Something I love most about interviewing other artists with my cohost melodywhore on Situation 47 is hearing them tell their stories, reaching back to experiences sometimes from their childhood. The details we remember, how we remember them, and how we sometimes as artists weave them into the stories we tell through our craft has always fascinated me.
Having worked with Dogtablet several times prior, I was thrilled to do so again on “Six Lives”. The project sounded intriguing – both the concept of the featured vocalists all having a story to tell, and being able to tell mine. So, upon hearing everyone else’s tales, naturally I had to know what was behind them.
Upon hearing the creaking sound in the music Martin had given to her, Marselle was reminded of a swing set, which in turn made her think of how much she loved swing sets as a child. “I would reach out with my feet trying to get as high as I could. This one time, I got so high I felt like I was flying! I jumped off feeling like the momentum would carry me through the air. But I didn’t land so gracefully.” She thankfully escaped serious injury and was left with a scar on her forehead.
“But even though it was painful and left a scar, I still would reach as high as I could. Again and again and again.” “Metaphor? Maybe”
Swing sets behind her perhaps, Marselle still flies in her dreams.
“This song came to me from Dogtablet at the perfect time, to allow me to express some dark and uncomfortable feelings. I don’t do much of that in my day-to-day life so music is my safe space for everything in my life that breaks, to just live in peace, in a broken way”.
“Also, the tone of Martin’s tracks felt darkly unsettling under a sheen of smooth listenability, which reminded me of the Netflix series YOU, about a stalker, which my daughter and I had been binging”.
Jane took traces of her own experiences and, “shellacked them onto an ill-intentioned stalker and set the scene in my beloved and trusty black Cadillac, my other safe space, whose windows I recently had tinted.”
Asked about those personal experiences to which she refers, she recounted two terrifying situations from her past which happened around the same time. One involving “disturbing letters from a prison inmate who was a fan of Tromeo & Juliet” when she was a young mom.
The other being a home invasion where she was held at gunpoint.
“I had a show that week. We were raising funds for the democratic party, for Obama – in Indianapolis. I was playing with The Born Again Floozies. I got through the show, but that was my last show for, well – since 2008 I guess.” Leaving that all behind her now, she very much looks forward to her upcoming show in September with Paul Barker, her very first show since.
Fascinated by clone stories such as those in the TV series “Orphan Black”, Cronenberg fan Betty X took her inspiration from one of his movies which featured clones in a very unique way.
“The inspiration for ‘In the Night‘ comes from the unsettling allure of Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool—a descent into a world where one is seduced by the intoxicating pull of hedonistic orgies… with their own clones.”
“Someone like you, someone like me… In the night, we’re tangled in desire”
This track featuring Jennie Bellestar describes the unexpected consequences to selling ones soul…”you signed the deal and lost control…”
The story as she describes it – “In the pursuit of fame and fortune Sandy is presented with a choice. Sign the deal and you will have riches beyond your wildest dreams, by not signing you will be destined to remain invisible in the industry you have always dreamt of being part of.
After succumbing to temptation, she realized soon after that there were stipulations to the deal, once signed she would never own her soul again. For her there could be no turning back and though the fame and fortune was everything she had wished for, it pales in comparison to simply having the freedom to be herself. By signing the deal, she unwittingly became a slave without a voice. Rubbing shoulders with people she really did not resonate with.”
Sapphira Vee
“The Red Tile”
When I was a kid in school, I was given one of those tests where you answer a bunch of questions about yourself and then they tell you what careers might suit you when you grow up.
Mine came back “Private Investigator”, (not hard to believe if you know me and my insatiable curiosity) which, in my child’s mind, translated somehow to “Spy”. And I’ve been intrigued with the thought of being a spy ever since.
“The Red Tile” gives you a peek into a day in the life of an agent, who undergoes an unsettling debriefing, which includes getting drugged, then getting reassigned. All in a room with hideous “what IS this place and who decorates this way” red tile, to the sound of water dripping. Once the deal is made, off she goes for another adventure.
Says Coral, “I find Martin’s music so haunting and evocative that everything seems to flow naturally through me.” She immediately finds inspiration for melody and lyrics when working with specific artists including Martin, “as there is something in their music that I emotionally connect with.”
“Blood Moon” is “essentially a selenophile praying to the moon for forgiveness and comfort.” She believes that we are “all impacted in some way by both the moon and the tides.”
And finally, Martin King’s inspiration behind putting these six tales together:
“It really started while listening to Betty X on a track called The Velvet Mind, I’d been wanting to write something for her to include on a Dogtablet project for a while, and it really put me in a Twin Peaks kind of place.
I thought it might be cool to write a series of tracks that were like musical versions of 50s / 60s film vignettes. Short stories that appeared important to the narrator either fiction or non-fiction. Then really it made sense to have an all-female cast to make a more natural thread throughout the project. The music was to become the story background and the vocal, the focus point. I’m amazed at how brilliantly it all came together, and with almost zero guidance or input from me, all the tracks started to come together exactly as I imagined.”
Recently I have found myself seeking out music that caused my mind to wander in fantastical textures and elevated thoughts. To listen beyond slamming club hits and bask in something inspirational. So I have chosen to share some intellectual sonic nourishment outside the mainstream. Most of what I have chosen isn’t the darkness Sounds and Shadows is known for. This is music drenched with vibrant colors to inspire and innovate. I hope you find something you love.
Chiasm – Chasing Butterflies – Amazing new remix EP from Emileigh Rohn of Michigan. An electronic producer with an impressive body of work that has honed her emotional electronic style into flashing blades that whirling dervish poetic musings. Compiling an all-star heist team of Beborn Beton, Stabbing Westward, Black Car Burning, Sapphiria Vee, Jean-Marc Lederman, and Steve Anthony to remix three tracks. Each one captures a different aspect of the chaotic manic wandering from the original. Emileigh has a wispy fae delivery in vocals that transports you to a supernatural realm, each canvas shows different hues. With all the legendary names taking on Chasing Butterflies, I found myself drawn in to Black Car Burning‘s version of “Dead Trees” with it’s greyscale contrasts and spoken word delivery. When I was a child I accidently saw Poltergeist staying up past my bedtime one night. The scene with the tree breaking through the window has always haunted me. Something about this remix struck me in the same way. I love a song that crawls under my skin.
released May 3, 2024
All songs written, programmed, performed and produced by Emileigh Rohn.
Recorded in MausHaus Studio 2020-2023. Mastered by Jean-Marc Lederman. Artwork by Christian Petke/DCore.
G.W. Childs IV – Spectrum – Last year I fell in love with the yee haw synth goth sound of G.W. from his EP “You Don’t Know“. I love a lofty concept and here G.W. addresses his childhood synesthesia by composing a sonic representation of each color in the pallet. Opening with Gold and winding a spiritual sidewinder through emotion and imagery to Silver. This album really stretches the human experience and makes sharp cuts for every track. The vocal delivery embraces a deliberate cadence with almost hip-hop aspects. This can’t cover the twang of Texas that makes the whole journey feel the sway of the saddle. Generally to write a review I listen to an album 3 times minimum. After playing this four times, I feel like I am barely scratching the surface. This record has a Tolkienesque feel of epic technicolor journey. A footstep by footstep quest past every pain or triumph that makes us human.
The whole point of this album is to use only sounds that let you close your eyes and see the essence of a color in your imagination. So choosing a favorite tracks is really tough. I suppose some did impact me the most. Maybe they were the tracks that captured my favorite colors. Maybe they reminded me of my favorite Tolkien characters once I made that connection.
Orange: This was my Tom Bombadil. Burnt synthesis. Sunsets, that moment of reflection right before a transition. An extra burst of energy before things go dark. Orange is a wild card. Orange is possibility.
Violet: This track is dangerous. This is mystery. A mist that doesn’t let you see to the horizon. Something supernatural made of dreams. Duality of bright and dark. Violet is both at once.
I love when an artist takes chances. This record took all the chances.
Written, programmed, performed and produced by G.W. Childs IV Executive Producer: Christian Petke Mastering by: (Slam) Stephen Lam
Rohn – Lederman – Black And Bleu – A brand new release from frequent collaborators Emileigh Rohn (US/ Chiasm) and Jean-Marc Lederman (Belgium/ The Weathermen, Ghost & Writer) on Jean-Marc’s new label Les Disques de la Pantoufle. A two disc CD with a clear tonal division. As composers Emileigh and Jean-Marc have always impressed me by forging raw emotions into a complex blended human experience. Black and Bleu takes that complete being, deconstructs it into laser thin aspects to categorize by the duality of contrasting colors. I highly recommend a physical copy with the stark contrasting artwork of Erica Hinyot.
The Black CD was more tortured and introspective. Emileigh’s voice went to a more passionate poetic place than their previous collaborations. It had me recalling another favorite electronic poet Susanne Vega and her 99.9 degrees F album. It’s such a powerful combination, the way no sound is wasted. Everything here has a purpose in the swirling black abyss. Each bass note, every synth pad, electronic brushes on electric drums. You never hear a crescendo unless you have to, because when the impact comes it needs to strike hard.
Black Favorite Track – Eggshells – I LOVE when a CD closes with the most powerful and revealing track. This simple piano and reverberating strings paint such a tapestry for a soul shaking poem. I’ve tried to walk forward in life, on what I knew was dangerous ground. I could feel every tentative step and my heart went out. when music is something you don’t just listen to, but feel.
The Bleu CD let’s you see the color, a more hopeful twilight. Overlapping harmonies caught on the wind. Thee tracks make full use of Emiliegh’s styles. Cadenced whispered spoken word, rattling off piercing uplifting choirs. Bleu uses surreal background effects to give the world a sense of whimsy. These tracks all feel like dreams. A movie you watch with your eyes closed.
Bleu Favorite Track – Sliding In Socks – I love the way this song captures a private moment we all have done, but never in front of anyone. There is something beautiful of that idea both secret, and universally relatable. The keyboards have the feel of an 8 bit virtuality game you might get lost in forever. I’ve listened to this 4 times, and each one the words tell me a different story.
Trick Casket – BITCHCRAFT – I remember saying this about the band Haex, this is as much metal in my Industrial as i can handle and still love it. The Toronto band of Connor Grant, Brett Carruthers, Ryan Parker, and Nicolo Cassidy are a heavy breath of stalking invisible hell hounds chasing you down the hall. Frightening electronic horror that walks the sinister pace of inevitability. The chorus roars ferocious intention.
An unfortunate fate to conjure you An unfortunate fate to conjure you All the suffering you wanted me to Fuck that, I hope it happens to you An unfortunate fate to conjure you
Often with Metal music my hangup is the vocals where intention gets lost in the pure aggression. Trick Casket finds a subtitle delivery just on the brink of chaos. If I ever get the chance to demolish concrete walls with a sledgehammer, Trick Casket is the soundtrack to fill my heart with brimstone for the deed.
released April 2, 2024 Written and performed by: Trick Casket Music produced by: Trick Casket and Brett Carruthers Mixed & Mastered by: Brett Carruthers
“The Black Maria: a menacing 19th Century figure who would come to take away our outcasts and miscreants… later used as the slang term For UK police vans… Nothing much has change”
ATTRITION – The Black Maria – Electronic music legend Martin Bowes put out the single The Great Derailer some time ago. An instant classic utilizing vocal talents Emke of Black Nail Cabaret to paint a striking portrait of 19th century baron’s holding a mirror to modern day post capitalism. In March the full album was released from Cage Studios in his home in Coventry. There is a focus in music these days to release a constant stream of content to maintain relevance. I love the patient unraveling of this records story, as well as the controlled narrative style of it’s creation. Additional collaborators Yvette from Vaselyne, Joanne Wolf and most notably the return of original ATTRITION vocalist Julia, to create an album varying in style from industrial to gothic to dark ambient soundscapes. These drum compositions and sound effect craft create a subversive world of flickering amber lights and combustion machinery. Martin adds his own slow whiskey gravel vocals, building and chanting intensity.
Using a menagerie of symphonic sound from special guest appearances by Alia Miroshichenko (Subterranea) Annie Hogan (Marc and the Mambas etc) on Grand Piano, Vancorvid and Marietta Fox on Violins, Ian Arkley (My Silent Wake, Guillotine Dream) on Guitar, Steve Clarke (Futumche/Octogoth) on additional guitar/bass, and Kris Force on Cello. Every aspect of this album feels large and significant.
Favorite Track: The Great Derailer is the easy answer. I have reviewed the single before though. So I will talk about The Alibi – This terrifying Bioshock lullaby with tension lashing violins, and gorgeous operettic harmonies. A chaotic fever dream held together by the tempo of the rolling tracks. A wonderous example of songcraft.
This entire album is a wonderous experience that paints images and inspires higher thought. Something we are sorely in need of in the modern world. What if Tom Waits crooned and industrial record on the downfall of mankind in 2024? You don’t have to dream anymore.
Red Lokust – Hope is the Last Refuge of the Dying – Latest release from Pittsburgh’s Distortion Records guru Jim Semonik one of the truly good dudes in this scene. Things I appreciate from the starting gun “Sunfall Down” bouncy clubdustrial beats with sunken distorted vocals, in which I can hear every word ring out. Sometimes genre gets in the way of intent. Not here, lots of classic 90’s industrial homage elements but never at the expense of the lyrics and delivery. This album is bright and crackling with an explorers sci fi hope. It’s dark and snarling, but always charging forward and this underlying live wire is what makes the tracks sizzle. I didn’t link an interview to this review because somehow I have never had Jim on the show, I really need to remedy that. I kept waiting to hit my high speed industrial limit break but it never came. With breakdown tracks like Crestfallen to lay tempo change and curve to the laser car extravaganza.
SU – Amanita ocreata – So last year I fell in love with the bizarre Quebec duo that did the most amazing cover of Skinny Puppy “Smothered Hope” on the Retronomicon album to help Charles Levi. I suppose when I spooled up this new EP, I expected something vaguely in the vein of that. I LOVE being this level of delighted and surprised. To start with, the cover art is magnificent. Before I hit play I was transported to a secret Jules Verne cavern of wonder. The opening track is an operatic chorus of deep sea majesty. Then track two (The title track) completely flipped the script on everything I thought I knew about SU. A sleek alien submarine QLazzarus meets Miranda’s Sex Garden adventure soundtrack in French where I understood nothing but heard all. Song after song I felt so transported by the creativity and execution I was convinced Jean-Marc Lederman was involved somehow.
Paroles et musique par SU Enregistré et mixé par SU Pochette par Raphaëlle Lavoie
Favorite track: La fête des spores – Closing out with these toms and fairy fire vocals was captivating like the first time I heard the Sugar Cubes. Chanting underdark magic rising from spore laced smoke. The whole time I listened I felt myself lured to a cold fate, and kept following the beauty of the song.
This has been a tough year for a lot of people personally. A year where we lost many friends and beloved artists in this scene. Though history strife and conflict have often been the inspiration for great art. A catalyst that helps us search for truth and test boundaries. This was a year of amazing new music that touched my heart and inspired me. As always I won’t try and rate or list every record I enjoyed. I think to cover everything and try and place it in a tidy box of genre is to lose the magic I feel getting to tell you all about something new. So I will tell you all about the Albums and Eps that touched me deepest in 2023. I hope in 2024 I discover even more and make twice as many friends like you to share it with. I’m not going to write in any particular order. If a record is on this list, I hold it in high esteem.
unitcode:machine – Critical Fault – The growth and innovation Eric Kristoffer achieved with this release is staggering. Signing with COP International to release this cold icicle dagger of EDM pop hooks and pounding industrial machinery. Eric’s vocals are captivating and unexpected. Chris Hall (Stabbing Westward) did the a masterful and modern job of the mixing and you can hear both his influence as well his belief and passion for what Eric wrote. I expect by this time next year A Lot of fans of electronic music are going to be talking about unitcode:machine.
A Cloud of Ravens – -Lost Hymns– Another story about huge achievements this year are the Brooklyn based duo infusing sharp jagged punk rock with the mystery and romantism of gothic rock. Produced by Jackknife Studio’s the heavy bass and exaltation in the vocals melt together into something spiritual that burns with passion. I love that Matt’s vocals aren’t afraid to be dramatic. His delivery adds so much to the narrative. The dedication to gothic driven rock is what ties together the record. The thing that makes it stand out in 2023. My favorite track is one of the most synth heavy electronic crooners “Old Ghosts“. A top to bottom stand out that explores the vocal range sense of exploration that makes ACOR shine brightest. This record is the perfect accompaniment for almost every activity. It longs to bring you on adventures.
BELLHEAD – Good Intentions – Chicago based double bass duo Karen and Ivan are supporters of one of the largest scenes in the US. They play eclectic dark alt horror that confronts and energizes. The May release is a roller-coaster off the tracks, chaotic, dangerous, and alluring. Image rich poetry bouncing in a dialog of vocals to bouncing bass and stabbing guitars. Ivan’s voice is a whispered menace that gnaws the back of your neck while Karen’s cadence draws you forward. Favorite track: Valentine – This sad pop bopping guitar crossing something sinister and a blissful ignorance of what stalks you is an amazing sensation.
The Bellwether Syndicate – Vestige & Vigil – This record is a modern day classic. Released in 2023 to great acclaim by darkscene insiders, this is a record I think will keep gaining momentum in 2024. William, Sara, and Phil all hold impressive pedigree in this scene. Vestige & Vigil was their chance to place their stamp on the modern conversation of post punk by drawing in the collective anxiety and rage of the modern world, pressing it into a cool thrumming gem, then hurling it with a snarling curse at an unfeeling world. It takes true expertise to hone the ethos of filthy punk rock into something this smooth and concentrated. I can’t think of higher praise than saying picture “Raw Power” recorded by Martin Hannett in Manchester with 2023 gear. William just took a break from his role in March Violets to focus on The Bellwether Syndicate and touring, so please make sure to look for them coming to play near you. This will be the band everyone is talking about.
Beborn Beton – Darkness Falls Again – We waited too long for a new release from legendary German electropop from Beborn Beton. When the wait was over, dear gods was it worth it. This record is a master class on songcraft, beauty, and emotional complexity. Stefan Netschio croons away with a leather whip delivery. All eight tracks are a spinning cyberpunk ballroom to get lost in. Dancer In The Dark is an all-time own the floor banger. One of those tracks that has longevity to break through the surface of todays vast ocean of new synth music.
Antipole & Paris Alexander – Crystalline – Antipole is a Norway based post punk band I first fell in love with in 2017 with Karl’s first release “Northern Flux“. They have collaborated with many European top darkscene talents. In my humble opinion Karl has the best guitar tone in the genre. However that is something I have come to expect from all of Karl’s albums. That is not what made this record shine so brightly. This record was a far more collaborative effort which highlighted the soul and range of Paris Alexander and Eirene. This made characters and voices of complexity to dance on the shining crystal world Karl had built. Gorgeous and impactful, below is a link to a rare interview I did with Karl about the record. This is an album that transports you.
A Covenant of Thorns – Ashes – Scott-David Allen has been making some of the best romantic goth since The Cure “Disintegration” for the last couple decades largely below the radar of the world discussion. Bringing in Gordon Young the legendary goth guitar whisperer to master and provide presence was a match made in heaven. Cascading minor tones wet with sorrow and storm cloud beauty. Some artists just know how to stab me right in the heart with emotional presence. The track “Idols” is a full on melodramatic John Hughes standing in the rain as you watch her walk away experience. Plunge headlong into the forlorn and broken beauty.
Odonis Odonis – ICON – Toronto dark spectrum artists Constantin Tzenos and Denholm Whale flipped the script again with this new EP. Bringing in a series of great contributors like Tobacco, A Place to Bury Strangers, Actors, SUUNS, and Patriarchy to turn up the heat on a sizzling 90’s alternative chaos. ICON shifts boldly between styles and texture while tying each song back to the badass black leather jacket metric. Walking around with earbuds through the world, every song makes you feel cooler. A little more invincible, a little more fearless. Brilliant Things Feat: Terror Bird was my standout track on an album full of them. Bold longing flung forward as confident vulnerability.
Black Rose Burning – Ad Astra – The September EP from NY’s George Grant. The man I refer to as the Peter Gabriel of goth. Transcendent stories in distant galaxies, a hyperdrive range and astral bardic delivery. All of these songs feel so timeless, vibrating on a frequency between the past and future. Jason Corbett did the mastering to create sleek lines for maximum warp. Folks are finally starting to take notice of George’s talent and vision. Your collection deserves “Ad Astra“
MALE TEARS – KRYPT – LA Futurewave artists that have gone through a lineup change since this album give me hope for the future. A Young vibrant addition to the scene that forged their own path. Some people dream in synth sounds, bright fractalated hyper colors. James has a soul for the dramatic and a beautiful voice to carry the message of cleverness. This record is the ideal for the 13 person rager. Lit, but exclusive.
Choke Chain – Mortality – Mark Trueman the Hardcore Industrial Punk artist from Wisconsin is one of those pure souls you love to see succeed. Taking hard industrial beats and unleashing vocal wounds with genuine intensity that never feels like a performance. Mortality is another step in the evolution in this synthesis of chaotic electronic club thunder, with piercing confrontation of depression and rage. The truest art should take us to the edge of a precipice, beholding excitement and terror. That is the place Choke Chain takes us. I think this record is something that won’t be fully appreciated until we have had a decade to reflect on it.
BRIDES – The Earth Defeats Me – I have been a major fan of Norway’s modular doom rocker Adrian Borgia for some time, through several projects. This is the record I have been waiting for. The promise of potential I have always seen brought into that perfect moment. Stirring the shadowy depths of the primordial ooze that made that first proto goth sound touch that place in the hearts of everyone on the outside of the circle. Chalices is a 10/10 eerie live in your dreams balled as familiar as it is unique. The religious dedication to modular sway pans like dark water in the underworld. Lean desperate wolf growls which have latched onto fresh meat clarity which allow the poetry to shine. For everyone waiting on the bridge between the earliest death rock and stripped down modern coldwave, it has arrived.
Ashes Fallen – Walk Through Fire – Sacramento dark rock trio Ashes Fallen had another blazing guitar forward September release from their “Chapel” recording studio. The vocal duties between Michelle and James have found a wonderful balance. The tone is a reflection of the foreboding world closing in. Sprinkled liberally with a sparkle and glam of London After Midnight. Gordan Young has yet another mastering credit on my best of list by bringing the sharpest edges to these shimmering riffs. Favorite Track: Scar , which is definitely not a single at 5:16. it is a captivating slow build emotional exposition that really highlights the range and sincerity of their collective experience. Ashes Fallen continues to be a standout example of the place where passion and execution meet in the modern era of music.
Sapphira Vee – Fortune – Sapphira from New York state is a great example of an artist I have gotten to watch the growth and development of in real time. The daring courage of her voice and the added components of her collaborators have expanded the limits or motion and image. I feel enraptured by the emergence of a woman’s experience and sensuality expressed unfiltered. This album is intimate, nuanced, unburdened by the insecurities of the past. It harkens 90’s trip hop balanced with the soul and execution of modern darkpop. Favorite Track: Those Words feat Jean Marc Lederman – The Belgian composer is well known for finding the perfect backdrop to highlight a story. The cadence that Sapphira uses in this track is the perfect exposition of her beauty and power. The music evaporates when she steps forward, and rises as she whispers a secret. I love when a story shines in a perfect moment. There is nothing more beautiful then watching an artist evolve in a heart stopping moment.
NIGHT NAIL – Fates Explained – This record was a late comer releasing in November from the Berlin Germany transplants Night Nail. Finding a third home of Metropolis Records and mastered by sonic sculptor Pete Burns (KillShelter) this abstract concept darkwave has ridden the cusp of the modern scene staying under the radar of popular post punk audiences. Brandon Robert brings an expressive Mark Sandman baritone I feared we may never witness again. I know I said I wasn’t going to rank these records as they all have a distinct brilliance, but this record really hits with an intention, an impact, the transcends enjoyable club music. A complex puzzle to patiently unravel over the next decade. Favorite Track:Narcoleptic Dream Catcher – This one has a throwback Ian McCulloch beauty and depth. Valentine’s backup vocals cast the perfect backlight against the slithering groove. A forgotten hit plucked out of time.
VNV Nation – Electric Sun – Confession time, I slept on VNV Nation for WAY too long. Ronan Harris released his first full length since 2018 and it is absolutely breathtaking. The craft, the expression, the undeniable honesty of this record gets beneath your skin. I felt things, ask questions, experienced what art is meant to mean. The art of lyrics as the primary focus in modern songcraft is a sadly lost focus in 2023. This album is everything you ask from modern production while delivering Leonard Cohen level poetry. I am a convert. A believer. I will never sleep on the power and impact of VNV Nation again. Favorite Track:The Game – I have played this song 100 times and the hair on the back of my arms stand up every single time. Some songs just hit a perfect spot, in a perfect moment. They become unforgettable. This is one of those tracks.
Bedless Bones – Mire of Mercury – Another late release November 2023 from my favorite band in Estonia. Kadri Sammel has such a unique vocal cadence and energetic world beat percussion texture. A flowing aquatic fantasy of motion and prophesy. This album is shrouded in mystery. An internal exploration of body and soul.
Gazelle Twin – Black Dog – Awesome UK band I just discovered this year. Lot’s of gorgeous textured analog synths. Powerful psychedelic Grace Slick style vocals. This band immediately capture me by being creative in a way no one else was doing. A tempo and attack outside the box of what is popular in this moment. The growling industrial version of the Doors of Perception. The lyrics are delivered with poetic intensity. From the moment I heard that first single Black Dog I was hooked. Music without boundaries and rules that captures my dreams. This will always move me.
HEALTH – RAT WARS – LA band that waited until the end of the year to put out one of the most groundbreaking and emotive offerings I heard all year. I know I said I wasn’t going to rank these albums but this was an instant classic banger. It perfectly rides the pipe of beauty and destructive power. Lightning in a bottle of honey dripping warm amber vocals and sand blasting cannon guitars. “Hateful” is an inferno club banger that builds an obsidian castle in your brain and never lets go. This album came out December 2023 so I didn’t get to spend as much time with it as others on this list. That in no way diminished that the first time I heard it I was floored with just how perfectly it balanced the range of human emotion. This record will be something people talk about for years to come.
Aurelio Voltaire – The Last Halloween Party – As a comedy goth artist the niche pool of artists to look up to is not a vast pool. It is no secret that Aurelio Voltaire is a bit of a personal hero, getting to open for him in 2023 was a highlight of my musical career. Getting a chance to drive him around while listening to this record pre-release was one of those moments that reminds me why I do this. Dark music can be fun, it can be clever, it is diverse and connects with us in all aspects of the human experience. I remember him saying to me “I am a goth who plays music, not a goth musician.” It’s jazz, folk, fusion, all prancing around the fire, stories to send a chill up your spine. There is a very good reason he has continued to entrance fans around the world for decades. An understanding that exploring the darkness and gallows humor within us all is what connects all the misfit children around the world. I can’t wait to play with him again in Detroit in May.
SOPOR AETERNUS & The Ensemble Of Shadows – The Rules – German band that continues to do some of the most impactful and unique darkscene music year after year. An intelligent and abstract experience in a completely different category than the rest of the genre. A little Dead Can Dance, a pinch of The Swans, a smattering of Legendary Pink Dots, all whirling through a Nick Cave mist so theatrically their own. As a reviewer it is so difficult to try and define an experience so unique. No matter how many times I discover a new Sopor Aeternus album I am always struck by how glorious and innovative it is in a sea of ships moving closer together.
Lana Del Rabies – STREGA BEATA – The impressive 3rd record from Arizona artist Lana Del Rabies. A sinking bog ritual of strings and vibration. A longing prayer to darker forces. This is soulful pleading music felt in the bloodstream. Something old and dangerous called forth from dark woods to transform your dancefloor into a spell of summoning. Don’t enter into this album lightly. It is a summoning. It is a crack in the doorway between dreams and reality. To create something so unnerving and captivating is an act of courage. A thing of defiance. A challenge to the other side.
genCAB – Signature Flaws – Philly electronic artist David Dutton has captured an idea which seems elementary, but has continued to illude the masses. The lilting anthem driving vocals of emo, and the complex vibrating impact of electronic dance music. It’s bouncing expression you feel in your bones, while vulnerable narrative lyrics offer up something relatable and transformative. The title track Signature Flaws I takes two complex ideas and curls them into perfect synthesis. As someone who came late to the game with emo music, this record blends the best parts of the early 2000s into something fresh and progressive. An album for the future blending ideas not fully realized.
Korine – Tear – Another incredible Philly band blending the most pastel beautiful aspects of Jesus and Mary Chain shoegaze, Synthwave, and 90s Britpop. The wispy sass of the vocals are a sonic cotton candy I can always get lost in. Pure dopamine poured into your ears. Korine have major star potential and are high on the list of bands I must see live in the near future.
SWANS – The Beggar – Return of New York electro doom folk and controversial songwriter Michael Gira with a record that both surprised me and lived up to high expectations. Winding freeform psychedelic murder ballads all clocking in over 6 minutes. Only one single Los Angeles City Of Death, mostly a hard diet of brown acid campfire tales of cosmic horror. A revealing soul exploration that left me inspired and frightened in equal measure. Don’t try and digest this in one go. You need to take many bites before settling in for the meal. It is a meal well worth the wait though. Staggering, brilliant, tortured.
Randolph & Mortimer – The Incomplete Truth – The Sheffield, UK artist released this bouncing electropunk symphony of gears and pistons in perpetual motion. It walks heavy with blue collar confidence through a warehouse district after dark. I think one of the hardest things to master in electronic dance music laden with samples is the exact moment to drop them for maximum impact. To not overuse so that the single spoken line sets the scenery without the need for poetic lyrics. The Incomplete Truth achieves an almost robotic precision in it’s efficiency and impact. Never a wasted line, never a bridge that wears out it’s welcome. A place for everything and everything in it’s place.
OMD – Bauhaus Staircase – Another big name legacy band with a return to form in this dystopian fantasywave. I really love how they found new ways to attack the same vamp. A whimsical dance through the streets of a crumbling society. Kleptocracy was my favorite single, the vocals had a slippery magma quality. Bright pop with a thoughtful political relevance. I don’t know if anyone had thought OMD had started to miss the beat, but they most certainly have not.
††† (Crosses) – Goodnight, God Bless, I Love U, Delete. – LA band that folks are always recommending to me but I never really dug into until this year. I real David Gahan sensuality in the vocals with a more modern glitchy vibe to the darkpop sound. Lot’s of club singles to choose from, an album of dance floor bangers. The occasions when things turn up to 11 quickly against the smooth poppy hooks to smash you with morning star intensity. It’s deceptive in ways that keep you on high alert. Unexpected depth, unexpected intensity, a return to mystique I have longed for.
thePicassos – Divination Scars: among the dead in symmetry – As a big fan of the Detroit band the thing that has always impressed me most about Charles and company is the intention and thought that goes into every aspect of their performance. Such an eclectic bizarre mixture of styles from 50s doo wop to 90’s Pixies dark alt. Charles has a slippery devotion to every story he sets. Another of my favorite 2023 discoveries that the wider world needs to jump on board with.
Ritual Howls – Virtue Falters – 5th record from Detroit post rock Ritual Howls. My obsession with Yee haw goth is well documented and Virtue Falters really plays up the Johnny Cash aspect of country caught in the current of Fields of the Nephelium tragic guitars. The real power comes from how much complexity the songs have while maintaining a very straight forward groove. it’s no easy feat to capture both ideals in equal measure. It feels like one of those old school records where 3 humans locked themselves in an abandoned warehouse and got weird together for two months. Something that either leads to brilliance or madness. Never in between and Virtue Falters tapped the former.
ASSASSUN – Chronic Quicksand Depression Morning – Alexander is one of those infuriating brilliant humans who puts out such a vast amount of quality work I often wonder if he is a person or a fey. Not only is it always amazing, it is always vastly different and mind jarringly weird. I’ve never followed a stranger into an abandoned train station in Berlin in 1987 where 12 people in masks were playing abstract electronic brap music as a party performance piece. I have to imagine this would have been what it felt like and it is awesome. I think the most impressive aspect of this ambient mind goo is that it never feels pretentious. It should, but it never does.
Jean-Marc Lederman– Soul Music For Zombies – Legendary Belgian composer Jean-Marc Lederman has an uncanny ability to constantly will into being something my heart had no idea it yearned for. A dark funky industrial blender on roller skates spinning under a disco ball. Frequent contributor Emileigh Rohn does another vocal contribution which soars and cascades with waterfall beauty. Diverse as the shades of human emotion. Jean-Marc spews forth brilliant concepts that need to be shown the light. Underappreciated in our scene doesn’t tell the whole tale.
Scorpion Tea – Scorpion Tea – Finally a band that is equal measure fresh on the scene, as well as brimming with OG street cred from drummer Edley ODowd (Psychic TV). Hard mean motorcycle revving skids on the floor of a condemned church. Untamed death rock with tube amp crunch and Raw Power sensuality. I expect 2024 to be a meteoric rise for the NYC band that could find a place in three different scenes.
This year is flying by, I can’t believe October is already here. Time once again for our singles chart to highlight some of the best songs released in September voted on by our group of Artists/DJs/Reviewers/Promotors/and Super Fans. Hearing these tracks are a great way to keep your finger on the pulse as well as raise awareness of amazing new bands in the scene that don’t always show up in other charts. If you or someone you know has a single released in Oct in the broad Darkscene genre. Join the group and add it.
Matt Hart – Deep Down City
Black Rose Burning – Fight
Stoneburner – The Great Filter
GoFight – Machine Rock
The Waning Moon – Shred My Wings
Curse Mackey – Dead Fingers Talk
Sapphiria Vee – What It Was
Night Nail – Narcoleptic Dream Catcher
Choke Chain – Mortality
Gazelle Twin – Black Dog
MATT HART – Deep Down City – London Industrial Metal artist Matt Hart is no stranger to the top of the S & S Darkscene chart. I love how every single has a cyberpunk back story. This track would be the perfect scene builder for one of my old ShadowRun Table Top games. A new neon world buried beneath the destruction of the past. Cybernetically enhanced 6 inch platform boot stomps. Designer drugs and laser cycles hugging the corners of plastic streets. Razor production and imaginative concepts.
We reached a place so deep that, All the light has left the darkness, We source a new found light a Strength to fuel our journeys process
A new world built for us, A city designed to survive, Honour, pride, and sacrifice, This is the way of the Deep Down City
Main chamber to the stairwells, Entertainment and the sleep holes, Trains and stations, living districts, All together survival instinct.
Deep, down below We see the glow our home so far down
This is the way, survive the day, Take it from me we’ve paved our way.
2) Black Rose Burning – Fight – It’s so great to see awesome people get the recognition they have long deserved. George Grant from Brooklyn has been a fixture in this scene for decades and people are starting to come around to his top tier voice, immersive songwriting, and complex technique. A science fiction story set in this albums space age world. I love how this tale zooms in on a relationship. In this one a co-dependent one. I think it’s really relatable for most of us at some juncture in life. George’s voice is such a breath of fresh air for it’s unique flavor in a baritone post punk world. It’s funny, as I read the lyrics I built a story of an alien parasite which is both keeping a stranded spaceman alive, while slowly consuming him. A race against time for rescue.
t’s stranger still, to taste a bitter pill And there’s no lines, it’s better to lie all of the time Now I can’t feel you anymore
Cho: Sometimes – we try to forget it all and never make a change Sometimes – we’d rather believe it, and just take the blame Sometimes – we deceive, and we lie, to ourselves Sometimes – it’s brutally painful to let it go – I know
Verse 2 It’s your state of mind, that’s seems so unkind Now there’s no love, just push and shove, off came the gloves And I can’t heal you
Cho: Sometimes – we try to forget it all and never make a change Sometimes – we’d rather believe it, and just take the blame Sometimes – we deceive, and we lie, to ourselves Sometimes – it’s brutally painful to let it go – I know
Bridge: I tried to make you happy But the truth kept shining through I tried to make it happen Dead and Broken, words unspoken so where do we go to now?
Cho: Sometimes – we try to forget it all and never make a change Sometimes – we’d rather believe it, and just take the blame Sometimes – we deceive, and we lie, to ourselves Sometimes – it’s brutally painful to let it go – I know
3) Stoneburner – The Great Filter – Title track from Baltimore sound sculpture and dear friend Steven Archer on COP International Records. I am adoring the emphasis on narrative focus for our top three songs this month. This album and song focused on a controversial theory by Robin Hanson. I love the slow walk 90s bass opening charged down by glitchy cyber rap. The tempo takes it’s time as layers of chaos and tension pile on to a white-hot barrel fire under a bridge.
4) Go Fight – Machine Rock (MekaBeat) – The top of this chart has been full of dear friends and all around awesome folk. So I am excited to see Chicago Industrial Legend Jim Marcus picked near the top. This remix album which features a ton of top talent doing remixes of the June single. This one has a fun 70s shock rock inside a 3d video pinball game flavor. Gyration and hip checks encouraged for this dance floor banger. There is something special about Jim’s “Industrial” voice that takes me there every time.
5) The Waning Moon – Shred My Wings – A newer band comprised of two veterans Ariel Maniki (Ariel Maniki and The Black Halos) and Zac Campbell (The Kentucky Vampires). The combination explores more electronic ground for each of the goth-rock artists. You are still getting a heavy dose of classic Zach early batcave riffs. Ariel croons like a creature risen from the depths dripping with pageantry. This project really reminds you why goth was so cool in the first place. Before the word got so big you forgot what it meant.
6) Curse Mackey – Dead Fingers Talk (Electric Heresy Remix by A Cloud of Ravens) – Currently out on tour Austin TX Industrowave beat poet Curse Mackey is remixed by shooting star Brooklyn post punk band A Cloud Of Ravens. The stairslide bass walk lays a thick path for Curse to fling a barrage of venom from. The idea of creeping zombified flesh swarming towards you was really taken to hear for this reimagining.
7) Sapphira Vee – What it Was – This months chart is so full of amazing artists I love dearly, so it is fitting Sapphira has found her way into this list. The Rochester NY electro sorceress is swirling energies above her head and surrounded by a coven of top tier remixers on the Distortion Records release. I really love the confidence and cadence of this track. Soulful Missy Elliot energy fired over a cool spinning disc. Loving the way she has harnessed her voice and leaned into her truth.
8) NIGHT NAIL – Narcoleptic Dream Catcher – Berlin based atmospheric obtenebrationwave band with the first single on their upcoming Metropolis release featuring everyone’s favorite euro darkscene producer Pete Burns. This opening bass riff is sleek, wet, and captivating. Brandon shows his range and dynamic with these vocals. I love the clarity of his dipping baritone that leaves the overwash reverb in the 80’s and pairs perfectly with what I assume are Valentina backup vocals. A smooth retrospective with newfound complexity.
9) Choke Chain – Mortality – One of the most fiercely honest voices in modern electro-hardcore. This new single is a visceral dive into self confrontation and the horror of depression. It’s a nice build and texture on the music, but Mark’s voice cuts through everything to stand an inch from your face forcing you into his raw reality.
I can’t take it anymore
posessed by death destroying my life every second gets worse it keeps getting worse
dying in your sleep or dying in pain most likely in pain most likely in pain
why do I have to die? im just trying to live
why can’t I just die? it hurts me to live
each minute that passes theres so many who die and at some point that will be you gone forever
cast into nothingness no way to know you existed every thought every memory all for nothing
10) Gazelle Twin – Black Dog – I knew very little about this UK band but I was instantly blown away. A quirky shadow pop with whispered menace and electronic hand drums. True abstract nightmare fuel lit by the glow of analog synths. At 2 minutes 53 seconds it explodes as the dog breaks it’s chain to charge you with frothing chaos. I genuinely regret this was the last song I listened to before bed. Pray for me.
As always, if you or someone you know is releasing a single in October in the broad darkscene genre. Feel free to post it on my Patreon or in the Facebook group. We are always looking to discover the best in new dark music.
I have not been doing a great job of releasing new reviews this summer. It is Bandcamp Friday so I thought I would play a bit of catchup on some of the amazing new music that has kept my Summer dark and cool. Goth/Industrial/Wave music is alive and well and as always I want to place a focus on new music that has touched my heart and inflamed my senses.
Black Rose Burning – Night Terrors – George Grant with a second new single from this hybrid genre project that continues to impress. George has a standout voice that has shown new facets of depth and clarity. The cover art and tone are a return to the science fiction passion resonant in the theme of BRB. The slow shooting star guitar rift gives shape to the frantic rhythm driving the track. I know Jason Corbett (Actors) is providing mastering for the upcoming album and I can’t wait to hear his vision of George’s story.
Obsidian – Collection 1 – I had the pleasure of seeing the Florida Death Rock band play live in Chicago in August. A band that is crackling with positive energy and overflowing with live performance emotion. When I got back home I immediately looked up this October 2022 compilation of their career to date. I hear a lot of passion for the core of original goth. A reverence for Pornography Cure, Acid Bath Alien Sex Fiend, for that early strain of darkness blended with the spark of creation. The compilation includes 2018-2020 15 tracks and a wide swath of styles.
Missy Mortis – Vocals & Guitar Kathy D. – Keyboards & Backup Vocals Dent A Gon– Bass & Backup Vocals Chuck Loose – Drums & Backup Vocal
Favorite Tracks:
A Swamp – You always need to start an album with a banger. Thunderclap bassline which really drives this song like a crashing wave. Sinful chanting vocals that come from the back of the room and pierce a veil of Barney Sumner guitar static. Draw them in before you knock them down. You can hear this was early material by the rawness of production, but the track is all hairpin turns and precision.
The Vultures Will Pick Your Bones – This is a high-speed decay. Kathy Diaz takes the vocal point like an enflamed banshee wailing a future demise. The punk rock gnashing teeth of these drums will have you flailing and processed. At the two-minute mark you hear a madman’s laugh and a blistering guitar solo that drives you into a brick wall.
Viracoacha – I love the resonant Cure guitar tone here. Missy unleashes a haunting Peter Murphy style vocal that completely channels the early goth flavor. I feel this one swelling in my chest. Punishing bass that comes from the inside out. I am memorized by how unhinged every song feels while reminded what careful attention went into each song writing decision.
This is definitely a band where the live performance tells the true tale. I got to have a quick interview at the show, but I promise you all we will have a full discussion with this up and coming talent soon.
Red Meat – Providence – Brand new double single release from the sordid electrofilth artist Rhys Hughes of Manchester. Freshly signed to Armalyte Records and ready to drag you into an underground world of unimagined debauchery. Rhys brings an unapologetic Queer courage and political napalm to both their songs and online persona. I always like to close my eyes and conjure an image the first time I hear a track. This is a dump truck full of green ooze caterwauling down the street splashing acid on the world as it teeters through every turn. Rhys flings the venom laced vocals at high velocity on a gatling gun percussion. It jumped up the bandcamp charts in a hurry for good reason.
Sapphira Vee – Fortune – NY shadow siren Sapphira Vee continues a steady flow of electronic cabaret on Distortion Records. This latest offering is in pre-release for Sept 8th. As always she puts a focus on collaboration and community with a bevy of top tier guest stars like Jean-Marc Lederman, Veronica Tam, Chava Sanberg, and Jim Marcus. Mixed and mastered by Jules Seifert at Epic Audio Media, London UK. My first thought from track one is how much you can hear the craft work she put into her production and songwriting. A lot of effort went into very tiny details and it shines. A shimmering jazzy vocal cadence blended with Underworld electronica. Creating a lovely space between the triphop feel of her earlier releases. Powerful use of string synths that draw a memorizing line through the phrase.
Favorite Tracks:
What It Was – Hard not to choose this opening single. Opening with those gorgeous string sounds into a sharp drum attack and very early 2000s London feel. Sapphira’s voice is a slow amber whiskey swirling in a glass. Confident and center without overpowering. An effortless ownership that eases you in.
Last (Feat Jim Marcus) – As a huge fan of Jim’s voice, hearing him take on a sensitive beauty in the reflection of someone else’s music is amazing. I feel so much trust and collaboration in this track. usually when I think of Jim’s lyrics and voice it’s all sexy bear growls and slippery club feels. This is tender, sweet, beckoning.
Metamorph – Woo Woo (Feat: Adoration Destroyed) – NYC Synth Witch Margot Day is leaning into the autumn season and teaming with club thumper maestros Adoration Destroyed. Streaking through the sky on broomstick, cutting the violet fog, getting real high and getting witchy for us. The flute breakdown before two minutes if the perfect gust of breath. We all know how much I love my goth to be fun, and this is a Stevie Nicks riot.
Slighter – This Futile Engine– What makes California electro sonic visionary Colin Cameron stand out in a crowd so much? I think it is how he approaches music. It’s never with a plan to play out live, to pack a room. His songs are moving auditory dreams made solid. This translates into his career doing soundtracks for tv/movies. The latest title “This Futile Engine” rings so apt evoking imagery of a grinding mechanized monstrosity rolling over a dying world of post capitalism too enormous to support it’s own consumption. Colin pulled out all the stops from Brutal Resonance and beyond with guest artists who he pushed out of their comfort zone in every track.
Tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 13 written by Colin Cameron Allrich (ASCAP) Track 2 lyrics and vocals by Craig Joseph Huxtable (SOCAN) Track 7 lyrics and vocals by Anastasia Poirier (BMI) Track 9 lyrics and vocals by Yvette Winkler, recording assisted by Roland Zwaga Track 11 lyrics and vocals by Tara Kimberly Saavedra (ASCAP)
Track 5 Vocals by Steven Seibold and TaraSaavedra
Track 9 Vocals by Yvette Winkler
Favorite Tracks:
Memory Corruptor – (Feat Steven Seibold and TaraSaavedra) – This one is broken sky slow grind with terrifying screaming vocals. Guess who is one of the greatest screamers in the game? Steven Seibold of Hate Dept. Blend this with the ethereal swamp whispers of Tara aka Morgue VVitch and you are left with a heady and unnerving brew. The production on this song really highlights the best of everyone.
Pulling Me Under – Previous winner on the S & S darkscene singles chart. This track showed a glorious new side to Craig’s voice. The music is a rumbling dance bop. Cold and captivating Craigs voice resonates with desperation seeping into cold water. Try not to move your whole body to this track.
This whole album is perfect to close your eyes and sink into a nightmare imagination journey.
Psyclon Nine – More To Hell – Los Angeles terrordustrial band has made this EP as mean and gritty as I can handle. It’s good to know where your edge is, and this one is mine. Released on goth/industrial legendary label Metropolis in May 2023 this is a follow up to the 2022 “Less To Heaven” with some heavy hitter remixes by Skold, Suicide Commando, Pitch Black, and more. This EP is all slithering shadows, and they are all holding wicked looking knives. One of those records I don’t listen to if i am hoping for a peaceful nights sleep. Double bass drum impact, cruel glitchy guitar fuzz, and vocals that lash around like a razor sharp forked tongue. This isn’t in my standard wheelhouse, but something done well that has a time and place in my heart. Enough that I have continued to come back and find the words.
Favorite Track:
Money Sex and Death (Suicide Commando Remix) – Sure this is one of the bigger names for the remixes, but there is a reason they have that name. This is explosive like a legion of demons assaulting the gates. Stomping in the viscous sludge in platform boots.
Stoneburner – The Great Filter – Lately I have been getting the feedback that I have a few artists that receive a constant stream of my bandwidth and I could search deeper for bands I don’t know yet. Steven Archer would surely be near the top of that list. The thing is, Steven keeps putting out incredible art, and it is always different. I’m not going to stop talking about it just because I have before. So here is a new EP on COP International with a hypothesis to question if the universe is as vast as it is, it seems mathematically likely other life exists. So why don’t we see it. Industrial music, which has always had strong ties to Science Fiction or prediction is at it’s best when not only tackling concepts like dancing, banging, and drinking. Opening with the frenzy beat Narcisus Steven does layered mesh vocals rich with a lip curl arrogance. Almost like an audiobook Steven is finding ways to tell stories by vocal inflection. Different characters in the Stoneburner world have emerged with distinct voices. Another intriguing aspect of The Great Filter is a return to complete production control in Steven’s studio. I think it creates a different energy and confidence to some of the COP releases featuring John Fryer.
Favorite Tracks:
Fair and Balanced – Punk infused political banger addressing class and corruption. This is vintage Stoneburner spitting dissent with even cadence and rhythm you feel in your bones. It’s hard not to put your hands up. Like a bouncing cyborg kangaroo charging towards you on fire.
Corvomancers – What a rich and complex tale, of carrion hybrid creatures picking the bones of a broken world. The vocal effects back off to let the clarity of the words breath. This chorus got stuck in my head. The Crow hybrid or shapeshifter has deep roots as a trickster in many mythologies. Blending that with an alternate reality or science fiction is a master stroke. I would love to see a graphic novel of this premise.
