De/Vision released their synth-pop album “Fairyland?” on 9 August 1996 through Strange Ways Records. The album turns 30 this year. It became the first De/Vision album to enter the German album charts, where it reached number 87 later that month.

‘Fairyland?’, De/Vision’s first chart entry

The band recorded the album at The Factory in Belgium in April and May 1996. De/Vision produced and mixed the record together with José Alvarez-Brill, and Tom Meyer mastered it at Master & Servant in Hamburg. Strange Ways Records issued “Fairyland?” on CD, alongside a limited digipak edition of 7,777 copies that came with a 12-page booklet and a band poster. The twelve tracks are “I Regret,” “Dawn,” “Sweet Life,” “Like the Sun,” “Harvester,” “Today’s Life,” “Scars,” “Keep Your Dreams Alive,” “Wages of Sin,” “Bleed Me White,” “Take Me to the Time…” and “Daydreamin’.” The singles “I Regret” and “Sweet Life” accompanied the album in 1996.

The album entered the German album charts on 26 August 1996 and peaked at number 87, the band’s first chart placement. Asked in a Q&A on their Apple Music artist page about the most memorable moments of their career, the band pointed straight to this record: “Our first chart success with ‘Fairyland?’ in 1996!” The live album “Fairylive!” followed in 1997. The original 1996 recordings are currently not available on the major streaming services; the album circulates on CD through the secondhand market.

About De/Vision

De/Vision formed in July 1988 in Bensheim, near Darmstadt, Germany, with Steffen Keth on vocals and Thomas Adam, Markus Ganssert and Stefan Blender on synthesizers. Blender left in 1991. The band self-released the single “Your Hands on My Skin” in 1990 and issued “Boy on the Street” in 1992 through Synthetic Product Records, before the 1993 maxi single “Try to Forget” brought them to Strange Ways Records. The debut album “World Without End” followed in 1994, produced by Axel Henninger, who had previously worked with Camouflage. “Unversed in Love” and “Antiquity” both appeared in 1995, and “Fairyland?” arrived in August 1996 as the band’s first chart album. “Monosex” followed in 1998 through WEA.

Markus Ganssert left in 2000, and Keth and Adam have continued as a duo since, now based in Berlin. They founded their own label Popgefahr Records in 2009 and released later albums including “Popgefahr” (2010), “Rockets and Swords” (2012), “13” (2016) and “Citybeats” (2018). Keth also appears in Devision Redux, which went on tour in 2025 with Daniel Myer of Haujobb, while De/Vision themselves joined a 2025 tour with Lakeside X and Empathy Test. The 30th anniversary of “Fairyland?” points back to the album that opened that chart history.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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There is a new format show for De/Vision called Devision Redux which will be touring next spring. The project consists of Steffen Keith (singer of De/Vision) and Daniel Myer (Haujobb, DSTR, Covenant, Architect etc.).

Together they will present the most important tracks of De/Vision in a clubbier, more modern, partly also more minimalistic, but purely electronic version.

The first show will take place in Tallinn, Estonia on April 12 at Kinomaja. The project will then continue touring in Germany over Easter 2025 and will probably also expand their live presence beyond that.

According to singer Steffen, Devision Redux is in no way the end of the actual band.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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(Photo by Chris Ruiz) In advance of their upcoming North America Tour 2024, synth pop trio Beborn Beton drop the first single “American Girls”, taken from their forthcoming new EP “To the Stars”, which is scheduled for release on November 22, 2024.

Beborn Beton’s Stefan Netschio comment: “The track ‘American Girls’ honours the strength and perseverance of women and acknowledges the ongoing struggle for true equality all around the globe. Despite the progress made, humankind still has a long way to go before women are valued and treated as equals in every aspect of life. We can hardly wait to perform this song live for the first time on our upcoming 10-date tour in North America this October.”

The EP “To the Stars” follows directly in the wake of their ninth album “Darkness Falls Again”. The EP holds three new tracks and four remixes. Here is the tracklist from the upcoming “To the Stars” EP.

1. Ticket to the Moon
2. American Girls
3. Progeny
4. I Watch My Life on TV (Club Mix)
5. My Monstrosity (EMMON Remix)
6. I Watch My Life on TV (Black Light Odyssey Remix)
7. My Monstrosity (Control Mix by Blac Kolor)

Beborn Beton North America 2024 Tour

• 03 OCT 2024 Chicago, IL (US) LiveWire Lounge
• 04 OCT 2024 Detroit, MI (US) UFO Bar
• 05 OCT 2024 Toronto, ON (CA) Ground Control
• 06 OCT 2024 Montreal, QC (CA) Cabaret Foufs
• 08 OCT 2024 Boston, MA (US) ManRay
• 09 OCT 2024 Arlington, VA (US) The Renegade
• 10 OCT 2024 Amityville, NY (US) Stimulate, Amityville Music Hall
• 11 OCT 2024 Wilmington, DE (US) Bar XIII
• 12 OCT 2024 Tampa, FL (US) Absolution Fest
• 13 OCT 2024 Los Angeles , CA (US) Cold Waves

About Beborn Beton

Beborn Beton was founded by vocalist Stefan Netschio, keyboard player and drummer Stefan Tillmann, and keyboard player Michael Wagner in 1989. Their first signs of life were three self-released tapes, “Pyre” (1989), “Scythe” (1991), and “Die Stahlbetontour” (1992).

Following their first two regular albums “Tybalt” (1993) and “Concrete Ground” (1994),the band joined renowned acts such as Wolfsheim and De/Vision on the Strange Ways Records label. In 1996 the full-length “Nightfall” was released, followed by “Truth” in 1997, and “Fake” in 1999.

“Rückkehr zum Eisplaneten” was released in 2000, Beborn Beton followed by the exclusive US release of a best-of double-album entitled “Tales from Another World” in 2002, which was followed by extensive touring in North America with Apoptygma Berzerk in the same year.

After the release of “Tales from Another World” (2002) and the associated touring, the band went on an extended hiatus.

It took 13 years, until the trio returned with a new album on Dependent Recordings: “A Worthy Compensation” (2015).

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Genre/Influences: Dark-Pop, Industrial-Pop, Future-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: This must be the fifteenth album by American project System Syn. Driven by Clint Carney the band released several successful releases. This self-released work features ten new songs.

Content: System Syn must be like the American answer to European Electro/Future-Pop formations but the album sounds darker and Imore Industrial. It creates an evil sound polished by carrying choruses.

+ + + : I like the powerful and dark approach of the work which makes me think to an ‘Industrial version of De/Vision and Wolfsheim’. The songs are well-crafted and filled with tiny melancholic doses. I’m not saying System Syn reinvented its sound but there’s a noticeable evolution in the band’s discography. It became somewhat atypical-Pop like and yet very accessible for Electro-Pop lovers. I especially recommend listening to “The Light Was A Lie” which sounds like a sublime and powerful song.

– – – : You’ll also notice a very few happy-sounding passages and other sweet elements in the production which I’ve to confess aren’t my favorites.

Conclusion: System Syn don’t follow the Electro-Pop standards and has clearly established its very own interpretation of the genre. That’s what I like in this album.

Best songs: “The Light Was A Lie”, “Kill The Light”, “Ashes In The Wind”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.systemsyn.com / www.facebook.com/SYSTEMSYNmusic

Listen to “Kill The Light”:

About System Syn

System Syn is the American electro-industrial and futurepop project founded in 1997 in Los Angeles by Clint Carney, alongside Adam Vex and Jon Siren. Its discography includes “Once Upon A Second Act” in 2020. “Kill The Light” continues System Syn’s self-released run of albums.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

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Thirty years after their official debut album “Tybalt” German Electro-Pop formation Beborn Beton strikes back with their ninth album to date. “Darkness Falls Again” (Dependent Records) deals with the dark, contemporary, times we’re living in. Music wise the album holds on the familiar and very personal Electro-Pop style of the band; danceable and melodic songs featuring a professional production. I talked about this masterpiece with singer and front man Stefan Netschio.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: I realized that your first official album “Tybalt” has been released thirty years ago now. How do you remember the first steps of Beborn Beton and how do you see the evolution of the band throughout the years?

Stefan: After such a long time one questions the validity of one’s own memories. For sure there are certain milestones that will always stay with you, but everything else in between is a blur. There are lots of things lying dormant. It would probably require a night or two with all three of us reminiscing. I remember the nights we spent in the studio recording the first albums. And even before that, the studio time we had when recording our first songs with Carlos Peron in Switzerland and Cologne (Germany). Lots of people we met. The many different bands from that time, some are still active musicians and some have quit the business. The early tape recordings. Back then there was a tape scene with labels that put out compilations. I remember it being exciting being chosen for said compilations. And most importantly the many shows we played that had a significance for our evolution as stage performers.

I think the first era ended when we got signed to Strange Ways Records. The recordings with the late José Alvarez-Brill were a big step up, plus the wider exposure as a member of the Strange Ways roster. Super fun times. Touring with De/Vision, Mesh and Icon Of Coil.

Then getting signed to an US label and touring the states supporting Apoptygma Berzerk. An experience of a lifetime. Playing shows in Canada, Russia and all over Europe. We played many shows and festivals in the meantime, but it was only a few years later that we started writing and recording “A Worthy Compensation” with Olaf Wollschläger. That is definitely one of the highlights in our career. The work with Olaf was eye-opening. And we took more time than anticipated because it was so much fun and Olaf was more than just a producer. He profoundly understands our DNA. The new signing to Dependent Records and the return from that long hiatus with flying colours. All that time we have been independent artists. At some point, we were really young, there was the question whether or not to pursue a full-time music career. In hindsight I am so happy that we didn’t, that we are able to do what we want to do and not having to answer to anyone but ourselves.

Q: How much of the young musicians you were at that time do you still recognize in your work and global approach today? And what makes the chemistry throughout the years?

Stefan: Thirty years is a long time to evolve as an artist and of course as a human being per se. We have seen a lot, we have traveled a lot. Played shows on different continents, many still to explore. We tried a lot of things and we wrote lots of songs, spent a huge amount of time in the studio playing with technology. So, we still have the urge to write meaningful songs and use the highest possible technical standards to bring them to life. On the other hand we are not so easily impressed by music anymore. We know the tricks and we know how it’s done. But we still appreciate a good composition or a greatly executed production.

We have always been friends that make music together rather than fellow musicians. And that has not changed ever since. We party together and have spent a fair share of our free time travelling together not on tour as Beborn Beton. I believe, next year Till and I have known each other for forty years. We attended the same school when we found out that we liked the same kind of music. I met Michael in 1989 when we founded the band. That’s thirtyfour years now. I am his daughter’s Godfather and we all attended each other’s weddings. We are like family. Not by blood, but by choice.

Q: There’s already a serious gap (eight years) between your previous album “A Worthy Compensation” (2015) and “Darkness Falls Again”. It gives me the feeling there’s much more than music and Beborn Beton in your lives but how important remains this creative / artistic exposure and what does it mean to you? And what motivated you to start writing “Darkness Falls Again”?

Stefan: Beborn Beton is an integral part of our lives. That is our main outlet and means of creative expression. Sure, we all have very time and energy consuming day jobs. Some of us have another job on the side as Dad. So we do not always have time to meet all three to write music. But we still try to make time to spend some quality time together when we can. In the last few years I spent a lot of time crafting remixes and collaborating with other artists, enhancing my skills. But Beborn Beton is what we are even when we are not playing shows or writing albums. It’s not a coat that you take off at the end of the day. We believe in what we do and we mean every word we sing.

After “A Worthy Compensation” we were arguing whether or not this was the best and maybe our final album. We worked for so long on this and everything about this release was meticulously thought out and heartfelt. We wondered if we still had something to share with the world. And most of all, if we had the energy to make an album that is even better or at least similarly good as this one. Then came the era Trump and his magic box of atrocities. Racism, sexism, climate change and exploitation of earth’s resources, homophobia, sexual freedom, conspiracy theories. You name it. To us it seemed that this man spewed his venom at everything to fuel the anger of a divided nation and the world. We were on fire which resulted in us writing songs. It also made us sensitive to other topics that we weren’t aware of before. For example postnatal gender designation, even at a later stage. Then there was the pandemic that opened the floodgates to right wing extremists and conspiracy idiocracy.

And to top it off, Putin declared war on Ukraine. Dark times for humanity, great times for songwriting.

Q: The album indeed reveals a strong lyrical and engaged content which has been transposed into catchy tunes and danceable songs. I like the contrast of dancing on very serious lyrical topics but how do you see this aspect? And what’s the deeper significance of the lyrical content?

Stefan: That has always been our focus right from the beginning. Writing meaningful and serious lyrics, interesting stories and placing them in a beautiful, yet danceable and uplifting context. That is the core of Beborn Beton’s musical formula. And on “Darkness Falls Again” we address the issues mentioned before. From self-determination of gender, free love and sexual orientation to the fate of our planet and generations to come, but also existential topics, life altering medical conditions and challenges, war in the name of religion, racism and the enforcement of women’s rights. Some of the themes have been covered by songs that have not been released yet, so watch out for more to come.

Q: Can you give us an insight about the writing of “Darkness Falls Again”. What have been the different stages you’d have to go through to achieve this work and what have been the major difficulties and challenges?

Stefan:The songwriting process hasn’t changed over the years. Once the stories and topics are set, we sit together and the music is mainly conceived by playing around with the piano while the vocal melody takes form. And with the storyline in mind I vocalize parts of the vocal melody to get a natural groove and measure and once the chord progressions and vocal melodies are done, I write the verses and choruses while the beat and basslines are being articulated. And as long as I need to fix the lyrics, Till usually adds layers of sounds, percussion and additional sequences. When the music and lyrics are in a raw demo stage, we usually stop and let it rest for a couple of days. When we revisit the song to see if we still like it, we always find things that we feel could be executed better. This way we write the album tracks and in between all the songs get countless revisions. So, if – after months of songwriting -we still love the tracks we have written, chances are good that we are onto something big.

After that stage we get together with Olaf Wollschläger to refine the songs in his studio, work on the arrangements and the sound of the songs and get a cohesive album sound. This is when we record the vocals, get the mix done and give the songs that extra shine.

To be honest, fortunately there weren’t any major difficulties or challenges. In times of lockdown, when we couldn’t be in the studio together, Olaf worked on the songs on his own and gave us regular updates. But that was when all the pieces were finished in their substance and the adjustments were made on a very deep level, where mixing decisions were reconsidered and the overall sound was polished even more. Sometimes a few subtle changes go a long way.

Q: You already mentioned Olaf Wollschläger who produced the album. Less bands today are working with an external and renowned producer so what do you think about this evolution? And what’s the impact of Olaf’s work and production skills on the final result?

Stefan: A lot of bands do not have the budget to work with a renowned producer or they don’t deem it necessary to get a person on board with another professional view on things. For us it really is liberating to have a second opinion. Olaf’s creative input is very important to us and his ideas mostly give the songs that little extra. It isn’t as simple as it sounds, because to get the perfect sound another couple of weeks pass. We knew Olaf from previous album recordings and as a team we worked even better than on “A Worthy Compensation”.

There was a time when we didn’t have the knowledge to produce an album of such quality on our own. Having worked with Olaf on two albums now for a considerable amount of time has broadened our skill set immensely. We have gained so much expertise from this collaboration. But of course, our relationship has become more than just a job acquaintance. We have become friends and just being around him is so much fun. We are on the same wavelength. 

Q: A new album is often connected to live shows and tours, playing at big festivals, clips, remixes etc… What are the concrete plans right now and what brings the future for Beborn Beton?

Stefan: After the production of the album, we filmed two videos and commissioned numerous remixes from artists that we really like and admire. Some of those have been issued on the limited 2CD-Artbook edition of the album and on the “Burning Gasoline”-EP. And we are still not done with the “Darkness Falls Again” cycle. There are still songs that we recorded that did not make it on the album. Not because they are not good enough. They are just different and deserve a release on their own. And there are still a lot of great remixes that have not yet been released for different reasons. So you do the math;)

And of course we will play shows. We have played two shows now in Germany and there is more to come. A definite highlight is the co-headlining slot at this year’s Terminus Festival in Calgary, Canada. Imagine my jaw dropping when I had a look at the bill and right after the main act Nitzer Ebb there stood our name. So, as Beborn Beton, right now we are having the time of our lives.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

(Photo by Chris Ruiz) Out now via Dependent Records is the all new album by the German electropop act Beborn Beton. “Darkness Falls Again” offers a mix of 80s synthpop with a touch of 90s electronic influences.

Through the song lyrics the band addresses contemporary political struggles and cultural conflicts through their lyrics. They voice opposition to efforts that undermine women’s rights and challenge those who seek to limit expressions of love, gender, and sexuality. The group also criticizes racism, demagoguery, hate speech, and environmental destruction for personal gain.

The German electropop act Beborn Beton was founded by vocalist Stefan Netschio, keyboard player and drummer Stefan Tillmann, and keyboard player Michael Wagner in 1989. Their first signs of life were three self-released works, “Pyre” (1989), “Scythe” (1991), and “Die Stahlbetontour” (1992) that came out on tape. Following their first two regular albums “Tybalt” (1993) and “Concrete Ground” (1994), Beborn Beton found a label-home at Strange Ways Records where they joined renowned acts such as Wolfsheim and De/Vision. In 1996 they released the full-length “Nightfall”, followed by “Truth” in 1997, “Fake” (1999) and “Rückkehr zum Eisplaneten” (2000). Add to this the exclusive US release of a best-of double-album entitled “Tales from Another World” in 2002, which was followed by extensive touring in North America with Apoptygma Berzerk the same year. But after the release of “Tales from Another World” (2002) and the associated touring, the band went on an extended hiatus.

It took 13 long years, until the trio returned with a new album on Dependent Recordings: “A Worthy Compensation” (2015). 8 years later we now have “Darkness Falls Again”.

Check the full release below. Read the review of ‘Darkness Falls Again’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

side-line.com

(Photo by Chris Ruiz) Out now is the all new single and video, “Dancer in the Dark”, by the German electropop act Beborn Beton. The track is taken from their forthcoming new album “Darkness Falls Again” scheduled for release on March 17, 2023. The new album will be produced,recorded, mixed, and mastered by Olaf Wollschläger at Railroad Tracks Studios, Kerpen, Germany.

You can check the video below.

Beborn Beton was founded by vocalist Stefan Netschio, keyboard player and drummer Stefan Tillmann, and keyboard player Michael Wagner in 1989. The band self-released three tapes in the early nineties: “Pyre” (1989), “Scythe” (1991, and “Die Stahlbetontour” (1992). The albums “Tybalt” (1993) and “Concrete Ground” (1994) followed on the Subtronic label and after that they were signed to Strange Ways which was the label home to Wolfsheim and De/Vision back then.

After the release of “Tales from Another World” (2002) and the associated touring, the band went on an extended hiatus. It took 13 long years, until the band returned with a new album on Dependent Recordings, “A Worthy Compensation”. Seven years later the band is back with another new album later this year.

“Darkness Falls Again” will be available as a 48-page artbook with bonus CD, on black vinyl , on white vinyl (limited edition), and as a digisleeve CD.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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After two strong albums, Frankfurt-based Timo Revna aka Reichsfeind joined the Alfa Matrix label releasing the single “Persona” as a teaser for a forthcoming new album called “Darken” which is out today.

The new Reichsfeind album is called “Darken” and features 12 tracks of electro / techno pop which will please fans of bands like Covenant, VNV Nation, De/Vision, Mesh, Icon Of Coil, etc. with a stress on great melodies, fat beats and cold and strict vocals.

The new album is out as a download via Bandcamp and on CD (available here).

Check out the tracks from this excellent release! Read the review of ‘Darken’.

Eldrina Mich

As Eldrina Mich I work as a go-between and a devil’s advocate when it comes to Side-Line. If our own staff needs to be interviewed then ask the questions no one else dares to ask.

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Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. During the late 1970s bands such as the Human League, Kraftwerk, and later on Gary Numan, Soft Cell and John Foxx helped pioneer a new synth-pop style that drew more heavily from electronic music and emphasized primary usage of synthesizers. Developed in the late 1970s it has seen several revival periods up until now.

We picked out the best synthpop albums from the past 4 decades (!!!). Here’s our list.

The Human League – ‘Dare’ (1981)

The Human League are ‘oldies’ when it comes to synthpop. Formed in Sheffield in 1977 and initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group attained widespread commercial success with their third album “Dare” in 1981. The album contained four hit singles, including the UK/US number one hit “Don’t You Want Me”. The band’s third studio album, it was recorded between March and September 1981 following the departure of founding members Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh, and saw the band shift direction from their prior avant-garde electronic style toward a more pop-friendly, commercial sound led by frontman Philip Oakey. A remix album based on “Dare”, “Love and Dancing”, was released in 1982.

Talk Talk – ‘It’s My Life’ (1984)

Talk Talk were an English band formed in 1981, led by Mark Hollis (vocals, guitar, piano), Lee Harris (drums), and Paul Webb (bass). The group achieved early chart success with the synth-pop singles “Talk Talk” (1982), “It’s My Life”, and “Such a Shame” (both 1984) before moving towards a more experimental approach in the mid-1980s. Not surprisingly that our next pick is “It’s My Life”, the second studio album by Talk Talk, released in 1984. The album enjoyed an enormous succes thanks to the big international success of its singles (notably “Such a Shame”). We have a soft spot for the tracks “Dum Dum Girl”, “Such a Shame”, “Renée”, “It’s My Life” and “It’s You” although the entire album is just extremely enjoyable.

Alphaville – ‘Forever Young’ (1984)

The German synth-pop band Alphaville, which formed in Münster in 1982, achieved chart success with the singles “Forever Young”, “Big in Japan”, “Sounds Like a Melody”. All these were taken from their 1984 debut album “Forever Young” which was produced by Colin Pearson, Wolfgang Loos and Andreas Budde. Despite the success of the album and its singles, the band did not tour as they felt more like ‘studio rats’. It remains the band’s best output to date.

a-ha – ‘Scoundrel Days’ (1986)

The Norwegian synth-pop band a-ha was formed in Oslo in 1982 by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (guitars), Magne Furuholmen (keyboards and guitars), and Morten Harket (vocals). “Scoundrel Days” is the second studio album by the trio and offered a more mature sound compared to their debut “Hunting High and Low” (1985). “Scoundrel Days”, recorded in England in early 1986 and produced by Alan Tarney, sported such singles as “I’ve Been Losing You”, “Cry Wolf” and “Maybe, Maybe” which was released solely in Bolivia. “Manhattan Skyline” was the forth and final single released from the long-player.

Erasure – ‘Wonderland’ (1986)

“Wonderland” is the debut studio album by the English synth-pop duo Erasure and was released in 1986. Although it was not an immediate success, the three singles released from it did become cult tracks overtime: “Who Needs Love Like That”, “Oh L’amour” and “Heavenly Action”. Although “Wonderland” was considered a failure, especially when comparing it to Clarke’s prior successes with Depeche Mode and Yazoo, the album became an all time favourite that laid the fundament of what was to follow in 1987 with the release of “The Circus”. The album was produced by Flood who would become a long-time collaborator.

Pet Shop Boys – ‘Actually’ (1987)

Pet Shop Boys, the English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981, broke all records when they released “Actually”, their second studio album, in 1987. It was pushed forward by such great tracks as “One More Chance”, “What Have I Done to Deserve This?” (with Dusty Springfield), “Shopping”, “Rent”, “It Couldn’t Happen Here”, “It’s a Sin”, “Heart” and the majestic “King’s Cross”. In short an album filled with hits.

New Order – ‘Technique’ (1989)

New Order was formed in 1980 by vocalist and guitarist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. The band formed after the demise of Joy Division, following the suicide of lead singer Ian Curtis and were joined by Gillian Gilbert on keyboards later that year. Their experience of the early 1980s New York club scene saw them increasingly incorporate dance rhythms and electronic instrumentation into their work which resulted in their 1983 hit “Blue Monday” becoming and absolute monster hit. However, we picked out “Technique”, their fifth studio album. Released in 1989 by Factory Records, the album incorporates Balearic beat and acid house influences into the group’s dance-rock sound. “Technique” was the first New Order album to reach the number one spot on the UK charts and had such excellent singles as “Fine Time”, “Round and Round” and “Run 2”.

Depeche Mode – ‘Violator’ (1990)

“Violator” is the seventh studio album by England’s Depeche Mode. It was first released on 19 March 1990 through Mute Records internationally, and through Sire and Reprise Records in the United States. Preceded by the singles “Personal Jesus” and “Enjoy the Silence” (a top-10 entry in both the United Kingdom and the United States), the album propelled the band into international stardom, and also yielded the singles “Policy of Truth” and “World in My Eyes”. The album is generally considered as their most accomplisched electropop album before they encorporated more rock elements in the next album, “Songs of Faith and Devotion”. The role of Alan Wilder was crucial in “Violator”, you only have to compare the first and final version of “Enjoy The Silence” to notice the huge difference.

Bel Canto – ‘Birds of Passage’ (1990)

Bel Canto is a Norwegian music duo, originally a trio, fronted by vocalist Anneli Drecker and musically powered by Geir Jenssen and Nils Johansen. Signed originally to Crammed Discs, their second album “Birds of Passage” is considered as an absolute pearl holding an excellent production (aided by Giles Martin) and a long list of guest musicians who added acoustic elements to the cold nordic synths Jenssen and multi-instrumentalist Johansen. It was also the last album featuring Geir Jenssen. It holds the hits “Intravenous”, “Birds of Passage”, “A Shoulder to the Wheel”, “Time Without End”, “Continuum” and “The Suffering”. The band remains an often well-hidden pearl in electropopland.

De/Vision – ‘Fairyland?’ (1996)

De/Vision, a German synthpop act formed in 1988, was at the peak of its electropop stardom around the mid-nineties culiminating in the outstanding “Fairyland?” album which had such great tracks as “I Regret”, “Sweet Life”, “Today’s Life” or “Bleed Me White”. The band was fronting a new wave of electropop bands in Germany but was generally considered to be the most consistent one as far as quality and output. Sadly enough the release, and also the band’s earlier material, are no longer available on Spotify.

Wolfsheim – ‘Spectators’ (1999)

Wolfsheim was a synthpop duo from Hamburg, Germany, that consisted of Markus Reinhardt and Peter Heppner. Their fourth studio album was “Spectators” (1999) preceeded by two ‘pre-release’ singles from the album. “Once in a Lifetime” was released on October 16, 1998 and “It’s Hurting For The First Time” followed on November 30th. The LP was produced by Wolfsheim and José Alvarez-Brill and held 11 new songs. To this day, “Spectators” is the best-selling album by Wolfsheim with over 250,000 copies sold. The third single, “Künstliche Welten”, was released in 1999.

Iris – ‘Disconnect’ (2000)

“Disconnect” is the debut album by the electropop group Iris. Released in 2000 via the US label A Different Drum, the synthpop label by excellence, its success was guaranteed by the now cult synthpop jewels “Annie, Would I Lie to You?”, “Lose In Wanting” and “Danger Is The Shame”. Originally formed by Reagan Jones and Mat Morris in 1993, after the release of their first album “Disconnect”, Matthew Morris was replaced with Andrew Sega, who pushed the band’s sound in a more experimental electronic direction. Sadly enough the release, and also the band’s earlier material, are no longer available on Spotify.

Elegant Machinery – ‘A Soft Exchange’ (2008)

The Swedish synthpop band Elegant Machinery defined the Swedish synthpop movement along with such bands as Page, S.P.O.C.K, Sista Mannen På Jorden and Kiethevez. Heavily influenced by acts like Yazoo, The Human League, Depeche Mode and Rational Youth, the trio Robert Enforsen, Richard Jomshof and Leslie Bayne started the band in 1988 under the name Pole Position. The band was very successful in Sweden, with a number of successful singles and various awards. But it is their 2008 album “A Soft Exchange” that earned them a place in our list. The album was extremely mature yet very melodic and features such pearls a “With Grace”, “Do You Know”, “Feel The Silence”, “Bleeding Words” and “Is This The Way”.

Electro Spectre – ‘Dangerous Game’ (2012)

The Norwegian electronic music duo Electro Spectre fronts the 3rd electropop wave. Isak Rypdal (writer-producer) and Alexander Björneboe (writer-singer) debuted in 2009 with the album “Watch It All Turn” (which was later reproduced and re-released in 2010). The duo has secured us from a steady and consistent output ever since. In our list we picked the band’s 2012 release, which is their second studio album entitled “Dangerous Game”. Included are such pearls as “Love Thief”, “Dancing Girl”, “World Keeps Turning” and “Tokyo Shuffle”.

Mondträume – ‘Empty’ (2014)

Mondträume is the creative outlet of 2 Spanish talented artists Pikotto Vond Mond and Damasius Venys. In only a few years, the duo rapidly caught the attention of concert organizers, released several songs on compilations, and secured a label contract with Belgium’s electronic label Alfa Matrix where they debuted with the album “Empty”. The hits “Life Is Short”, “Parasite” and especially the synth pop pearl “Far From Pain” show why this band became one of the strongholders in the 3rd electropop wave together with such bands as Electro Spectre, and more.

Eldrina Mich

As Eldrina Mich I work as a go-between and a devil’s advocate when it comes to Side-Line. If our own staff needs to be interviewed then ask the questions no one else dares to ask.

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The last year it has been very calm in the OOMPH!-camp. No online concerts during corona, no rescheduled festival-dates, no new album news at all. The sudden announcement that OOMPH!’s lead singer Dero Goi has left the band, after 32 years being the frontman, reached us today via the official facebook-page of the band. At this moment it is unclear if Dero will start a new project or stops with singing completely. OOMPH! however continues to exist under the same name with composers Crap and Flux and a new singer, who hasn’t been announced yet.

Some time ago Dero posted on social media that he got baptised and also announced that he’s against Covid-vaccinations. His last side-project DIE KREATUR also suddenly stopped after disagreements with Chris Harms (Lord Of The Lost) who wrote on 31st December 2020 on facebook: “Not to forget, I have released an album with a side project called Die Kreatur, which I was looking forward to so much, which I have been proud about big time, but sadly short after its release, some circumstances have rendered a continuation of the project impossible. This year I have made new friends. This year I have lost friends – some to death, some to a world of insanity, where I can’t possibly follow them to. Once more I have learned that prejudices are so damn misleading and I still can’t entirely free myself from them. Some people that I liked in the beginning turned out to be real jerks, and some others that really made me shake my head in the beginning became brothers.”

OOMPH! was originally founded in 1989 in Wolfsburg (Germany) by Crap, Dero Goi and Robert Flux. They released their first single “Ich Bin Du” in 1991, followed by the single “Der Neue Gott” and their first (self-titled) album in 1992. The band played in 1993 in the legendary Limelight club in New-York and became “crossover”-pioneers in mixing elements of EBM with groovy metal guitar-riffs, or as Billboard magazine said “Sepultura meets DAF”. Unwillingly they created the “Tanz-Metal” (Dance-Metal) or “Neue Deutsche Haerte” (New German Hardness) genre, which was the German answer on American Industrial-Metal bands as Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Prong, etc. There is no doubt that OOMPH! has paved the way for many later bands as Rammstein, Eisbrecher and many others.

In 2004 the band received a platinum award for the single “Augen Auf!”, in 2015 a golden award for the album “GlaubeLiebeTod” and in 2018 a platinum award for the album “Wahrheit Oder Pflicht”. The last album “Ritual” reached in 2019, for the first time ever in the history of the band, the number 1 position in the German album charts. OOMPH! (featuring Marta Jandova) won the German “Bundesvision”-contest in 2007 and their music was also used in games (“FIFA”), movies (“Alien vs. Predator”) and tv-trailers (“The Walking Dead”). The band did remixes for bands as Korn, And One, Joachim Witt, De/Vision and others and worked together with artists as Nina Hagen and Apocalyptica. OOMPH! released 13 studio-albums in total and also played as support-act for Metallica, Marilyn Manson, HIM, Skunk Anansie, …

The last years the band was especially very popular in Russia although it’s not sure if the live-dvd with symphonic orchestra, recorded in 2018, will ever see the daylight.

(Courtesy Attasalina) Black Needle Noise’s first release on COP International Records is a fact. Out now is a new single “Machine” featuring vocalist Attasalina and violinist Meredith Yayanos. The “Machine” EP features remixes from Christopher Hall (Stabbing Westward), Mark Hockings (Mesh/Blackcarburning), Sick Jokes, Soman and (London DJ) Samantha Togni.

Says Fryer of “Machine”: “It’s taken a while to find the right song for Attasalina so we could collaborate again. She did an amazing job on ‘Messages By Dreams’ and she has done an exceptional job on ‘Machine.’ It’s always a pleasure working with Attasalina, and it’s been great having Meredith Yayanos on board this time around playing violin on the track, adding another dimension.”

Attasalina, best known for her collaboration with Daniel Ash (The Soldiers of Everyday), has also released music with her band The Seraphim Rising and is currently working on her first solo record in collaboration with John Fryer, to be called Freed From Rage and Sorrow. She previously collaborated with Fryer on the Black Needle Noise track “Messages By Dreams.”

See the video for “Machine” below.

About John Fryer

John Fryer started his career in 1979 at London’s Blackwing Studios (London) and soon began working with seminal bands on 4AD, Mute, Rough Trade and Beggars Banquet, including Depeche Mode, The Wolfgang Press and Cocteau Twins. His achievement in helping develop the latter’s pioneering ethereal and ambient sound ultimately led Watts-Russell to recruit Fryer as his partner for This Mortal Coil.

Since then, Fryer has produced many iconic artists, including Love and Rockets, HIM, Cradle of Filth, Clan of Xymox, Nitzer Ebb, Dead Can Dance, Yaz (Yazoo), Xmal Deutschland, Fields of the Nephilim, De/Vision, Stabbing Westward and many others. Fryer has also produced many film soundtracks, such as Seven, Clerks, Johnny Mnemonic, Mortal Kombat, Faust and Resident Evil: Apocalypse.

Currently Fryer also works closely with COP International and its roster and this debut Black Needle Noise release on the label is being hailed by COP founder Christian Petke who says, “I know how much this project means to John and I think it represents some of his finest work. Black Needle Noise is his vehicle to execute his artistic visions. It is not bound by style or fashion but represents the distilled essence of a man honing his craft for 40-plus years. To say it is an honor to represent Black Needle Noise on COP International is an understatement.”

Fryer recently celebrated a #1 entry on the German DAC Charts with the Chiasm & John Fryer album “Missed The Noise”. Good to know, Fryer acts as an A&R and a producer at COP International Records, helming the work of artists such as Stabbing Westward, Azam Ali, Chiasm, Stoneburner, Blackcarburning and more.

For more on John Fryer, see A Cloud Of Ravens release remix EP feat. remixes by Clan of Xymox,… on Side-Line.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Genre/Influences: Electro-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info:  BlakLight in a brand-new duo hailing from Los Angeles (USA). The band is driven by singer Brian Belknap (Mind Machine) and operator Adam Collier (Crush333, MDA and Full Frontal Disco). This self-released debut-album features ten songs.

Content: BlakLight is clearly driven by Electro-Pop music with a vintage touch on top. The songs are carried by melody lines and melancholic moods. The work has something dreamy and yet danceable. There are no real breaks in this work; there’s a non-stop succession of enjoyable and entertaining songs. Some passages remind me a bit of De/Vision.

+ + + : If the title of this work seems to be a clear indication about the horrible year 2020 has been, it also reflects a mature and impressive work. BlakLight is not reinventing the Electro-Pop style, but this is a mature composition made with great sound treatments, poignant melancholic atmospheres and a global refinement in the production. The songs are danceable, revealing several little jewels such as “Control”, “I Remember Nothing” and “This Lonely Night”. The album takes off with 3 great songs, but the final part of the work is also impressive. From a pure technical point of view this album sounds perfect; great music and a talented singer.

– – – : After the very strong debut tracks, “Unknown love” and “The Sound” both are the only cuts from the album with a little less potential.

Conclusion: BlakLight sounds as a refreshing breeze in Electro-Pop land; don’t expect that much innovation, but simply a brilliant production.

Best songs: “I Remember Nothing”, “Control”, , “This Lonely Night”, “Under The BlakLight”, “Isolation”,

Rate (8½).

Artist: www.blaklightband.com / www.facebook.com/BlakLightband

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

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After the well received second album “Chasm Walk”, Frankfurt-based mastermind Timo Revna aka Reichsfeind has joined the well-known Belgian electronic music label Alfa Matrix. Immediately available via Bandcamp is the brand new electro pop single “Persona” which is an instant ear worm as you can hear below.

Many readers will also remember Reichsfeind from his participation on our most recent Face The Beat compilation with the track “Mute”.

But that’s not all, next to a new single, the label has also made available the entire back catalogue of Reichsfeind via Bandcamp exclusively which will please fans of bands like Seabound, X-Marks The Pedwalk, Elderbrook, Beborn Beton or yet De/Vision.

First of all there’s the new single “Persona”. The 6-track EP holds the title track next to an upbeat remix by Rob Dust, reworked mix of the project’s club hit “Retox” and a selection of remixes of “Anti” and “Retox” by artists in the likes of Aesthetische, ES23 and Hydroxie.

Additionally there’s also a video launched for the single’s leading track.

Entire back catalogue also released on Bandcamp

For the occasion of the arrival of Reichsfeind in the Alfa Matrix roster of artists, the Belgian label is releasing the band’s back catalogue exclusively on its Bandcamp page.

“Daydream” EP

Initially released in July 2014, “Daydream” is the first official self-released EP by the German act Reichsfeind. It holds 6 tracks which set the sonic foundations of the band revealing synth melodies layered across darker electro arrangements with upbeat rhythm patterns with vocoded male vocals. The label perfectly describes it as “synth pop music with an edge and a darkish dimension.”

“Living in space” download album

Initially released in November 2017, “Living In Space” is not only the first official full length CD of Reichsfeind but it’s also their breakthrough album. The album includes club hits like “Soulpaint” and “Detox”. The album features bonus remixes by Rob Dust, Maneater and Kayfabe Lanoise.

“Living in space (the remixes)” EP

Initially released in January 2018, “Living In Space (the remixes)” is the complementary EP release of Reichsfeind’s debut album. Opening with the exclusive non-album track “Mute”, this 4-track EP showcases 3 selected album songs from a different sonic perspective going from the upbeat club mix of “Detox (Desastroes remix)” to the more laid-back version of the “Soulpaint (Kennedy remix)”.

“Chasm walk” download album

The 14-track album “Chasm Walk” was originally released in November 2019. With his second album, Reichsfeind showed a matured songwriting and production level merging modern electronics, driving rhythms, dark atmosphere, meaningful lyrics, rolling basslines and addictive melodic sounds.

The album is also released with 4 bonus remixes by Kennedy, Maneater, Kayfabe, Lanoise and Chadouze.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: German formation Beyond Obsession signed to Infacted Recordings to release their fourth full length album. Among previous albums, they released the album “Pieces Of Machinery” on Popgefahr Records (label of De/Vision). They’re now back on track unleashing nine new cuts.

Content: This band is clearly driven by the good-old magic from 80s electro-pop music. It’s not a coincidence their music reminds me of legendary icons such as the unavoidable Depeche Mode while I also have to mention Tears From Fears. The songs are driven by elaborated structures and a nervous rhythm. The ‘softer’ cuts have been accentuated by great melody lines. There also is a perfect balance between music and vocals.

+ + + : The main strength of this album is not exactly its 80s spirit and influences, but the way it has been transposed into a contemporary and personal synth-pop production. This mix makes the originality of the album. Both debut songs are worthy of examination, but I also recommend the somewhat harder “Need Puppets”.

– – – : Some of the softer cuts can’t convince me for being more monotonous. Even the vocals couldn’t totally convince me here.

Conclusion: Beyond Obsession has something apart from the electro-pop scene and yet it sounds familiar and clearly infused with 80s stereotypes.

Best songs: “Need Puppets”, “Speaking Of A Devil”, “Monolog Love”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.beyondobsession.de / www.facebook.com/beyondobsessionofficial

Label: www.infacted–recordings.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Infacted–Recordings/124099254321690

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

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Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: German synth-pop duo Alex Pfahler – Andy Pfiefer are back on track unleashing their third full length album. “Traumfaenger” features ten songs plus four bonus cuts, which were originally released at the digital EP “Vierklangdimensionen”.

Content: If you’re familiar with previous albums released by Loewenhertz, “Traumfaenger” has nothing innovative to discover. The band remains driven by good-old electro-pop standards and sometimes again reminds me of their legendary compatriots and masters in the genre: De/Vision. The songs are alternating German and English lyrics. The debut cuts sound sweet and happy-like, but quite progressively Loewenhertz moved towards a more danceable electro-pop style recovered with sensibility and melancholia.

The 4 last cuts are cover versions from famous songs originally written by Rheingold, Hubert Kah, Nena and Snäp.

+ + + : The sound and influences haven’t really changed. I’m not saying that this album is a copy-paste from the previous one, but the main strength of this duo appears in the achievement of the songs and not in the originality of the sound. I definitely prefer the more danceable cuts and I have to say they accomplished a few noticeable songs in the genre. “We Regret”, “Closer”and “Truth In Me” confirm the potential of the band, which is not just a copyist, but has the skills to write captivating synth-pop music. I like the progression in the tracklist taking off in a rather sweet way and slowly evolving towards a more mature and efficient electro-pop music, sometimes carried by a harder bass line and/or aggressive sequence. Among the cover versions I recommend the cool version of “Dreiklangdimensionen” originally written by Rheingold. Loewenhertz found a perfect compromise between the vintage, original edit and some refreshing and more personal aspects.

– – – : The sweeter part of the album, which you’ll hear in the debut is not exactly relevant for being average-like and without a real spirit!

Conclusion: There are numerous electro-pop formations and especially a lot of copyists. I never have experienced Loewenhertz as the most original one in the genre, but this band simply confirms to have real potential. I’m waiting for an absolute hit pushing them in the spotlights of this scene.

Best songs: “We Regret”, “Closer”, “Truth In Me”, “We Regret”, “Dreiklangdimensionen”, “Elisabeth”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.loewenhertz–musik.de / www.facebook.com/loewenhertzmusik  

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

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Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: It took three years for the German duo Torsten Verlinden (vocals) – Steve Baltes (electronics) to achieve their third full length album. “Across The Ice” was preceded by the singles “Stars” and “Surrender.”

Content: Arctic Sunrise is a band I kept an eye on. Their previous albums revealed a mature writing and an electro-pop sound appealing for fans of De/Vision. The new opus doesn’t sound that different, although the songs are more into a kind of dreamy melancholia. It feels a bit like music filled with dreams and emotions. Some of the songs are carried with solid bass lines. I also noticed a few parts by guest guitarist Oliver Franken. The most surprising cut is the cover version of “Running Up That Hill” originally written by Kate Bush.

+ + + : Arctic Sunrise confirms their talent to compose achieved electro-pop music. The best cuts from the album again appeal for fans of De/Vision; the originality is far to find, but the accomplishment is remarkable.  Torsten Verlinden also confirms to be a great singer.

– – – : Speaking for myself I prefer previous albums. The album is sometimes a bit too dreamy-like and even if the album got positive reactions in the band’s homeland, I expected a bit more from this duo.

Conclusion: Arctic Sunrise are no longer getting me by surprise; the songs are still well-crafted, but the magic is a bit gone.

Best songs: “Stars (Album Version)”, “Running Up That Hill”, “The Game”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/wearearcticsunrise

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

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On 10th and 11th August 2019 the annual M’era-Luna festival takes place in the area of Hildesheim-Drispenstedt, Germany. M’era Luna exists since 2000 and is one of the biggest Gothic festivals in the European scene. Gothic, new wave, electro, EBM, industrial and medieval bands are featured on 2 stages.

The last years the festival was every time sold out and had about 25.000 visitors. This year some of the confirmed artists are: Fields Of The Nephilim, VNV Nation, Lacrimosa, OOMPH!, Deathstars, DIE KRUPPS, Within Temptation, ASP, Subway To Sally, Combichrist, Diary Of Dreams, Corvus Corax, Suicide Commando, Agonoize, Funker Vogt, Mono Inc., DE/VISION, Empathy Test, Joachim Witt, Spetsnaz, [:SITD:], Zeromancer, Melotron, …

DJ’s at the afterparties are: Der Schulz (Unzucht), Bruno Kramm (Das Ich), Chris L. (Funker Vogt and Agonoize), Andy Krüger (Melotron), Ronan Harris (VNV Nation), Mike Kanetzky (Matrix Bochum).

Besides watching concerts you can also visit markets, artist signing events, gothic fashion shows, readings by Axel Hildebrand, Markus Heitz and Christian von Aster. The Gothic Garden, an oasis of calm right in front of the festival infield, offers demanding festival-goers comfort, space and conveniences to make your stay more exclusive, pleasant and more relaxing. At the M’era Luna Academy you can follow special workshops which will be announced soon on the official renewed website.

The interactive M’era Luna app can be downloaded here and tickets can be ordered here.

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Two years after their successful debut album “Course Of Life”, the German Analogue-X trio is back on track unleashing this new opus featuring 13 new cuts.

Content: The sound and influences haven’t that much changed. “Course Of Life” and “Imaginary” both reveal an explicit electro-pop sound, which might remind to Depeche Mode. The debut full length was also inspired by dance-pop music while this one just revealed a few little elements, but nothing more. From melancholic tunes to choruses accomplished with cold leads, “Imaginary” might appeal for De/Vision fans.

+ + + : This is a ‘classical’ electro-pop work, which is carried by melancholic passages, noticeable melody lines and a crystal-clear sound production. “The Time Of Darkness” is one of the high lights for its elevating sensation. The main aspect of the work I especially like consists of the cold leads and I here especially refer to “Lost In Time”.

– – – : This work is an easy listening album, but I’m missing some passion. I once again miss it in the vocals’ production, but now also in the song writing. It’s too much predictable and feels like the band switched on the automatic pilot.

Conclusion: The ideas are good enough, but unfortunately not enough to get a successful album. The debut album definitely was more convincing. This band can do better!

Best songs: “The Time Of Darkness”, “Angel Of Light”, “Stage Of Life”.

Rate: (6½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/AnalogueXbandpage

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

“Lovers, sinners & liars” is the title of the brand new album by the excellent Spanish electropop act Mondträume. With their previous and highly successful “Empty” album, the Spanish duo established themselves on the top of the dark electro pop scene next to other acclaimed acts in the likes of De/Vision, Melotron, Mesh and other bands in the same league of excellence.

On “Lovers, Sinners & Liars” Pikotto Vond Mond and Damasius Venys continue to offer dark melodic electropop hovering between slower intimate synth pop songs and more dynamic upbeat club tracks. You get 12 tracks including the singles “Still Beating” and “Free” next to a cover version of “Lament” (The Cure).

Attention: There is also a limited 2CD edition (available here from the label) which comes with a 10-track bonus disc offering a variety of remixes by Massive Ego, Kant Kino, Crytek, Avarice In Audio and many more!

For now, enjoy these 2 tracks.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Alexander Braun and Manfred Thomaser both remain the single members on board of !distain. This German electro-pop formation is active since the 90s and their debut releases became an instant success. !distain has this ‘typical’ German synth-pop sound and belongs together with bands such as De/Vision, Beborn Beton, Melotron… to the cream of German synth-pop. By the end of 2018 they released their eight studio album “Farewell To The Past” on Echozone revealing !distain in good shape. I’d a chat with Alexander and Manfred.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries / Pictures by Barbara Andres)

Q: What does this new album means to you when you realize your debut album “Cement Garden” was released in 1995? Do you still feel the same emotions? 

Alexander: Wow, it´s an amazing period of time. What still feels the same is the love for music. And at the same time of course so much has changed! That time we had a producer and we even spent the nights at his home. Today I really love to produce the music on my own. Naivety changed to ‘wisdom of age’… ha, ha. So this album (and its success) means a lot to me. We are still here, and it is still a very important part of my life!

Q: More than making simply music together, I think there must be a kind of chemistry to keep a band alive for such a long time. What makes this chemistry and partnership between you?

Manfred: In my opinion, respect is the most important thing. Alexander and I do have a lot in common, but we are very different, too. Those who can’t accept that other people may have other opinions, feelings, etc. may never find a way to deal with that. So, you need to understand the character of every band member. And you need to learn how to react to all the differences. Up to this the band is more important than the ego.

Alexander: Yes, and another very important aspect is that we would not be able writing these songs on our own. The quality of the song-writing is a result of combining our individual skills. There were so many moments when I thought the song is ok and then Manfred added some magic and it became something special…

Q: How much of the early work and writing process do you still recognize in the new work “Farewell To The Past” and how did you see yourselves evolving/growing as musicians?

Manfred: To me “Farewell To The Past” is mostly connected to “Raise The Level” which we released in 2007. Both records appear with deeper atmospheres and meanings. More melancholia than on “on/off” for example. The writing process on the other hand is more connected to “25 Frames A Second” when we spent a lot of time in the studio together working on the compositions and arrangements. This changes from time to time.

Alexander: The fact, that we now produce and mix the songs completely on our own gives us much more freedom. After so many years of making music it is the first time we have enough self-confidence doing everything on our own (besides mastering). I think in the course of time we get faster in realizing what works and what doesn´t, faster in singing the line with the best possible feeling and so on…

Q: Is there any particular and maybe explicit meaning behind the title of the new album and what have been the main lyrical themes you tried to achieve?

Alexander: Yes, the title of the album on one hand connects to Rick leaving !distain and the problems of the past. And on the other hand it is the chorus of one of my favorite songs on the album: “Letter To Myself”.

Manfred: The lyrics vary from being personal like “Wake Me Up” to being socially critical like “Der Hirtenmann” and “Wer Im Kreise Geht” or being a crime- and ghost-story like “The Guest-House”. Life is fragile. It can end every second. This is a theme maybe all lyrics deal with in the end.

Q: The song “SynthPopBoy”, which has been also released as EP-title track has something funny, but what did you try to express and what does it say about your own perception of the electronic music today?

Manfred: The basic idea is that there seem to be a lot of people who dislike something because they think it is common sense to dislike this something… which can be a song, a music style, a novel, art… whatever. For “SynthPopBoy” we have chosen Synth-Pop, which the ‘real tough guys’ do not like because everyone who listens to Synth-Pop is declared to be a weak person. And tough guys can’t be weak. Image means mostly everything to these people. By the way: we received a lot of reactions from fans saying ‘I know who you are talking about’… In the end “SynthPopBoy” is about accepting who you are. You like Synth-Pop? Why not? You like EBM? Why not? You like both? Why not?

Alexander: My perception of the electronic music of today is that it often should be kind of hard and aggressive stuff. Because then it is cool. But deep inside our hearts we all love melodies and positive feelings. The song calls for standing by it!

Q: A lot of things have changed and evolved since you started composing music. How do you experience all these changes – referring to technology & equipment, social media, streaming platforms, CD sales etc?  What do you see as the pros and contras?

Alexander: Yes, so many things have changed. Besides the decline of CD sales there are some good things, too; we get close to our fans via Facebook and other social media. The feedback to our music is much more direct and immediate. Making money with music has become so difficult, but on the other hand there is the chance to be discovered via streaming platforms. There are algorithms like ‘similar artist’ that maybe let people hear our music… although they don´t know us.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Synthpop/Synthwave artists The Rain Within announce they will be touring with VNV Nation on their upcoming North America Noire tour. The Rain Within will be replacing De/Vision on the tour. The Noire tour begins November 16th in Austin,TX and ends December 15th in Las Vegas,NV and also features German Post-Punk/Shoegaze act Holygram.

Founded by Andy Deane, the vocalist of the Alternative Goth Rock band Bella Morte, The Rain Within released their second studio album “Atomic Eyes” released on Negative Gain on Valentine’s Day, 2018. The album merges synthwave and sythpop building a bridge between the 80s and today’s audience.

In related news, do also check out this VNV Nation interview.

Tour Dates

• Friday November 16 2018 Austin, TX Barracuda
• Saturday November 17 2018 Houston, TX White Oak Music Hall
• Monday November 19 2018 Atlanta, GA Masquerade
• Tuesday November 20 2018 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Culture Room
• Wednesday November 21 2018 St. Petersburg, FL Jannus Live
• Friday November 23 2018 Philadelphia, PA Union Transfer
• Saturday November 24 2018 New York, NY Irving Plaza
• Sunday November 25 2018 Boston, MA Royale
• Tuesday November 27 2018 Montreal, QC Corona Theater
• Wednesday November 28 2018 Toronto, ON Danforth Music Hall
• Friday November 30 2018 Detroit, MI St. Andrews
• Saturday December 1 2018 Chicago, IL The Metro
• Sunday December 2 2018 Minneapolis, MN Skyway Theater
• Tuesday December 4 2018 Denver, CO The Oriental Theater
• Wednesday December 5 2018 Salt Lake City, UT The Metro
• Friday December 7 2018 Seattle, WA Neptune
• Saturday December 8 2018 Portland, OR Roseland Theater
• Sunday December 9 2018 Vancouver, BC Imperial Theatre
• Wednesday December 12 2018 San Francisco, CA The Regency Ballroom
• Thursday December 13 2018 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern
• Friday December 14 2018 Phoenix, AZ Marquee
• Saturday December 15 2018 Las Vegas, NV Backstage Bar

Andy Deane has toured the US extensively and found his way to Europe and the UK on several occasions with both The Rain Within and his gothic rock band Bella Morte.

Side-Line also covered VNV Nation’s ‘Electric sun’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, indie-pop.

Background/Info: This new German formation is the meeting between Camouflage singer Marcus Meyn, Jochen Schmalbach, guitarist Volker Hinkel (Fool’s Garden) and drummer/producer Jochen Schmalbach.

Content: What might you expect from a project featuring Camouflage singer Marcus Meyn? This album sounds as classical electro-pop music can sound! The songs reflect a perfect harmony between electronics, guitar and drums. The songs are constantly evoking Depeche Mode and De/Vision.

+ + + : This album is not the most innovative one, but it’s carried by a great production! The professionalism and talent of the artists comes rapidly through and finally resulted in a great opus featuring numerous cool songs. There’s a perfect balance between electronics and guitar while most of the songs are carried by great choruses. From melancholic- to happy passages, this album covers all familiar aspects of electro-pop music.

– – – : Originality is far to find and that’s definitely the main –and single, problem with this album. There’s only one Depeche Mode and an endless number of Depeche Mode followers!

Conclusion: This album has something schizophrenic; it’s definitely a great work featuring multiple cool songs, but it’s also that predictable and without any single innovation!

Best songs: “Undone”, “Lean On”, “White Trash”, “Dangerous”, “Things We’ve Done”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/minemusicband

Label: www.spv.de / http://de–de.facebook.com/spvhannover

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Klaus Schill and Frank Zwicker are active as Sea Of Sin since the 90s. The German electro-pop formation released a noticeable debut-album  “Watch Out” (1995) on Subtronic Records. Sea Of Sin stopped their activities during the early millennium, but resurrected last year with the EP “Twilight”. This EP featured 5 re-edited songs from their debut work plus a new cut. “Future Pulse” featured the same songs as on “Twilight” plus 5 more re-edited tracks from “Watch Out”.

Content: “Future Pulse” is the ultimate opportunity to (re)discover Sea Of Sin. I’m sure younger fans will never have heard of the band, but if they’re into electro-pop music, this is a work that will catch their attention.

This is pure nostalgia and ‘classical’ electro-pop music. This is the kind of production that will remind you of De/Vision and co. It’s filled with melancholic reverie, but still a few more danceable cuts. The song “I Live My Life” might be considered as the band’s anthem while “Last Day In Paradise” is the right song to dream away on.

+ + + : This album doesn’t innovate at all, but is just a way to recover Sea Of Sin and the “Watch Out”-album from dust. The songs have been reworked remaining pretty credible. I don’t want to make comparisons, but I personally prefer this re-edited album instead of the last De/Vision opus. It’s classical electro-pop music carried by strong choruses, nice and catchy sound treatments and captivating vocal parts. “Afterworld” is more club-minded and definitely a nice surprise.

– – – : I can’t say this is a totally new release, but probably the right way to get the band back in the picture. It remains stereo-typical electro-pop music like we’ve heard hundred times before, but I personally prefer an old-styled album instead of an original work leaving me skeptical and unmoved. The new song “Star” is not exactly the most successful one from the album.

Conclusion: I really hope this “Future Pulse” will give this band a push and especially inspiration to work on new songs and release a totally new full length.

Best songs: “Afterworld”, “I Live My Life”, “Last Day In Paradise”, “Ride The Sky”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/seaofsinGER

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Belgian solo-project Kilmarth is driven by Cédric Wattergniaux. I know Cédric for quite a long time. We both got involved with Side-Line magazine. We met at festivals and always had great moments talking about music. I know him as a passionate music lover with an eclectic choice. Throughout the years he started composing music on his own and this way he set up Kilmarth. A first self-released EP “Catharsis” saw the daylight. It might be defined as an electronic mix between multiple influences, but in the end it comes close to IDM and experimental electronics. This interview is an opportunity to get more familiar with this new project.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: It seems you’re already composing music for several years now. How did it all started and how did you finally come to deal with this kind of music?

Cédric: As long as I can remember, music has always been an important part of my life. I listened to it, analyzed it, I wrote about it … but my biggest dream has always been to compose it. This dream was buried deep within me, but my ego told me that I was not able to do it. I once made the very late decision to finally take music theory lessons at the local music academy to better understand what music was from a theoretical point of view. Then I tried the classical guitar, which I abandoned by acquiring my first synth, a Korg Triton. As for the musical style, I did not try to get into a current one, it’s naturally the sounds that I liked the most that I chose to compose the music that related to a genre already present that I of course, liked a lot already.

Q: The name Kilmarth is directly linked to the great Daphne du Maurier, but what inspired you in this project name and the work plus life of this author?

Cédric: “The House Of The Strand” is a book I literally devoured when I read it, about 15 years ago. I am passionate about history, it is also my job (I am a history teacher) and the idea of time travelling has always been a child’s dream. The idea also to ask the question… Is it the reality of this trip or was it solely based on the absorption of a drug was a very interesting idea. So, I like to say that music is that drug that can be taken to help us penetrate other worlds, to penetrate the brain mysteries of some great composers of our time or earlier. It also makes me think of this excellent movie, that is for me, “Strange Days” by Kathryn Bigelow and James Cameron (1995) where the hero penetrates the recorded thoughts of people by means of an apparatus connected to the brain. Music is a legal drug that has the immense power to make us escape and to paraphrase Dave Gahan, that unites people who are so different.

Q: You recently self-released your debut work “Catharsis”. What is it all about? What did you try to accomplish (sound-wise) and what has been your working method?

Cédric: I fell into a big depression almost two years ago. I could not do my job anymore. Finding myself in front of my DAW and my synth has become gradually a habit and also a therapy to get out of this problem. For 6 months, I almost never left my studio and “Catharsis” was born from that. Fortunately, I was able to count on my family and a handful of friends who have always supported me.

Q: “Catharsis” is the kind of work I instantly linked to productions released on labels such as Ad Noiseam, Tympanik Audio, Ant-Zen, Mindtrick Records, M-Tronic… Do you feel related with these labels? Would you like to get signed by a label or do you prefer the DIY attitude?

Cédric: These are magnificent labels that have written the most beautiful pages in the history of our scene. It would be an extraordinary honor to be part of these record companies. I think that the power of a label to distribute music is a major asset in a society where it is now necessary to put music almost in the ear of an auditor so that he can listen to new things. I do not have the time or the gift to be able to handle all parts of the music business as I should while living a normal life with my family. On the other hand, it is also important, for an artist, to have a free hand in the creative process. It is therefore necessary that everyone can have his own territory for the partnership to be effective. It must also be said that the world of music has experienced an incredible upheaval in recent years. Will these labels still exist in five years? The future will tell.

Q: “Catharsis” is a sonic crossover between numerous genres and influences, but how would you analyze the sound of Kilmarth and how do you see yourself as an artist?

Cédric: I, like many other people before me, served as a sponge to several artistic movements (literary, pictorial, …). The daily life that I could absorb for years and reject in the form of “Catharsis”. It is difficult for me to highlight, for example, a musical genre that I particularly like to achieve this result, although it is obvious that electronic music, in general, remains the one that has the most marked throughout my life. For the rest, I like to control what I do; like composition, production, artwork or even videos. Kilmarth is a personal project, although I like the influences of outside musicians like the help of a friend for one track on “Catharsis”. I would like to see more collaborations like that on future productions.

Q: You’ve been involved with Side-Line magazine for numerous years. What did you learn from this experience as a journalist and does it appear to be a precious experience now that you’re composing music yourself?  

Cédric: My Side-Line years were an extraordinary experience.  First of all because I was able to meet people who belong to our scene and that I respect a lot: you, Séba Dolimont who remains one of my best friends, Bernard, Benoît… I could also ‘meet’ people who I admire a lot musically like Klaus Kruse (PNE), NoyceTM, Mesh, Das Ich, De/Vision, Iris… It was a wonderful school to discover how the world of music is from the inside. From these different elements, I was able to build my project by being influenced by countless elements that have appeared throughout my life. Composing my music has also brought me even more respect for these artists that I met since the first demo to flamboyant careers. Each piece sometimes hides many efforts and often an incredible job that most people who listen to music or criticism cannot imagine. So I would say that the influence exists in both directions. I cannot criticize an album like I did in the past…

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences:

Read the news on ‘Citybeats’.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Wave-pop, dark-pop, body-pop.

Background/Info: In Good Faith was set up 20 years ago. The German band deals with electro-pop music and has joined hands together with Echozone after multiple self-released productions. “Trinity” has been positively received in their homeland, reaching the highest regions of the DAC (Deutsche Alternative Charts).

Content: The sound makes me think to an imaginary offspring between Days Of Fate (for the body-pop approach) and De/Vision for the more melancholic tunes. The songs have been perfectly worked out and driven by the charismatic vocals of their singer. The last part of the album reveals a remix by Terrolokaust and a cover version of Joy Division’s legendary “Love Will Tear Us Apart”.

+ + + : A good electro-pop band needs a great singer and that’s exactly what you can say about Kai Vincenz Németh. This guy sings with a natural charisma and definitely is one of the main strengths of In Good Faith. But the music is pretty well-crafted as well. There’s an interesting move in between traditional electro-pop songs, more melancholic wave-pop cuts and harder body-pop passages. The arrangements reflect a mature production process. I also have to mention the noticeable cover version of “Love Will Tear Us Apart”, which sounds a bit like it has been written by In Good Faith. They perfectly transposed the original song into their own sound approach.

– – – : I got the feeling this band is able to even do better than what they’ve shown here. Some choruses could be a little bit more transcendental although I’ve no reason to complain. The remix of Terrolokaust is not exactly adding an extra.

Conclusion: In Good Faith seems to be already ‘renowned’ in their homeland, but it definitely remains a band, which now has to go on mission for an international break through. I should say, why not!

Best songs: “Aberration”, “About Life”, “Choose Our Way”, “Shadows”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.ingoodfaith.de / www.facebook.com/ingoodfaith.de

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Read the review of ‘Citybeats’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Some of the ‘older’ synth-pop lovers and especially German people will probably remember Sea Of Sin. I remember their debut album “Watch Out!” released in 1995 on Subtronic Records. A next full length entitled “Urban Chemistry” got released in  2000 on Synhtphony Records. The band was pretty close to Camouflage (Heiko Maile producing some of their work). After a hiatus of more than 15 years Sea Of Sin has been recovered from dust and delivered this new EP.

Content: The songs aren’t totally new as Frank Zwicker and Claus Schill revisited their early albums, reworking 3 songs from “Watch Out!” and 2 cuts from “Urban Chemistry”. They added one new cut. The influences are pretty German electro-pop like; which means inspired by Depeche Mode, but transformed into an electro-pop approach reminding German giants such as De/Vision and Camouflage. The songs are elaborated, sometimes revealing a little flavor of melancholia and carried by strong choruses. The new song “Star” is somewhat different and more into a reverie sensation.

+ + + : The old songs have been perfectly reworked and transposed into a refreshing electro-pop format. The production is fully accomplished revealing harmony between verses and choruses. There also is a perfect balance between music and vocals featuring an appropriated and talented singer for this kind of music. The ‘old’ cuts remain excellent synth-pop that will appeal for fans of the aforementioned bands.

– – – : My only regret is the rather poorly inspired new song, which more sounds like a song that has been never released and here serves as a break between the songs from the first- and the second album. Sea Of Sin doesn’t bring anything new, but will please the synth-pop community.

Conclusion: Even if this EP avoids any innovation in a music genre that already counts an endless list of similar bands, this adaptation, from songs that were originally released in the 90s, is quite refreshing and pleasant. Let’s now wait for the real ‘new’ work!

Best songs: “Last Day In Paradise”, “I Live My Life”, “Truth”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/seaofsinGER

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-wave, wave-pop.

Background/Info: Baltimore based Red This Ever has released this EP as a kind of bonus to their sixth full length “Attack!”. The EP features six new cuts plus four remixes.

Content: “Fringe” sounds in the same line as the “Attack!” album. This is electro-pop music with a polished production and great melody lines. Some passages are reminding me of good-old souvenirs from the new-wave period. The mix of electronics and guitar is perfectly balanced.

One remix was accomplished by Red This Ever while the other cuts have been remixed by Retrogramme, DJ Warrings and Val Cain.

+ + + : This EP sounds in the spirit of the album, but is a little bit more diversified. The songs remain carried by solid melodies. The fusion of electro-pop and wave-pop is one of the main characteristics and I dare to say strengths of this work. Electronics and guitar are in perfect harmony. The final song “Only Survivor” is a pretty cool piece in the genre, which reminds me a bit of a mix between De/Vision and And One with guitar on top. The vocals create a perfect twist with the music. Among the remixes I mainly recommend the more club-friendly “Irresistible – DJ Warrings Pirate Chant Remix”.

– – – : My only regret is quite similar as for the “Attack!”-album; there are several cool songs featured on this EP, but no real hit that could bring Red This Ever in the spotlights of electro-pop.

Conclusion: “Fringe” is more ‘free-styled’ electro-pop than the last Red This Ever-album, but it’s a cool mix of different influences, which will appeal for electro-pop fans.

Best songs: “Only Survivor”, “”Irresistible – DJ Warrings Pirate Chant Remix”, “Underground”.

Rate: (7).

Band: www.redthisever.net / www.facebook.com/redthisever

Label: www.nevitablerecords.com

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, wave-pop.

Background/Info: Red This ever is an electro-pop driven formation hailing from Baltimore (USA). “Attack” is their sixth full length album to date.

Content: “Attack!” clearly sounds as traditional electro-pop music. It’s a clean and polished production driven by cool melody lines and some vintage elements. Red This Ever appears to be great melody makers and I can recommend several songs illustrating these essential skills in electro-pop music. It’s the kind of record reminding me of bands such as De/Vision, Iris and co.

+ + + : You rapidly can hear this band already gained experience and maturity. The songs are well-crafted and mainly carried by great melody lines. I especially recommend discovering the tracks “True Story” and “Ixnay”. Some of the songs have been empowered by guitar sounds (although I can’t find back any mention of guitar play…), creating a cool and somewhat ‘electro-wave’ touch.

– – – : “Attack!” is a rather ‘classical’ piece of electro-pop so there are no real surprises featured on this work. I’m mainly missing a hit although I heard multiple great tracks.

Conclusion: If you don’t know Red This Ever, this album is a nice discovery for electro-pop lovers.

Best songs: “True Story”, “Ixnay”, “Demagogues Of Fear”, “Breathe Underwater”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.redthisever.net / www.facebook.com/redthisever

Label: www.nevitablerecords.com

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Root4 is not exactly the most famous and renowned underground electro band. Set up in 1990 the German formation went through several line-up changes releasing new work at irregular basis. Their newest opus “Walk My Way” already got very positive response and I can only confirm it’s a great and powerful piece of electro-pop music. The songs are well-crafted and elaborated while the global production sounds ultra-professional. I had a chat with founding member and creative spirit of the band Hauke Hein.

(by Inferno sound Diaries)

Q: I noticed ROOT4 was set up in the late 90s. How did you came in touch with electronic music and what kind of band did you had in mind?

Hauke: In 1990 I found ROOT4 with a good friend. We both loved electronic music like Depeche Mode and Front 242. Gunter played piano in the studio and I was the singer. After many years, the cast changed and new members joined in. We started with synth-pop, changed in 2008 to future-pop and our new album is said to be dark electro.

Q: The band went through several line-up changes, which might explain ROOT4 releases new material at irregular basis. How do you look back to the past years and releases and what have been the main facts?

Hauke: Making music is a pure hobby. Everyone has a real job and not always enough time for making new songs. Since 2013 we worked on new songs, which also means, spending a lot of money on the production. In addition to the song writing many people are involved. And that takes time. Last year in September I went to my good music friend Chris and he produced, mixed and mastered the ten new songs and one acoustic version for the album.

Q: “Walk My Way” album must be a kind of new start, but still a mature and well-crafted production! What did you keep in mind from the writing/production process and what is the album all about?

Hauke: Chris and I spent so many weeks and months in his recording studio – from September to January. It is not easy to say ‘this track is finished’. Because every day again you listen to your song and you constantly get new ideas of melodies that you want to pack into the song. But you know you have to finish one song before starting another one. Otherwise you will never finish! The lyrics are very different from song to song. One is about the current topic refugees, from the perspective of a refugee. One song (“Follow Me”) tells the story of people blindly following other leaders. And “Strassen” is a cover of a song from ACSII DISKO. I loved the original so much that I just had to cover it.

Q: “Walk My Way” clearly sounds inspired by electro-pop, but you also like hard-pumping kicks and guitar play. You this way created a more personal- and somewhat ‘free-styled pop’ sound. What’s your own perception about the ‘sound’?

Hauke: We wanted to produce not only an album for the dark scene, but also for people who like to hear pop. It shall be a bridge between these ‘groups’.

I loved to have guitar sounds in the songs, but not too much… When my friend Art assisted to the recording sessions we had so much fun together and we decided to put some of his Ideas on the album. To get the guitar sounds live on stage we played a few shows with Art, Chris and me. This was great!!

Q: I think you already released three singles, which are taken from the new album. How comes and what’s the real impact of releasing singles today?

Hauke: I am a honest person; we could not decide which song could be the best one to release as a single. At the end we chose for the pop song “Follow Me”, the electro song “Drugs Are My Master” and the dance song “Strassen”. The next thing is, when you release only the album you get only the attention once. When you release two or three singles, the album has a bigger chance to be heard.

Q: You already did a few tours as support act for great names such as Combichrist, De/Vision and now Decoded Feedback. We all know bands often have to pay to get on tour with bigger names. What’s your personal experience about this item and what kind of live band are you?

Hauke: In recent years I noticed that fewer people come to the concerts. Many people are only waiting for the big festivals and less are visiting single band-shows. If more audience would come, better fees would be possible for the bands… (laugh).

When you are on tour for many days with another band like Decoded Feedback you always have so much fun together. It’s like going on holidays with friends. And in the evening you play a show and meet many cool people. That’s what makes the tour an experience. Our booking management always tries to make a free tour possible. If you have enough audience, everything is payed while somewhere else you only get money from selling merchandising and CD’s, but having fun is the most important thing!

ROOT4 loves to play live and give the audience a cool party! We play many parts of the songs live with the Akai MPC5000. This gives us the opportunity to customize the show and make them a bit different every time.

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Three years after their debut album “New Horizons” the Italian electro-pop formation Stars crusaders takes away on a new mission through the future, awakening at the year 2517 where ‘all humans are moving to Hydra, looking for a new era of peace and prosperity, but a dark shadow appears on the horizon’.

Content: Stars Crusaders are fascinated by s/f and are dealing with electro-pop music. They already released cool productions, but this new opus definitely sounds as the accomplishment of a still young, but talented formation. It’s not just electro-pop music, but a creative composition, which sounds powerful and sometimes reminding me of future-pop.

“Welcome To Hydra” sounds a bit like the offspring between Assemblage 23 and De/Vision (also for the vocals) with an extra and essential own touch on top.

+ + + : “Welcome To Hydra” doesn’t really take me by surprise, but confirms the growing maturity of a promising band. It’s not only a danceable and powerful electro-pop sound, it also is an elaborated composition carried by great melodies, evasive passages, some vintage electronic treatments and charismatic vocals. There’s a real harmony between all elements while this album features several brilliant cuts. There’re also a few cuts with female backing vocals and especially “Behind The Mirror” is a masterpiece!

– – – : I’m a little less convinced by the calmer and into reverie-like songs. But on the other side it also brings a more restful passage into this energetic pop composition.

Conclusion: The futuristic vision of Stars Crusaders and their vision of Hydra definitely appears to be a place of relief, but also great music! Up to 2517!

Best songs: “Behind The Mirror”, “Soulless”, “The Great Exodus”, “Under Attack”, “Gemini”.

Rate: (8½).

Band: www.starscrusaders.com / www.facebook.com/StarsCrusaders

Label: www.wtiirecords.com / www.facebook.com/WTIIRecords

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Synth-pop.

Background/Info: Ultranoire is Hungarian-German duo unleashing their second opus on Scentair Records. They define their music as ‘synth-noir’-music.

Content: Ultranoire deals with the purest imaginable synth-pop format. This music directly appeals for fans of Depeche Mode and De/Vision. The songs are into melancholia, which totally fits to the ‘synth-noir’ definition. It’s a delicate composition accomplished with piano-like arrangements and masterly carried by the sensual vocals of singer Josef Stapel.

+ + + : No doubt about it, Ultranoire has been clearly inspired by Depeche Mode revealing to be talented copyists. Their music is accomplished and accomplished with great arrangements and melancholic atmospheres. I also like the singer’s timbre of voice, which also reminds to Depeche Mode. He injects now a sexy touch and then pure emotion. The song “Yesteryears” is not my favorite one, but I mention it because it probably is one of the most personal cuts.

– – – : The main point with bands inspired by Depeche Mode is that they never will sound as Depeche Mode. They’ll always remain in the shadow, being labeled as ‘copyists’! So Ultranoire in a way suffers from a lack of sound identity.

Conclusion: If you forget Depeche Mode for a few minutes, I can assure you Ultranoire is a real fascinating formation. I’m not afraid of emulations and definitely not when they’ve been accomplished with talent. So ‘yes’ I like this album, which I would simply recommend to all synth-pop lovers.

Best songs: “Poisoned”, “Yesteryears”, “Technicolor Lies”, “Playing Dead”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.ultranoire.com / www.facebook.com/ultranoiremusic

Label: www.scent–air.com / www.facebook.com/ScentairRecords

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

On 12th and 13th August 2017 the annual M’era-Luna festival takes place in the area of Hildesheim-Drispenstedt, Germany. M’era Luna exists since 2000 and is one of the biggest Gothic festivals in the European scene. Gothic, new wave, electro, EBM, industrial and medieval bands are featured on 2 stages.

Besides watching concerts you can also visit markets, artist signing events, gothic fashion shows, book readings and parties. The Gothic Garden, an oasis of calm right in front of the festival infield, offers demanding festival-goers comfort, space and conveniences to make your stay more exclusive, pleasant and more relaxing. A new fact this year is the M’era Luna Academy where you can follow catwalk workshops and lectures by Mark Benecke and Gerald Axelrod.

The last years the festival was every time sold out and had about 25.000 visitors. This year some of the confirmed artists are: Korn, DAF, KMFDM, Front Line Assembly, Leaether Strip, And One, ASP, Blutengel, Subway To Sally, Schandmaul, Project Pitchfork, Ashbury Heights, Haujobb, Mono Inc., Covenant, The Cruxshadows, De/Vision, Mesh, Megaherz, Solar Fake, …

The interactive M’era Luna app can be downloaded here and tickets can be ordered here.

Genre/Influences: Synth-pop.

Background/Info: Alex Pfahler and Andy Pfiefer ever started with a synth-pop band called L’Image, but later on moved on as Loewenhertz. The debut album “Irgendwo In Deutschalnd” was released in 2014 on Echozone. It was a promising work inspired by bands like De/Vision, Distain and co.

Content: “Echtzeit” is the continuation of “Irgendwo In Deutschland”. The duo from Augsburg remains inspired by the synth-pop and melancholia of their famous compatriots of De/Vision. You can also hear it in the arrangements, the global atmosphere recovering the tracks and even the way of singing. The songs were sung in German and English language.

Most of the songs are pretty evasive, but there are a few harder cuts as well revealing some naughty sound treatments.

+ + + : Loewenhertz is one of the many synth-pop formations inspired by Depeche Mode and of course De/Vision. I’ve already heard cheap emulations, but “Echtzeit” makes sense! The songs are well-crafted and accomplished. This duo has found the right sonic elixir to compose efficient melancholic synth-pop music. I have a little preference for most of the songs sung in English (cf. “It’s Too Late”, “Winter Falls”). “It’s Too Late” sounds pretty Depeche Mode-like while “Winter Falls” sounds a bit harder while carried by a cool and somewhat guitar-like electro sound. “Thunder” is another cool cut in this genre.

– – – : The work features 10 songs plus 2 bonus cuts, which are just 2 more original songs sung in English. So I don’t really understand why they call them ‘bonus’ tracks. Anyway… even if both songs are sung in English and I prefer most of the English-sung cuts, the bonus tracks are not adding a real extra to the tracklist. I also noticed a few less inspired songs, but I’m afraid that’s what you’ll find on all productions.

Conclusion: Loewenhertz definitely belongs to the most talented number of contemporary synth-pop bands inspired by the true masters in the genre! Originality is far to find, but the songs are efficient.

Best songs: “Winter Falls”, “Thunder”, “It’s Too Late”, “Irgendwann”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.loewenhertz–musik.de / www.facebook.com/loewenhertzmusik

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, cabaret-pop.

Background/Info: “Ortonesque” is the seventh full length released by London based Mechanical Cabaret. Set up in the late 90s by Roi Robertson (ex-Nekromantik) he now together with Steve Bellamy released the first new Mechanical Cabaret work on WTII Records.

Content: Mechanical Cabaret has always dealt with a unique approach to electro-pop music. “Ortonesque” doesn’t sound that different and has been introduced as being their darkest work to date. I experienced the new songs as some of their most intimate work to date. There’s a twist between slower and minimal-like cuts, which are sometimes a bit cabaret-like at one side and more danceable and purer electro-pop sound at the other.

Some songs might appeal to lovers of De/Vision and even Depeche Mode, but globally speaking “Ortonesque” sounds more experimental and unpolished.

+ + + : Mechanical Cabaret will never become the most typical formation in their genre and there is the feeling of defying the pop standards a bit. That’s an approach I’ve always liked instead of becoming a new Depeche Mode clone. It sounds minimal although always connected with electro-pop. I like some of their melancholic passages, but I’m more into tracks like “Protect And Survive” and “Beautiful and Boring”.

– – – : I experienced the opening cuts as hesitant, but especially produced in a raw and unpolished way. No doubt about it this has been a deliberate choice, but it can’t convince me. The softer cuts, which sometimes make me think of a kind of cabaret style are a nice experiment, but here again not the most convincing part of the work.

Conclusion: Mechanical Cabaret remains a good alternative to the classical synth-pop music, but this new work can’t totally convince me. I’ve heard much better albums from this formation. Nevertheless the final part of the “Ortonesque” features a few cool cuts.

Best songs: “Protect And Survive”, “Beautiful And Boring”, “Sabrina”.

Rate: (6).

Band: www.machanicalcabaret.com / www.facebook.com/mechanicalcabaret

Label: www.wtiirecords.com / www.facebook.com/WTIIRecords

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Synth-pop, wave-pop.

Background/Info: After their accomplished debut album “A Smarter Enemy” (2015) Torsten Verlinden (vocals) and Steve Baltes (electronics) are back on track. “When Traces End” was preceded by the EP “Silent Tears”.

Content: The German duo confirms their promising synth-pop skills. This is a mature and accomplished production opening with the cool “Silent Tears” featuring bass guitar played by Torsten Verlinden. The song is somewhat evasive-like, which is one of the main characteristics of Arctic Sunrise.

It’s a sound you can dream away on while always based on synth-pop music. Several guitar parts (played by a guest musician) add a touch of new-wave music and this unavoidable retro feeling from the 80s. The pop sound is melancholic and even moving into real sadness. I again noticed some links with De/Vision, and I also have to mention IAMX on the final song.

+ + + : “Traces End” is a beautiful electro/wave-pop album. The songs sound like a sweet perfume that leads you into a fantasy world among the stars. Crystalline bleeps reinforce this astral dimension of the music while the melancholic tunes will touch you in the deepest of inner self. I also have to mention the great singing of Torsten Verlinden who’s the perfect singer for this kind of music. This is a well-crafted work revealing several cool songs.

– – – : My single regret is that there’s not what I would call an absolute hit song. “Silent Tears”, “The End Of Things” and “Your Eyes” are all irresistible, but not the kind of hit you’ll play again and again.

Conclusion: Arctic Sunrise is one of the upcoming synth-pop formations, which I’m sure has the potential to really break through if they could compose a hit!

Best songs: “Silent Tears”, “The End Of Things”, “Your Eyes”, “Over Me”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.facebook.com/wearearcticsunrise

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Read the review of ‘Free’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

side-line.com

De/Vision is a veteran of the synth-pop scene, which was set up at the end of the 80s. The band’s great break through happened rather instantly after the release of their debut album “World Without End” (1994). De/Vision progressively went on unleashing new impressive productions, rapidly becoming one of the leading formations in their genre. Steffen Keth and Thomas Adam both remained the single members on board. De/Vision experienced with new sonic ideas and their newest opus “13” (released on Popgefahr Records) definitely sounds as one of the most progressive albums from their impressive discography. It remains pretty synth-pop minded, but accomplished by raw and somewhat industrial sounds. The right opportunity for a chat with Thomas Adam.

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: It took you a few years to achieve the new studio album “13”! How does it feel to be back on track and what kind of album is “13” all about?

Thomas: In fact, it took us 4 years…”Rockets & Swords” was released in 2012, afterwards we toured extensively. Including the song-writing process, the production of the new album took about one year. It was a stressful year, but the hard work paid off. We are absolutely happy with the result. When we started working on the new album, one of our producers, Ken Porter, said that he wanted to make the best De/Vision album ever. In my humble opinion he reached that goal. “13” is a very diverse album that includes everything from soft to edgy tones, great song-writing, catchy melodies, in addition to excellent sound design. For lovers of electronic music “13” is a must-have.

Q: What have been the main sources of inspiration on “13”?

Thomas: Our music and lyrics have always been a reflection of our own lives and the world we live in and right now we’re living in very dark and dangerous times. International political issues had a strong influence on “13”: terrorism, religion, war, the huge number of refugees Europe is facing and how we handle this situation and in this context the upcoming nationalism in Europe and much more…

Q: I’ve been deeply impressed by the sound production revealing multiple ‘raw’ and yet pop-minded sounds. Tell us a bit more about the tricks you have used to create your sounds?

Thomas: I’m glad you mention this because creative sound design always played an important part for us, not only in our music, but in electronic music in general, but many people, especially music critics, seem to forget that at times… The sound design is definitely one of the highlights of our new album. Our demo songs sounded pretty good already, but the time, effort and expertise our producers Ken Porter and Stan Cotey have put into the sound design can’t be too highly praised. They have done a fantastic job in creating fascinating and diverse sound landscapes, giving each song a distinct note. I can’t tell you in detail what exactly Ken and Stan did or what kind of instruments or Plug-ins they use (they actually live in the USA and we didn’t meet during the production of “13”), but what I can tell you is that Stan owns an old modular synthesizer, which was used intensively…

Q: How would you analyze your evolution as artists from your debut album “World Without End” (1994) to “13” (2016)?

Thomas: It is comparable with growing up… first you gotta learn how to crawl before you learn how to walk and I guess today we’re a mature, grown-up band with an extensive experience of life. It took a while before we knew who we are and what kind of band we wanted to be. Musically we have always tried to re-invent ourselves every once in a while and we have never been afraid to break new ground. Today De/Vision is not only a synth-pop band. If you ask me, the typical De/Vision sound is very hard to describe, it changed a lot over the years. We never wanted to get stuck in some kind of routine. “13” is a very good example for what I just said. A song like “Their world” is a typical synth-pop song with fantastic melodies, songs like “Gasoline” or “Who am I” are rather edgy, almost industrial-like.

Q: You can look back at a phenomenal career, but is there one ‘dream’ and/or ‘big thing’ you still want to realize?

Thomas: I don’t know what Steffen’s answer would be, but I would love to play a show in Japan one day, but I guess that will never happen. Nobody knows De/Vision in Japan and we’re still waiting for our big breakthrough but that’s another story…

Thanx for supporting us.

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Synth-pop.

Background/Info: De/Vision is back on track. This is the first studio album since “Rocket + Swords” (2012) so I was wondering how Steffen Keth and Thomas Adam have accomplished their new opus. The successful story of the German masters of synth-pop saw the light of day in the late 80s while the band became an uncontestable leading electro-pop formation during the 90s.

Content: De/Vision remains faithful to their melancholic moods and melodic choruses. “13” reflects all the required elements to achieve a great synth-pop release. I can’t say that there’s a new noticeable element running through “13” although the global sound treatments became rawer and heavier blasting. There still is a link with Depeche Mode, but the great opening cut “Who Am I” reveals the heavier arrangements and production. De/Vision has been hit by an industrial ogre and that’s a damned good thing as the sound features great sonic manipulations. The debut is absolutely amazing.

Quite progressively the duo moves back towards familiar paths, which are 100% De/Vision-minded. The production reflects all the intelligence and genius of this band. The songs feature great effects and the typical moody passages. This is not exactly the kind of composition that has been made in a hurry. You’ll notice the great progression of the song structures, which in the end is once again driven by rawer sound treatments.

+ + + : “13” is not exactly innovating although reveals certain rough sonic manipulations. The songs however never turned into a kind of industrial-pop, but simply remain characterized by this familiar and brilliant spirit this band has composed through the years. This work again reveals a sacred match between music and vocals.

– – – : I’m not that fond of the few ‘sweet-honey’-like passages (cf. “Prisoner”), which I can imagine as a live song where the audience will put their hands in the air while holding on to their lighter.

Conclusion: De/Vision clearly took their time to accomplish one more noticeable release. It all becomes clear now that age has no real impact on their creativity while the talent is only increasing.

Best songs: “Who Am I”, “Essence”, “Their World”, “Where Is The Light”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.devision.de / www.facebook.com/DEVISION-24741337633

Label: www.shopgefahr.de / www.facebook.com/popgefahrrecords

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com

The German synth pop act De/Vision, aka Steffen Keth and Thomas Adam, will be releasing a new 10-track album on May 27th in Europe (and not May 5th as originally planned), and a little bit later in the USA (where you can order the release right now). “13” is the band’s 13th studio album to date. As far as the sound goes, this is what the band told: “One thing is for sure: It will of course sound electronic… very much electronic.”

The band has been working with a new production team. Ken Porter, song-writer, musician and producer (Intuition, Garrett Miles, etc.) and Stan Cotey from the USA are taking over from the production duo Josef Bach and Arne Schumann.

The new album is the follow-up to the 2012 release “Rockets and Swords”. If you are still missing some albums and singles from the band, check this release list to complete your collection.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

side-line.com

The German synth pop act De/Vision, aka Steffen Keth and Thomas Adam, will be releasing a new album on May 27th (and not May 5th as originally planned). It will be the band’s 13th studio album to date. As far as the sound goes, this is what the band told: “One thing is for sure: It will of course sound electronic… very much electronic.”

The band has been working with a new production team. Ken Porter, song-writer, musician and producer (Intuition, Garrett Miles, etc.) and Stan Cotey from the USA are taking over from the production duo Josef Bach and Arne Schumann.

The new album is the follow-up to the 2012 release “Rockets and Swords”. If you are still missing some albums and singles from the band, check this release list to complete your collection.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

side-line.com

Track 15 on our free download compilation “Face The Beat: Session 3” is CYLiX. On “Don’t Let Me Fade (Prequel Edit)” this Greek act offers dark electropop with a fresh undertone and strong male vocals in the vain of Distain!, De/Vision but stronger at the same time. They are clearly part of the new generation of electropop bands that slowly but steadily are taking the place of the frontrunners.

You can listen to the track below:

CYLiX is an electropop band from Athens / Greece, and consists of PlasmaG (synth, guitars, programming), Harry (vocals, programming) and Ilias (drums). They released their debut CD album “Alpha” in December 2010 via Life Is Painful Records (Germany) in a distribution by Nova Media. The album was mastered by Len Lemeire (32CRASH, Implant) and included 2 bonus remixes by the EBM/Synthpop acts Lights of Euphoria and Psyche.

The debut was well received and after the participation in various cd compilations and a few selective gigs, the band performed live in Wave Gotik Treffen as headliners at Moritzbastei stage (Leipzig, 25 May 2012). At present, they are working on their second album which is planned to be released in 2016. We’ll keep you informed!

You can find the CYLiX website right here.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Synth-pop.

Content: Arctic Sunrise is a new name hailing from Germany which was set up by the duo Torsten Verlinden (vocals) and Steve Baltes (machines). They previously released a few digital EPs, but are now unleashing their debut album revealing 11 songs.

The band claims to be inspired by the good-old synthesizer music of the 80s and that’s for sure an element you’ll rapidly recognize throughout their compositions. I was impressed by the global accomplishment of their songs. The global writing is noticeable and elaborate. You immediately notice that this band took care to create captivating sound structures refined by little bleeps and moody atmospheres.

Some of their quieter and melancholic songs remind me a bit of De/Vision, but the work sounds more open-minded. A delicious although typical 80s flavor hangs over this work and sometimes remind me of legendary bands like Depeche Mode, and even to the ‘pop’-style of The Cure (cf. “Nothing More”).

The first part of the work is remarkable and a way to discover the potential of Arctic Sunrise. The songs are danceable, in a rather ‘power-pop’ style and carried by efficient chorus lines. We next move into quieter pieces featuring “Shellshock” as the most noticeable song. The final part reveals a few more attention grabbers and especially the outstanding “Dumb”. I’m not surprised this song was previously released as a digital EP. It’s a sublime mixture of great sound treatments together with a rather cold groovy and danceable element. A few more danceable and noticeable songs are “200 Souls” and “A Smarter Enemy” which reveal irresistible deep sound treatments.

Conclusion: Arctic Sunrise is pretty cool newcomer revealing a fully accomplished piece of work. This album is mixing good-old vintage synth-pop elements together with a refreshing and more contemporary approach.

Best songs: “Dumb”, “A Smarter Enemy”, “Real Life”, “Beautiful Sunday”.

Rate: (DP:8)DP.

Band: www.facebook.com/wearearcticsunrise

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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.

www.side-line.com