British industrial/EBM project ESA (Electronic Substance Abuse) – aka Jamie Blacker – will premiere a three-part music film for “Pound of Flesh” on October 10, 2025, tomorrow that is. The track is taken from the album “Sounds for Your Happiness”, released July 5, 2025 via Negative Gain Productions.

Today Side-Line hosts an exclusive advance viewing of the film!

“Pound of Flesh” is presented as a three-part music film shot on location in Bangkok, Thailand (July 2025) with additional scenes in Manchester, UK. The cast includes Tan Toafa Maneepasopchock (Gotham/Oceans 10), Panita Hutacharern, and three other Thailand-based actors. The narrative follows a protagonist who uses astral projection to escape inner turmoil, only to find the same demons resurfacing in each host body, culminating in an exorcism sequence.

Blacker frames the piece as “in part a powerful and compelling narrative experience, alongside a love letter to Thailand,” a country significant to founder Jamie Blacker.

About ESA (Electronic Substance Abuse)

ESA is the solo studio/live project of Jamie Blacker (UK). Formed in 2004 Blacker’s first full-length album “Devotion, Discipline, and Denial” was released in 2006 on Hive Records followed by other productions on labels such as Hive Records and Tympanik Audio.

After having accomplished the last part of the “Themes Of Carnal Empowerment”-trilogy on WTII Records, ESA stroke back in 2018 with the impressive “That Beast”-album released on Negative Gain Productions.

Later titles issued via Negative Gain Productions include “Burial 10” (2020), and “Sounds for Your Happiness” (2025). In total he released already 12 albums.

Blacker has also contributed vocals to iVardensphere material.

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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The UK industrial / EBM / powernoise / dark electronica artist ESA (Electronic Substance Abuse) will release the new album “Sounds For Your Happiness“ on July 5th via Negative Gain Productions. But you can already check it out today, two days before the release.

Below is the video for the album track “Rats Come Together”.

J. Blacker, the creative force behind the industrial-electronic project ESA, has announced the release of his new full-length album “Sounds for your Happiness.” The album is the follow-up to 2022’s “Designer Carnage”.

“Sounds for your Happiness” is framed as a conceptual extension of ESA’s ongoing narrative. According to the band, the album imagines ESA as a malevolent tech corporation using music to generate emotional responses – responses that then serve as energy to fuel a simulated reality. The concept draws influence from dystopian fiction including Severance and Soylent Green.

About ESA

ESA (Electronic Substance Abuse) was founded by Jamie Blacker in the United Kingdom in the early 2000s. The project was initially self-released before signing to Tympanik Audio, through which early albums such as “The Sea & The Silence” and “How Pure Would Your Utopia Be?” were issued.

ESA later joined the roster of Negative Gain Productions, which handled multiple releases throughout the 2010s. Known for its thematic exploration of violence, technology, and psychological manipulation, ESA has steadily built a reputation within the rhythmic noise and industrial scenes.

Following “Designer Carnage” in 2022, ESA’s work has grown increasingly conceptual, integrating multimedia and dystopian storytelling. Jamie Blacker is also known for his collaborations with iVardensphere and other acts within the post-industrial circuit.

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 Bobby Talamine) Bill Leeb’s first solo album, “Model Kollapse”, drops tomorrow. Leeb, a Vancouver-based musician, is best known as the mastermind behind electro-industrial giants Front Line Assembly and ambient-pop duo Delerium. He’s also played a pivotal role in projects like Noise Unit, Intermix, and Cyberaktif.

This marks Leeb’s first solo effort since the early days of Front Line Assembly in the mid-80s, when he began recording in his bedroom and released his work on limited edition cassettes. Nearly four decades later, “Model Kollapse” was crafted between Vancouver, Toronto, and Los Angeles, with production support from Dream Bullet, long-time collaborator Rhys Fulber, and mixing engineer Greg Reely.

You can now stream the full album exclusively on Side-Line, including standout tracks like “Demons” and “Terror Forms”.

Today we can also present you this brand new video for “Muted Obsession”.

Musically, “Model Kollapse” taps into the legacy of post-punk electronic pioneers like DAF, Front 242, and Skinny Puppy (Leeb himself being an original member), while also drawing from more contemporary influences like Gesaffelstein and ADULT.

The album’s title refers to a phenomenon in artificial intelligence where trained models, particularly those dependent on synthetic or AI-generated data, degrade over time. Leeb elaborates, “As we push forward with unprecedented technological advances, I wonder how much longer we can truly stay in control. Automation has already consumed entire industries. With tech ruling much of the world, are we headed for a ‘Model Kollapse’? Chaos would surely follow.”

Released by Metropolis Records, Leeb notes the label’s crucial role in alternative music, saying, “This album was possible thanks to my long-standing friendship with the late Dave Heckman, who gave me complete artistic freedom.” Heckman, Metropolis’ founder, passed away in the summer of 2022.

Videos from “Model Kollapse”

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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The two industrial bands ESA and Moaan Exis have united to release a new two-track single, “Spit & Spite”, courtesy of Negative Gain Productions. “Spit & Spite” is a double A-side combining Moaan Exis’ punk-like industrial and basslines with ESA’s percussion.

All started when in 2020, just before the first lockdown of Covid appeared on the horizon, ESA and Moaan Exis played a show together in Prague, Czech Republic. There it was decided that at some point they would collaborate and put something together in the future.

Fast forward three to five years and the schedules finally aligned enough to create something that they all felt deserved to actually live. The artists wanted to make sure that whatever they put together felt like a 50/50 split – like ESA ingested Moaan Exis or Moaan Exis injected ESA.

Below is the video for “Spite”.

You can download the single below.

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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The Austin, Texas-based industrial duo Dread Risks are back with the single “Comadose (Moaan Exis Remix)” on Oklahoma City-based record label Re:Mission Entertainment. The track fuses elements of EBM, industrial, and aggrotech, plus of course the trademark sound of French industrial duo Moaan Exis.

This is the second time that Dread Risks have teamed up with the industrial hardcore powerhouse duo to offer their interpretation of a track.

The track is available to download now from Bandcamp.

Dread Risks have released seven albums and singles on Bandcamp, as well as a number of remixes. The lyrics often deal with themes of anxiety, fear, and violence.

Their discography includes:

• Dread Risks (2018)
• SFPT1 (2020)
• Errorcode (Adoration Destroyed remix) (2020)
• Possession Therapy (2021)
• Trauma Ties (2021)
• Automated Disappointment (2022)
• Bound Limbs (ESA Remix) (2022)
• Machine Identity (in the walls mix by God Module) (2023)

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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The Ottignies Louvain La Neuve (BE) based synthpunk / 8bit / industrial act Super Dragon Punch!! has a new 6-track single out, “Split”. The release offers a mix between industrial, futurepop and chiptune, and includes remixes by Dulce Liquido, ESA, SITD & Toxxic Project.

Mexican-belgian artist Jérémie Venganza used to be a video game store manager and has been active as a live performer with various futurepop / industrial / ebm projects for over 15 years, before creating his solo project. A first EP was released in october 2017, followed by a first album in 2021 (mixed and mastered by Hocico and Dulce Liquido mastermind Racso Agroyam). A completely new album will be released this year, preceded by the new single “Split”.

Below is the video for the track.

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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Negative Gain Productions has partnered with Gothic Cruise to celebrate their 25th anniversary with the “Destination: New Orleans” event. The festival will take place on August 25 – 26. There will be two nights of live music and entertainment and up to four days of organized daytime activities, hang outs and after-parties. Tickets can be bought here.

Friday, August 25th at Santos (Doors at 8:00, Bands at 9:30)

• Astari Nite
• Wire Spine
• Carrellee
• Total Chroma

Saturday, August 26th at House Of Blues (Doors at 5:00, Bands from 5:45 – 1am)

• Ivardensphere
• DSTR
• ESA
• Bestial Mouths
• Curse Mackey
• Josie Pace
• Order Of The Static Temple
• Panic Priest
• Aeon Rings

Weekend packages are available through the Gothic Cruise and include: hotel, both NGP showcases and fun New Orleans activities (cemetery walk, riverboat lunch, meet and greet dinner). Gothic Cruise will also be giving away a free cabin on the 2024 Gothic Cruise at the House of Blues showcase.

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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Oklahoma City based fine darkwave label Re:Mission Entertainment has released a name-your-price label compilation with all proceeds from this release going back into the label to fund future releases.

On the compilation we find 18 bands including Bara Hari, Shhadows (feat. Reiya), A Perfect Error, Dedalos (feat. May Rei), Fact Pattern, Dead Voices On Air, Dread Risks, Black Agent, Mentallo & The Fixer, :Waijdan:, Sidewalks And Skeletons (with Cashforgold), Snowbeasts, SET, Reign Of Roses, The Mystic Underground, Suffer Ring, Dracula Party and SØLVE.

Included are previously unreleased tracks by Reign Of Roses, The Mystic Underground and Snowbeasts along with remixes by ESA: Electronic Substance Abuse, Grendel, Blak Emoji and more.

Next to the download compilation you also have the option to get 1 of 100 copies of the compilation on CD and 1 of 50 Silver Logo t-shirts.

Check the compilation out below.

And below are the previous compilations launched since 2019 when the label started.

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-Electro, EBM.

Format: Digital, 2CD.

Background/Info: After three self-released and four official albums C-Lekktor breaks the silence after a hiatus of five years. Mexican Dark-Electro head Marco Barientos aka ‘Markko B’ signed to Alfa Matrix. He’s already familiar with the Belgian label having released music from his side project Circuito Cerrado. The last album of this side-project “Furious Basslines” might have inspired him for the slogan of this new C-Lekktor work ‘Are You Ready For The Bass?’

Content: The album stands for pure C-Lekktor Electro-terror and yet I noticed a little evolution in sound. The mix between Dark-Electro and EBM has never been so perfect. The songs are driven by hopping rhythms and sequences while carrying leads are pushing the songs to a higher dimension. Markko B is singing like a possessed creature.

The bonus disc features remixes by Xperiment, Centhron, ESA, Nevel, Llumen, The Psychic Force, Skynthattack, Venal Flesh, Neikka RPM, Chamaeleon, Nano Infect, FabrikC, Third Realm, Aesthetische, Miseria Ultima and Circuito Cerrado.

+ + + : C-Lekktor stands for power and terror; a violent Dark-Electro experience which became the trademark of this artist. C-Lekktor definitely belongs with projects like Hocico and Amduscia to the best Mexican bands in the genre. Markko B knows how to compose pure dance-terror. I like the way he created a perfect symbiosis between Dark-Electro and EBM resulting in great songs like “God Killer”, “Me”, “Death Dealer” and “Are You Ready For The Bass?”. Among the remixes featuring great names I especially like the job done by Neikka RPM industrializing “Obsession” in a true masterpiece with female backing vocals by Dominique. Other essential remixes are these by The Psychic Force and Chamaeleon.

– – – : The first part of the album sounds okay but the best cuts are definitely featured on the second part. I however have already heard better stuff from C-Lekktor.

Conclusion: ‘Are you ready for the bass?’ No doubt about it C-Lekktor will take dancefloors by force!

Best songs: “Me”, “Are You Ready For The Bass?”, “God Killer”, “Dearth Dealer” + “Obsession – Neikka RPM Remix”, “House Of Pain – The Psychic Force Remix”. 

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/Clekktor

Label: www.alfa-matrix.com / www.facebook.com/Alfa.Matrix

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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C-Lekktor expands, the duo consisting of Markko and Jamie, welcome a 3rd member to their line-up: Dj/Producer Dimitri Berzerk aka d·b. The news was announced on Facebook last night as you can see below.

C-Lekktor has a new album out since last week, the 2CD “New World Disorder” which is also available as download via Bandcamp and all other services. With “New World Disorder”, the band breaks 5 years of extended silence. The release offers a fusion of classic dark hellektro with upbeat industrial EBM.

Note that this 2CD is a limited edition first pressing including a 16-track bonus disc featuring remixes by ESA, Centhron, Xperiment, The Psychic Force, Fabrikc, Aesthetische, Neikka RPM, Venal Flesh, Nano Infect, Circuito Cerrado, Llumen, Nevel, Synthattack, Chamaeleon, Miseria Ultima and Third Realm.

Below is the Facebook announcement.

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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“Are You Ready For The Bass?” is the name of a brand new download EP by one of the leading bands from the Mexican dark elektro scene, C-Lekktor. On this new EP Markko B. offers 6 track s to tease his upcoming 2CD album “New World Disorder” which is coming out at the end of October, and which can be ordered here as a download and here as a limited first edition 2CD set.

This new EP also features an exclusive club mix of “Don’t Be Afraid” plus 4 remixes signed by Esa, Nevel, Aesthetische and Venal Flesh.

Below you can listen to “New World Disorder (Bonus Tracks Edition)” as download, the album is also out as a limited 2CD first edition via the Alfa Matrix label webshop.

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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One of the leading bands from the Mexican dark elektro scene, C-Lekktor, has landed a record deal with the Belgian electro label Alfa Matrix. After having been focused on some side-project activities (for instance the excellent Circuito Cerrado) and other collaborations over the last years, Markko B. has concentrated his attention back on C-Lekktor.

Alfa Matrix announced today that they will release the new C-Lekktor album “New World Disorder” later in October. With this new release C-Lekktor breaks 5 years of extended silence (and pandemic struggle).

The first pressing of this “New World Disorder” album comes out as double-CD digipak limited edition with extended artwork and a 16-track bonus disc featuring remixes by Esa, Centhron, Xperiment, The Psychic Force, Fabrikc, Aesthetische, Neikka Rpm, Venal Flesh, Nano Infect, Circuito Cerrado, Llumen, Nevel, Synthattack, Chamaeleon, Miseria Ultima and Third Realm.

You can already check two tracks on Bandcamp (they are yours for immediate download if you pre-order the download release). The 2CD limited edition can be pre-ordered now from the Alfa Matrix webshop.

The project debuted in 2004 with the self-released album “Re-A-Gression”. It was followed by “Cloned And Mutated” in 2007, again self-released. The same year the project offered “Refusing The Paradise” after which they got picked up by COP International. On that label they released 3 albums, “The Silence Procession” (2008), “X-Tension In Progress” (2012) and “Final Alternativo” (2014). The band’s last album was the 2017 release “Out Of My Way” re-released in an anniversary edition in 2019.

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

Out via Re:Mission Entertainment is the brand new video for the Swedish dark electro / industrial solo-act :Waijdan:. The video was made for the project’s newest single “Rip Them Apart” and today we can exclusively present you this video.

The video comes in anticipation of the upcoming album “Ravage:Defeat” by :Waijdan:. The video features distorted and glitched out horror footage synchronized to heavy beats.

“Ravage:Defeat” will be out on Friday, August 12th and will hold 10 new tracks. Re:Mission Entertainment will release the album both digitally and on CD. It will also feature 7 remixes from Grendel, ESA: Electronic Substance Abuse, Dread Risks, SPANKTHENUN, MATT HART, Hardpot and Binary Division.

For now, check out the video for “Rip Them Apart”.

You can preview a first track below on Bandcamp, a remix by ESA of the track “”Rip Them Apart”, and pre-order the album as download and on CD. You might also want to pick up a brand new T-shirt there.

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 we see the release of the new album by the London based UK dark industrial act MATT HART, who you will know from our most recent free download compilation “Face The Beat: Session 7”. “Below The Terra Pt.1” follows the first single from the album, “To The Core”, which was released late last year.

Here’s a video promo clip.

The release is a move away from the guitar driven “Terra 3808” and offers a more electronic direction through the 9 tracks and should please fans of ESA, 3TEETH, Hocico etc.. The release was mixed by Adi Calef of DNA Studios, mastered by Krischan Wesenberg of Rotersand with artwork by Vlad McNealy of Kallistidesign.

You can download the album below or order the CD right here from Bandcamp.

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: Industrial, Industrial-Metal.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: The French act Moaan Exis consists of  Mathieu Caudron and Xavier Guionie (Punish Yourself). They together released two albums on the defunct French label Audiotrauma and are now back on track with this self-released “Necessary Violence”. 

Content: Moaan Exis remains hard to define, but rather resulting from a true sonic fusion and -cataclysm instead of belonging to an established music genre. “Necessary Violence” is a merciless and ultra-violent production. There’s no true break, but a devilish speed driven tempo mixing heavy guitar assaults with apocalyptic electronics. The sound is complex and unpolished. The last track is a remix by ESA.

+ + + : What I like with a band like Moaan Exis is the ‘no-compromises’ attitude. Those guys achieved a true hardcore piece of music; a kind of perverted Industrial sound, which takes no prisoners. I especially like the last 3 tracks whereon the power remains intact, but becomes more efficient. The last track, which is a remix of “Divine Automation” by ESA is an absolute masterpiece; the imaginary fusion between Cubanate and The Prodigy. I like it!

– – – : I experienced some passages as pure hardcore chaos; “Alone Together” symbolizes this somewhat lost control approach, which can’t convince me. 

Conclusion: Moaan Exis deals with Industrial Hard-Core music, which might be seen as the French answer to some famous American and Canadian artists.

Best songs: “Divine Automation – Rmx By Electronic Substance Abuse”, “Love Witches”, “Necessary Violence”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/MoaanExis

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: Dark-Electro, EBM.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: God Module last year unleashed the successful opus “The Unsound”, which has been now revisited by an impressive list of artists remixing most of the songs from the album. “The Unsound” was God Module’s eighth official album.

Content: From the 10 original songs of the album only 2 (cf. “Behind The Curtain” and “One Last Wish”) haven’t been remixed. We get a total of seventeen (!) remixes by Iris, Amnestic, ESA, Baby Magick, Ruined Conflict, ES23, System Syn, Wolftron, Reichsfeind, Absynthe Of Faith, “Finite Automata, Ghostfeeder, Invalid, Velvet Acid Christ, Funker Vogt, Aircrash Bureau and Rodney Anonymous.

The selection of remixers is pretty diversified resulting in a true sonic cocktail. It’s pretty surprising to hear God Module being remixed by Iris for example. But I can also mention the heavier and industrial work by Amnestic and the melancholic Pop of System Syn. The album ends with heavy dance cuts by Funker Vogt and Aircrash Bureau.

+ + + : It’s cool to nearly get all songs from the album being remixed. It creates a cool diversity and I’m sure we all will find some favorite cuts. I have to mention ES23 transforming “Cross My Heart” into a powerful, melodic edit. Funker Vogt did a great job remixing “Unconscious” while I also have to mention “Déjà vu” remixed by Aircrash Bureau. Ruined conflict is another great name and the remix of “Display” definitely belongs to the best of this opus. So in the end it’s quite interesting to see that some of the best songs from the original album didn’t become my favorites now.

– – – : When you get 17 remixes you for sure will always have a few forgettable ones; some of the less famous artists unfortunately also deliver the less inspired remixes.

Conclusion: This album is a perfect item for die-hard fans and DJ’s, but I still prefer the original album.

Best songs: “Cross My Heart – ES23 Remix”, “Unconscious – Funker Vogt Remix”, “Display – Ruined Conflict Remix”, “Déjà Vu – Aircrash Bureau Remix”;

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.godmodule.org / www.facebook.com/godmodule

Label: www.metropolis-records.com / www.facebook.com/MetropolisRecords

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

After working together on “You are Safe Here” (taken from “Burial 10”, released in February 2020) ESA once again comes together with Caitlin Stokes from Corlyx in the form of quite a powerful industrial anthem: “Eat their Young” as part of the “Eat their Young/The Scorn” EP.

The track was written and recorded in March, “after observing how differently the current challenges were affecting different classes of people” says J Blacker. “It felt obvious that some sort of tidal wave was going to hit, that has ended up happening in lots of guises since earlier this year and think we all can all logically predict it will likely appear again in the near future. Without delving into personal and emotional politics too much. I struggle with the notion of greed and general unfairness. There is a strange sense of superiority that seems to accompany money, whether earned or inherited and that pedestal has always confused and frustrated me. It seems to be partnered with a distinct lack of empathy and general entitlement that for me has little place in a fair and modern society.”

Here’s the video.

J Blacker also indicates that for the video itself it was decided to tone down any sort of nod to rioting and group protest in favour of ‘the broken man’ acting as a metaphor for the disenfranchised. Equally for the ‘insatiably hungry consumer ‘acting as a metaphor for the rich and upper class. “Caitlin did a great job of acting that part as I hope you’ll agree.”

You can stream/download the “Eat their Young/The Scorn” EP (out now on Negative Gain) right below.

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: Experimental, dark-ambient, cinematographic, abstract.

Format: Digital, CDR, Cassette.

Background/Info: HLER is the meeting between Finnish artists Heikki Lindgren and  Esa Ruoho. The initials of their respective names inspired the name of the project. Notice by the way the album has been released on ZeroK, which is a new subdivision of the Italian label Unexplained Sounds Group. The label is ‘focused on deep and cinematic experimental ambient, along with a nod to scientific exploration and experimentation, as well as moods and feelings evoked by sci-fi imagery’.

Content: The album takes off with a real overwhelming noisy dark sound wave. There’s a strong and anguished dark mood hanging over the work, which remains constant. You can also recognize field recordings and different kinds of manipulated noises and effects injecting some little sonic details reinforcing the mysterious mood of the work. It sometimes feels like a sonic corridor without real exit. You can hear space signals, which are mainly accentuated in the last part of the work. The tracks are pretty long, revealing a slow progression.

+ + + : You rapidly get the impression of diving into an abyssal sphere leading to explore hidden secrets and lost mysteries. HLER has this power to tickle your imagination leading you into a dark and hostile inner world. It’s a dark trip throughout a fiction world featuring multiple little crispy noises and astral sound treatments. But this universe also reflects a sensation of loneliness, which is masterly accomplished at “PSR J1023+0038”.

– – – : Different passages reflect some monotony, being a bit too linear. I’m afraid that’s often what you might experience listening to this kind of music, but I think some of these passages could be a little bit more diversified.

Conclusion: HLER brings us an interesting sonic experience mixing darkness and fiction.

Best songs: “PSR J1023+0038”, “PSR J1836+5925”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/HLERmusic

Label: www.facebook.com/ZeroK-103649114533137

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

UK-Rhythmic Industrial artist ESA (Electronic Substance Abuse) announces the release of his ninth studio album “Burial 10”. The album is the follow-up to 2018’s “That Beast”. “Burial 10” will be released February 7th on Negative Gain. Note that the album holds vocal contributions by Jo Hysetria (Massenhysteria), Caitlin Stokes (Corlyx) and Lecture.

The music video for the title track is inspired by the British style of cult horror films such as the “Wickerman” and “Midsommar”. The video can be seen below.

The ESA project was born in 2002 by Jamie Blacker, who up until this point had been writing music semi-professionally for years in the UK Black / Death metal circle, touring and recording. Venturing in dark electronics, ESA went for a heavy, rhythmic style which he has continued on the past 9 albums.

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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Set up by Jamie Blacker in 2002 Electronic Substance Abuse (ESA) rapidly became a noticeable project dealing with multiple influences such as rhythmic-noise, industrial and electro-ambient. Different productions have been released on defunct labels such as Hive Records and Tympanik Audio. After having accomplished the last part of the “Themes Of Carnal Empowerment”-trilogy on WTII Records, ESA this year stroke back with the impressive “That Beast”-album released on Negative Gain Productions. I asked a few questions to Jamie Blacker while he was busy touring with iVardensphere (a band he’s also involved with).

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Your latest official album “That Beast” has been released a few months ago now. I think it became the most sophisticated ESA-album ever, but how do you look back at this opus?  

Jamie: Honestly, I personally would not see it as the most sophisticated ESA release. I would probably hand that title to the last of the “Themes”-trilogy albums (“Penance”), just due to its many moods and disciplined focus on concept.

What I would say about “That Beast” is that it is a result of increased production skills knowledge and directs attention more to the beauty of ‘hooks’ in tracks.

My aim was to create a really solid standalone product with “That Beast”. Something that was memorable, not just due to the actual music, but also the really focused artwork and the music videos that have been released and will be released. It’s a package that I’m really proud of and so far it’s been received far more strongly than any other ESA release. I feel like ESA is finally getting the attention that it deserves from lots of different sub-genres within the scene, which I’m massively thankful for.

Q: You just mentioned the trilogy “Themes Of Carnal Empowerment”. Artists seem to like trilogies, but how did it feel working on a ‘conceptual’ theme and moving on with a more ‘classical’ album?

Jamie: It felt massively liberating if I’m completely honest. I’d been so tied down with previous releases. I’m really proud of those albums, but I almost felt like I’d created a bit of a prison for myself with the “Themes”-trilogies.

What also came with the alternative direction to writing with “That Beast” was an opportunity to create a much more personal link to the album. The listener will have a massive flag as to just how personal this album is within the first 15 seconds of the album. It felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders if I’m honest.

Q: E.S.A. has been always linked to industrial-music and rhythmic-noise, but quite progressively you injected trance elements, which I think have been never that explicit as on the new work. That’s an interesting evolution to analyze don’t you think?

Jamie: I agree. I love rhythmic noise. I still get excited by the power of that style. I like how oppressive and hypnotic it can be, but I also feel that can be applied with the 4/4 techno style. I think the genres can be merged together quite easily, whilst still remaining very dark and powerful.

It also provides more of an invitation to a wider audience, with techno being more accessible, though I wouldn’t say it was a conscious decision to create a wider fan base by introducing this style. It just feels right.

Q: Industrial music productions are often characterized by this typical ‘harsh’ and ‘distorted’ effect. Since a couple of years now I noticed artists are more taking care about how to get a high-tech and professional production. I think you’re definitely concerned about this item, but can you reveal a few details about how you get this sound?

Jamie: Yes absolutely. I’m an extremely non-technical person. First and foremost I am a musician, I love to pick up instruments and use them as an extension to myself. To allow them to be my personal sounding boards.

So the quick answer is I’ve learnt how to work with frequencies better. I’ve learnt that a wall of distortion will not allow for a punchy kick to cut through and holes have to be made in that wall of sound for everything to breathe correctly.

I’ve also stripped back on layers. I’m much more disciplined about what I throw in a track. The more layers you add… the messier it can get. That’s definitely something I’ve learnt along the way.

Q: There’s an interesting and here again very ‘professional’ clip of the song “Bad Blood Will Out”. What did you try to express with this clip and what’s the importance of making clips today?

Jamie: So myself and a gentleman called Myles Fearnley have been increasingly becoming involved in video making.

Myles himself has taken this on as his next career step now and I am also devoting as much time to it as possible along with him.

So far we have filmed two music videos together, those being “The Hold” and “Bad Blood Will Out” the latter being a huge leap in professionalism and result in comparison to the former. We’re really enjoying making these and are currently in the middle of filming the next music video for the track “I Want it Now”, but I don’t want to give too much away on that just now.

I think video is massively important. You’re only able to give away a small amount of a message in just audio. For me (being a massive film fan), narrative and story is so important. So what we are doing right now is merging film-making with the ESA music and I’m super happy on how this is turning out.

Q: I noticed you were into metal music before dealing with industrial music. Do you see some links and similarities between both genres and especially when you’re composing music?

Jamie: Yes. My style is very influenced in metal. More nodding toward the ‘feel’ and ‘tone’ of metal. It’s really all the I listen to still and I think there’s still a hell of a lot of life in that genre.

I think that a lot of metal fans would get something out of an ESA album. The first track on “That Beast” – “I Have Clarity” to me is massively leaning towards the feel of a heavy metal track. It’s heavy, mid paced and very groovy. The vocals are also straight up doom / death-metal. I’m really happy that this track is a lot of people’s favourite on the album.

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: Rhythmic-noise, industrial-trance.

Background/Info: Jamie Blacker (still involved with iVardensphere) strikes back with his solo-project Electronic Substance Abuse (ESA). Set up in 2002 this harsh industrial project has released an impressive number of albums on different labels such as Hive Records, Tympanik Records, WTII Records and now Negative Gain Productions.

Content: ESA is a project I always have supported for its very unique approach in industrial music. “That Beast” moves a step further and feels like a laboratory experiment mixing rhythmic-noise and trance music. It’s harsh and merciless, but also constructed with terrific sound treatments and noticeable samplings. Several songs are featuring (guest) vocals, which are now cavernous-like and next rather sterile.

Notice by the iVardensphere mate Scott Fox contributed to one of the tracks.

+ + + : I’ve already heard several great works by ESA, but this new opus is without a shadow of a doubt my favorite. It has something visionary for the fusion of traditional rhythmic-noise together with pure trance passages. Some of the spoken samplings feel like accentuating the trance touch. But the most noticeable aspect of the work is there where most of the industrial artists are simply producing harsh sounds; Jamie Blacker manipulates and transforms them into a kind of high-tech industrial dimension. Just pay attention for “Then Follow Me” (feat. Scott Fox) and you’ll understand what I mean. This is an impressive sound production on, which power and outstanding sound treatments are joining hands.

– – – : I don’t see any major negative point about this album although I’m not a huge admirer of the front cover, which says more about the artwork than the music.

Conclusion: “That Beast” will take no prisoners, and leave the dancefloors filled with victims. This album is truly a masterpiece!

Best songs: “Then Follow Me”, “I Have Clarity”, “Carry The Noose”, “I Know”, “Bad Blood Will Out”.

Rate: (9).

Artist: www.electronicsubstanceabuse.com / www.facebook.com/ElectronicSubstanceAbuse

Label: www.negativegain.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Negative–Gain/212061438836984

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 20 July 2018 ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst welcomed the legendary electronic band Kraftwerk and 7500 visitors to the Jazz Open Festival on Stuttgart’s Schlossplatz – live from the International Space Station.

During the call with space, Kraftwerk founding member Ralf Hütter and Alexander played a special duet version of the track “Spacelab”, for which Alexander had a tablet computer configured with virtual synthesizers on board.

The ‘new’ Kraftwerk live member will live and work in space until mid-December 2018. The video footage of this special event has now been shared by ESA.

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: Dark-electro, industrial-metal, crossover.

Background/Info: Plague Called Humanity is a band from the Czech Republic which after a few line-up changes released this debut EP early 2017. I don’t know if their band name got inspired by the “Plague Called Humanity” album from Prometheus Burning (2009), but it’s a weird coincidence.

Content: After an introduction track the music rapidly moves in to a furious merge of dark-electronics and metallic guitar riffs. The vocals are extremely harsh and here again mixing dark-electronics together with metal music. “Disconnection” sounds hard and brutal, sometimes mixing spooky-like atmospheres with their devilish electro style.

The EP features 5 original songs followed by 5 remixes accomplished by Dolls Of Pain, Qx-Rh85, Jerk In The Can & Doug Fury, ESA and BloodPact.

+ + + : If you’re into extremely powerful sound creation, this album could be something for you. I think it’s the kind of music that could appeal for dark-electro heads and metal addicts. Plague Called Humanity has accomplished a furious and explosive fusion, which get us back to the essence of crossover. I noticed cool remixes by Dolls Of Pain (the right band for this kind of music) and BloodPact.

I also have to say a word about the original and somewhat cartoon-like artwork of this digipak format.  

– – – : I can’t get away from the feeling this band still has to find its own style. It now sounds a bit like metal freaks discovering electronic music. I also expected a bit more from the remixers. The mixing and especially mastering of some songs is another aspect that has to be improved. You sometimes get the impression of hearing a demo.

Conclusion: The idea mixing dark-electronics and metal music isn’t new at all, but it still makes sense. The band has to improve several elements of the production so let’s see what the future will bring.

Best songs: “Doomed Generation – Dolls Of Pain Perverse Mix”, “The Truth”, “Disconnection – BloodPact Roulette”.

Rate: (5½).

Band: www.facebook.com/plaguecalledhumanity

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, body-pop.

Background/Info: Neonsol is a Danish-Canadian trio, which is already active for a couple of years now. They haven’t been that prolific however released a well-crafted debut-album (cf. “Ecliptic”) in 2014. They’re now back on track unleashing 4 new cuts plus 4 remixes.

Content: The new work reveals a fresh electro-pop style mixed with some danceable vibes. The songs sound happy-like, somewhat evasive, but still featuring harder body-pop ingredients. The band takes particular care to create great sound effects and some irresistible bass lines.

The remixes have been made by Rotersand, ESA and Gelting while you’ll also discover a new version of “Lights Out” (which was originally released on the debut full length).

+ + + : I already mentioned the great sound effects, but Neonsol accomplished a noticeable production. The sound treatments are great and finding a good balance between solid bass lines and carrying choruses. “Heat” is a great song in the genre driven by passionate and even somewhat enraged female vocals. Neonsol strikes back with power and pop elegance. They aren’t reinventing the electro-pop music, but definitely belong to the refreshing and contemporary bands dealing with electro-pop.

– – – : I was a little bit disappointed by the remixes. Rotersand and ESA both are great names, but I expected a bit more out of their contribution. The most convincing remix (another song from the debut album) is the one by Gelting. Band member Frédèric Scarfone contributed to the production of this song so in the end it’s maybe not coincidental if this is my favorite one. I also expected a bit more from the title song, which is not my favorite one.

Conclusion: An EP remains the best teaser to welcome a new full length so let’s wait for more new music, but this is a successful return.

Best songs: “Heat”, “Forever”, “Another Day”, “Manipulation – Gelting Remix”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.facebook.com/Neonsol

Label: www.analoguetrash.co.uk / www.facebook.com/analoguetrashofficial

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: Industrial, tribal, industrial-trance.

Background/Info: Jamie Blacker aka ESA (Electronic Substance Abuse) is now active for 15 years and has released many noticeable works on Hive Records (right in the beginning) and mainly on Tympanik Audio. He next joined hands together with WTII Records and has now signed to Negative Gain Productions. Female vocals were accomplished by Valeriia Moon while Ivan Popov played some cello and piano plus did some additional production.

Content: Right at the moment I thought to have already discovered the entire sonic spectrum of Jamie Blacker, this EP took me by surprise. The title song is a little sound jewel mixing elements of industrial- and tribal music while featuring the bewitching vocals of guest singer Valeriia Moon. The song has been meticulously built up, progressively reaching a truly sound orgasm.

The song has been remixes by iVardensphere and Tight Grip. The B-side song is much more than simply a filler. This track could have been the title song. It moves again into bombast and has been composed with icy sound treatments.

+ + + : “The Hold” is an impressive track mixing different influences with intelligence and efficiency. The female vocals add a touch of magic to the bombastic sound universe created by ESA. Both remixes are absolutely magnificent. Both remixes are more trance-minded and sounding like the perfect offspring between tribal-, industrial- and ethereal music.

“In Good Faith” is a hot dancefloor track for industrial souls. There’s no real B-side on this EP, which clearly sounds like a strong appetizer for the next ESA production(s).

– – – : This is the kind of record appealing for more! I don’t have any points to critique here!

Conclusion: I’m not saying that ESA has reinvented its own sound, but this EP sounds like a hard and sexy record appealing for more! Definitely one of the best EP’s I’ve heard this year!

Best songs: “The Hold”, “The Hold – iVardensphere Remix”, “The Hold – Tight Grip Remix”, “In good Faith”.

Rate: (9).

Band: http://www.electronicsubstanceabuse.com / www.facebook.com/ElectronicSubstanceAbuse

Label: www.negativegain.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Negative–Gain/212061438836984

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

Loyal Side-Line readers will remember that we always have had a soft spot for the now defunct idm, electro label Tympanik Audio which launched in September 2007. The Chicago-based electronic music label closed in March of 2016 and as a result its back catalogue ceased being distributed… until now!

The fine people from Storming The Base have taken over the complete back catalogue stocks and are selling it now at rock bottom prices (US,98 per CD album) via this hidden link.

Attention: For the US-readers, keep in mind that Storming The Base is offering free shipping from US$100 on, so you might want to take advantage of this by filling your basket with plenty of goodies. The same goes for overseas fans as the shipping diminishes a lot per item once you buy in bulk.

Tympanik Audio’s artist roster includes: Totakeke, Displacer, Ad·ver·sary, Stendeck, ESA, Unterm Rad, Pneumatic Detach, Broken Fabiola, Integral, Atiq & EnK, Geomatic, Flint Glass, Haujobb, Erode, Tangent, Normotone, Disharmony, Anklebiter, Comaduster, Tineidae, Known Rebel, C.H.District, MultiColor, Subheim, [Haven], Fractional, c.db.sn, EyeScream, Zentriert ins Antlitz, SE, Black Lung, Worms Of The Earth, r.roo, Access To Arasaka, Ex_tension, Candle Nine, Tapage, Zinovia, Meander, Dirk Geiger, Endif, Zeller, Lucidstatic, Undermathic, Autoclav1.1, Opposite Exhale, Pandora’s Black Book, Famine, and Aphorism.

Recommended!

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

Set up in 2007 by Paul Nielsen, the Chicago-based label Tympanik Audio rapidly became one of the most visionary underground labels dealing with electronic- and industrial music. I felt deeply sad when Paul Nielsen earlier this year announced to close the doors of the label. He has no further plans to continue in the music business. Paul has been involved in this field for over 20 years, from Dj-ing, to music journalism, hosting radio programs, organizing events, to eventually running Tympanik. I can only speak for myself but Tympanik Audio is a label I’ll seriously miss for its innovation and creative spirit. This interview is meant as a homage to this great label and his instigator. Respect Mr. Nielsen!

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: A few months ago now you made this terrible announcement about the end of Tympanik Audio. I guess it must have been one of the hardest decisions in life so how did you come to close the doors of the label?

Paul: Indeed it was a very difficult decision to close Tympanik – it affected me quite deeply on a personal level – like the end of a long relationship. I had been struggling to keep the label going for the last few years, but the financial burden finally took its toll on me and it reach a point where I really had no other choice but to shut down the label. I’m just glad I was able to get Tympanik this far.

Q: During the last year I noticed you started to release digital productions. Was it an option to keep the label running by releasing only digital work?

Paul: Yes, I began focusing on digital releases the last year in an effort to not only keep our costs down, but to cater to digital-only listeners. The interest in physical media such as CDs and vinyl have dropped significantly over the past few years so releases that I would have normally produced on CD had to be released digitally.

The important thing was to still have an outlet for the artist’s music under our banner. My main goal has always been to get the music out to our audience, so even thought the release format changed, I still felt the quality was there and the music was still accessible to our listeners, even more so since some of the digital releases were offered as ‘pay-what-you-want’ via Bandcamp.

Q: All labels are complaining about streaming and digital downloads getting CD sales downwards. What’s your point of view about it and is it indeed the main point that hurts?

Paul: I certainly understand the frustration of digital pushing CD releases into the background. This use to bother me quite a bit, as I had always intended Tympanik to be a CD-based label only. Eventually I realized that I couldn’t fight the digital music aspect of the business any longer and in order to perpetuate the label’s existence as well as meet the needs of our audience, I needed to adapt to the changes. Bandcamp was a great way for Tympanik to offer both CD and digital options to our listeners.

I’m still disappointed that CDs do not play such a significant role in music these days. I’ve always enjoyed holding music in my hands and exploring the visual aspect of it (artwork, booklets, tracklistings, credits, etc.). To me, digital music is a much colder medium; it’s a file on your device – very impersonal and in my opinion doesn’t allow that personal connection to the listener that physical formats do. Digital music is here to stay and label owners just need to accept that and meet the demand. There will always be collectors out there like myself who want to own CDs, tapes, vinyl of the music they love – I have no doubt that the demand for physical media will never go away, I just don’t think it will ever be as prevalent as it once was.

Q: What has been the feedback from ‘your’ bands so far and do you see new opportunities for some of them?

Paul: Honestly I think a lot of our artists saw this coming – I don’t imagine it was a big surprise for many of them when I made the announcement, but most have expressed gratitude for being a part of the Tympanik family. I think this closure has offered a lot of our artists new opportunities to project their music to even larger audiences by moving on to other labels and getting more involved in the promotion of their works. It’s good to see some of our artists like ESA, Autoclav1.1, Tangent, Subheim, Totakeke, Displacer, and others find new homes for their music, and I’m confident that many others will move on successfully as well.

Q: Tympanik Audio will be reminded as a label with a visionary taste so what was the original concept all about and did you notice an evolution throughout the years?

Paul: The original concept was to promote music that I felt deserved more attention – unknown and up-and-coming artists who were self-promoting and had no label to help them reach a wider audience. I was hosting a radio program in Chicago for many years in an effort to achieve this, but eventually I felt that starting a label and releasing music on CD would significantly expand the audience for these artists’ work. In the early days of the label, my music tastes were quite eclectic, ranging from industrial, ambient, IDM, rhythmic-noise, etc., so I was initially attracted to artists that not only fell into these broad genres, but were able to combine these styles successfully. I think in the first few years there was a larger focus on industrial-style music, but eventually I began choosing albums to release that weren’t so easily labeled; a hybrid of music styles set on a foundation of originality and accessibility. Artists like Zinovia, Tangent, Idlefon, Tineidae, and MultiColor, are a few that come to mind. Prior to my decision to close the label, I felt like I had found our niche style-wise and I was looking forward to progressing that in the future.

Q: What did you keep in mind from your activities as label owner and I’m especially thinking about some positive experiences?

Paul: I thoroughly enjoyed running Tympanik Audio. There was a lot of stress, financial investment, time, and hard-work involved, but it was a dream for me to work with so many talented and wonderful people over the years. It’s an experience that I feel very fortunate to have had. Everyone involved were so supportive and generous – Tympanik Audio would not have been what it was if it were not for the dedication of everyone involved. I will cherish it always, that’s for sure.

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

The 3rd edition of the Beat:Cancer charity compilation – which is being released in a couple of months – is available now for pre-order from the Analogue Trash label.

The idea behind the Beat:Cancer compilation series and concerts started in 2012 as the founder Mark Haigh’s reaction to the loss of a friend and colleague to lymphoma. Initially envisioned as a 7-track digital EP, word quickly spread with artists and labels from across the electronic music spectrum pledging their support. Beat:Cancer has since released two successful fundraising CDs, hosted four fundraising concerts and a number of clubbing events around the UK, raising around £6000 in 3 years to help Cancer Research UK fund research into screening, treatment and cures for cancer.

This year with the support of label partners Analogue Trash, they will not only return to their live endeavours but will be releasing the third volume in their well-received compilations series. The compilation will be officially released on Friday 25th of March at the Resistanz Festival in Sheffield, with pre-orders going live from today, Monday 1 February, onwards via the Analogue Trash label shop.

Beat:Cancer v3 will feature 3 discs worth of exclusive and unreleased tracks from new and emerging artists and established favourites of the alternative and electronic music scene: 45 of them in total including ESA, Freakangel, Dirty K, Ruinizer, SIRUS, Atomzero, Syd.31, … The CD edition will be packaged in a deluxe 8 panel digipak, with artwork from designer Vlad McNeally. The album will be available as well via all good digital stores and streaming services. There are also exclusive pre-order bundles available (incl. cassettes, t-shirts, …) with some lovely bonuses for early bird supporters:

• The first 25 orders will be entered into a draw to win a prize bundle containing a selection of Beat:Cancer merchandise and a pair of Beat:Cancer LIVE tickets.
• The first 30 pre-orders will receive a free bracelet
• The first 100 will be entered into a further draw to win one of 3 pairs of tickets to a Beat:Cancer LIVE event in 2016.

Supporters are also invited to make a donation in return for a dedication on all 500 copies of the CD artwork by e-mailing the Beat:Cancer team at contact@beatcancer.info. Says Mark Haigh who coordinates the whole: “In the past, sponsors have used this opportunity to remember and celebrate loved ones, friends or colleagues who have been lost to the disease, are currently fighting it or have been lucky enough to beat cancer themselves.”

Full details, event line-ups, merch and music sales are available on the official Beat:Cancer website. For further information please contact Mark Haigh at contact@beatcancer.info or phone to +44 (0)7852 967343. You can also join the project on Facebook and on Twitter.

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: Industrial, industrial-trance, rhythmic electro-industrial.

Content: It seems that Jamie Blacker considered this new album as the most accomplished work to date. The least I can say is that the 3rd part of “Themes Of Carnal Empowerment” left me rather breathless. I’ve known of Electronic Substance Abuse since their early work and I remember this band for its solid electro-industrial approach.

“Penance” features 10 songs, which are built up in a real progressive way, but always reaching a kind of sonic climax created by a twist of heavy, trance-industrial rhythms and dark electro-industrial arrangements. ESA has never been that hard-hitting and merciless, however the work is still elaborate and professional when it comes to speaking about the global production process. ESA is not exactly the kind of band you can compare with another, but I’m sure it will appeal to fans of This Morn’Omina and iVardensphere.

Most of the songs are quite elaborate and show a terrific progression in sound and cadence. The opening song is a good representation for the rest of the work. It takes off in a rather mysterious and somewhat ambient way, but slowly reaches a pure sonic outburst where it all becomes quite trance. “Be Still And I Shall Tell You Why” and “Master, No Servant” both are brilliant exposures of the shamanic industrial work of “Penance”. Blacker has accomplished an opus magnum where he excels in intelligent sound treatments and great artistic creation. Right at the point where you think he has reached the ultimate point he simply moves injecting some extra dynamic into his work.

The 2nd part reveals a few ‘softer’ tracks on which he collaborated with a few guest singers. Most of the songs remain instrumentals where you can only hear the addition of a few sampled words. The vocals and samplings are mainly used in a way to create an extra sound effect. It sometimes pretty bewitching (cf. “Threnody For You”). “My Church” features a nice twist between male growling passages and spoken female words.

The title song featuring Magenta S. is different and probably the single cut where we can speak about ‘classical’ vocals. The song however remains pretty industrial, but more into a dark atmospheric creation.

A last element I have to mention about this work, is ESA’s move from Tympanik Audio to WTII Records.

Conclusion: This album definitely is one of the most poignant releases of the year in the wider fields of industrial music. This is a fully accomplished and genius creation.

Best songs: “Master, No Servant”, “Be Still And I Shall Tell You Why”, “My Church”, “Men Will Only Break Themselves”, “Penance”.

Rate: (DP:8½)DP.

Band: www.electronicsubstanceabuse.com / www.facebook.com/ElectronicSubstanceAbuse

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: EBM, dark-EBM.

Content: “Nations Reborn” was simultaneously released with the re-issue of the “As Nations Decay”-album featuring an extra disc with an impressive load of remixes. The original album was released in 2013 and now gets a new boost with the extra remixes.

Notice by the way that the digital release features 3 extra songs. The main attraction of this album is the 9 previously unreleased remixes by mainly label mates. Other famous and recognized formations like Noisuf-X, Chainreactor and Alien Vampires contributed to this remix orgy as well.

I’m not a big fan of albums filled with remixes, but “Nations Reborn” is the exception to the rule. I think it’s mainly due to the great original songs by BlakOPz and the fine selection of talented formations. The remixers all tried to inject a personal note to the original song, which resulted in a fascinating listening.

The concept of this release (set up by the label) also consists of remixing all of the original songs of the album. The only exception at “Nations Reborn” is the absence of 2 songs that were composed together with another band (Sleetgrout and Nitro/Noise).

A few remixes like the ones by Aesthetic Perfection, Cryogenic Echelon and Alter Der Ruine were already previously released as bonus songs on the album. I have to admit that both remixes by Aesthetic Perfection and Cryogenic Echelon belong to the ultimate list of favorites.

But I also have to recommend the powerful astral vibes of the “#culturedelete”-remix by Cyferdyne. Another real smasher has been accomplished by Chainreactor, injecting a huge and irresistible ‘00ntz’ doses to “Turn Key Tyranny”.

Noisuf-X surprised me with a less powerful, yet intelligent electro-industrial remix of “Behind The Curtain”. “Business As Usual” has been remixed a rather enraged style by Cygnosic. Last, but not least I’ll end with the debut song of the album entitled “The Beginning”, which has been transformed by Sirus into a violent and somewhat hard-core version.

Ruinizer added their complex touch to “Thick As Thieves” while I globally expected a bit more out of the remixes by Alien Vampires and ESA”.

Conclusion: “Nations Reborn” stands for a rather ‘hard’ work featuring multiple great remixes, which are mainly dealing with EBM-related music. It might have been cool and really innovative to discover remixes by bands from totally different music genres, but that’s just my personal taste.

Best songs: “#culturedelete – Cyferdyne Remix”, “Before The Rust – Cryogenic Echelon Remix”, “As Nations Decay – Aesthetic Perfection Remix”, “Turn Key Tyranny- (Chainreactor Remix”.

Rate: (DP:8)DP.

Band: www.facebook.com/BlakOPzBAND

Label: www.digitalworld.audio / www.facebook.com/DigitalWorldAudio

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

A few weeks ago we reported on Australian act vProjekt who had just released the 4-track download EP “Parallel Commands”. Now we can announce the full info on the new album “Wounds In The Age Of Healing” which is available now on CD and as download.

The CD first edition of “Wounds In The Age Of Healing” comes in a 4-panel digipak and features 4 remixes exclusive to this CD-version – by Haujobb, ESA, Iszoloscope and Wychdoktor – and is strictly limited to 250 units worldwide.

Australian producer Eugene Nesci launched the project in 2011 with the “Exhilarate & Disgust” 15-track debut. After almost 3 years of total silence, Nesci has returned.

Check the complete trackless 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!

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Genre/Influences: Dark-electro.

Content: Terrolokaust is a band I kept an eye on since their very first album (cf. “Gas”) released in their homeland by Mutant-E Records. They afterwards joined DWA releasing a few more albums and EP’s.

The digital edit of “Mix The Poison Up” and the CD-re-release of the album “Spit The Poison Out” (featuring the bonus CD “Mix The Poison Up”) got simultaneously released featuring 8 new remixes by iVardensphere, Phosgore, C-Lekktor, Retrogramme, Seraphim System, ESA, Ruinizer and Chainreactor.

The CD edit of “Mix The Poison Up” features 12 remixes while the digital version features a total amount of 15 remixes. It’s all a bit confusing when you realize that Vendetta Music released “Spit The Poison Out” for the American scene in 2013 with 3 remixes, but accomplished by other bands. The 3 extra remixes on the new digital edition originally appeared at the CD format of “Mix The Poison Up” released by Deathwatch Asia in 2013.

Terrolokaust got remixed by interesting names unleashing a quite diversified result. Rotersand remains a ‘Master’ when it comes to accomplish a remix and it’s one of the most noticeable bands. The remix of “Reversing In Circles” is a noticeable song.

My favorite remixes are those of Chainreactor, FGFC820, Phosgore, C-Lekktor, Modulate and ESA. “Pointless” was remixed by Chainreactor in a rather expected electro-industrial-rave featuring the harsh vocals of Javi Sasgittar on top. A somewhat similar remix is the one of “Two-Faced Leader” transposed by Phosgore into another great industrial-rave piece, which sounds hard and merciless.

FGFC820 remixed “The Way It Must Be” in a dark-EBM style, which is really boosting and reminding me a bit of early Inertia. C-Lekktor is once more convincing me that this project is slowly becoming one of the best dark-electro bands of the past few years. The remix of “Reversing In Circles” got a hard adrenaline injection, which is a real dancefloor killer.

Modulate did a great job as well remixing “The Way It Must Be” (a remix that was originally released as B-side of a 7″ vinyl single taken from the album) and I here especially want to mention the cool dark sequences running through the song.

Last, but not least there’s a more rough and industrial-orientated remix of “Addicted” by ESA.

Other remixes from bands like iVardensphere, Nitro/Noise, Sirus, Retrogramme, Ruinizer and Blackopz are not bad at all, but they can’t really compete with the aforementioned remixes.

Conclusion: This digital edition of “Mix The Poison Up” is interesting for all the fans of the band. There’s a great diversity in influences and an impressive selection of talented and established dark-electro acts.

Best songs: “Two-Faced Leader – Phosgore Remix”, “The Way It Must Be – Modulate Remix”, “Pointless – Chainreactor Remix”, “Reversing In Circles – C-Lekktor Remix”, “The Way It Must Be – FGFC820 Remix”.

Rate: (DP:8)DP.

Band: www.facebook.com/Terrolokaust

Label: http://dwa-digital.com / www.facebook.com/DigitalWorldAudio

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