February 2023 Sounds and Shadows Darkscene Singles Chart

Greetings my friends, it is once again time for the S & S Darkscene singles chart. The top 10 singles in February 2023 chosen by our group of Artists, Djs, Producers, Promotors, and Super Fans. We receive no compensation and every month I am astounded to find an incredible new bands I was not aware of. I welcome you all to do the same and dive in for the best new Goth, Industrial, New wave, Post Punk, Darkwave, Witchaus, or any other genre we decide suits our fancy. If you have a single in March or know someone who does, join the Sounds and Shadows Facebook group and add them to the poll.

  1. AL1CEThe Lucky Dead Theme Song
  2. IAMWARFACESay My Name
  3. Sawtooth (feat. Sapphira Vee)Walk Into The Ocean
  4. Matt Hart (feat. Daniel Graves) To The Core
  5. Microwaved (Featuring Gaby Gustafson of Eva X)Propaganda
  6. Bellhead I Would Die 4 U (Prince Cover)
  7. A Cloud Of RavensRequiem for the Sun
  8. Self Titled AlbumThe Unicorn Tornado Of Hurt
  9. The PicassosUnder The Floorboards (With You)
  10. CarrionTHERE IS ONLY HELL

Special Mention:

The Bellwether SyndicateWe All Rise

AL1CEThe Dead Lucky Theme Song – (Los Angelos CA) Animated raindrop synthwave track with an explosive bassline and jet engine guitar roar. I love the multi media connection to a comic called The Lucky Dead by Melissa Flores. Tash’s vocals are elegant and abstract weaving an image over the rhythm sections drive. Every new track I hear impresses me more.

The Dead Lucky Theme Song | AL1CE (bandcamp.com)

IAMWARFACESAY MY NAME – (Brighton UK) – This one surprised me from the first beat. A blistering prog pulsed synth slammer that teetered between live and electric drums. The vocals are outstanding with a real Brett Anderson energy and sass against the hard rock thunder. Writing this down on paper this should not be my cup of tea, with every choice and change I kept finding myself won over. The quality and complexity on display here are undeniable.

SAY MY NAME | IAMWARFACE (bandcamp.com)

SawtoothWalk Into The Ocean (feat. Sapphira Vee) – (Lowell, Massachusetts) – I love everything about this team up. Two amazing people that impress me every time working together. This beat slithers like an anaconda slithering along a slutty muted trumpet. Knowing both these artists, the way both voices shine is my favorite thing about this heavy air banger.

Walk Into The Ocean (feat. Sapphira Vee) | Sawtooth (bandcamp.com)

MATT HARTTO THE CORE (AESTHETIC PERFECTION REMIX) – (London UK) – Industrial Pop tender destruction remixed by the master of the genre. Glitchy and cruel with crystal clarity. This is not Matt hart’s first trip to our singles chart, it most certainly won’t be his last. The rising strikes like visible heat rising from the pavement. The bassline is a diamond tipped drill seeking out minerals below the curst.

TO THE CORE (AESTHETIC PERFECTION REMIX) | MATT HART (bandcamp.com)

MicrowavedPropaganda (Featuring Gaby Gustafson of Eva X) – (Des Moines, Iowa) – Gabe Wilkinson teaming up with Gaby is a beautiful synthesis of deadly EDM beats and a gatling gun cadence from the breathy vocals. Music to hunt the wastelands to.

Propaganda (Featuring Gaby Gustafson of Eva X) | Microwaved (bandcamp.com)

BELLHEADI Would Die 4 U – (Chicago IL) – My favorite Chicago double bass duo with a Prince cover that is weird, disturbing, and I’ll be damned if it doesn’t work. Ivan Russia summons some Steven Malkmus vocal delivery that leaves such a dissonate aftertaste to the familiar melody. I don’t know what I was expecting, it wasn’t this, it somehow hit for me on every level.

I Would Die 4 U | BELLHEAD (bandcamp.com)

A Cloud of RavensRequiem for the Sun – (Brooklyn, New York) – what a bright future the Brooklyn post punk standouts have. Leaving for tour and every new single that comes out on this record is a bonfire banger. This bassline is Peter Hook worthy crude oil pipe. Matt’s vocals show range and creativity. People really need to get on board with this band. Don’t be the last.

Requiem for the Sun | A Cloud of Ravens (bandcamp.com)

Self Titled AlbumUnicorn Tornado of Hurt – (Price, Utah) – Ok number 1, I didn’t think Utah had sweet bands. number 2, The title of this song is epic. That is before I even hit play. This track is a fuzzy level of bass I have not heard since Monster Magnet. Filthy and psychedelic with a retro 90’s engine.

Unicorn Tornado of Hurt | Self Titled Album (bandcamp.com)

thePicassosUnder the Floorboards (With You) – (Detroit MI) – One of my favorite haunting indie shadow sonic flavors from Detroit. Organic, emotive, and original driving into a concealed truth without fear. Charle’s vocals and haunting and original. Every time I hear this band I wonder where they have been all my life.

Under the Floorboards (With You) | thePicassos (bandcamp.com)

CarrionTHERE IS ONLY HELL – (Kingdom of Norway) – Our moderator and reviewer Hide has been locked away drinking torture juice pressurizing emotion for a new string of synth driven terror abstraction. Vocally flinging broken glass at our jugular at random precision. It’s always new, always distinct.

THERE IS ONLY HELL | Carrion (bandcamp.com)

For this month I am going to add a special mention. The Bellwether Syndicate had a new single release that didn’t come out until 2/24/23 but it is such an absolute BANGER it felt wrong not to mention. The tone of this guitar is like walking in your door after an especially long day of work. William Faith’s voice is distinctive and raw. These drums slash us in reckless assault. A modern day classic.

We All Rise | The Bellwether Syndicate (bandcamp.com)

I Missed Posting For Bandcamp Day :( Yet here is some reviews.

It’s October my darklings, the month of spook, where goths can be goths. So I need to start thinking about my Halloween soundtrack. I’ll fire through the latest batwings and eye lashes of newt falling into my cauldron.

Swansect: Kill Pop Goth – Adrian is always thrashing like a madman in a new direction. Always producing something he hasn’t done and something I hadn’t heard a million times before. Track #1 Horse of Grass has this cool percussion driven guitar strike. Almost a folk goth tempo with vibrating underwater vocals. Track #2 Kain is my favorite and has this sinister Tones on Tail Daniel Ash sex appeal. The words are in Norwegian telling the story of Cain. I love the old school batcave rockabilly riff. Swansect always takes you to a place in your mind with the music, and usually that place is a nightmare.

https://swansect.bandcamp.com/album/kill-pop-goth

SpankTheNun: The Bunker Tapes II – This album is mixed by the legendary Claus Larson (LeatherStrip). Out of Texas Eric Hanes does a hard and nasty industrial, full of chant and eye beam precision. Track 2 Fight and Breed is a building whisper that holds aggression on a greasy chain to make a tension build you can feel on the back your neck. I think what really sets this above the bar are how clearly the vocals ring for industrial music. It has a bit of effect, but you can savor every growled line. Some amazing remixes here from Melodywhore, Sapphirra Vee, and Assemblage 23. My favorite track was Lies and Hate which unleashes a real Nitzer Ebb feel. I think what impressed me most of this album is how it never has to turn the volume up to 11 to hit you in the fucking teeth with it’s power. It’s a real skill to project that much rage without screaming.

https://spankthenun.bandcamp.com/album/the-bunker-tapes-vol-i

Vazum: Rated V – Ok I know I recently reviewed the Detroit band Vazum, but they did this new release specifically for Halloween with a monster/ghoul theme. It’s stalking creature abomination horror full of heavy guitars and sinister keys. Zach unleashes and inner demon from behind his usually lovely lilting vocals to send a shiver up the spine. I said the same about the previous album Vampyre Villa but I love the use of 90’s alternative mixed into the horror. Emily has a soulful Concrete Blonde vocal style that is the perfect offset in every song. Each monster has it’s own tone and flavor, my favorite was Werewolf . This one really let Emily shine on vocals and truly laid out the primal transformation. Cool lyrical poetry, “Copper turns to gold, sell our gold for silver”. There is so much going on here stylistically. We had an interview with them last week (which will post soon) I am really bummed I hadn’t heard this to discuss before hand.

https://vazum.bandcamp.com/

Vanity Kills : Chapter 2 Enemy – Hard rocking cyberpunk from Cardiff UK. The real beauty captured here is the driving rock 90’s aggression of Helmet phase shifting into pixilated time dilation of club smashing electro-core. The intensity almost rides the line of metal. Yet the distinctive dance stomp is catchy and clean. For personal preference I wish I could hear more of the lyrics and feel the melody lines. The music really placed me in an empty room of drywall I found myself smashing out of, I wanted to know more about why. Favorite track was “This is Gonna Hurt”, it had such a punch it made me picture Clutch smashing synthesizers on a flaming stage. This one shows great promise for the future.

https://officialvanitykills.bandcamp.com/album/chapter-2-enemy

UnderTheSkin: End This Summer – New single complete with some outstanding remixes from Poland. This one is a Cure heavy darkwave bird of prey soaring on a night sky. Mariusz has a beautiful and captivating voice. The bassline of the song is everywhere beneath the soaring wings. A powerful track in crafting and execution. So who could successfully remix such a track? Ash Code, Shad Shadows, Kill Shelter, and Antipole with Paris. Now that is a heavy weight endorsement of some of the great production tunesmiths of our scene. A lot of individual flavor here for each remix on an absolute scorcher of a track.

https://underskin.bandcamp.com/album/end-this-summer-ep

Razor Hawt video with this one too.

Twin Tribes: Shadows(Matte Black remix) – Holy shit how did I not know this was coming out? Also why does Matte Black get to remix Twin Tribes and I don’t? Ok now that petty jealousy is out of the way, this is my favorite Twin Tribes song. The song I discovered them from. I didn’t even recognize it at first in the best possible way. This is everything I want from a remix. It has taken their glorious violet energy and fired it through a prism to create something new and beautiful. I am jaw dropped on the floor right now. Buy this immediately.

https://twintribes.bandcamp.com/

Panic Priest: When Daylight Disappears – Brand new single from Jack, and it’s another burner. Such a master of blending sizzling guitar licks and neon streaming synths. His bellowing baritone voice is an trap I can’t stop falling into. This song is a prayer to the darkness that surrounds us. I want to sit on a Chicago roof staring at the moon as the city sleeps below.

https://panicpriestngp.bandcamp.com/track/when-daylight-disappears-demo

Klack: Two Minute Warning (Depeche Mode Cover) – This is a beautiful cover with a beautiful and tragic story behind it. Claus Larsen (Leatherstrip) recently lost his husband Kurt after a long battle with sickness. It left a lot of medical bills and the community really rallied around him in this tough time. All proceeds go to assist their family. I’ve always loved this song and Klack of course didn’t disappoint to capture it’s energy and majesty.

https://klack.bandcamp.com/album/two-minute-warning

I find myself yearning for sonic texture paintings. Stoneburner/Carrion/eHpH

Lately I have really been immersed in music that takes me somewhere. A picture of sound that swirls and shakes me. Something where I don’t focus on the words or melody but drown myself in the image from 1000 miles away. Trying to see it all. Here is some of what is taking me there.

Stoneburner – (Beauty Is Terror) I feel like watching this project from Steven Archer is like seeing a blacksmith always sharpening a blade with a whetstone. Each album just keeps getting cleaner and sharper. You really can see the sound itself gain more technique and mastery with every release. It builds on itself and takes new shapes. In particular the vocals on this album are both more of an instrument but also crisper and more distinct.

Beauty Is Terror – Title track slams hard out the gate. I’m hit first by the construction. The efficiency of every sound there. Nothing overpowers or takes away. Keep yourself from fucking up. The cymbal crash sounds seem to strike at just the right moment to feel like the sound is cooking but the tempo is in reality a steady medium groove. This song feels like the early moments of an origin story. Someone just coming into their power in defiance.

Are You There The Way I’m Here – This his me like a concrete brick sledge hammer. It’s so different from everything Stoneburner. It’s smooth, sleek, sexy, it’s almost like Peter Gabriel doing triphop industrial. Again I love the connected story of this record. It isn’t so much the lyrics as the natural progression of each songs sound. Two stars synchronized across the black.

London – I love when songs are places. When you hear a song and are immediately been to a place you have been. Wet old brick walkways in a dark city full of tight alleys. The doubled vocals here, one electric and buzzing. Another chanting and organic to make a glorious effect. This song is a reflection, both the puddles on the street and the way it leaves you thinking about actions.

I know I often gush about Steven’s work, but I really believe this is the best music I have ever heard him produce to date. Take my recommendation and buy it. You won’t be sorry.

https://stoneburnerofficial.bandcamp.com/

Carrion – (Testament Ov The Exiled) If Stoneburner was a hero’s journey rising then Testament ov The Exiled is the hidden horror lurking in that alley. It drones and stalks, but with the smoothness of a predator you never see. Whispering to you. Just the quick glimpses of Flashing yellow eyes in slashing distortion. It’s the atmosphere that builds the horror here. Like an old Vincent Price movie that never needed to show you the monster to scare you. This is music to test your bravery against. Light a single candle. step outside the comfort of your door, and test the strength of your courage.

https://officialcarrion.bandcamp.com/

eHpH – (Infrared) – This is a turbulent time, you can taste it in the air. Division and fear are everywhere in the soul of America. This album takes that tension and spins it into thread. Weaving a tapestry. Heavy use of samples and thick pad sounds. Who says you can’t dance and think at the same time. This is a sound hungry for revolution. Fernando’s vocals come from behind a distorted shadow but ring clear. The fighters of freedom wear masks and carry an axe. I love challenge and FLA dance beats.

https://ehph.bandcamp.com/album/infrared

“Fucking Visceral” An Interview w/ Carrion

The definition of Carrion is “the decaying flesh of dead animals” and morbid as I am that immediately peaks my interest. Enter the world of Carrion and subsequently the worlds of Swansect, FTMOB, and Missfit Toys.


HH: First off, feel free to introduce yourself and give us a quick summary of your artistic work and vision.

C: While names are inherently meaningless for this instance we can use the moniker Hide Beliya`al. My work and vision is one and the same as, in my opinion at least, is of absolute necessity. In more direct terms however I could describe it as an expression of my experience on earth in every which way.

HH: So you’re an extremely prolific artist with 4 active projects currently: Carrion, Swansect, From The Mouth Ov Belial, and Missfit Toys. Do you ever experience burn out? What keeps you inspired?

C: I guess I do in short bursts but I usually don`t let it stop me if there is work to be done. As for what keeps me inspired, this is what I`ve done my entire adult and teenage existence, it`s literally the only way of life I know so it`s quite a natural state of being at this point in time. I suppose I have a wound overflowing with various substances, I can`t stop it as I`m not in control here. As far as MissFit Toys goes it`s my first time being in a full on band with other people in a long while and it`s not something I would do if it wasn`t for me finding some sense of value in both the outcome of it as well as the people I surround myself with. I also like that it enables me to take a small step back and not have to be the one leading it at all times, I originally started out as a bass player so I never purposely went for the frontman role but through the years found myself there regardless. MissFit Toys also lets me explore a side of industrial I generally have very little interest in beyond that band in particular. It`s the only band I currently perform shows with, at least that was the plan until the horsemen arrived.

Missfit Toys

HH: What first compelled you to dedicate yourself so fully to your art? Can you talk a little bit about your song writing process?

C: I never quite understood how some people could take something so fucking visceral as art and the creation of something out of nothing as merely a hobby. I suppose it`s a sign of the times we live in but I digress..There was never a moment where I made that concious decision, I always approached this with a sense of seriousness to it. Even way back when I started my first few bands I`d find myself in a situation where I took it “too seriously”. While others may not mind skipping a rehearsal in favour of some other activity I saw this as lack of dedication which eventually led me to abandoning the idea of working with others for a long time. My songwriting process is quite abstract as most creative processes tend to be. Lyrically I don`t feel like I`m writing them as much as I`m simply dictating, taking notes of the things I`m told and shown by something I couldn`t possibly pretend to understand. There`s definitely a spiritual element to the process.

HH: Does it hurt your vocal chords to scream like that?

C: Haha, not at all. Of course if it`s been a while I might need a few minutes before I`m there so to speak but it`s not a matter of pain. I have however ended up vomiting after recording but that`s more due to pushing it as much as possible for a prolonged period of time.

HH: When I think of Norway I cant help but think of corpse paint, music videos recorded in the dark forest, and indecipherable logos. Do you draw any influence from black metal in your work? Do the goth, metal, and other scenes overlap at all?

C: Where I currently live is what I imagine people see in their minds when they think of this place. I live in kind of a middle of nowhere place surrounded by trees. I do take alot from black metal yeah, I`m more inclined to listen to rock and metal than any industrial honestly. As far as scenes overlapping that would require a scene to exist in the first place which it doesn`t really in that sense although just in terms of the people I personally know who are, let`s say darkly inclined, yes that seems to be the case.

HH: Your work very often references Christian themes, e.g. heaven, crosses, salvation, sanctity, and fire. Were you raised religious? How do these themes play into your work?

C: I wasn`t raised as anything in particular but I`ve always had a natural pull towards the more spiritual aspects of existence. I grew up in a house I`ve later been told is built upon a viking graveyard in a tiny place just 20 minutes from where it`s said Christianity first came when arriving to Norway so perhaps that`s to blame? Religion, or spirituality rather does play a big part. Carrion is in its simplest form to be seen as a diary where each entry is a retelling of a direct experience or thoughts and feelings related to the topic at hand. I tend to prefer using a highly symbolic language, if one was to dive deep one might discover a thing or two, the veil is thin once you take a proper look. On a more mundane level however I`d like the listener to not be forced into thinking what the song is about, preferably you can find your own meaning, maybe something you could even relate to on some level. I am human after all and with that it`s no surprise things sneak in there, things we all experience such as heartbreak, joy etc

HH: You split time in between an isolated village in Norway and Southern Florida. Do the contradicting landscapes inform your work at all?

C: Not necesarilly in the way you might think. I`m not one of those people who needs a certain setting to write a certain kind of music. I`m perfectly able to write a Carrion song under the scorching Florida sun as I am in the foggy Norwegian woodlands.

HH: What does the future hold as far as your music goes and what can we expect from you in the near future?

C: The most recent event would be the release of the Carrion single “The Blood Ov Saints”. I do plan to follow it up with a second single called “Until The Reaper Comes”, which is one of the heaviest songs I`ve written and it feels like a good snapshot of how I feel regarding the current apocalypse. There is also an all modular album created under the moniker of From The Mouth Öv Belial, it`s mostly improvised instrumental pieces except for two tracks which has vocals done by the entity known as AGGRESS. I may or may not gather the results of the current writing sessions and release as an EP [or an album if there is enough material] though I`m rather hesitant about making any definite statements about it as I`d rather not say something now only to have it not happen. Fans of MissFit Toys may know this already but we do have a new album in works as well as a single”Blithe Din” which will hopefully be released soon along with remixes by variety of great artists.

Stream Carrion’s “The Blood Ov Saints” here:

Artist Links:

facebook.com/officalcarrion instagram: @carrionkvlt personal IG: @Mordsengel officialcarrion.bandcamp.com fromthemouthovbelial.bandcamp.com

Stumble through the brooding miasma with Swansect on their debut album

https://swansect.bandcamp.com/album/concrete-doves?fbclid=IwAR1TrwEv31tSsZD2tNQUy4rJAtG_8UKPTlsKzwsRl–BB_DLOAZYZmU8mCU

Buy here on bandcamp

Concrete Doves opens with a relentless deathrock bass riff and then militant flash bang drums that trigger my panic response. Feels like getting followed into a dark alleyway and getting the shit kicked out of you by a malevolent spirit. Guitar and undead vocals devoid of any feelings fill out the mix and make for a very disorienting and visceral start to Swansect’s debut.

What follows the musical equivalent of running the gauntlet but the aggressors have razor blades, chunks of concrete, and live power lines. The album utilizes multiple “styles” (industrial, deathrock, sound collage, drone) but is held together by the thematic anxiety of the whole work. There is an overwhelming sense of impending tragedy only buffeted by small bursts of apathy in reference to the destiny of the human race.

The last track to me seems like a meditation on the futility of it all, a sort of peace despite all the destruction and devastation that we’re exposed to everyday, in real life and on the news. Peace stemming from the acknowledgment that some things are just out of our control.

Listen to Concrete Doves here:

Other Social media links:

Facebook.com/swansect

Instagram.com/swansect