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Hybrid Blak Records is an up and coming label run by Keith Kamholz who is Mechanical Vein and also a member of Biomechanimal. He has gathered together, from across the globe, tracks from artists in the electronic and industrial scene to create Blaktracks II, which is indeed a second compilation they have released. Blaktracks II came out on October the 29th, 2021 and the mastering was shared by Zardonic, Keith Kamholz and a few of the bands doing their own.

Kicking off is MORIS BLAK x KALCYFR with “A Touch Of Malice“. I don’t expect any less from MORIS BLAK than something that will blow us away and we are not disappointed. Metal vocals over huge drum beats, massive guitar riffs and those bass drops that you feel in the pit of your stomach. “King Of Cups” is the offering from Biomechanimal and it is a short but lethal punch to the throat with their mix of perverted metal dubstep.

Sinister Souls x Mechanical Vein’s “No Light City” is a mix of hip hop and drum & bass with a healthy dose of cyber punk attitude. It reminds me just a little of “Freestyler” by Bomfunk MCs, except with teeth. Duo, SO CALLED, are DJs/producers and they are behind the glitch electronica of “Hypno“, who are trying to influence your mind through their catchy rhythms.

Don’t let the beginning of Sentinel Complex’s “Last Judgement” fool you. The sedate flow does not last and launches into an amazing, crazed Bach like musical opus but with synths. For a second bout, we hear from Mechanical Vein, this time joined by Saltee. “All Gods” has a great exuberance in tandem with the fierce and outraged lyrics. If you are looking for something immense with huge beats and a bass drops that just throw you down, then look no further than TriS and their “Warcall“.

Static Starlight’s track “Linkin Bizkits” gives us electronic screams within the depths of frizzing synths, as it pummels your senses with the dance beat. Let the insanity ensue with “KIRA“. I believe Kofin may have been inspired by the Japanese anime Akira, from the Japanese vocal clips to the emulation of the the epic soundtrack. It is definitely amazing and you can’t help but bounce around to it.

Prophectical with “Aletheia” go from breaking beats to electronically created soundscapes and there is a lot of finesse in the buildups and near classical lulls. They are coming to get you, for this is “DEHUMANIZE” by Truly Significant. You can feel them in the song stalking and the panic between the driving guitar and rhythm, only to lull you into oblivion at the end. Sadly we are at the last track, “King Of Nothing” by ER4SE. This is probably the most calm of all the tracks with it’s use of auto tuned vocals and more laid back style. After having being bombarded with all that heavy bass, ER4SE is the cool compress.

Hybrid Blak’s Blaktracks II is a very slick production with a lot of very talented popular acts and no so known but equally skilled musicians whom are on the rise. It is nice to see the industrial/electronic scene supporting each other this way. The music is red hot, cutting edge and will probably blow your mind…. in the best possible way.

HYBRID BLAK | Facebook https://hybridblak.bandcamp.com/album/hybrid-blak-blaktracks-ii

MORIS BLAK | Facebook https://morisblakngp.bandcamp.com/

KALCYFR | Facebook

Biomechanimal | Facebook https://biomechanimal.bandcamp.com/music

Sinister Souls | Facebook https://bandcamp.prspct.nl/

Mechanical Vein | Facebook https://mechanicalvein.bandcamp.com/

SO CALLED | Facebook https://socalled.bandcamp.com/releases

Sentinel Complex | Facebook https://sentinelcomplex.bandcamp.com/

Saltee | Facebook https://saltee.bandcamp.com/

TriS | Facebook https://trisedm.bandcamp.com/

Static Starlight | Facebook https://officialstaticstarlight.bandcamp.com/

Kofin | Facebook https://kofin.bandcamp.com/

Prophectical | Facebook https://prophectical.bandcamp.com/releases

Truly Significant | Facebook https://trulysigni.bandcamp.com/

ER4SE | Facebook https://oaktopus.bandcamp.com/

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Matt Hart is continuing his musical odyssey of humans being hunted down by machines with his November 15th release of the single, “To The Core“. Terra 3808 is the album that first brought you this tale, but what has happened to the humans since the alien machines took control?

MATT HART

If you lived in an apocalyptic world, I’m pretty sure you would feel the desperation and anger in this song. The humans are burrowing into the earth to escape certain death, should they remain on the surface, with the machines who are intent on cleansing the planet.

The insistent and pounding rhythm on the heels of the fleeing survivors, the harsh guitar, Hart barking and snarling to go faster and deeper, all adds to the claustrophobic atmosphere. As always this is going to sound so good on a dark dance floor. So now we are waiting to hear the album because Mart Hart does fine industrial but more importantly, we need to know how this turns out for the last traces of humanity…

https://matthart.bandcamp.com/track/to-the-core

MATT HART | Facebook

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Gravity Corps is a new project from Denver, Colorado but the man behind it is no stranger to the industrial music scene. Mark Sousa is best known for Voicecoil, though currently, on November the 5th, he has launched an EP, Zero Grav, under the Gravity Corps name.

There is definitely a science fiction feel to Gravity Corps and this is evident from the first track “Scared To Death” from the whispers and echos to futuristic synths. The single off the EP, “Another Day“, is very danceable, because, and may I dare say it, there might be a little bit of disco hiding within. It is a bloody good track!

What would happen if you lived the high life for long enough? One would guess parts of your fragile human body would stop working which is the premise of the rolling track, “Decadence Is Dangerous” while “Cold And Elegant” seems the perfect song to follow up. The chorus is so catchy and I would have to say my favourite track. Oh, wait, “Selling Sorrow“with it’s future pop soul, that drags you along with it, is great as well. So, the moral of the story is, the longer you listen to this EP, the more it sucks you in and converts you. Well played Gravity Corps, well played. You got me hooked with you bag of rather good tunes. In space, no one can hear you scream but in Zero Grav you can have a jolly good time.

https://gravitycorps.bandcamp.com/album/zero-grav-ep

Gravity Corps | Facebook

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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/

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Unitcode:machine is the very talented Eric Kristoffer from Dallas, Texas and earlier this year he released the album, Themes For A Collapsing Empire, on which you could find the single “Falling Down“. In November, an EP of remixes has been released of this single, re imagined by other acts.

ERIC KRISTOFFER – UNITCODE:MACHINE

The first remix goes to Stabbing Westward and it so clean, polished and so utterly likeable. It almost is like listening to Depeche Mode in the way it grabs you. Next is the wonderful Batávia’s groovier version. Oddly sounds like Tom Shear from Assemblage 21, which is not a bad thing but how did they manage that and it really is a thoughtful remix that gets under your skin. Who doesn’t like a bit of electronic funk that descends into into brilliant synth lines?! Steven Olaf brings hints of the 80’s and it bops along very nicely…. I totally adore that synth line and trust me you will know what I mean when you hear it. The Gravitation remix by Antonym starts slow but this is a ruse and soon beats happen and it all becomes a whole lot of epic. There is something so spine tingling and satisfyingly about the Glass Apple Bonzai remix in all it’s synth wave, juicy goodness. It is rhythmic zen and beautiful, dutifully followed up with the solid club edit. The final re working featuring fellow Texan, Dwayne Dassing, ex-Mentallo and the Fixer, and the flavour is near futuristic in this purely instrumental version.

No matter how you look, or is that listen to “Falling Down“, it is a stonking number that can be remixed to reflect the style of each contributor and of course each remix is unique, basically there isn’t a bad track on this release. Not bad for a revisited single and I rather think this would be fabulous to hear on the dance floor..

Falling Down Remixes | unitcode:machine (bandcamp.com)

unitcode:machine | Facebook

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Anyone who is familiar with Alexander Donat’s project, Vlimmer, might be be surprised to find that after eighteen EPs releases (yes you read right, 18!!!) , he has unleashed his debut album, Nebenkörper. The literal translation of Nebenkörper is secondary body or auxiliary body and maybe a part of this title refers to the fact that this is a full length album which was released on the 24th of September, 2021.

The dreamy, instrumental, “Farbenmüde” is the prequel to the album and in no way prepares you for the onslaught that is the angst filled “Fensteraus” and it is a bit like a Faustian epic in sensory overload. It has a wicked life of its own. Blasts of electronic beats mixed with tribal rhythms is “Mutem“. A sublime mix of metal shoegaze with industrial. There is a constant drone behind the “Restfall” as Donat’s vocals tether you to this reality and the guitars jangle and wail while it climaxes in a maelstrom. We have the single “Meter” which actually reminds me of Oomph! a little, if they had been more post-punk and it definitely deserved to be a single. “Minusgesicht” is full of foreboding atmosphere, a pall of darkness that is trying to drag everything into it and a sense of falling or fading away.

ALEXANDER DONAT – VLIMMER

“I.P.A.” is truly a post-punk hybrid beast. Dark and brooding with just the right amount of noise to mix with the discordant voices while “Ad Astra” is like a wild ride of ecstasy and screaming insanity that bears you along, occasionally drops you, just you pick you up for the next part of the ride. The insistent “Wangendruck” is absolutely a gothic/EBM hybrid of beauty. It gloriously powers on with bursts of beats. There is a subtle change with “Kartenwarten“, slowing down things, a mellow shoegaze vibe before we vere off into noise inspired “Kron“. It is crunchy and sounds rather unhinged, though in a good way, as it ramps up. The last song on the album is “Nebenbei“. It is the wind down, giving a sense of introspectiveness and grief in a way, possibly full of longing. It is a lovely way to end.

Vlimmer is on Blackjack Illuminist Records and had the much-in-demand, Pete Burns of Kill Shelter handling the mastering. As a native English speaker, I am unable to tell you what the German lyrics are about and it is far more about the impression it gives and in the end, this is exactly what music is supposed to do. Expression in any language that still resonates with those who listen. Nebenkörper for the most part is a swirling amalgamation of gothic darkwave with shoegaze and a big helping of industrial. It is raw and at times won’t let you stop hearing new and unique things in the musical aether. At times you can almost swear you can hear a choir in the mix backing up Donat but this is an illusion and a rather masterful one. After eighteen EPs, Vlimmer have unleashed a beast of an album, so it was worth the wait.

https://blackjackilluministrecords.bandcamp.com/album/nebenk-rper

https://www.facebook.com/VlimmerMusic

https://www.facebook.com/Blackjack.Illuminist/

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If you love industrial music, then you should be checking out Isabella Chains’ project, Null Cell. The Omaha act is soon to release a full length album, Nemesis in December, but before then, you can sample the delight that is Null Cell with the first single off the album, “Over The Top“, which was released October 29th, out on Machine Man Records.

ISABELLA CHAINS – NULL CELL

Metal mixed industrial might be the best description, in a similar vein to many of the beloved Wax Trax bands. Pumping beat with harsh, angry guitar work and belligerent vocals. It is kind of the industrial version of don’t try to change me or tell me I’m wrong because this is my life by people who think they are always right.

The two remixes on this album are from HOSTILE ARCHITECT (H/A) and Varicella. You can pick H/A’s mix, by Mitch Kenny, a mile away with the signature synths and breaks. He has created a more futuristic version where the guitars are no longer at the core but still kept it deliciously dark. The Varicella version keeps to the guitar based sounds, injecting their electronic fingerprints and dare I say giving the track an even dirtier feel with the extra vocal manipulation.

The last track is a cover of “Wireframed Genocide“, originally written and recorded by Mind Teardown. The original has cleaner synths and a definitely more European flavour about it even though they are from Seattle, whilst the Null Cell cover is near pure angst, seething in it’s disdain.

“Over The Top” is name your price on Bandcamp. There is nothing to lose from checking out Null Cell and you just might gain a new act to really enjoy and follow.

https://nullcell.bandcamp.com/album/over-the-top-single

(7) Null Cell | Facebook

https://brutalresonance.bandcamp.com/album/lowgradelife

(6) HOSTILE ARCHITECT | Facebook

https://varicella.bandcamp.com/

(6) Varicella Band | Facebook

https://machinemanrecords.bandcamp.com/

(6) Machine Man Records | Facebook

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Who doesn’t enjoy a good old ghost story that causes the hair on the back of your neck to rise, your flesh to goosebump and eyes to water without warning? It is human nature to be curious of that which we do not understand and Syd.31 explores those places in the dark where the shadow people lurk, waiting for you in the single release, “Demon Night“. Syd.31 is Dr Magic who is based in Manchester in the UK and the United Kingdom, like all cultures, is steeped in tales of the paranormal.

SYD.31 AND KRAMPUS FRIENDS

“When I was a kid, we lived in a haunted house. Some ‘thing’ would walk down the hallway, into my room and just stand at the end of my bed. It looked like an old lady and it scared the hell out of me. Other people saw it too, but didn’t tell me until years after, thankfully. I still struggle to sleep alone with the light out…” – Syd.31

The video was shot in the haunted Antwerp Mansion, the infamous Whitby Krampus makes his presence known and if you look carefully, maybe there hints of the ephemeral shadow people. You can hear the near panicked fear in Dr Magic’s voice because they are waiting for him to be alone in the dark of the night, so they may play. There is a psychobilly aspect to the number, not just with the chord progressions but also the use of a Gretsch guitar. All this lends itself to a nicely blended industrial rocking tale of misery. Plus, have to love the middle eastern style drumming at the beginning. “Demon Night” comes off the Syd.31 album, Machine Ready, that was launched in April this year.

I will add my own side note to this. As I wrote this late in the night, the online radio ceased to work. It seems the new router we had received had gone offline but the thing is this one guaranteed to work unless there is no power. It did come back on of its own accord, most unusual…..

https://syd31.bandcamp.com/track/demon-night-2

https://www.facebook.com/Syd31/

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October the 1st, saw the release of a new Mach FoX single, “Hollow Moons“. Zwaremachine is Mach”s main project but he has always maintained his own musical outlet since 2005. “Hollow Moons” was written with Dbot and also recorded with Dein Offizier, whom both are members of Zwaremachine.

Mach FoX

There are feather light synths that delicately highlight the darker edge to this number. Mach’s singing fits perfect with the textures and beats which gives us a science fiction future where the world has been used up and only those with enough wealth will be able to afford to live in the new, lush settlements in the hollowed out moons.

Originally meant to be on the latest Zwaremachine album, I can hear why they decided to not add it. Not because this in any way a bad song, to the contrary, but rather it does not fit the more hard industrial sound cultivated by the band. “Hollow Moons” has a far more pop industrial feel, smoother and no growled out vocals. Really enjoyed the more synth/future pop vibe and hopefully we will hear more of this side of FoX’s musical endeavours.

https://machfox.bandcamp.com/album/hollow-moons

https://www.facebook.com/machfoxband

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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/