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If you are old enough or spend a lot of time in second hand record stores, you will know about the 12″ remixes called maxi singles. I love the fact that those guys, ie Tim Vester and Colten Williams, from Oregon band, Warm Gadget have named their latest single “Debutante” as a maxi and have a bunch of guests on remix duties, plus a guest vocalist/guitarist in Page Hamilton from HELMET, all brought to you by Re:Mission Entertainment.

It is unmistakably Warm Gadget, with the pernicious rhythms and physical heaviness, in their form of industrial metal. The guitars grind the very air molecules and vocals bounce between the screaming madman Vester and Hamilton’s smoother tones, which is the trade off of sour and sweet or sand paper and silk.

Lament Cityscape, Divider, Ex-Hyena, Frontal Boundary, and Fact Pattern are all label mates on Re:Mission Entertainment, and their remixes vary from heavy electronics, techno stylings and even glitch noise, but all highly diverse and engaging. “Debutante” is no shrinking flower, meaty and powerful, and picking Hamilton to feature is a stroke of genius. Go on…..touch the Warm Gadget.

Debutante | Warm Gadget | Re:Mission Entertainment

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One of the true joys about the dark alternative scene is the enormous amounts of creativity many artists have and how they use both music and video to express themselves. Maryland’s Marie Ann Hedonia is soon to drop her latest album Eclipse on the label Paul and Marie’s Country Kitchen, but from it has come forth the single “Eve Had the Metallic Shine of Summer,” which features the talents of fellow electronic artists Black Kite.

Ah, within the opening seconds, the electronics are almost forbidding, and the use of harsh noise eludes so something almost brutal. The nearly spoke words could be mistaken for sexual utterances, but if you listen carefully, Hedonia sounds defeated and lyrics lean into this as the synths slowly lurch forward. There is a chorus of…. what….. angels?… that are the hope and light, compared the Hedonia’s singing, which is smooth, but bleak and dark.

The track is inspired by the classic movie Persona, starring Ingmar Bergman, and is about giving everything to another and for them to take it all, never reciprocating. The music video sees Hedonia pouring all she has emotionally into a mannequin, yet it stays cold and aloof, though at the end we see our heroine finally break free, under stormy skies. There is tragedy and loss of self, however there is power in discovering you are on a downward spiral. Marie Ann Hedonia has immersed herself in “Eve Had the Metallic Shine of Summer” with Black Kite, and produced something beautifully sombre.

Eve Had the Metallic Shine of Summer (Single) | Marie Ann Hedonia (featuring Black Kite) | Marie Ann Hedonia

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Karen Righeimer (low bass / vocals) and Ivan Russia (high bass / vocals / drum programming) are the Chicago based, post-punk band BELLHEAD, and April brought with it the release of the latest EP, Threats.

They say good girls go to heaven but bad girls go everywhere, and in “Threats,” the woman is most definitely a bad girl. She takes what she wants and creates trauma without a single thought of regret. The music is sassy and unyielding with Russia telling you about this she devil that is trying to break his heart. “Heart Shape Hole” is about revenge, invoking a vengeful old testament God. The vocals are grim and grimy, but then there is this line with lyrics, that just hits you and I am reminded of The Rolling Stone’s “Shine A Light.”

There is murder afoot and those bass guitars simply reinforce the intent of bringing to an end the misery and pain. Righeimer’s singing about the “Shutters + Slutters” giving the dual tone of raggedness. A modern day song about a cowboy that still is looking for his wild west, being hard riding, hard drinking and a dead shot with a death wish. The music grinds out the dust blown tale of the contemporary gunslinger for “No Dead Horses.” The track “Double Jeopardy” has this amazing stalking feel about it, like it knows it can swan around and not get caught because it is so cool. All the ways you can go and no one will ever know what happened, but it is a cool soundtrack, so what a way to go.

So, there are no love songs but what do you expect from a title like Threats, and it is about the archetypal types you might come across in Vegas…. okay, I have never been to Vegas but this peaked my imagination. The EP also has two remixes with one being the title track, mixed by the mighty Stabbing Westwards and Clubdrugs doing their thing with “Hole Shaped Heart.” BELLHEAD really do kill it with the double bass guitar, where it always gives their music an air of grunginess, being soiled or less than savoury, but then you hear those moments of the high bass that add a touch of lightness. Is it industrial, is it post-punk or gothic rock? That is up to you, but you will enjoy all of BELLHEAD’s Threats.

 Threats | BELLHEAD

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There are songs that are timeless, that will captivate generations and translate to current world issues. “Shout” by Tears For Fears, definitely is in that category as an amazing track and Switzerland’s Sybreed have dropped their version on Listenable Records.

The beginning of this track hints at the early 2000s future pop electronic sound, until Sybreed launch into the famous chorus, where they hit you with their sonorous industrial metal signature style. Full of conviction, the music video further delves into the how still relevant “Shout” is.

If this was not enough, have no fear. There is a remix by band member Drop and it is this sublime synth heavy mix that will make any industrial dance person deliriously happy. Full of techno styled rhythms, but it is the soaring synths that will make your jaw drop.

Originally written about as way to deal with mental health, it translates now to a world in turmoil, where human rights are being ignored and we wonder when the people will learn to live in peace with each other. For myself, it is interesting that a track I heard when it first came out, still being reinterpreted and this is a good cover by Sybreed and an excellent remix.

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Some things are not for the faint of heart, so if you are weak of stomach or spleen, turn away now. For those who have guts of iron and a taste for the harsher music, then I have a tasty treat for you. UK based Skat Injector is experimental electronics, wearing the decimated innards of metal proudly, as they seek to drag your ears through your arse. We are going back to their 2018 release of the album, Unknown Violator, out on Slime City Records.

There are sixteen tracks in total and “A Garden Only Watered In Blood” is the greeting that tells you to strap in and enjoy the journey into madness. Are we being taunted by the ghosts of the bled? The demonic vocals bubble over the echoing cold space. However, the meaty “Slaughter is the Best Medicine” is a overwhelming onslaught of sped up black metal styled beats and tortured electronics, fritzing out and pummelling your psyche into dust, while the vocals growl.

“Urbane Misanthrope” builds and builds with sounds before letting loose with the almost danceable rhythms, however this could be trap! You don’t fit in the expected square and the gunfire of the beats is the warfare of the city streets in your head. A head pounding ode to the dispossessed that perfectly feeds into the oh so short and sweet desecration that is “Hollow Mantra.”

There is a cover of “Goodbye Horses,” originally by Q Lazzarus, right at the end, and admittedly it seems quite a reasonable version….. until you hear the vocals. Distortedly slow sounding, stretched and unfathomable in its ability to be disturbing, yet still enjoyable in that serial killer sort of way.

The cover artwork confirms the title is a mash-up of Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures and Depeche Mode’s Violator, both iconic albums and carried through into the titles of the tracks for the most part. This is clever and in a way, I can see a certain similarity. Joy Division is one of the first post-punk bands, forging a sound that at the time was ground breaking and very much about being the outsider in a bleak world. Violator was the album that was not highly completed before Depeche Mode came together in the studio and it brought forth simpler tracks with lyrics which sound like they are full of provocation, and yet point to a guilt behind those words. Skat Injector have taken inspiration from both and created an album of modern day mental ills and truths that permeate our lives…. it is just in the form of noisecore to get your heart thundering.

Unknown Violator | Skat Injector

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Fire is a curious creature. Yes, creature, for it seems to have a life of its own. It consumes, grows and breathes in oxygen, having a mind of its own. New Zealand’s Robots In Love have released in May the hot new single “See The Fires,” just before they drop the anticipated album ACTIVATE!

We be hit with those reggae feels right from the beginning. It is a slipping electronic and bastardised skank beat, that rolls us into the undulating synths, and Rayner’s singing join the hypnotic array. The serious tone of the lyrics, soon heralds heavier tones, vocals of conviction, and a burning surge of rock, powerful and delicate all at the same time.

Rayner and co, weave their magic where you experience the dread of being trapped with the urgency of needing to escape from a perceived encroaching darkness, while the salvation is the guiding light from burning beacons. A tale of desperation, but holding onto hope as long as you can “See The Fires,” and Robots In Love are fired up with this blistering single.

See the Fires (radio edit) | Robots In Love

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If you have ever wondered about how you pronounce Danish project M73? Let me enlighten you that it is said ‘EM SIEBEN DREI.’ John R. Mirland is the mind behind M73, the electronic/industrial juggernaut on the record label LÆBEL, and the latest single “Move One” heralds the soon to be released third album, All Messed Up And Nowhere To Go.

The clattering electronic beats and rising synths are offset by the vocals of Mirland, and then by his lone electric guitar crying out. The lyrics seem to speak of being unable to settle down, constantly on the move, and the music video, shot in Athens, is pure class.

“Move On” is not one of those in your face tracks, yet it is dance orientated and oozing what one could describe as European cool, which is this unexplainable and inextricably smoothness mixed with slow burn. Such a perfect song for the city at night and an excellent way to introduce us to what I suspect is going to be a cracker of an album from M73.

Move On | M73

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Now more than ever, we need to highlight those in the arts that not only lead the way, but also represent often harassed minorities. US gothic industrial project, Woundlicker is a trans female project, consisting of performances from Melora Cayce, Marya Alvarado and Primrose, with their latest album being “Haunted World of Mirrors.” Cayce told me she has too many fishnet, but really, no one can ever have too many lovely fishnets. Tre sexy!

The title track holds hints to the influences of Woundlicker, such as early Nine Inch Nails and the mighty Skinny Puppy, especially with the great drumming and the ferocious way the band attack the track.mHInts of trap and gothic impending gothic doom inhabit the echo chamber of “A Strange Crow.” Heavy bass and eerie church style organ, are heightened by repeated chorus lyrics, which de-evolves into a frantic snarling vocal exorcism attempt.

“Autumn Funeral Part 1” is an unbridled release of pent up anger and pain, directed towards a parent that cannot accept who they are. It is unapologetically raw in its violence, expressing mental torment as the metal guitar and industrial electronics trip over each other in their rush, yet Part 2 of the same track is a much more trippy event in finding or creating a family. There is Part 3 of “Autumn Funeral” which, for me, signifies the disparity between wanting the acceptance of blood ties, and knowing that those people will go to the grave without sharing in the highs and lows of an adult child’s life.

The album is ten songs long, full of honesty and introspection, questioning life and love while looking for ways to heal. It is dark and heavy going at times, mixing industrial noise, succulent gothic synths and liberal helpings of grinding metal, as we experience everything through the many reflections of Woundlicker. Woundlicker is watching through the “Haunted World Of Mirrors.”

Haunted World Of Mirrors | Woundlicker

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Spanish lords of industrial metal, HASSWUT, have just dropped the new album Sauerstoff, for the rest of the world, and being released in North America on the Negative Gain Production label as of the 25th of April.

Currently you can check out the two singles to give you an idea of what HASSWUT have for offer. Latest single is the monster masher “Koloss,” and it is high adrenaline about a giant creature chasing you, as koloss means colossus, but also are characters in Mistborn. Slamming electronics and beats with growled out vocals and guitar make it a fun headbanging track. First single “Sauerstoff” is so different, bassy and bouncing, reflecting a nu-metal feel.

You might be saying by now, hang on, they are singing in German. You would be correct and they do it well, and that is just half story. If you want to find out what Spanish industrial sounds like in German, then you need to seek out HASSWUT’s Sauerstoff.

Sauerstoff – North America Orders | HASSWUT

Sauerstoff | HASSWUT

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Twenty years ago, there was the debut industrial album called Closer To Human, from a young American musician, Daniel Graves, under his project moniker Aesthetic Perfection. Graves has come a long way since then, carving out a niche for himself, and now, he has revisited and rebuilt his debut, in conjunction with Dependent Records, releasing Closer To Human in limited quantities as a one compact disc digisleeve, a two CD digipak with bonus tracks and also in a coloured vinyl LP edition. Sounds lush. 

I was curious to hear what Graves had done, especially as I have had friends who loved this album and were upset when he moved to a more pop based sound, but in saying that, this industrial pop style has increased his fan base infinitely more. So far, three tracks have been unveiled on Bandcamp, giving us an idea of what to expect. Graves has literally pulled apart each, re-recording, arranging, and using new technology that has increased the quality of the sound, compared to the originals. One might say richer in textures.

 “After 20 years, my debut album ‘Close to Human’ is back, but not as you remember it. In 2006, a catastrophic hard drive failure led me to believe the album was lost forever. For years, I thought I’d never be able to perform these songs live again with the same energy, soul, and impact of the original 2005 release. But in 2024, everything changed. After hunting down all the original hardware and samples, I made the decision to painstakingly reconstruct the album from the ground up. This isn’t just a remaster—it’s a resurrection.” – Daniel Graves

The release date is June 20th, but if you are hoping to get your hot little hands on some of that sweet, sweet music merch, then my advice would be to order now or forever hold onto your bitter disappointment, as it is going to sell-out fast.

Closer to Human | Aesthetic Perfection

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