I had the chance to interview The Italian artist Maxx Maryan, who is nobody else but the male half of cult band HELALYN FLOWERS, for the release of his new album, “Viscerheart”, of his solo-project IMJUDAS that is fusing dark pop, post-punk and cold-wave. He brought us behind the veils of this poignant and so intimately  intense release…

You can get the album right now from Bandcamp as download and on CD (plus special packages) and all other digital stores.

SL: “Viscerheart” is described as an exploration of love, suffering, obsession, and self-discovery. What inspired you to delve into these intense emotional themes, and how did they shape the overall narrative of this IMJUDAS album?

MM: I like to think that this new album was born from the unsustainability on my part of keeping inside many of my emotional and sentimental disorders and instabilities, because at a certain point I found myself feeling like I was scratching the bottom, so I pulled myself by the ear and I poured my discouragement into music and words. Above all the words, those throughout “Viscerheart”, are very important because they are my sung confession, my most tormented prayer. This is an album of cowardice, because I sing things that I would never have had the courage to say if not by singing them, just as I sing in the title track of the album “I have the courage to shout it but not write it. Why this cowardice? What doesn’t flow between heart and gut?”. Or again, in the song “Lost my faith in nirvana”, with clenched teeth I emit my most painful mantra “my chest is the seat of hate”. Here I call for help. This is not the album of the stupid basking in negativity as a banner of one’s nihilism, NO. There is great hope here.

SL: Your music has been characterized as ‘Electro-synth Pop with a Goth soul.’ How do you balance these genres, and what elements do you incorporate to maintain this unique blend in “Viscerheart”?

MM: As far as I’m concerned, I’m convinced that knowing how to bypass intentionality can give rise to the manifestation of part of our authenticity. At least that’s what I hope for and what holds together everything I’ve written and done. Probably my extreme curiosity on a musical level, therefore my not being stuck in just one musical area, the joy that learning from different styles and genres gives me and a certain shamelessness and contempt for the ‘safe mode’ are all elements that go to stratify my music. “Electro/Synth-Pop” is technically the result of everything, the ‘roof’ under which everything takes shape. While “Goth soul”, in fact, is what animates it. With this I am referring to a precise spiritual approach inherent above all in early Gothic.

SL: The album features a fusion of synth pop, dark wave, and post-punk. Can you discuss your influences from bands like DEPECHE MODE and GARY NUMAN, and how they have impacted your sound on tracks like “Tazebao” or yet “Go Away” for example?

MM: I think Depeche Mode are now so ingrained in me that any reference to them is unintentional! I discovered them as a child when they showed video clips of “Personal Jesus” and “Enjoy the Silence” on TV, between 1989 and 1990, and I haven’t left them since. With all the importance of an album like “Violator”, when I think of them my heart can only turn to the follow-up “Songs of Faith and Devotion”. When it came out it shocked me and from then on it remained for me a cornerstone of the meeting between electronic music and pop and rock. This is why I think that a song like my “Tazebao” is in some way the daughter of that inspiration, even if this is a consideration I make in hindsight; when I write and record, I don’t think about who or what my music might remember. Only when I listen back then do I enjoy finding correspondences, a ‘vice’, this one, quite journalistic and probably reminiscent of my very distant background as a fanzine-maker, ha ha… I can’t tell you how much Gary Numan in my opinion can be in a song like “Go Away”, probably a lot, according to many, given that in almost everything I do people find a reference to this great artist who I listened to a lot in a certain period of my life which coincided with the first years of Helalyn Flowers. I have to say that I really like his more pop records from the 80s.

SL: “Viscerheart” pushes sonic boundaries and ventures into EDM/Dance-Pop and sonic abstraction. What was your creative process in incorporating these diverse sounds, and how do you feel they enhance the album’s emotional journey?

MM: It’s all about picking up the signs. It is a simultaneity of inspiration between words and the “first” sequence, the “right” one. For me it’s all about abandoning yourself to this but also knowing how to control the creative flow so as not to disperse it between the jaws of reason. I think a certain underlying principle of reversibility is also fundamental in this; the more the container fills with beats the more it is about to pour out to empty itself, and there the beat becomes abstraction, absence of beats, rarefaction. The song “Lost my faith in nirvana” is a perfect example of this. But it’s like a yin-yang; these two concepts are not separate but mutually confluent, so that in one of them there is also a part of the other. This is why it happens that even in songs with a strong dance-pop flavour you can hear a ‘cosmic’ dimension in the background made up of hiss, manipulated and dilated vocoders, noise, drowned in the metaphysical distance of the reverb.

SL: The track “I Love You” from the previous single release is described as a Dark Pop / Post-Punk / Cold-Wave anthem. Can you talk about the creation of this song and what message or emotion you hope to convey through it?

MM: “I Love You” was one of the first songs written for the new album, so I think it represents a bit of its embryo and potential state. The love I speak of is not “another” love, because love is only one when it is authentic. I’m talking about how some ways of achieving it can hurt. Possessiveness, for example. When we are possessive, like someone who ends up excluding you from the world to protect you, we do it because in our minds we think we are pursuing a positive goal, but what results is disastrous. It’s about how good can turn bad, but only because desperation in love can get out of control and turn bad. In this case, evil, if you think about it, is a form of good, albeit degenerate, because it derives from it. It is up to us to discern and recognize these metamorphoses. However, I don’t want “I Love You” to remain, in its meaning, a mere description of how certain things happen (I think that in this song each of us can find at least a piece of our own existence) but that it transcends them, and that do through forgiveness.

SL: Your production on this album features intricate instrumentation, driving basslines, and wave-y guitars. How did you approach the production process to achieve this lush and polished sonic palette?

MM: It’s like a kind of multidimensional awareness. Once you have explored, for example, the rhythmic dimension, then you set off on a new journey such as the search for harmonies, and then again for noise etc. It all depends on how I conceive these emanations and how I don’t so much superimpose them as make sure that they flow into each other. Obviously, an important ingredient is fun. I enjoy. And a lot, too. For example, when, in the production phase, I find myself dealing with the bass, I enjoy thinking about putting into it something of what I have learned from listening to dub music. Or, for guitars, to use tones and drives that I loved hearing on an Andy Summers album and so on. I bring with me pieces of my experience as a true music lover, on a universal level.

SL: “Viscerheart” is said to invite listeners on a hauntingly beautiful journey through human emotions. What do you hope your audience takes away from this journey, and how do you want them to feel after listening to the album?

MM: I would like them, when they have finished listening, to feel a desire for joy. And that “Viscerheart” makes them reflect on not hiding from their own fallibility, so that they can admit all the evil inside us before letting it go and forgiving it. You must know how to cry to love this album. The emotional journey that “Viscerheart” guides is a warning: pay attention to your emotions and nourish your feelings instead. The world needs this, and we need it even more.

SL: As a solo project, how does IMJUDAS differ from your work with HELALYN FLOWERS, and what new creative freedoms or challenges did you encounter while producing “Viscerheart”?

MM: When you’re in a band what you must do is also consider a general vision, agreed with those who share the journey, so your individuality works at the service of a sort of entity, and however intimate your communicative style may be, never this must become synonymous with arbitrariness and mere selfish satisfaction. There are several good ways to be selfish but some of them will never match the needs of a band. This is why the solo-project path exists. And at least for me, having a side-project means transposing your person as much as possible without intermediaries, which might seem like an enviable freedom, but implies total responsibility. At the same time, the constant mirroring of yourself is a double-edged sword that you must know how to handle through periods of waiting. It’s like hunting yourself. Returning more specifically to your question, I think my “challenge” is to obtain a non-analytical but synthetic vision of myself. And I think this challenge is still ongoing. I love the idea of going beyond musical analysis and exegesis, beyond the charm of fragmentation and instead going to the heart of musical inspiration, the one of which I am the vehicle. Regarding, however, my creative freedoms, well, there is no doubt that my love for the most exotic soul of post-punk, the one that has its roots in black African music, as in dub-reggae and the Middle East, has been revealed, at least to the most attentive ears. I think the same also applies to certain industrial abstractionism as well as to a decidedly new wave and non-metal approach to the guitar.

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.

www.side-line.com

This has been a long time in the waiting. Depeche Mode and Anton Corbijn‘s iconic film collection “Strange/Strange Too” are to be released for the first time ever on DVD & Blu-Ray. The release will be available via Sony Music Entertainment on Friday, December 8. In the USA, Canada and Mexico the title will be released through Warner Music Group. Previously available as individual titles in VHS and Laserdisc formats (now out-of-print and highly collectible), “Strange” (1988) and “Strange Too” (1990) are now available for the first-time as a single collection.

The material on the set has been freshly restored from the original Super 8 sources and will include 11 music videos and 6 previously unreleased outtake ‘Vignettes’. When assembling the final edits for “Strange” and “Strange Too”, Corbijn created a visual running order where the individual music videos are perceived as one continuous film, with additional interstitial content not seen in the original clips.

The digipak release will come with a 16-page concertina booklet featuring photographs and new liner notes penned by Anton Corbijn

Will the grainy quality of the videos be lost?

Sony Music Entertainment will release Depeche Mode’s Strange/Strange Too (a much sought-after collection of music videos directed and filmed in Super 8 by Anton Corbijn) on Friday, December 8. Strange/Strange Too will be released through SME worldwide, excluding USA, Canada and Mexico (where the title will be released through Warner Music Group).

For those who fear that the grainy quality of the videos will be lost, don’t worry, the physical nature of Super 8 film means that the stock’s rough and grainy quality becomes part of the finished film’s inherent aesthetic. The film restoration itself underwent a rigorous process over the course of several years with the participation of personnel involved in making the original films including Anton Corbijn. Because this Blu-Ray/DVD release was created from the original Super 8 film stock, the final result may seemingly lack the visual clarity that modern viewers associate with contemporary HD 4k reproduction. In some occasions where the original footage had deteriorated too much, the next best source was used.

First released in 1988 as “Strange – A Black and White Mode by Anton Corbijn,”, “Strange” featured the first five Depeche Mode music clips directed by Anton Corbijn, who shot them mostly in black and white Super 8. “Strange” included the three main singles from “Music for the Masses”, the final “Black Celebration” single (“A Question of Time”) and “Pimpf,” the instrumental closing “Music for the Masses”.

Released in 1990, “Strange Too” (aka “Strange Too – Another Violation by Anton Corbijn”) was shot in full-color and has the bonus videos for “Halo”and “Clean” next to “Personal Jesus”, “Policy Of Truth”, “Enjoy The Silence” and “World in My Eyes”.

Anton Corbijn commented as follows on this release: “To be seen as ‘strange’ in a creative field is no bad thing as it probably means ‘different’ which I find is a very positive description of one’s struggle to be just that. The idea to make this into a connected series of little films and fake interviews came late into the process of shooting these,” wrote Corbijn. “I was shooting all the films myself on black/white Super 8 film. We put all this together on a shoestring budget; those were that kind of days. We have to look at these films in the light of us being young; we were experimenting and I am happy we were given that space at the time by Daniel Miller.”

“Strange/Strange Too” track lists

STRANGE

1. A Question Of Time
2. Strangelove
3. Never Let Me Down Again
4. Behind The Wheel
5. Pimpf

Outtake vignettes:

1. Strangelove
2. Behind The Wheel
3. Behind The Wheel (Shep Pettibone Mix)

STRANGE TOO

1. Personal Jesus
2. Policy Of Truth
3. Enjoy The Silence
4. Clean
5. Halo
6. World in My Eyes

Outtake vignettes:

1. Personal Jesus (Acoustic)
2. Policy Of Truth
3. Policy Of Truth (Trancentral Mix)

For more on Depeche Mode, see The last Depeche Mode show with Vince Clarke 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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Today, Helsinki-based electronic artist Detalji, the project of Krista Myllyviita, unveils her new single “Keep Me Alive”. The release comes ahead of her debut album “Truly,” set to launch on March 31st. “Truly” takes its musical influences from trance, early 90s rave, and 80s pop. The cover artwork for “Truly” however pays homage to, or rather copies, Depeche Mode’s 1990 single “Enjoy The Silence” which featured a white rose (“Truly” features a white carnation) on a blue background and the same typography. You can see the similarity above.

Detalji’s debut album was written during the lockdown years of 2020 and 2021 and serves as a form of pure escapism. Drawing inspiration from video game soundtracks she played during that time, such as Crash Bandicoot, GTA Vice City, and GTA3, Detalji crafted a comforting, timeless world of her own.

The new single, “Keep Me Alive,” combines indie pop with lo-fi drum and bass. Check it out for yourself. Not sure why they wanted to use the Depeche Mode visual though as musically it has no reference at all.

Side-Line also covered Depeche Mode’s ‘Memento Mori’.

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

(Photos by Attosa Tavallai, text by our correspondent Janos Janurik) Before embarking on an extensive world tour, Dave, Martin, and Co of Depeche Mode held a secret concert in Los Angeles. A select group of fans had the opportunity to see their idols perform live in a well-hidden rehearsal room in the “City of Angels” before the regular tour began.

The band performed at SIR Studios in Los Angeles on March 16th, but tickets were not available for purchase. Fans had the chance to win free tickets in a radio quiz hosted by KROQ. Before the highly anticipated tour commenced on March 23rd in Sacramento, participants had the opportunity to see and hear the band in an intimate concert setting. Attosa Tavallai, a familiar face to Depeche Mode fans, especially in the U.S., was among those selected and agreed to answer a few questions from our correspondent Janos Janurik before the tour officially began on March 23rd – one day before the album release.

SL: Attosa, we’ve known each other since the COVID-19 pandemic when you had some interesting Zoom conversations with friends and fans from around the world. Sometimes famous musicians, such as Bon Harris of Nitzer Ebb, were guests on these online conversations. Please tell a few words about yourself for those who don’t know you yet. Since when have you been a fan of Depeche Mode? Where and when was your first concert experience?

A: Ah, those Zoom conversations were brilliant, and I still do them to this day. Bon Harris of Nitzer Ebb is one of my favorite people on earth, and it was so lovely to have him spend an afternoon with us, singing, laughing, answering fan questions. I am a musician, and I play synths and theremin for an electronic-rock band called Former Human Beings. Depeche Mode and Nitzer Ebb are why I got into music when I was younger. I have been a fan of Depeche Mode since I was eight or nine years old, listening to their hits on the radio. However, it wasn’t until my cousin Neema gave me a cassette tape of 101 that I truly and deeply fell in love with Depeche Mode. My first concert was World Violation in 1990 as a 12-year-old. It was my first concert ever. Nitzer Ebb opened the show, and it blew me away. I still remember the sounds and the feelings to this day.

SL: Have you ever won anything related to Depeche Mode? Have you met the band in person?

A: I have previously won tickets to their Exotic tour. I sent a fax to my local radio station using the Depeche Mode Devotional font on my computer, begging them to give me two tickets to their concert because I was a kid with no money! They were so impressed with the font that they sent me to the show with plus-one access! I was pretty young and had just broken up with my boyfriend, so I had to take my mom. It was weird but fun! It became the beginning of a great relationship with her.

SL: Please, tell us a bit about the current quiz! What kind of questions did you have to answer? Was it hard for a long-time fan?

A: The contest was put on by KROQ, and we had to name 10 Depeche Mode songs in under 10 seconds. I timed it; it was 7 seconds. I found it very easy, even though the other callers had so much trouble with it. I dialed the radio station 39 times, sweating, but the line was constantly busy. I finally got on, carefully named the songs, and won the prize. The songs were: Personal Jesus, Precious, Strangelove, Just Can’t Get Enough, People Are People, Everything Counts, Never Let Me Down Again, Blasphemous Rumours, Enjoy the Silence, and Policy of Truth. You can hear the clip of me winning the contest at https://www.youtube.com/attosa

SL: When and how did you receive the winning notification?

A: The radio station told me right on the phone after the game, and then Sony and KROQ both contacted me with congratulatory letters. They were both very kind to me, knowing how very excited I was. I had mentioned on the radio that I had been to 38 Depeche Mode concerts, so they were excited they were providing me show number 39!

SL: Then the whole story sped up, I guess. Please, tell us about what happened last Thursday at SIR Studios! We already know the setlist, but more details are most welcome! We already know the live version of “Ghosts Again” thanks to TV shows. What can you tell us about the other classics that you could hear live at this rehearsal concert?

A: I can tell you that we walked in during the middle of their rehearsal, so we could hear some of the other songs, old and new, through the walls. They didn’t let us have anything brand new on stage, but we got to hear some of the classic songs a bit slowed down. It was nice to hear John the Revelator. You can tell Dave really loves performing this song, especially since he added it to all the Soulsavers sets this last tour. The boys were joking with each other a lot during the set, and Dave was very playful with me, which made me very happy. I wish someone could have recorded it, but phones were taken away before we walked in. Dave and Martin’s vocals were so fresh and perfect. It was fascinating that we could hear their voices from their mouths instead of from speakers. The room was very small, only about 40 of us in there. You could even hear Martin’s nails on his guitar. They were about 8 feet away from us.

SL: Did you have a chance to meet the band members in person? How was the whole atmosphere one week before the tour start?

A: I met up with Martin and Peter; we had such a lovely chat. Dave seemed locked away from beginning to end. I heard some fans tried to bug the band for autographs when they were trying to go to dinner and it didn’t go over well. It’s no surprise fans will try to do that. Everyone is incredibly excited about the tour. However, this show’s audience was basically 6 of us fans and 40 music industry people. The vibe was very different. Six of us screaming in the front row, and 40 people quite silent. It was interesting.

SL: There is a rumor circulating about the expected setlist for the upcoming tour. Can you comment on that, or are they really trying to keep everything a secret? Do you have any idea what the stage set will look like?

A: It’s hard for me to trust the circulated setlist because many of the songs they performed for us are not on it. It was difficult to hear the rest of the set behind the closed door, so I can’t comment on what the other half sounded like. When we left to eat after they ushered us out, they were eating and then resuming their rehearsal. Only the walls know what’s on that setlist. I think it’s nice not to know, and I really hope they bring back some of the true classics like they said they would. The stage will probably have Dave in the front, dancing around, Martin on his usual left with synths and guitars, Peter on the other side with synths and bass guitars, and Christian with the huge drum set in the middle. I know there’s a catwalk for this tour, so Dave will have fun dancing for more of the crowd.

SL: When and where are you going to see the band live on the upcoming tour?

A: Sacramento, San Jose, Las Vegas, London, and Los Angeles… so far. Always happy to add more!

SL: Taking photos or recording by any other means was, of course, strictly forbidden. Nevertheless, you shared with us a few photos you took after or before the gig. What are the stories behind these photos?

A: I got to talk to Martin and Peter before the show. I asked them if they remembered me because Martin invited me to his after-party 20 years ago. I told them I was the “Phillpott So Hott girl” (you can Google it), and they laughed hard, saying they definitely remembered me. It made me so happy that they knew who I was. We talked for a bit, then took photos together. I think Martin looks happier than he usually does in fan photos because I made him laugh a lot. They seemed refreshed and happy, and they definitely seem ready for the tour!

SL: Thanks for the storytelling. What would be your message for Depeche Mode fans in Europe?

A: Enjoy the shows no matter what you hear on the setlist. These guys have been a gift to us for over 40 years, and they are incredibly hard-working. Give them the loud appreciation they deserve; get up, dance, and thank them as loudly as you can. We never know when it will be our last show.

Join Attosa’s Facebook group “Depeche Mode Collective” to connect with other fans you may know.

Side-Line also covered Depeche Mode’s ‘Keep Me Alive’.

János Janurik

I began my career in online music journalism in 2001, writing about artists I had followed since the late ’80s and early ’90s, including Depeche Mode, Erasure and The Cure. I later edited the Hungarian Mute microsite for EMI Music Hungary. This led to interviews with Erasure, Nitzer Ebb and Alan Wilder, and some of those collaborations developed into lasting friendships. Since 2014, I have been part of the editorial team of depechemode.de. I also contribute interviews to Reflections of Darkness, Peek-A-Boo Magazine and Kaput Mag. I maintain a close connection to Mute Records artists and have also supported releases on Very Records. I am proud to collaborate with Side-Line Magazine, where I regularly publish interviews and features.

On May 26th, 2022 Andrew Fletcher, founding member of Depeche Mode, died, aged 60. Out via Timezone on November 25th is the Depeche Mode tribute compilation “6122 (To Andrew Fletcher of Depeche Mode)”. The compilation’s title contains the year Andrew Fletcher was born and the year he died.

The aim was to bring together different artists from different decades, old musical companions of “Fletch” as well as known artists across different genres and promising new bands who were influenced by Depeche Mode’s sound.

The 2CD set features artists from all kind of musical genres and 50% of all profits will be donated to a charity organisation for children in UK, and the Children’s Cancer Trust in Germany, who officially partners to the project. Behind this project we find Daniel Gierke of the act The Brute.

Here’s an idea what to get.

Here’s is the complete tracklist:

CD1

1. A Question of Time – The Brute :
2. Never Let Me Down Again – Watershed
3. In Your Room – Nightnight
4. Ice Machine – Renard feat. Mary Ann
5. Broken – Redeem
6. Stripped – Starlights Live
7. Little 15 – Atlantic Popes
8. The Sun And The Rainfall – Apsürde feat. Manoya
9. My Secret Garden – Cold Connection
10. It’s No Good – Oxic Inc. feat. De La Morte
11. Dream On – Roy Jones & Red Beat
12. Should Be Higher – The Rude Awakening
13. Somebody – Toal, The Brute, People Theatre
14. In Sympathy – Bon Harris
15. Heaven – Zentrum Ost 71

CD2

1. Enjoy The Silence – LeBen
2. Personal Jesus – Polly Scattergood
3. Wrong – Kirlian Camera
4. Policy of Truth – Rohn-Lederman
5. To Have and to Hold – Page Of Quire
6. Angel – Tom Meeloo
7. Somebody – Peter Rainman
8. The Sun And The Rainfall – Northern Kind
9. Photographic – Shelter
10. A Barrel of a Gun (El Presidente Peron Yeah John) – Carlos Peron
11. I Feel You – Tin Gun
12. I Feel Loved – Daniel Hall feat. Stephen Newton
13. Oberkorn (It’s a Small Town) – Electrogenetic by Gareth Jones
14. Clean – Neocoma
15. Breathe – The Brute feat. Rachel Delgado

For more on Depeche Mode, see Sonic Seducer goes Depeche Mode in two dedicated issues of the magazine 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!

side-line.com

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange. Cover art by Halvor Bodin) With the release of ‘Black Pawn’ Apoptygma Berzerk adds the third album in a series of 4 releases with B-Sides & Rarities, following the ‘Faceless Fear‘ and ‘Disarm‘ releases which both came in 2020.

On ‘Black Pawn’ you get, among other things, served up the title track in its original version, as well as for the very first time, a studio version of ‘Enjoy The Silence’, something APOP fans have been clamoring for and wanting since 1998.

In addition to this, there will be, for the first time digitally, ‘Kathy’s Song (Mat Silver vs. Tony Burt Remix)’, a version only found on 12″ vinyl before. ‘Photoshop Sucks (Lo-Fi Version)’ is brand new and has never been released before.

With all these remixes, that have only been available on compilations or CD-Singles previously in combination with for example ‘Untitled 6’, we get an exciting and varied B-Sides & Rarities that most APOP fans will be able to appreciate and enjoy all digital platforms and streaming services.

This is in anticipation of new material and new releases from APOP, and gives the fans something to sink their teeth into while waiting!

Check it out on Bandcamp, Tidal or Spotify!

Jan Ronald Stange

Sometimes – when I’m not cooking, biking, listening to music or attending concerts, I write stuff for Side-Line.com. Mostly about Norwegian bands, but it’s been some Swedish, English, American, Danish, German and others too… 😉

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Israel born and LA based heavy rock artist OHP (Oren Halmut) has released his re-interpretation of a pop hit with his metal cover of the 1990 Depeche Mode classic, “Enjoy the Silence”.

Oren started his musical endeavor at the young age of nine in Tel-Aviv Israel. After playing and recording with numerous artists in his home town, he relocated to California in early 2000. He owns H2O studios in North Hollywood, where he works as a producer, drummer and guitar player depending on the needs of each individual project. In 2016 Oren started the ‘Ohp metal’ channel on youtube which features weekly metal covers of popular songs ranging from pop ,country, hip hop and RnB. The channel has gained over 10.000 subscribers so far.

You can check out his version of the Depeche Mode track below.

For more on Depeche Mode, see Andy Fletcher (Depeche Mode) dead, aged 60 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!

side-line.com

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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Today we celebrate Epiphany, also known as Theophany in the east, a Christian feast day that celebrates the revelation of God’s incarnation as Jesus Christ. In Western Christianity, the feast commemorates principally (but not solely) the visit of the Magi to the Christ Child, and thus Jesus Christ’s physical manifestation to the Gentiles. And there’s no other king more suitable in synthpop land than Depeche Mode frontman Dave Gahan in the iconic 1990 video by Anton Corbijn of “Enjoy The Silence” taken from the cult album “Violator”.

Although instead of a king Anton Corbijn actually wanted to reference the themes and storyline of the philosophical children’s book “The Little Prince” from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Recorded in 1989, “Enjoy The Silence” was released as the second single from what was their seventh studio album on 16 January 1990.

It was Dutch director Anton Corbijn who shot the video for the band with Dave Gahan dressed as a king, crown and cloak included as he walks through various landscapes in Scotland, Portugal and the Swiss Alps, with a deckchair. It wasn’t the only video shot for the song, you might remember that a second video was made for a TV promo. It was shot by the French TV (for the TV Show “Champs-Élysées” with Michel Drucker) featuring Depeche Mode lip-synching the song while standing on the observation deck atop the South Tower of the original World Trade Center.

Dave Gahan: “I felt like an idiot!”

The latter video was dismissed as ‘official’ video although Dave Gahan hated making the first video as he was forced to drag a cape in snow and later said “I felt like an idiot!” As a result he also refused to do some scenes.

Note that it was Alan Wilder’s production which turned the song into a hit because the original was a slow and dull track. Songwriter Martin Gore created a ballad-like first version of the song, which the band took into the studio in 1989. At band member Alan Wilder’s insistence, the song was re-worked into the up-tempo version released on the album. It shows that Wilder was a real genius asset in the band during all these years. But that’s for another article.

The different Depeche Mode videos for ‘Enjoy The Silence’

The World Trade Center version with a similar intro as the Anton Corbijn one.

The Anton Corbijn version.

Side-Line also covered Depeche Mode’s ‘These Mortal Covers’.

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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While the Side-Line office is closed for the next 2 weeks, we keep on posting news of course. And we also keep surfing the net for some hidden news items. One of those is this video which we stumbled upon. It’s a video from a Russian band, called Drum & Cellos, bringing – in this case – covers of Depeche Mode songs.

A video was posted over 3 years ago, but gathered not that much views, so we are pretty sure most of you never heard nor saw the material.

“Depeche Mode Medley” features the tracks “Walking in my shoes”, “Personal Jesus” and “Enjoy the silence”.

Drum & Cellos consists of Adel Zakirov, Sergey Ponomarev and Mikhail Isakhanyan. The whole of course remembers of Apocalyptica or 2Cellos. Below is the video.

Side-Line also covered Depeche Mode’s ‘Dream – Depeche Mode Photographs 1994-2002’.

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 Anton Corbijn) Out now is “Depeche Mode by Anton Corbijn“, a book that holds over 500 photographs from Corbijn’s personal archives. But that’s not all, it also holds some never seen before, as well as Corbijn’s handwritten captions, sketches, album covers, and personal observations from Corbijn plus an in-depth interview with Depeche Mode.

You’ll recognize formal and informal portraits from places such as Madrid, Hamburg, the California desert, Prague and Marrakech (some taken during the making of iconic videos such as “Enjoy the Silence” and “Personal Jesus”); a multitude of off-the-cuff, candid images; and live shots from all their tours since 1988.

There are (or rather were) 2 editions of which only one is not yet sold out (and which you can order right here).

The first is the € 100 edition (still available here) which comes as a hardcover (24,3 x 34 cm) at 3,67 kg and 512 pages. It’s a multilingual edition available in English, French and German. Next is a collector’s edition (1,786 copies) priced at a whopping € 1.500 (and which is sold out). It came as a hardcover in a clamshell box (31,5 x 44 cm) weighing a healthy 11,91 kg and also counting 512 pages.

Below are two video’s showing the gems. Head here for more info and ordering.

For more on Depeche Mode, see Found on YouTube: Depeche Mode medley by Drum Cellos 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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Out on on November 11, 2016 via SONY Music Entertainment – and already available for ordering right here –  is be “Video Singles Collection”, a 3DVD library anthology containing more than four hours of Depeche Mode music videos (and two-plus hours of audio commentary) including work by Julien Temple, Anton Corbijn, D.A. Pennebaker, John Hillcoat and others..

“Video Singles Collection” is the first official Depeche Mode archival title to be released under the SONY imprimatur since it acquired the rights to the Depeche Mode catalog in July 2015. No Blu-ray set though, which is rather disappointing and surprising since the older videos really could use the format.

Note that more Depeche Mode releases will see the light as “Video Singles Collection” is the first in a series of retrospective projects around Depeche Mode. You might get yet another best of… hoorah…

Back to the actual item. The set includes 55 newly restored versions of the video singles in addition to four rare alternate videos and new commentary on specific individual clips, recorded by members of Depeche Mode especially for this release. Vince Clarke and Alan Wilder have not been asked to deliver input.

You can order the set right here from Storming The Base.

Here is the list of videos featured on the release:

• Just Can’t Get Enough (directed by Clive Richardson)
• See You (directed by Julien Temple)
• The Meaning of Love (directed by Julien Temple)
• Leave in Silence (directed by Julien Temple)
• Get the Balance Right (directed by Kevin Hewitt)
• Everything Counts (directed by Clive Richardson)
• Love, In Itself (directed by Clive Richardson)
• People Are People (directed by Clive Richardson)
• Master and Servant (directed by Clive Richardson)
• Blasphemous Rumours (directed by Clive Richardson)
• Somebody (directed by Clive Richardson)
• Shake the Disease (directed by Peter Care)
• It’s Called a Heart (directed by Peter Care)
• Stripped (directed by Peter Care)
• But Not Tonight (directed by Tamra Davis)
• A Question of Lust (directed by Clive Richardson)
• A Question of Time (directed by Phil Harding)
• Strangelove (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Never Let Me Down Again (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Behind the Wheel (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Little 15 (directed by Martyn Atkins)
• Strangelove ’88 (directed by Martyn Atkins)
• Everything Counts (Live – from “101”) (directed by D.A. Pennebaker)
• Personal Jesus (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Enjoy the Silence (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Policy of Truth (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• World in My Eyes (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• I Feel You (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Walking in My Shoes (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Condemnation (Paris Mix) (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• One Caress (directed by Kevin Kerslake)
• In Your Room (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Barrel of a Gun (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• It’s No Good (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Home (directed by Steven Green)
• Useless (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• Only When I Lose Myself (directed by Brian Griffin)
• Dream On (directed by Stephane Sednaoui)
• I Feel Loved (directed by John Hillcoat)
• Freelove (directed by John Hillcoat)
• Goodnight Lovers (directed by John Hillcoat)
• Enjoy the Silence ’04 (directed by Uwe Flade)
• Precious (directed by Uwe Flade)
• A Pain That I’m Used To (directed by Uwe Flade)
• Suffer Well (directed by Anton Corbijn)
• John the Revelator (directed by Blue Leach)
• Martyr (directed by Robert Chandler)
• Wrong (directed by Patrick Daughters)
• Peace (directed by Jonas and François)
• Hole to Feed (directed by Eric Wareheim)
• Fragile Tension (directed by Rob Chandler and Barney Steel)
• Personal Jesus 2011 (directed by Patrick Daughters)
• Heaven (directed by Timothy Saccenti)
• Soothe My Soul (directed by Warren Fu)
• Should Be Higher (directed by Anton Corbijn)

Bonus Alternate Music Videos

• People Are People (12″ Version) (directed by Clive Richardson)
• But Not Tonight (Pool Version) (directed by Tamra Davis)
• Soothe My Soul (Extended) (directed by Warren Fu)
• Stripped (Unreleased Alternate Cut) (directed by Peter Care)

Bonus audio

• 2016 audio commentaries by Dave Gahan, Andy Fletcher and Martin Gore

For more on Depeche Mode, see Depeche Mode to announce tour dates and new album on October 11 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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Here’s a rare item which Dennis Burmeister (writer of the must-have luxurious edited Depeche Mode book “Depeche Mode : Monument – The English Edition“) reminded us of on Facebook earlier today.

The picture shows a shirt featuring Depeche Mode’s Dave Gahan, tour manager Jonathan Kessler and Martin Gore’s security Darrell Ives, following Gahan’s arrest for a disturbance at the hotel they were staying at. The incident took place in Quebec City, right at the start of the first USA leg of the Devotional tour. Gaian spent the night in jail, and this photo was taken by the press. These shirts were made to commemorate the event and given to crew members only so it wasn’t exactly mass produced.

Daryl Bamontes tour diary back then included this: “September 6th, Quebec: Did a rehearsal tonight and we have the opening night of the North American tour tomorrow night. The hotel sent us a memo today (in french). Kessler translated it. It basically said that all power in the hotel would be cut between 5am due to work being carried out. Couldn’t they have let us known when we booked the room 3 weeks ago? The memo also said that extra “stuff” would be provided to “assist” guests to their rooms in the darkness. What this should have said was: “Several large, fat, ugly, stupid off-duty policemen will shine industrial strength flashlights in your face whilst hurking obscenities at you in French, therefore implying that you have no right to be in the hotel and so giving them every right to deny you access to the rooms that you have paid a lot of money for. “signed The Management” As you can imagine, a melee ensued, and Dave bumped into one of them. I’m sitting writing this in the waiting room of the local nick as Kessler tries to get David and Darrell Ives (Head of Security) out on bail. One of the band is in jail and we haven’t even done a gig yet!”

And the journal post continues by saying: “September 7th, Quebec: Went to court with Dave today. All charges were dropped. We were so happy we bought ice lollies on the way out of the courthouse and appeared on the front cover of the local newspaper eating them. You’ve gotta laugh, aint ya? Dave did a very good show tonight, considering he had done some bird bang to rights.”

Thanks to Dennis for getting this item re-surfaced.

Note that Martin Gore would get arrested later on in Denver, which also deserved him a crew-only T-shirt, including his mugshot and the text “Enjoy The Silence”. See the detail on the left.

For more on Depeche Mode, see Paul Kendall (Recoil, Nitzer Ebb, Depeche Mode, …) shows us his 10… 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: Synth-pop.

Background/Info: Inspired by some of the most famous synth-pop formations (cf. Depeche Mode) we here welcome a new and promising Russian formation set up by the famous and prolific Russian producer Nick Klimenko (mainly known from the Chronos project). The line-up has been completed with two members while a few guest musicians joined in to accomplish the debut work of Sparky4.

Content: The weird front cover didn’t really inspired me, but from the first notes of the opening song I quickly got in the grip of Sparky4. This band deals with a real creative format of electro-pop music. They’re injecting rather unexpected elements like bombastic arrangements, psychedelic guitar passages and artistic cello, into their work.

The main basis of the album remains pure electro-pop minded. It’s a fresh and alluring composition carried by the alluring vocals of female singer Maria Karimova. She brings elevating and heavenly grace to the work. A few songs feature male vocals, but they can’t convince a similar way.

The fusion of electro-pop and cello is absolutely genius. It injects a warm and graceful aspect to this album. On the other side Sparky4 also experiments with a kind of nu-disco approach (cf. “Poly Baby”), which is not the most convincing element of the work although it reveals the eclectic format of the work. Another noticeable track is the cover version of Depeche Mode (cf. “Enjoy The Silence”), which is a cool ode to their ‘masters’.

Nick Klimenko made 3 remixes, which are a bit more into danceable vibes and technoid arrangements, but I personally prefer the original versions.

+ + + : This formation brings a fresh and original touch to familiar electro-pop standards. The use of cello and their global wider spectrum of influences is absolutely great. “Chains” is a brilliant composition.

– – – : The somewhat disco-like artwork resulting in a poorly artistic front cover is the main minus point of this work.

Conclusion: Sparky4 is a band to keep an eye on. This album really adds a bonus to the usual electro-pop music. It’s an opus accomplished with grace and a great artistic feeling.

Best songs: “Chains”, “One”, “Life Goodizer”, “Chains – Nick Klimenko Remix”.

Rate: (DP:7½)DP.

Band: www.facebook.com/chronosproject / https://soundcloud.com/sparky_4

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.

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The German psychobilly act Thee Flanders feat. Achim Mentzel have made their own version of Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy the Silence” video. And they are seriously taken the piss out of all the seriousness in the original cult video from Depeche Mode as you can see below. The band’s cover of “Enjoy the Silence” is taken from their “Graverobbing No.2” LP + CD.

Guest actor Achim Mentzel is a popular German musician and TV-presenter.

Here’s the original version shot by Anton Corbin in 1990.

For more on Depeche Mode, see Do you know these Depeche Mode demos? 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!

side-line.com