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Review: Twin Tribes “Pendulum”

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I have had the opportunity to review the first few singles from the 3rd album of next wave goths fastest rising stars Twin Tribes. Now it is time to dive deep and discuss the deeper concept of the latest record Pendulum. Joel and Luis have always held a special place with Sounds and Shadows. The first album I reviewed was the 2018 debut “Shadows“. Thus the name Sounds and Shadows. I have been lucky to see them preform live in multiple cities and each time is an intimate emotional journey. I see people posting all the time lately about the exorbitant ticket prices for legacy bands like Depeche Mode or Sisters of Mercy. Twin Tribes are out on tour now in their prime playing the type of shows people will talk about 20 years from now. You can be a part of this sparkling moment in darkscene music before you have to pay big venue prices.

“Pendulum” – The rise of Joel and Luis as the face of the next wave of goth has been a burning meteor that has generated excitement for crypt keepers and baby bats alike. Their talent, romantism, inclusiveness, and dedication to dark themes struck a resonance in this community that has bridged generational gaps. A pendulum is a device created by physicist Léon Foucault designed to always return to balance. Like most great bands I have known through my life, Twin Tribes have embraced their return to balance with a transcendent third record. That perfect moment between the raw passion of youth, and the clarity of experience. This is one of those records people will talk about ten, twenty years later. Those discussions with friends that brings us together. I am going to dive deep on this one. Say more than I should. This album is a perfect still frame in time, which needs to be remembered.

Pendulum | Twin Tribes (bandcamp.com)

Twin Tribes – Ann Arbor Michigan 2023

Produced by: Twin Tribes and Charlie Vela

Recorded and mixed by: Charlie Vela at Casa Panchita Studios in Weslaco, TX

Mastered by: Doruk Ozturkcan

Artwork, layout & design: Keeley Laures

Track 1 – Absolute – A pendulum starts by swinging to the absolute before returning to balance. Our journey starts the same way. A crackling synth instrumental to establish the myth of this tale. Cascading crystal waterfall to send you falling towards the rocks.

Track 2 – Another Life – I love this fast paced silky Cure Pornography delayed bouncing riff. The vocals set a furious different tone with sharp slashing delivery. A separation with a promise to find each other again in another life. The pendulum swings back towards hope.

Track 3 – Sanctuary – A place of refuge or safety. This is fitting as a return to what I would call “classic” Twin Tribes sound. Darting bassline, with resonant reverb guitar. Great transition here from verse to chorus that really opens the sky to show Luis’s range. “The prophet is dead His master has called The fall, the fall upon us all” we swing faster towards a hopeless outcome before our return to balance.

Track 4 – Monolith – A single great stone often in the form of an obelisk or column. This song has a beautiful alien resonance. Some forgotten advanced technology so foreign it is more like magic. The vocals stand forward in the mix to offset this pinball manic bounce of the bass. This track is an unmistakable modern classic.

Track 5 – Temperance – The idea of restraint when a powerful truth is discovered. The inclination to plumet headlong into something dangerous can be so strong. This chorus build has a double bass drum trill hat feels like a charging horse trying to break free. “If the truth is waiting for us Can’t you see The end is the beginning A conspiracy”

Track 6 – Paradox – To hold two contradictory truths in one thought. This brief but sparkling instrumental track is the transition point of the story. A question with no answer.

Photo by Jen Jeffery

Track 7 – Cauldron Of Thorns – I hate to play favorites on a record as beloved as this. I can’t help hearing that perfect gateway from the dark romantic poetry of The Cure “Pornography” and modern darkwave synthesis. The mix on this song is a true masterpiece. Sitting in a place of balance measured in micro sonic connection. Although it sits at track 7, this is when the pendulum passes a moment of perfect zero.

Track 8 – Sangre de Oro – I’ve talked with Joel and Luis about the importance of including a song in Spanish on each album. The Latin goth scene boasts some of the most devoted fans and talented bands. Which sadly is often overlooked in American and European markets. Sangre De Oro or Blood Of Gold is that track on Pendulum. The tempo races forward again and features a captivating acoustic twang to contrast the layered delay guitar riff. Beautiful and delivered with a different level of vocal passion. Just like Fantasmas from the 2019 album Ceremony I hear a connection and soul here to make a third single to capture the imagination.

Track 9 – Eternal – To be everlasting, to transcend time itself. This track certainly glows with life. The tempo bounces back up and the guitar line has a jazzy swing. The call and answer of the chorus vocals gives a duality to the spiritual; conclusion of our adventure. This might be the track with the most mass appeal. It’s gorgeous and full of hope.

Track 10 – Meadow – The farewell song of this emotional opus. A sultry reflection that harkens back to the path Twin Tribes has walked. One thousand translucent fairy wings dancing in a twilight forest. This song is a fantasy and a promise of more dreams to explore.

Twin Tribes are defining the next generation of darkscene music. A quality and depth of soul that has captured the imagination of the past and present. I fell in love with “Shadows“, I became a believer with “Ceremony“, but “Pendulum” is the best record to date. Give it a spin and become a believer with me.

Black Nail Cabaret LIVE

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Concert Review

Event: FIXED ON BLACK 2023

Artist: Black Nail Cabaret (Featured)

Date: December 16 2023

Venue: Bunker Strasse E

City: Dresden Germany

Supporting: Fïx8:Sëd8, NER\OGRIS, Mildreda, Amorphous

One day while working the graveyard shift I saw a video cover of “Papillion” by Editors, by this obscure band, that had NO real information about them on YouTube, only this and a cover of “Sophisticated Song” by Hugh Laurie, and a BDSM video version of “Hit Me Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears (Has since been removed from youtube). All of this was in 2010. The band was “Black Nail Cabaret” a dark performance act from Budapest Hungary. I only found this out by sending an email to them over YouTube asking “Who are you guys?”. I was pretty much sold on their sound and harassed them for months to give me more material. I got the songs “Veronica”, “Tell Me It’s Not Over” and “Umbrella” by Rhianna, and a few others.

I interviewed them for a magazine that tanked a month later so it never went anywhere. BUT, I am the guy who the band has noted in their history as their “First American Fan”. Since then I have been a die-hard fan of Emke and crew, and have scored hard copies of all the work. The first album was mailed to me, signed and I saw my name in the liner notes “Special Thanks to” … Ahhhh…

I got to meet Emke in London in 2016 and got pictures, another signed CD, and a t-shirt that we ended up using in several scenes for a film I was in. We used one of their songs in the film too, and the shirt made a few appearances because the director of the film is also a hardcore fan. I can say that my history with Black Nail Cabaret is pretty deep, I even had Emke as one of the first guests on my podcast. So it was no surprise to find that Ken and the family of Sounds & Shadows are also fans, they have that effect on you. They are one of my favorite bands, and were on my “Top Ten Bands to See Before I Die” list for a long time.

I was living just outside of Frankfurt Germany when I was informed that in December they would be playing in Dresden, a city I once called home. So I got a hotel, and a bullet train ticket, and spent a day traveling to Dresden, yes even on a train going 161 KM/H you will be on for 6 and a half hours to get to Dresden.

I checked in at my hotel and took the street train to a part of the city rarely went to when I was a resident there. It was an old Tank factory I believe, in the “Industrial” part of the city. Lots of red brick, and old run-down buildings, the perfect place for a gig like this.

I got into the venue, walking into a “Festival” setting it was dark, with a hell of a great stage, and great lighting, and I was among several hundred German, Polish, Dutch, Hungarian, and Czech old-school punks. One side of the hall had a long merch table with each band selling their wares, and I saw Kris from BNC I said hello, as he and I have been on video calls but never met til now. I bought the last available T-shirt “Orchid” and some other wares. That shirt has since become the subject of some controversy (when you see “Orchid” you will get why) and had trouble getting it back from other fans. Chris took me downstairs to see Emke. We talked for a while, drank tea, and recorded this little video saying “Hi” to all of you. (if anything, just to make Ken insanely jealous, cause I KNOW he is while reading this). She told me this main hall was where they had opened for Camouflage several years ago. The main hall was holding all of the gear, and they were playing on the smaller end of the venue.

The opening act NER\OGRIS a band, that set the mood from the imagery of “German dark synth” that you always imagined the sound to be like. I was impressed with them, being absolutely stoic on stage, and very intense, and the venue was already packed with people dancing.

Amorphous

A very beats heavy solo musician, who would kick off the synth and play live drum pads, then sing. He was very intense and very animated. Just pulled up his YouTube performance of the gig, it was very impressive, and I have enjoyed some of his work since.

Mildreda is a Dutch industrial noise act, that was a fantastic digital synth pounding of the senses, with great visuals. I had only heard “Prophecies” before the gig and it was cool, but I had no idea they were going to be this good live. I had no idea they were even on the bill this evening, so that was a pleasant surprise. One of those acts that if you ever get to a festival in Europe, are worth the ticket, otherwise, just dive into the catalog and dance. Something I like in the recent turn of industrial music, it’s not pretentious, or whiney like NIN had inspired people to be for so long, this is the real deal, and it’s really fun to listen to.

BLACK NAIL CABARET

Well, the moment I had been dreaming of for 13 years finally happened. Kris took the stage, then Emke took the stage dressed rather elegantly, she has a very demanding stage presence. She is very stoic in her videos, but on stage, she has a very charismatic performance that you can see almost instantly. They opened with “Black Lava” from “Gods” and I was instantly assured that the whole effort across Germany was worth it.

They followed with “My Casual God” from the same album, then “Dichromat”, opening up with a powerful intensity and positive energy, that carried the set for a while, then the Pseudopop track “La Petit Mort”. Black Nail Cabaret was really standing out as a Darkwave Synth punk act, over the heavy Industrial that had preceded them. A shift in the feeling and overall experience, the dark negative intensity of the other bands, and the somewhat gory visuals suddenly show a Da Vinci-esque beauty in the gorgeous feminine power performance of Emese Árvai-Illés (Emke). I just wished that she had a full band this time.

“Spheres” from Gods was well received by the audience, as the venue became very calm, though everyone was still dancing, it was less intense, as most of the punters were fixed on Emke’s singing. “Malestorm” was keeping the count up from Gods for the setlist.

Somewhere in the set, Emke stepped on a piece of gear that killed her ability to hear the monitors in her ear, so she had to stop the performance and restart, playing off the stage monitors, she still managed to kill it for the rest of the set. They played “Autogenic” from the new album “Chrysanthemum”, this song had been released only a week prior, I had listened to it several times, and was thrilled to hear it live in this set.

They played what was likely a crowd favorite “No Gold”, the video was very simple, just Emke sitting there getting her head shaved. She and I had joked about that song, how she found out that it was on Pornhub in a fetish section. I mean, there is a fetish for watching women getting their heads shaved, because she said that video got a ton of hits over the years.

For the crowning crowd participation song, Black Nail Cabaret played ” Bête Noire” which I noticed most of the punters knew, by the time she got to the chorus multiple voices were singing along “I think I want to kill you, but I believe in peace… BITCH”. It was fun to be in a venue hearing this song live, especially with all of us singing along with Emke. I felt like we were closing down the set, and honestly, I could have gone on for hours, though I knew I wasn’t going to hear “Hero” or “Diamond Dogs”, “Magia”, or “Orchid” or even “Butterflies”.

I was expecting one of the classics, and they closed the set with the well-known “Veronica”, possibly where it all began. It was a wonderful way to finish off the set with one that we all knew, and one that held some weight through the history of the band.

The Black Nail Cabaret set was perfect as it came to a close, I only wish they were able to play for another couple of hours, but even though this was such a rare opportunity, I cherished every moment.

Fïx8:Sëd8

Fïx8:Sëd8 was a band I had never heard of till that night, and they were intense and dark.

It was one guy, dressed in a sort of horror film outfit like a mortician’s plastic apron, rolled onto the stage in a wheelchair, and he sang, while the other guy was at the instruments panel. There were mannequin stands decked out with disfigured faces, masks, and plenty of gore in the visuals on the screen behind them. I didn’t know any of their music, but they are one of the hardest darkest “Death Industrial” acts I have ever heard.

Halfway through the set Emke returned to the stage to perform vocals on their song “tREMORs”. Which took the performance back out of the depths of dark and violent themes. It was very very well done, showing that Emke can play in various settings and adapt well to the other artist’s work.

Fïx8:Sëd8 played the longest set of the night, and it all tied up well after midnight.

As the performances were over, all the bands were selling their merch, almost everything was looted from the tables, and all the bands greeted their fans. I had a great time talking to the other bands, the singer for NER\OGRIS and I talked for a while about iconic bands, how he never got Joy Division, and why I never got Nine Inch Nails.

The evening was a success, and should anyone have the opportunity to see a gig at “The Bunker” in Dresden, you will love the acoustics. Any of these other bands will be great to see, but I am happy to say that I was finally able to see one of my top ten bands live.

Since that evening, Black Nail Cabaret has released the album “CHRYSANTHEMUM” and I scored a signed copy on vinyl. If you are new to BNC, you probably want to just dive into the entire catalog, it will be a wonderful rabbit hole to fall into. Like most of you, I hope they come to the States, as they would deliver an incredible performance, maybe even as great as this one.

https://blacknailcabaret.com

https://fix8sed8-de.bandcamp.com

https://nerogris.bandcamp.com

https://mildreda.bandcamp.com

Mark E Moon – RESIST

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On the Isle of Man there exists a group of individuals who when they come together is known under the moniker Mark E Moon.

These individuals are responseable for one of my favourite and most played releases of the modern age of post-punk/darkwave, that being their phenomenal 2021 album Old Blood.

Since then, the gang has drip-fed us new material in the form of singles and the Lux Vindictae EP (2022)

I recieved an early pre-release copy of the new album and while I would have liked to get this written and published alongside the March 3rd release, life got in the way. Better late than never I tell myself.

Resist comes enveloped in fantastic artwork by a young painter acquanted with the band, it brings to mind a certain sci-fi atmosphere, like a shot from a walk in the future, perhaps through a desert at dawn.

Opening track and lead-single Daemons does exactly what an opening track should do, it immediatly drags you in with a pulsating bass, synth arpeggios before a bombastic chorus with near choral backing vocals.

Beneath the grandiose music however lurks a lamentation of giving in and crumbling under the weight of your past, present and future sins, real or imagined.

While I`d rather avoid the comparison of one album to another it is on some level inevitable, where Old Blood grappled with corruption and bigotry,Resisthas a more introsepctive lyrical quality all around with the narrator of each song displaying their flaws and failures and putting it all to soaring synths and all the atmosphere youd need.

The musical drama perfectly compliments the lyrical.

Blind has our narrator thrown into the all too relatable scenario of heartache, love-gone-hellwards and the racing thought it always brings as you lay in bed staring a hole in the ceiling.

Resist`s use of dual vocals offer a wonderful contrast to the songs and creates an interesting lyrical dynamic you`d otherwise not have as much of if it was all one voice singing each line. Vertigo however, does not suffer whatsoever from its use of a singular siren.

Dark Love saw the light of day back in 2022 when released as a single that at the time Im sure was taken as a stand-alone piece by listeners, and perhaps it was seen as such by the band as well, whos to say?

Its addition on the albums tracklist however is a great choice and a perfect conceptual and thematic fit alongside the rest of the tracks.

It`s simply put, a song tailor-made for your local BDSM club. Make sure your favourite DJ adds it to their playlist next time you find yourselves crawling on your knees.

Closure is exaclty as its opening line states in that it is the Beat of the broken heart, hopeless romantics, please stand for the national anthem. Emphasis on hopeless, of course.

Now, if you were in need of an alternative to the hopeless romantic anthem where the emphasis is not ,for once, on hopeless. Crystal is here and she will surely take great care of you in the back of a limousine of course.

Heart Keeps Bleeding is a musical noir of hollow yet desperate romance, it`s the moment of walking in a lovless desert, depraved enough of any semblance of compassion that you kiss arsenic lips just to feel something.

The Signal And The Noise is that deep-cut song towards the end of any album that you may not always hear but when you do it quickly becomes a favourite.

Daylight is for the vampires, this may not be a compliment so still your blackened hearts children.

It is however full of ambiance and a wonderful closing track, if we were to see the addition of a demo version of `See Me` as just that, an addendum rather than the finale proper.

Mark E Moon does not dissapoint. But they do not merely repeat past successes either, they play around, they explore and they reap a bountiful harvest.

Buy the damn album.

https://markemoon1.bandcamp.com

Hard Copy by VR Sex

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LA’s VR Sex are at it again with Hard Copy, their fourth full-length effort. And the band once again brings the goods in a sexy, raunchy high-powered sonic assault that starts strong and never lets up over its ten songs.

What started out as Noel Skum’s Drab Majesty side project has taken on a life of its own in a big way, with its psychedelic punk approach and its examination of the less-than-savory aspects of our modern condition and those who indulge in it.

One may not appreciate all that goes into Hard Copy on the first listening, as the songs tend to share the same high energy vibe. But this record holds up whether driving in the car or zoning out at home. There is a densely packed sound held down by high energy drumming and imaginative guitar riffs that cut through to create moments of atmosphere that are lost on conventional punk rock efforts of lesser acts.

Rock solid from start to finish, Hard Copy is recommended. I’m looking forward to seeing Hard Copy on more than a few ‘Best of 2024’ lists.

https://vrsex.bandcamp.com/album/hard-copy

OMD

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Let’s all climb The Bauhaus Staircase, in Germany.

Concert Review

Artist: OMD
Date: January 30 2024
City: Offenbach, Germany
Venue: Stadthalle Offenbach
Supporting Act: Walt Disco

There are those bands in life that you heard once, and then they became a staple in your listening practices, so much so that you really can’t imagine a time in your life when you didn’t hear their music at regular intervals. Such a band is “Orchestral Maneuvers in The Dark” or “OMD” for short.

Last summer I had the opportunity to hear the album before release, and I have to say, I LOVED IT, probably more than I should have. It was some of their best work, showcasing that they are real musicians, whose drive to create manages to get the best of them, and we are all blessed because of it.

I interviewed Andy McClusky last summer, as the last regular episode before shipping out to Germany. It was one of the nerdiest conversations I have ever had with a musician and one of the most enjoyable. I taunted Ken and Jaret here at Sounds & Shadows about the album, I was allowed to share it with them and left them to decide who gets to write about it. Jaret said he was unhappy with the most recent OMD work because it was not very drum heavy. After he heard “Bauhaus Staircase” he immediately responded with “I will rescind my previous critique, this new album is fantastic”.

I had the opportunity to catch the OMD show in the town hall Frankfurt suburb of Offenbach, and, well, when seeing a band like this in Germany comes around, you jump on it.

The Offenbach City Hall venue is very WIDE, and not very deep, so no matter where you are in the hall, you can have a great view of the stage, you might be a very wide stage left or right, with a great acoustic design for sound.

WALT DISCO

The opening band took the stage and looked just eclectic and bizarre, and they lived up to how they looked. I would describe them as “If David Bowie sang for SPARKS in the Great Gatsby”. Their performance was full of theatrical dancing, bantering with the audience, and some fun catchy, but also dark euro-pop. They explained in German “Wir Komen aus Schotland” (Scotland) and they kept everyone entertained with their guitar and synth rock, all while letting us remember David Bowie with their vocals.

OMD

Waiting off to the side, they wouldn’t let us into the photo pit til after the intro tape had finished playing. So I stood in front of the PA system experiencing the track “Evolution of Species” very loudly with a fantastic light show of technology, and human statistics on the light screens was already in progress. Then the line “EXTINCTION” I was allowed into the pit while they opened with “Anthropocene”, Paul took his synth, while the drummer and other keyboardist came on stage, then Andy walked out, and greeted everyone, and danced across the stage. In my interview with Andy he admitted that he is a geek and that even after 40 years of playing live concerts, he still can’t dance. He said, “If I can still get up there and flail about making a fool of myself, I think I can fairly ask the audience to dance with me”. So that is exactly what he was doing, geeking out to his love of technology and philosophy of human history, and dancing like no one was watching. (But we all were). The new album was well underway in this performance, while Andy was like any other show I have ever seen, full of energy waving his arms around and burning a lot of calories.

They then went right back to the beginning with “Messages” with Andy waving his bass wildly as he played, I’m sure by how he has managed to keep from knocking over his mic stand. He was interacting with everyone asking us to sing along, happy to connect with everyone.

They fired off “Tesla Girls” with everyone clapping together and the entire venue was dancing, while Paul and Andy were in perfect tune, sounding as good as they ever did. With a rolling buildup of synth and voice to a simple “GO!” they went into “Kleptocracy”, a song from the new album about…. Well, you know, some world-class conman who has built his power, on corruption, and lies… No need to mention the names here.

Andy was so intense and true to form, he was sweating up a storm already, it is kind of exhausting watching such a tall guy move around on stage like that. They played “History of Modern Part 1”. Showing a dismal bombed-out city for a backdrop, but nice geometric shapes dancing in unison on the screen too. It’s no secret this song was about the end of the world, but who says we need to be depressed about it? By now we were all ready for the epic “If You Leave”, sounding as fresh now, as it did when I first heard the coming-of-age song when I was 12. This was a perfect performance of it, while he was asking all of us to keep singing with him. The band still looked happy to be playing it like this after so many years, live sax and all.

Now, during my interview, I mentioned to Andy that if I never heard the song “Secret” again for the rest of my life it’s still too soon, his response was “Oh that’s fine, it’s not my song” but we joked about “Forever Live and Die” being one of Paul’s masterpieces. He said “Maybe I can get Paul from behind his synth, and get him out front to sing “Forever Live and Die ” for ya”. Well, I felt like he did that for me this evening. Paul and Andy switched places and NAILED it. It was one of those songs that never gets enough airplay, and I tell ya, the New Wave Station in Salt Lake plays OMD once a day. So, hearing this song live in Germany just made the evening special.

Andy went back out front, and then said “That was Paul Humphreys everyone, who was a right bastard and turned down the synth before he came out front”. Paul and he began to banter about that, “I thought you would have noticed it in the monitors, you couldn’t hear that?”. Andy said “And I used to really like you”… All good-natured jabbing and everyone was laughing about it. Then they played the title track from the new album “Bauhaus Staircase”. The new album was mixed well with the other work, and hearing it live mixed in with the “hits” added to the rich history I have with their music. They gave us classics like “Souvenir” and “Joan of Arc”.

They played a string of greats from the new album “Veruschka”, “Healing” and probably my fave step on my way up the “Bauhaus Staircase” “Don’t Go”, which solidified the new work as some of their finest ever. I know that is a hard chore to label a single album as such, but if you have heard this album, you would likely say that. Even more likely once you hear these gems performed live.

With Andy yelling “FANTASTISH, UND DANKE SHOEN!!” at every song, “Dreaming” tossed in with some other classics to close out the first set with “Enola Gay”. This first part of the set was honestly more than enough. The visuals, the tight performance, in perfect tune, and the interaction with the punters, but they didn’t look worn out yet, so we knew they were coming back.

After a brief intermission, and no one showing that they were going to leave any time soon, Paul, Martin, Stuart, and Andy came back on the stage, giving special thanks to the really groovy “Walt Disco” for supporting them. Then they finished off the evening with two from Bauhaus Staircase “Look at You Now” and “Pandora’s Box”, and then the one that (I think anyway) started it all “Electricity”. To a roaring crowd, OMD gave us all a happy bow and thanked all of us for sharing the evening with them.

Though they might look old, and yes, they even opened for Joy Division in the early days, OMD has managed to still deliver a current sound, and entertain fans for 40+ years, and this evening was no different. I hope you have all listened to Bauhaus Staircase by now, if you haven’t there is still time before they hit the States on this tour. Cause you are going to LOVE hearing them live.

https://omd.uk.com

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGt81JgXy5FiQUml-nqePKw?feature=gws_kp_artist&feature=gws_kp_artist

#omd #newwave #80snewwave #waltdisco #orchestralmaneuversinthedark #synthpop #80synthpop