Plastique Noir – Iskuros (Album – Wave Records)

Genre/Influences: Cold-Wave, Post-Punk.
Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.
Background/Info: Brazilian Post-Punk formation Plastique Noir is back on track, having unleashed their fourth full length album by the end of 2021. It also is the first new album in six years.
Content: “Iskuros” is touched by the darkness and power of 80s Cold-Wave music. The guitar playing is the essence of their songs and reminds me a bit of The Skeletal Family. The songs are energetic pieces carried by charismatic vocals -sometimes reminding me of The Editors.
+ + + : What I expect from Post-Punk music is a powerful production driven by solid guitar playing, dynamic drums, dark atmospheres and a deep resonating timbre of voice. Plastique Noir comes pretty close to these conditions and especially the guitar play gives me satisfaction. The vocals are less 80s like however revealing a compelling vocalist.
– – – : The album features a few ‘softer’ and dreamy-like tracks, which can’t convince me. I’m referring to tracks like “Scrying Your Soul” and “All Cats Shall Celebrate”.
Conclusion: “Iskuros” stands for good-old Post-Punk music.
Best songs: “Asleep In The Night Train”, “Catedrais Em Chamas”, “Manifesto”.
Rate: 7½.
Listen to “Iskuros”:
Artist: www.facebook.com/plastique.noir
Label: www.waverecordsmusic.com / www.facebook.com/waverecords
About Plastique Noir
Plastique Noir formed in Fortaleza (Brazil) at the turn of 2005 and 2006, working in post-punk, gothic rock and darkwave.
The band self-released the CDr “Offering” and “Urban Requiems” in 2006, “Dead Pop” in 2008 and “The Early Grave” in 2009. Wave Records issued the CD albums “Affects” in 2011 and “24 Hours Awake” in 2015, while the limited and numbered CD “As Above, So Below” came out on Deepland Records in 2019.
“Iskuros” arrived at the end of 2021. In January 2024 the band re-released “Dead Pop” on vinyl and CD with five bonus tracks, and a deluxe CD edition of “Iskuros” followed on Sidney Discos.
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I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

