Tag: Industrial

ASSASSUN Explores An Uncanny Valley with Chronic Quicksand Depression Morning

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I once worked in a restaurant that served a peanut butter, banana, and bacon sandwich; at least once a day a customer made a nauseated face and asked me if anyone actually ordered it. I always explained that we often enjoy contradictory flavors. The Elvis, as we called it, merely combined sweet and salty, soft and crunchy, like the sandwich equivalent of a chocolate covered pretzel. We find this everywhere, from mango habanero buffalo wings to most Indian food, but still some combinations, no matter how delicious they ultimately taste, can still seem like strange ideas at first.

This was not an image you expected to see in a music review, was it?

I thought about this while absorbing ASSASSUN’s new LP, Chronic Quicksand Depression Morning. Vlimmer’s Alexander Leonard Donat has long boasted a reputation for strange music that defies and denies classification, and this synth-tinged side project proves no different in its sophomore release. Donat pairs standard synth-pop sounds with aggressive, pulsing beats and shouted lyrics more at home in a basement punk show than a dance club. This results in an almost familiar sound; we’re about 3 distorted layers away from industrial or harsh EBM. However, the cleanliness of the synths and vocals leaves us in an uncanny valley between familiar genres—just different enough to be disconcerting. Donat thrives on the unease of his listeners, doubling down with powerful imagery that bristles in all the right ways.

This is not the face of a man who shies away from uncomfortable emotions.

Such a gutsy experiment can lead to uneven results, and some tracks definitely land better than others. But when Donat lands, he does so with the poise and confidence of someone unafraid to challenge widely-held beliefs on key, song structure, and mixing. “The Ivories and I” drones like a classic Xymox track on a boombox with dying batteries, which fits the longing the lyrics deliver. “Shapeshifters” gives me electronic proto-industrial vibes, while “Joie de Vivre” is an 80s coming of age movie dragged through the gravel until it finally admits what reality actually looks like. When ASSASSUN brings his A game, we don’t just listen; the music transforms us with introspective emotions poured into our ears. I won’t claim it’s for everyone, but I will absolutely fight for Chronic Quicksand Depression Morning’s inclusion as a work of art.

Standout Track – “Fear Doubled”: I’m not sure anything in this album actually works in a club DJ set, but damn I would dance to this live. The synth pads give us a false sense of relaxed hope before joining the rest of this railroad song in pushing us over the edge. Sounding like a poisoned Fad Gadget, the music holds up Donat, who almost shouts at us before disdainly uttering, “Look what they’ve done to you.” Somewhere between a Nitzer Ebb chant song and a lecture, “Fear Doubled” echoes the disappointment a lot of us feel with current situations, including ourselves. I’d almost call it the pop song of the album; it uses more structure and hooks than most of the release. But Donat isn’t interested in being popular. He’s going to deliver a message whether we’re listening or not.

Music Making My March Magical

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While it’s true that I prefer reviewing full EPs/albums, the digital age of streaming playlists and Bandcamp Fridays have returned us to the Age of the Single™. Thus what I tend to find in my emails and trawling are standalone tracks, and I would probably lose sleep if I didn’t bring some of them to your attention. Therefore, here’s a list of 5 tunes, either released singularly or standing out from their respective albums, that I’m labeling “don’t miss” for March.

Dark Narrows – Second Hand Tears

This image definitely counts as a party foul.

With their new album My Last Party, Dark Narrows proves the post-punk revival won’t stop in 2023. I’m calling it: “Second Hand Tears” is going to be the breakout hit from this release. The Maryland outfit assembles everything needed for a pop-goth dance floor banger, from punchy bass and dreamy guitars to the perfect sing-along hook with unexpected, descriptive imagery. I’ve been playing this on repeat for the past four days.

Attrition – The Switch

Martin is pondering just how many air filters he needs for this room.

Oh my stars and garters! Martin Bowes and Julia Waller have joined up together again for the first time in 20 years and I couldn’t be happier. Neither have lost their talent for spooky, atmospheric music that chills the spine, but I’m also tapping my feet to this lively production. A lesser act would simply recreate the sound of yesteryear for a quick nostalgia trip, but Attrition instead compounds a lifetime of experience into an expertly constructed romp through the darkest parts of electronic music, leaving me breathless by the end of the recording and desperately looking forward to the upcoming Black Maria.

Josie Pace – Brain-dead

Aw man… Someone’s been scribbling in my yearbook again.

Last year I appeared on Space Couch and tackled the monolithic task of naming the best up-and-coming industrial acts. Thing is, mentioning Josie Pace as one of them came easily, and sure enough, she found herself performing on TV and opening for an extensive tour with Aesthetic Perfection, gaining a whole new following in the process. She capitalizes on that momentum now with a destructive single that pounds its listeners into dust. Pace continues to prove guitars are optional for industrial, delivering the concussive force of a hard rock power anthem with keyboard alone. Easily-chanted lyrics slowly dissolve into disturbing visions, a catharsis the heavy music gladly delivers.

Dead Cool – Stranger Kind

“Hello. We’d like to talk to you about our lord and savior Andrew Eldritch.”

Wilmington’s Johnny and Angela Yeagher excel at producing efficient, classic-sounding synthpop, and now they try their hands at making a sing-along anthem for all the weird ones in the world. These club hymns often pose a challenge because the lyrics need to be all-encompassing without being meaningless. Dead Cool takes a unique path by transforming a silly joke we’ve all spoken to our fellow black-clad friends and crafting it into the hook over a foreboding synth line. The earnestly sung, “Don’t let the sun blind your eyes,” transforms into the perfect rallying cry, combining the introspection and self-mocking humor that are both cornerstones of the goth/industrial aesthetic.

Baltes & Zäyn – A Song of Your Name

The death of you and everyone you know seems like the perfect first date to me, but I’m just a hopeless romantic.

Despite the fact that I totally look the part, I’m not a huge anime nerd, so I haven’t seen the animation this song references. Furthermore, I’m not usually a fan of songs that try to tell a story someone else has already told, so “A Song of Your Name” had a high mountain to climb before I even listened to it. Luckily, this is Baltes & Zäyn, whose “Apocalyptech,” recounting scenes from Neon Genesis Evangelion, gripped me last year and never let go. Lucian Zäyn delicately weaves the story into a relatable, exposed melody that’s almost heartbreaking, exemplified by Steve Baltes’s cinematic score underneath. I didn’t have “synthpop power ballad about kami-manipulated young love” on my Bingo card for March singles, but apparently I should have.

Pictured: somehow not a huge anime nerd.

What about you? What’s on your playlist for March?

Sapphira Vee Becomes a Genre Blender with Trippy

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Back in the ancient past (2010 or so), a young, devilishly handsome DJ interviewed William Faith and asked if he had any advice for up-and-coming artists. Faith recounted the difficulty of crafting a truly original sound and suggested focusing on combining influences in hitherto unseen ways—the more disparate the inspirations, the better. After all, a smoothie can taste wholly different from its ingredients; the blending creates something new.

Trippy | Sapphira Vee (bandcamp.com)

This conversation played on repeat in my head as I dug into Trippy, the latest release from New York’s Sapphira Vee. Already known for experimenting with a variety of goth/industrial subgenres, Vee tries on trip hop for her new EP. She admits the four songs might not be “pure” trip hop, and I agree; while Vee wears the Massive Attack, Sneaker Pimps, and Tricky influences on her sleeve, these inspirations cling to her goth/industrial roots, forming a unique growth for her most distinctive release yet.

Four different artists join Vee—one for each song—yet the choice to use trip hop as a springboard creates a singular style despite each performer’s varying backgrounds. Cis Machina and Dogtablet both favor slower hip hop beats mixed with stringed instruments straight out of a Portishead single, while 2Bit Heroes delivers a Massive Attack-inspired synth wave and John D Norten relies on  traditional bass, guitar, and strings. Yet in all cases, the mood reminds me of early 2000s goth rock or, in the case of “Tangential,” industrial. Maybe it’s the droning strings, minimalist staccato riffs blended with held guitar, or the delicate use of spooky piano that jogs my memory, but to combine this atmosphere with a more traditional trip-hop backbone results in a sound both familiar and breathtakingly fresh. In the post-punk revival of the past 5 years, any act that can reshape history in a way that inspires new possibilities with sounds that came before rather than simply rehashing them deserves recognition. Vee and all her co-conspirators on Trippy: consider yourself recognized.

You want to ask, “Which Portishead single?” but you already know.

The biggest lesson Vee gains from trip hop, however, is how to do more with less. Goth and industrial prefer bombastic deliveries, with melodramatic melancholy defining the former while the latter prefers explosive anger. Yet even Trippy’s cover image implies a muted efficiency: a simple picture of Vee in a hoodie subtly morphs into a mind-bending waterscape easily missed at first glance. In the same light, no screamed or crooned theatrics are on display here; Vee’s lyrics are sung half-hushed, bordering on whispers or spoken word. She mostly abandons overwrought metaphors; while some staple tropes such as “what goes around comes around” and the tried-and-true comparison to bait fishing pop up, Vee spends most of her time musing on personal issues rather than aiming for some wide, universal circumstance. Thus, Trippy stands as possibly her most vulnerable release: no extra flash or flair, just a woman and her friends making music they love about themselves.

Standout Track – “Blindsight”: The most obvious trip hop song on the EP, Dogtablet’s collaboration results in a short, potent jam showcasing Vee’s reserved but effective lyrics. There’s just enough left vague to allow for opposed interpretations; either Vee sings about a desperate—though terrifying—need for vulnerable openness or she uses the illusion of exposure to safely manipulate any she might fear. Leaving the song on loop results in introspection that will eat away more of your day than you might realize.

Hem Netjer – The Song Of Trees

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Described as a dark electronic folk band Hem Netjer recently released their debut album The Song Of Trees

I`m always intrigued by artists who blend spiritual ideas into their art, be it music or otherwise. Hem Netjer spent the lockdowns of the not-too-distant past doing exactly this. With their debut album The Song Of Trees they`ve crafted a journey through the elements in the form of seven songs that could be just as fitting as a soundtrack to guided meditation sessions.

The dark electronic folk music description certainly piqued my interest as often folk music projects rely more on traditional and older, unsual instruments to evoke a certain aura that electronics might seem to contradict but I would argue that this release has a perfect blend and balance that masterfully serves the intended purpose.

Void is the opening track, the state of nothingness from which creation springs forth, a fitting introduction that sets the mood and is continued with Salt & Tears which introduces slightly heavier electronic elements but still manages to keep the mood and ambiance right where it should be. What appears to be throat singing is pumping away throughout the track and I`d be interested to know if this is a sample or something performed by one of the groups members, either way it works wonderfully and is quite fitting.

Note: Upon further inspection the throat singing is performed by Jesse Elyt

Production wise its sleek and clean but not sterile or overpolished. A little snooping on the groups Bandcamp site lets me know the release is recorded at Jacknife Sound operated by none othen than Jason Corbett of ACTORS with production duties handled by iVardensphere`s Scott Fox

Track number 3, Eldur, features soaring, beautiful vocal work fit for riding into battle, in this case of course the battle takes place within as we dive deeper into our Selves and work through each stage of our journey.

Some may say the woods of Norway is the perfect setting for music of this particular style, while I could see the point in such a statement I take a look at what I myself tend to listen to in my daily life, the music I myself create and I find my surroundings have very little influence and therefore I believe there is no such limitatiions on what setting or enviorment best suits this music, it would be just as effective for someone living in a busy city and perhaps have even stronger of an effect in what could be perceived as a contrast of settings.

It appears the album has been truly crafted as one piece, a journey, a continual aural adventure. This is definetly one of those albums that require you to listen from start to end for maximum effect. The way each track blends into the next and the stage it represents going from the opening track all the way to the middle sections with Freedom and Connect leading into the end stages of Elemental Cry and Otherworld I urge any potential listener to give up the just over 30 miinutes of playtime to be able to fully appreciate this as the body of work it clearly was intended to be.

Each element ranging from the synth and strings to percussion and vocals blend perfectly together where nothing feels out of place or as if it doesn`t belong, everything is there for a reason and works in unison to birth a complete and whole picture.

If you wish to explore Hem Netjer further our wonderful overlord, Ken, The Duchess conducted an interview with them a while back which you can view here:

The Song Trees is availble for streaming/purchase here: https://hemnetjer.bandcamp.com/album/the-song-of-trees

Follow future endevours here:

https://www.facebook.com/hemnetjer

https://www.instagram.com/hemnetjerband/

VERFÜHRERVERGELTER – [gelöscht]

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Rising from the ashes of 900RPM, the German noise extraordinaire David Munster presents a new dark vision with [gelöscht] releasing March 8th via Colorado based label Produkt 42.

Being a fan of the more experimental and avant garde corners of the music scene can be both a joy and a pain, trudging through oceans of what can only be described as distorted microwave drones and noise for the sake of noise with little to no substance. Verführervergelter however does not fall into this category, with [gelöscht] run time of just under 40 minutes across 9 tracks it managed to keep my attention with its grinding mechanical ambiance gently pierced with the sound of air-raid sirens throughout. The release plays like a movie score and while one might be tempted to envision this style of music in the context of horror I think this release could fit well in a broader spectrum than the obvious.

Each track seemingly flows in and out of eachother creating a cohesive listening experience, uninterrupted by one track ending and another beginning which I feel really adds some depth and dimension to a release of this particular style. Terms like power electronics and death industrial is usually the first one wants to grab for when describing what is offered here but having spent a fair amount of time exploring these subgenres [and sub-sub genres] I`d rather you listen with as little guidance as possible, sometimes going in as blind as you can is a rewarding experience that is perhaps a little lost in todays world of hashtags and microcosms.

What initally caught my attention about this release was actually the album artwork, simple yet stylish. The short description given to me further piqued my interest by mentioning a variety of artists Ive long been a fan of, moral of the story being dont underestimate the power of good visuals for your releases. In a subgenre overflowing with black and white BDSM photos or vintage crime scene and often misogynistic imagery this release stands out with an air of individuality that goes against the grain in a scene that has seemingly long lost touch with any redeeming quality or substance it ever contained.

That being said let me be clear, this is most certainly still an experimental release in line with what youd expect from the early era of industrial music with the likes of Throbbing Gristle, Current 93 , Coil and so on however it feels more thought out and more purposeful than the aforementioned microwave droning you often come across in this area.

This is a release rich with texture and rhythmic glitching from start to end with moments of lush almost choral sounding synth work woven into the controlled chaos.

Pre-Order [gelöscht] via Produkt 42 : produkt42.bandcamp.com/album/gel-scht