOfDirt/

https://dirtfactory.wixsite.com/mysite

https://www.facebook.com/viralrecordsau/

https://viralrecords.com.au/

https://www.facebook.com/cosmossyntheticsofficial/

https://www.facebook.com/nyteshaydepdm/

https://www.facebook.com/ExoKult/

https://www.facebook.com/HosArchitect

https://www.facebook.com/Razrwhip/

https://www.facebook.com/vargilar

by on

Bleeding Raven is Dean Mason of Ontario, masked man extrodinaire and quite frankly, we aren’t even sure if Dean Mason is his real name. But under the moniker, Bleeding Raven, he released the EP, September Campaign, on Horizon DMA Records, in May this year. The title refers to the rolling blitzkrieg of the German army into Poland which was to herald the beginning of World War II which Mason said inspired this recording, the infinite loop of man versus man and that hate begets hate.

“Blood River Rage“, “Seth” and “Bleeding Sane” all share a key element, the entwining of American indigenous people’s traditional rhythms and singing style mixed with modern harsh industrial. A juxtaposition so to speak of two types of tribal music. The last track, “Bleeding Sane“, feels like it is being sucked into a burred vortex of bedlam.

The other two tracks are “Centurion’s Vision” and title piece, September Campaign“. Both I would describe as harsh noise at times, with the squealing of tortured guitars and sounds of twisted metal, all accompanied by the driving beats that push it along with no concern for the listener if you can’t keep up. There are no prisoners here.

Mason’s main project is Gnostic Gorilla, however he has fingers in pies, dabbling in the spaces between industrial and metal, with a helping of North American tribal influence. This isn’t going to be for everyone but I’m pretty sure that it is the art of the music that drives Dean. The EP is made up older material with recent inspirations from the post Trump admistration era. If a fusion of tribal/ industrial/ experimental/ metal is and or might be your thing then have a listen to Bleeding Raven.

https://bleedingraven.bandcamp.com/album/september-campaign

https://www.facebook.com/bleedingravenofficial/

https://horizondma.bandcamp.com/

https://m.facebook.com/HorizonDmaRecords/

by on

June saw the release of the debut single, “Rose + Crown” for AMMO as a solo artist. AMMO, located in Los Angeles, has previously been in bands such as Black Flamingo and currently with Brass Box, as well as pursuing artistic outlets such as film making and photography.

AMMO

The title track starts with a lonely guitar which is highly reminicent of start of the New Model Army piece, “Wonderful Way To Go“, though that is as far as the similarity goes. This is light and airy, with jangly guitar within an epic swirling sound scape. AMMO’s voice sits comfortably at the centre, luring you to sit and listen longer. This is shoegaze without the brashness of overt walls of noise.

The ‘b’ side is “Total Recall“, written originally by Adrian Borland of the legendary 80s British, post punk band, The Sound. It was already a wonderful track and AMMO brings a sweetness to it. A song of longing and being out of time, that is achingly beautiful, especially with the knowledge that Borland suffered mental health issues which eventually lead to his suicide.

Along with drummer, Alex Posell, a former bandmate of Black Flamingo, who helped co-produce and record, AMMO is creating lush sounds that may at first seem bleak, but warm the soul. Mourning Sun Records, which is AMMO’s label, plans to release a future album called, The Great Chaos however the meantime enjoy “Rose + Crown“.

https://musicbyammo.bandcamp.com/album/rose-crown

https://www.facebook.com/musicbyAMMO/

HELLO

by on

IDM or intelligent dance music can sometimes be a confusing title for some. It often isn’t really danceable but rather electronic music that experiments with electronic rhythm by creating all the noise within the structure called music. For more than decade, Tapage from Hilversum in the Netherlands, has been creating electronic ambient music and May saw the release of his new album Recover, out on the label, Point Source Electronic Arts.

The first piece is “Test“, a low tonal number that tentatively reaches out towards you before the clicks begin. Like a radio, with someone flicking through without any discernible channels, just spurts of static that chirp away. “114120A11” even though electronic, makes me think of a dark, tranquil forest in prehistoric times, where insects talk to each other and large bird like creatures call out in the canopy, filled with the beat of life.

A darker turn with “Begin“, deep and ringing with those clicks and snaps that Tapage has in spades. Next could be mistaken as a performance piece on harp, that has gone horribly wrong, warped chimes flood your senses. “We Will Become” has an apocalyptic, horror ambience….. possibly otherworldly.

Almost like stars blinking in and out in the night sky comes “Prolog“. It does give the impression aliens are trying to control us and then transmission just stops. “Peepsqueek” is a multitude of squeaks that culminate in a rhythm vortex, perhaps inferring to drum and bass.

A dreamscape of space. Not so much out of space but the general term when it comes to “Able To NSet“. There are the clicks and whirs but also a lightness and expanse. The eighth track is “Ancient Tiger Proton” and it features Access To Arasaka, who fit in perfectly, also known for dark experimental ambient, that compliments Tapage’s. This feels epic and austere in a way, like you are walking the halls of the gods.

The last three tracks are remixes. Experimental artist, Klunks, re-imagines “We All Became“, that burbles along like a cosmic stream. “Able To NSet” is broken down by The Fellow Passenger, to a wandering, ethereal quality. The last remix is by Tapage, of the track “Test“, which has developed wings it seems, elevated from the drone, though that aspect it still present.

I’m never going to say I’m an expert at electronic music but in essence it’s the visceral reaction that counts. This is technically good but it’s also touching you at another level, with how it makes you feel without words to paint a picture and that’s always very special. Recover isn’t going to be for everyone but I’m also very sure Tapage know this as well and sometimes it is worth going out of your comfort zone to experience something that will take you unexpected places.

https://tapage.bandcamp.com/album/recover

https://www.facebook.com/tapage.sound/

https://www.facebook.com/accesstoarasaka/

https://www.facebook.com/thefellowpassenger.music/

https://www.facebook.com/pointsourcearts/