Out now is the “Moving Forward” EP by m o k r o ï é. Released independently, this digital EP also includes a cover of Sisters Of Mercy’s “More” in an ‘ecstatic electronic mix’. The cover comes accompanied by an animated music video that captures the essence of a Californian road trip.

Francesco Virgilio, the founder of m o k r o ï é, utilizes a range of styles from electro-pop to electro-industrial leveraging minimal equipment.

The EP features contributions from artists such as Allonymous, M. A. Jouveaux (TRANK) and Carol Aplogan.

You can download the EP right now 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: Electro-Pop, Dark-Wave.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: Francesco Virgilio strikes back with a new EP of his Mokroïé project. “Moving Forward” reveals four new songs plus two bonus cuts.

Content: The EP reveals a more Electronic approach than previous works. There however is one exception which is “More”. It reminds me of The Sisters Of Mercy which is not a coincidence as it’s a cover version of Andrew Eldritch’s band. The electronic side features vintage sound treatments, deep bass lines and some astral sequences.

+ + + : “Moving Forward” sounds as a varied and eclectic work. The cover version of “More” -also featured as an instrumental, bonus, track, is a great tribute to The Sisters Of Mercy. Another essential cut is “Forest Of Uncertainty” -which is also featured as an instrumental, bonus, edit. The retro-synth treatments are really cool here while the sung edit features half spoken like vocals.

– – – : The work’s diversity is maybe missing somewhat cohesion.

Conclusion: I’ve mixed feelings listening to this work because of its diversity although it’s pleasant.

Best songs: “More”, “Forest Of Uncertainty”

Rate: 6½.

Artist: https://mokroie.com / www.facebook.com/mokroie

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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Hailing from France is m o k r o ï e the electronic music project by Francesco Virgilio. Out now is a new EP titled “WORKS2K21” which contains 3 remixes and a new instrumental track. In the mixes you’ll see collaborations with the Melbourne based band Howlite and the French alt-metal rock band Trank.

The EP comes together with a music video directed by 3D animation artist Josué Esparon. Below is the rather ingenious video for the project.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, trip-hop.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info:  This project has been set up by Francesco Virgilio. After having worked with a singer and having released a few EP’s, Mokroïé became a solo-project. For this album, Francesco Virgilio however invited singer ‘Allonymous’. The album was released late 2019 and features eight songs.

Content: Mokroïé’s sound has been described as trip-hop minded. I think it’s true, but it mainly reveals a personal approach to electronic-pop music. The songs are driven by down tempo structures. Sound-wise this album doesn’t sound catchy and melodic like most of the ‘classic’ electro-pop releases. There’s a dense atmospheric curtain supporting most of the songs. Some of the vocals, but especially “Glistening Like Obsidian” reminds me a bit of David Bowie. The last song “Put Your Hands In The Dirt (Soft Minimal Vocal Mix)” is featuring female vocals with male backings.

+ + + : Mokroïé reveals a great sound production, but still remarkable sound treatments. The songs have something danceable, but I especially like the global mood hanging over this work. The instrumental cut “Disoriented” is one of the attention grabbers and has something vaguely future-pop minded. But the best cut is the last one. “Put Your Hands In The Dirt (Soft Minimal Vocal Mix)” has been slowly built up.  It moves to a crescendo and creates a great match with the female vocals and male backings. 

– – – : I regret this album only features 8 songs.

Conclusion: Mokroïé has something atypical; the sound is not easy to describe, but it’s a fully entertaining listening.

Best songs: “Put Your Hands In The Dirt (Soft Minimal Vocal Mix)”, “Disoriented”, “With these Thoughts”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.mokroie.com / www.facebook.com/mokroie

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