Tag: Produkt 42

Sounds And Shadows August 2023 Darkscene Singles Chart

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Time again for the Darkscene Singles Chart. Where members of the S & S Facebook and Patreon group of DJs, Artists, Superfans, Reviewers, and Labels vote on the top songs released in August. The songs can be anything in the broad Darkscene genre. We have an amazing collection of music lovers in the group who always lift up songs that captivate the heart, and often aren’t a focus for other charts.

  1. Steven Archer – I Am The Walrus (Beatles Cover)
  2. The Amaranth – Thighs
  3. Ashes Fallen – Damn Me
  4. Bestial Mouths – Road Of A Thousand Tears
  5. Bellhead – Valentine
  6. cEvin Key – The House That Tried To Kill Me
  7. Unitcode:Machine (Feat Stabbing Westward) – Cold
  8. Brides – Chalices
  9. Black Rose Burning – Night Terrors
  10. Vandal Moon – Satellite
  1. Steven Archer – I Am The Walrus – The WolfLord has returned with a new solo single cover of the Beatles. You really don’t see enough Industrialdelic Beatles tunes and this was a big hit with our listeners. Buzzing outer darkness chaos exploding with pinpricks of colored light. This was always one of the Beatles strangest offerings and Steven pushes it right off the cliff into the mouth of an exploding Katju Seabeast.

I Am The Walrus (The Beatles Cover) | Steven Archer (bandcamp.com)

2) The Amaranth – Thighs – I know what you are thinking. Ken, you won second place in your own poll. (Nudge nudge wink wink). Well perhaps this is the one arena where a new Amaranth single can compete against the heavy hitters. I refuse to think that. I love this song. It’s sleezy, I got to dust off my sexy growl. The concept of passing out after playing a show and waking up to find a perfect imprint of your makeup pallet on your partners inner thigh was one that resonated with me. I will not apologize for increasing the number of songs in the world about going down on folks. Lovely cover art by Hemlock. Expert Mastering by Pete Burns. I love Kam’s live drums mixed with their electronic beat.

Thighs | The Amaranth (bandcamp.com)

3) Ashes Fallen – Damn Me – California Goth Rockers with a slamming new single fresh off their appearance at the Murder Of Crows Fest in NYC. Loving the bouncing 80s guitar vibes mashed against The Cult style dark rock. Michelle Perry brings more confidence and gusto to every new release. Cover Art by Michelle Perry. Mastering by the legend Gordon Young. James Perry has put together an all star team and their future keeps getting brighter.

Damn Me | Ashes Fallen (bandcamp.com)

4) Bestial Mouths – Road Of A Thousand Tears – I talked about this upcoming release during the Negative Gain Records interview. How excited they were that Rhys Fulber himself had ask to be involved with the project. When I think of new bands doing something truly unique and fresh to stir an emotional experience the Sacramento, California band is at the top of my mind. Lynette Cerezo swirling chant resonates like a druid high priest lifting exaltation to the power of the dark forest. This track is one of those you can get truly lost in. The craft of the strings, the exploding percussion. I want this song as the intro to the next great warrior hymn period piece.

Road Of Thousand Tears | Bestial Mouths (bandcamp.com)

5) Bellhead – Valentine – New Video single from my favorite double bass duo from Chicago. We have an interview with them releasing soon. This track is Ivan’s voice at it’s most sensual and frightening. Karen gives a perfect Kim Deal call and answer. The piano is a gentle intimacy that highlights the edges and makes this song live rent free in my mind.

Valentine | BELLHEAD (bandcamp.com)

6) cEvin Key – House Tried To Kill Me – cEvin Key is a legend. He was in Skinny Puppy. So no wonder his new release got deserving attention on our chart. Off upcoming album Brap and Forth releasing Oct 6th the name is certainly apt. This feels like a private room electronic brap session in a trance rave. Textured organic meat walls pulsing and damp. I like that the flow isn’t something you need to follow. You sit in place and it creates a cyclone of motion around you.

House Tried to KILL ME | cEvin Key (bandcamp.com)

7) Unitcode:Machine (Chris Hall Stabbing Westward Remix) – Cold – How does one improve on one of the spiciest dance singles of the year? Add Chris Hall, it was that simple. Texas Native Eric Kristoffer on COP International continues to show a flare for 90s dancedustrial hooks while maintaining a calm reserved elegance. Like a Jedi in a lightsaber battle. The song never needs to raise it’s voice to feel powerful. Soon to be headlining the Dark City Fest in New Orleans. If you get the chance to see Eric live, you must.

Cold (Chris Hall / Stabbing Westward Mix) | unitcode:machine (bandcamp.com)

8) Brides – Chalices – August was a big month for Sounds and Shadows writers with Hide also making the chart for this new project Brides. I absolutely adore this direction for him. It’s inspired shadowfolk with contagious darkwave edges. His voice rings like the snarling lean elder wolf mouth crusted in glimmering ice. Brilliant and haunting, I can’t wait for more.

Sounds and Shadows Interview with Hide Tepes

Chalices | BRIDES (bandcamp.com)

9) Black Rose Burning – Night Terrors – Always a fan of Brookland based Black Rose Burning. Right out the gate this new single has a guitar resonance that made me think of The Church “Reptile“. George croons and sears the back of the wall with vocal intensity. Haunting thoughts from the edge of an inky black universe.

Night Terrors | Black Rose Burning (bandcamp.com)

10) Vandal Moon – Satellite – Another California band on the chart. Vandal Moon is one of those bands I always hear people I trust raving about and haven’t spent enough time with myself. This single is purple poison dripping from a dagger. Streams of spotlight synths panning around the room. This bassline thrums while hugging the curves. Nice rising decay on the vocals ala Pretty Hate Machine. Fun and briming with science fiction heist.

Satellite (EP) | Vandal Moon (bandcamp.com)

If you have a release in September or no someone who does, make sure to add in the Sounds and Shadows Darkscene Singles Poll. No pay to play, just the best in new dark music.

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

I Just Need A Tiny Moment, For Me and For This Music.

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Tomorrow April Bandcamp Day embraces us. I returned from a desperately needed weekend getaway to see Actors at Smalls. Out at a bar, seeing one of my favorite bands playing live. With my friends around me, dancing, smiling, drinking. Ok the drinking got to be a bit over the top and I got sloppy gushing to Jason after the show. I think you take my point, it felt like fun was in the world again. Feeling locked away for so long. Work, isolation, trying to finish an album, seeing so much music come sailing over my head at the speed of light. Wanting to share but not finding the spoons to write reviews. Kicking the can down the road until tomorrow. Seeing that show though, it reminded me why I started. This new album was a progressive step forward for Actors, the excitement of a new member, music into energy, into joy, into energy returned. I came home reminded I needed to stop. Stop pushing myself to write because I had so many bands to share, so many friends to send my love to, and just stop. Stop and listen to music. Write about it after. It would be done when it was done. I might not finish for Bandcamp Day. When I do finish, I will tell you about the songs I stopped to listen to, alone in the silence.

Gasoline Invertebrate – Cracked Wax Battery – Brian Gaupner (The Gothscicles, Space Couch, TigerSquak Records) holds a special place in my heart. I feel a bit of twin spirit in how he approaches music. That feeling that music is an experience better shared. The visual of a Cracked Wax Battery is such a striking image. That bleeding yellow goop pouring out of an old battery carcass. Bringing in great artistic names that are also friends of a mutual vision like: Gopal Metro , Ed Cripps, Zoog Von Rock, and MORIS BLAK. A plasma whip of electronic dance beats cracking the air with aerobic intensity. Brian takes some of the jovial madness of Gothscicles off his voice and replaces it with hissing menace. The NES throwback energy of these synth lines are a nerdcore street cred of belonging. Gasoline Invertebrate always makes you feel inside the curtain.

Fav Track: Please Rate Your Pain – This song is everything the album is striving for, distilled down into a concentrated idea. The samples which raise a gallows humor poke at society. The rippling checkered cloth of constant motion. Brian’s continuous chant against the monetized concept of pain Olympics in modern society.

https://gasolineinvertebrate.bandcamp.com/album/cracked-wax-battery

silver walks – tear me down – Dan McCullough the recent New York resident has continued to blow me away with every thread he slowly unravels for this album. This latest single out 4/8/22 is a super band level support cast to bring the shimmering sand swept race through grains of time to life. Coral Scere delivers a breathy elegant leaping vocal performance. In fact this single features an all star cast.

music written and arranged by Daniel Mccullough
vocals and lyrics by Coral Scere
backing vocals by Tim Heireth
additional noise loops – Steven Archer

all tracks mastered by Eric Oehler at submersible studios, Wisconsin
artwork by Steven Archer
silver walks logo by Jim Marcus

I really feel this in my bones. Dan has been taking his time to hone each song to perfection. The attention to detail and craft show. This is special.

https://silverwalk.bandcamp.com/album/tear-me-down

Panic Priest – Second Seduction – So this is a 2020 release from Chicago synth crooner Jack Armondo, one of the best baritone voices in the modern darkscene with an amazing ear for melody and construction. This album released on Negative Gain was a forceful step forward for the artist. It has a cavernous echo of isolation which was so relatable and present for many in 2020. The guitar work was an ever twisting glass staircase of builds and contact. Adam Black of Midnight Mannequin Records took on the mission of bringing this powerful album into vinyl format with this re release. The expansive warmth really deserves this hand held delivery. Looks like I need to buy this record again.

https://midnightmannequin.bandcamp.com/album/second-seduction

Black Angel – The Black Rose – Dark rock deity Matt Vowles has released another new album, honestly I don’t know where he finds the depths and time to keep churning out this much material at a high level. Where 2021 Prince of Darkness had a very LA hard rock 90s flavor, The Black Rose goes back even further with a modern gothic slant on early devil rock like Black Sabbath. It creeps in like a dream with slow stinging drums, deep lacerating guitar riffs, and a staggering vocal melody somewhere between Ozzy and Lane Staley. Someday soon a wise label is going to snatch up Black Angel and push them to the moon.

All tracks written, recorded and produced by Matt Vowles on behalf of Solid Recordings Publishing 2022
Vocals by Corey Landis and Maneesha Jones
Album cover by Eshmoon DM

https://blackangelmusic.bandcamp.com/album/the-black-rose

Vaselyne – Here To Begin – New 2 track EP out from Amsterdam based new members of the COP International family Yvette Winkler and Frank Weyzig (ex Clan of Xymox). I love the forceful proclamation of a title “Here To Begin”. All sales from this EP will be donated to support The Ukrainian People in their struggle for freedom. I’m always an enormous fan of bands that step up for their beliefs. The music has a travelers sung story around a crackling fire feel. Faces wreathed in shadows with distant pounding toms and blended finger pick acoustic and slushy growling wolf guitars. It builds like a spell into a gorgeous blown glass solo. I love the warmth and organic construction. This begins an intriguing new sound for the diverse COP roster.

https://vaselyne.bandcamp.com/

Latenite Automatic – Statues – So I am standing near the merch booth at the Actors show in Detroit, and Jason introduces me to this handsome young rake and says “Ken, this is Scott, you need to check out his band”. Well I am always going to take that recommendation. Thus I was led to Canada based Latenite Automatic. I was struck first by the dangerous blend of club beats and rock and roll attitude. The vocals are a dark growling vibration sitting under the surface of the mix. Breaking the water in parts to create tension and intensity. The solo of this track sets the fretboard on fire. You have my attention gentlemen, time to dig through the back catalog.

https://lateniteautomatic.bandcamp.com/

Stoneburner – Contracting Iris – I know, Ken, you are always talking about Stoneburner. Well, have you heard Stoneburner? There is a reason. A new 2 track EP based on the science fiction story by  Peter Watts. I love the ambitious artistry of this concept, where music is inspired by the written word, they find each other and build a stronger broader idea. The story now has an audiobook version with Steven’s score and Donna reading. I hope Steven has pioneered another idea that catches on in the scene. The music conjures images of Lynch “Dune” with it’s post apocalyptical chaos and danger, set against a background of high leather fashion. I kept picturing Sting doing a knife dance in a pit of unworthy opponents.

https://stoneburnerofficial.bandcamp.com/?fbclid=IwAR0ca30k7SPvPjRMeLXKsFNjuuvSCQai8vFqjhMF4dr0TMuiPmpquGtzT-s

Sever The Servants – Nowhere – Second single from the powerhouse team up of Hide Tepes and Mike Nolen. A mechanized iron lung terror track. A shambling chant of desperation and quest for meaning. I love hearing two artist I am a fan of individually finding ways to smooth each others edges and improve the effect of both. Now on Produkt 42 a new label getting big steam in the scene.

https://severtheservants.bandcamp.com/album/nowhere

PSY’AVIAH – Bittersweet – Massive new 42 track release from Yves Schelpe led project Psy’Aviah. This is bursting with guest talent like Claus Larssen (Leætherstrip), Mari Kattman (Helix) , Cat Hall (Dissonance), Kimberly (Bow Down Ever) and so many more. I don’t have time on bandcamp day to give the true deep dive of justice this release deserves. It is glorious higher thinking trip hop electronica with a poets soul. A robust and soulful stew of Portishead, Suzanne Vega, with modern spice and production. I’m honestly floored by the world building ground covered in this single release. It feels like 3 albums of contrasting and quality material. We should all pick this up and explore it deeper together.

https://alfamatrix.bandcamp.com/album/bittersweet-bonus-version?fbclid=IwAR3scZq_alMH4iax-nYcBANuus6LZVhgUj4Jihcj96v-Ds-cHPI47w5jObw

As always if you have something awesome to add, please share a comment below. I always want to hear about new music.