The Berlin-based dark electro act To Avoid have released their brand new album “All Gods Are Gone”. This new double album is out now via Belgium’s Alfa Matrix label.

“All Gods Are Gone” is available now in a double-CD digipak and as a download via Bandcamp.

The band mixes late ’80s EBM and ’90s melodic dark electro including elements from modern cross-genre influences. Thematically this release builds on their past explorations of dark themes—crime, corruption, and environmental destruction—delivered through hard-hitting EBM that will please fans of early Front 242, Skinny Puppy, Vomito Negro, and Grendel​.

The first disc offers 13 original tracks like “Trust”, “Fireball”, and “1989” (which got released as an EP earlier this year). Complementing these, the second disc features 14 remixes by a rather impressive lineup of electronic artists, including Haujobb, Portion Control, and Circumpolar.

Formed in 1998, To Avoid launched their debut album “Resurrection” in 2002, followed by “Passion and Pain” (2009). Following a period of hiatus, they returned in 2022.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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After two stylistic, elaborate, and promising albums, Belgian artist Pieter Coussement returns to his beloved Llumen project. The influences remain versatile, sounding like a sonic fusion of EBM, IDM, Electro/Future-Pop, and Ambient. Over the years, Llumen has become more danceable, and this is evident in the new work, which sounds like his most danceable production ever. It is an intelligent production that also dares to experiment with somewhat cheaper Dance leads. “You Can Have It All” is an absolute masterpiece. The album also gets a solid bonus with numerous remixes featuring big names like Grendel, as well as label mates like Implant, Aiboforcen, Aesthetischye, and others. It may not be Llumen’s best work, but it is still a creative and polished production which might appeal for Haujobb-fans. (Rate:8½).

Listen to “You Can Have It All”:

Read the news on ‘The Breaking Waves’.

About Llumen

Llumen is the solo project of Belgian musician Pieter Coussement, active in the dark electro and future-pop scene. Side-Line covered the project’s EP “The Dark In Her Eyes” in April 2021, featuring remixes by Auger, Implant, Antibody, and Entrzelle, followed by the album “Polygon Heart” in June 2021. The 9-track EP “Die Stille Totgeschwiegen” followed in December 2023. Llumen released “The Breaking Waves” as a limited 2CD set on Alfa Matrix in May 2024, discussed by Coussement in a Side-Line interview the following month about the album acting as a reflection of inner turmoil. “You Can Have It All” is featured on that album, alongside remixes from Grendel, Implant, and Aiboforcen.

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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Belgian multi-talented artist Pieter Coussement recently released the 3^rd Llumen album. A very diversified piece of work where emotional intensity merges with poignant melancholic vocals and addictive dark synth melodies. Pieter opened us his door for an open-heart conversation revealing the abyssal depth of “The Breaking Waves”…

You can get the album on Bandcamp, from the Alfa Matrix webstore as a 2CD set and all other platforms.

SL: “The Breaking Waves” explores themes of internal turbulence, health crisis, and introspection. Can you share some personal experiences or inspirations that influenced the creation of this album?

P. For as far as I remember there’s always been an uneasiness within me when dealing with this world. For a long time I thought I handled it well and kept on living my life, but this somehow caught up with me (like these things tend to do) about a decade ago. Since then it’s been a rollercoaster of events and emotions that on many occasions brought me to my knees and that have felt quite a few blows to me. It started with my mother’s passing which shook my whole existence and I never really felt with it in a healthy way. A few years later I had 2 (minor) heart attacks (and heart surgery). As you can imagine this was a huge disruption and completely numbed me. Prior to these heart attacks I was writing music for my second album Polygon Heart but that process suddenly stopped for the better part of two years because I was completely broken.

The song “Lifeline” got me through it in the end and life went on its merry way again. The biggest thing I learned through all of this is that I needed to be true to myself, something that very much inspired my writing process. Where lyrics used to be more fictional almost everything these days comes from within and has a close connection to moments where I deeply felt what I’m singing. Personally I think it has been beneficial both in life as in music to get in touch with your true self. In that respect, The Breaking Waves is a sincere collection of deeply felt emotions that I’ve put to music the best way I could.

SL: Your music draws from old-school EBM, gothic, techno, and future pop. How do you balance these diverse influences to create a cohesive sound in “The Breaking Waves”?

P. I’ve searched long and hard for that particular LLUMEN sound. I often fall back on old-school EBM for its ice cold sequences and driving beats, but also find myself drawn to melody and chord progressions. Because of this, there are a lot of future pop or even trance influences in my music. Above all things, however, I like good songs and meaningful lyrics, most of which have a very deep melancholic layer, which comes from my (early) goth days. I try to tie all of this together using many layers and meticulous mixing. A tedious process I must add.

SL: You’ve mentioned influences from iconic acts like FRONT 242, HAUJOBB, and DIORAMA. How have these artists shaped your musical direction, and how do you incorporate their influence while maintaining your unique sound?

P. I take inspiration from many different things. The bands you mention are just a few out there, but all bands that I have a deep respect for. They say that plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery and I’m very interested in how other bands bring their music to life. But I’m easily distracted and every stylistic exercise that I try eventually fails and becomes a LLUMEN song.

SL: Tracks like “Desire” and “Bring Me Flowers” showcase a range of emotions and musical styles. Can you talk about the creative process behind crafting such varied yet emotionally rich songs?

P. Thank you for mentioning these songs and especially appreciating the variance and emotionality within the songs. In many of my songs, I seek some kind of contradiction between melody or musical theme and the lyrics to accentuate the emotions I want to convey. Often this leads to a complex writing process where I want to set the mood first before bringing in all the different elements. I’ve struggled a lot with Desire because the leading piano melody really pulled at me for a long time into a direction that I didn’t want to go to. It’s only when I started playing with the instrumentation that it fell into place. Bring Me Flowers on the other hand, was a song that almost instantly fell into place. The musical idea was very much to have a typical EBM feel to it and the sentence “she brings me flowers to ease the pain” had been running around my brain for months before (I think I picked it up from a Brendan Perry song). I wrote the chorus and tied it to the music.

SL: The album features collaborations and remixes with various artists such as GRENDEL, AESTHETISCHE, and IMPLANT. How did these collaborations come about, and what do you feel each artist brought to their respective reinterpretations?

P. The collaborations come from some kind of connection with my fellow artists. For starters I need to like what they do musically, if not there is no sense in handing your babies into their skillful hands. Next it helps when there is a good connection on a human level, Len (Implant) has been a good friend throughout the years and I know he’s going to do a stellar job from the get go. When playing Mechanismus in Seattle last year, I had a few long talks with JD from Grendel and I thought we hid it off quite good, so I asked him to remix Die Stille which he did brilliantly. Many of the remixers are friends or become friends throughout the process. It’s one of the things in this scene that always warms me, every fellow musician is very eager to share their insights and knowledge, even if it’s a constructive critique.

SL: “The Breaking Waves” concludes with the track “Harbour,” symbolizing life’s ebb and flow. What message or feeling do you hope listeners take away from this final track?

P. There’s always a push and pull in life, an ebb and flow. The metaphor of the ocean, a harbor and a ship has been used to illuminate how people and feelings change over time. What once was a safe place can become very threatening and violent. At heart, I believe that we as people try to do what is best for each other, fighting the same struggles and living with the same amount of insecurities. At times you can be someone’s harbor, a safe haven for them to rest, but there is always going to be turmoil just beyond the bend. The main feeling people should get from this track is one of hope, everything is possible if you manage to stay afloat. 

SL: Following your previous releases, “The Memory Institute” and “Polygon Heart,” how do you feel your sound and artistic vision have evolved with “The Breaking Waves”?

P. It’s hard to pinpoint any definite aspects that evolved throughout this endeavor, but overall I think what changed is that there the songs now are closer to my heart and less fictional than they were when I started LLUMEN. The songwriting has evolved too, making better use of tonality, chords and melody to convey my thoughts. Polygon Heart was an album where the songs fitted well together and there’s a sense of unity. With The Breaking Waves I thought for a long time that the tracks were a bit harder to fit on one album. In the end I think it has become a diverse album with a broad variety of songs that earn a few listening stints.

SL: Your music is described as a profound exploration of human emotion and desire. What do you hope listeners experience when they immerse themselves in “The Breaking Waves,” and how do you want your music to impact them?

P. I first would be grateful if they truly immersed themselves into this music, on a quest for new elements in the songs with each time they listen. I also hope that the lyrics resonate with people and maybe help them to overcome some of the blows that are dealt throughout life. I certainly experience writing – or better finish writing- songs and lyrics as something cathartic. At the other hand, when listening or singing each of my songs, I’m also torn back into that mindset I had when writing it, which is often a very confronting emotion. For me, it’s a way to keep these memories and visit them from time to time, but also knowing that I can step away from these emotions when realizing I’m in a different mindset today. In this respect, I hope listeners can do the same and visit their memories good and bad from time to time, to become better versions of themselves. Read the review of ‘The Breaking Waves’.

Eldrina Mich

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

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“The Breaking Waves” is the title of the new Llumen album which comes as a 2CD set / Bandcamp download and which is available now. The album was already teased in November with the EP “Die Stille Totgeschwiegen”.

Llumen is the project by Belgian artist Pieter Coussement who brings a very updated EBM blending it with influences from old-school EBM, techno, and future pop. Influenced by acts like Front 242, Haujobb, Diorama, Assemblage 23, Suicide Commando or yet Covenant, Pieter has been able to develop an own mature sound.

Following the 2017 debut album “The Memory Institute” and the 2021 release “Polygon Heart”, “The Breaking Waves” is his 3rd album to date.

The accompanying CD holds remixes, edits, reinterpretations plus collaborations with Grendel, Aesthetische, Aiboforcen, Neuroactive, Implant, Mind.Divided, Dimethoxy, J Wølf, Nacht Nackt and The Saint Paul.

You can check out the full album below. Recommended!

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

Goth pop act Metamorph has a new album out, “Hex”. “Hex” is out via Distortion Productions and comes with the video for the title track.

Thematically the album handles love, personal empowerment and the hidden secrets of sacred geometry. Margot Day adds: “‘Hex’ is like a lover slowly undressing, revealing the secrets of the universe encoded in melodies, seducing you to unlock the enchanting mysteries of your being.”

“Hex” was produced by the band and Cleopatra recording artist, Erik Gustafson. The album is available on CD and on all digital platforms via Distortion Productions. Also included on the album are remixes by Grendel (“Veridia”) and Moris Blak and Assemblage 23 who tackled “Woo Woo”.

Metamorph was founded in 2016 and stars native New Yorker, multi-range vocalist, flute player and songwriter, Margot Day, who was an integral part of the 80’s NYC goth scene while fronting the legendary band, The Plague with drummers Nick Ferrell (Spahn Ranch) and Damian (Misfits).

Margot Day was bandmates with Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys in her first band Slow Walk 13 and later with Joey Smur Kryzwonski (Motograter) in her project Sacred.

Next to Margot we also find Kurtis Knight and Thaliana.

Here’s the full album to check out.

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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Distortion Productions has announced the signing of Vermont/NYC goth pop band, Metamorph. The label will release the brand new full length album, “HEX” on March 8th, 2024 with a remix from Grendel.

Label owner, Jim Semonik first recalls meeting Metamorph’s Margot Day at The Unconvention in 2022: “I immediately got a friendly vibe from her and knew there was something special going on. My interest was peaked. Her collaboration with Erik Gustafson makes this a no-brainer. You guys are gonna love this project!”

“HEX” will be available on CD and also on all major digital platforms on March 8th.

Here’s the video for “Woo Woo”.

Margot Day, who was an integral part of the 80’s NYC goth scene while fronting The Plague with drummers Nick Ferrell (Spahn Ranch) and Damian (Misfits). She was actually also bandmates with Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys in her first band, Slow Walk 13 and later with Joey Smur Kryzwonski (Motograter) in her project, Sacred. In Metamorph she is joined by Kurtis Knight and Thaliana.

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: EBM.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: American brothers Eric and Jeremy Hanes are back on track unleashing the third installment of “The Bunkertapes”-series. This album features eleven songs plus eleven remixes.

Content: If you’re familiar with this formation you probably know what to expect. The work moves on where the previous album left off; elaborated EBM songs covered with cold, Klinik-al atmospheres, solid bass lines, Industrial sound treatments, and powerful vocals. Remixes have been accomplished by Mirland, Grendel, Ext!ze, Moris Blak, Blak Emoji, Mechanical Vein, Anthony [H], Batavia, Moaan Exis and Chris Vienna. The digital format is featuring 3 more remixes.

+ + + : Spankthenun is a band with its own approach although the sound might remind you of Leather Strip -and that’s not really a surprise as Claus Larsen was featured on their previous work. This is a familiar EBM format achieved with a true sound intelligence. There are several cool songs and also some exciting remixes. The remixes are adding a real bonus.

– – – : The songs are elaborated although the sound formula remains quite similar for all the songs. I think this band is even able to do better.

Conclusion: If you like well-crafted and powerful EBM and if  you have never heard of this band before, I can strongly recommend listening to Spankthenun.

Best songs: “Blot Out The Sun”, “Fuck The Apocalypse”, “Crushing Blow”, “Madman”, “On The Run”, “The Grind” + “Chrome – Ext!Ze Remix”, “No One Survives – Grendel Remix”, “Blak Out The Sun – Moris Blak Remix”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/spankthenun

About Spankthenun

Spankthenun is a self-released project set up by American brothers Eric and Jeremy Hanes in 2019. The duo works in EBM and Dark-Electro, driven by solid bass lines, icy sound treatments, danceable rhythms and harsh vocals. The band released a trilogy of albums under the title “The Bunkertapes”, closing the series with “The Bunkertapes Vol.3”, which features eleven songs and eleven remixes contributed by artists including Mirland, Grendel, Ext!ze, Moris Blak, Blak Emoji, Mechanical Vein, Batavia and Moaan Exis.

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

Belgium’s electro act Llumen returns with a 9-track EP bridging the previous “Polygon Heart” album and the forthcoming album “The Breaking Waves” announced for Spring 2024 on Alfa Matrix.

“Die Stille Totgeschwiegen” is the first Llumen song mixing English and German lyrics, and is the first new song revealed from the forthcoming album “The Breaking Waves”. The track got remixed by Grendel, Elektrostaub and First Aid 4 Souls. Included as well are remixed versions of “Like My Pain” by Aiboforcen, Pre:Emptive Strike 0.1, Ah Cama-Sotz and Promenade Cinema.

You can download the new EP right here from Bandcamp.

About Llumen

Llumen emerged around 2010, marking a new phase in Pieter Coussement’s musical career. Before Llumen, Coussement was part of various projects, but with Llumen, he found a way to merge a more structured musical style with the experimental work he did at the Institute of Psychoacoustics and Electronic Music. As the years passed, Llumen developed its unique sound, leading to the release of its first digital EP in 2016 through Alfa-Matrix. 2017 saw the debut of Llumen’s album, “The Memory Institute,” which blends elements of EBM, futurepop, and gothic.

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

Genre/Influences: Dark-Electro.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: MissFit Toys is a band based in Florida (USA). Active since 2007 they already self-released different productions and finally signed to Distortion Productions to unleash this official debut album at the end of 2022.

Content: From the very first notes and vocals you clearly will recognize the Dark-Electro approach. The cadence and cold melody lines are mainly reminding to Suicide Commando but I can also mention early Grendel as a potential source of inspiration. The work is characterized by carrying, linear, leads and bombastic drum sections.

+ + + : MissFit Toys sound to me as belonging to the class of Suicide Commando. The songs are well-crafted and efficient. There’s nothing truly original but it’s an efficient and noticeable production in its genre.

– – – : The main strength of the album also is its major minus point; no real innovation or originality. The songs are sometimes a bit too linear and predictable after a while.

Conclusion: If you like good-old Dark-Electro style MissFit Toys and “The Nine”-album will definitely catch your attention. This is a band with potential.

Best songs: “Blithe Din”, “Binary Binding”, “Red Dragon”, “Tulpa”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/MissFitToys

Label: www.distortionprod.com / www.facebook.com/distortionproductions Read the news on ‘The Nine’.

Listen to “The Nine”:

About MissFit Toys

MissFit Toys was formed in Orlando, Florida in 2007 by Richie V. Suriv. The aggrotech/industrial act self-released a string of productions before signing to the Pittsburgh-based Distortion Productions for its official debut album, “The Nine”, released December 9, 2022. The band has played live with Dope, Pig, Skold, Psyclon Nine, Combichrist, Grendel and Wednesday 13, and served as direct support for Hocico in spring 2022, with additional Hocico support dates in Mexico announced for 2023.

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

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!

side-line.com

December 9th marked the release of “The Nine”, the new album by MissFit Toys on the Pittsburgh-based Distortion Productions label. MissFit Toys was formed in Orlando, FL in 2007 by Richie V. Suriv.

After a string of releases and live shows (with Dope, Pig, Skold, Psyclon Nine, Combichrist, Grendel and Wednesday 13) this aggrotech/industrial band was direct support for electro act Hocico in Spring of ’22.

“The Nine” is available via Distortion Productions on all streaming and digital platforms along with a compact disc. MissFit Toys will be announcing 2023 tour dates that include shows in Mexico supporting Hocico. Read the review of ‘The Nine’.

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, Punk-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: German duo Diana and Boog aka Junksista are back unleashing their fifth full length album. It also is their first album released by COP International. “0A” features ten songs and an impressive list of guest singers.  Yvette Winkler (Vaselyne), Lis van den Akker (Psy’Aviah, Die Krupps, Grendel), Noemi Aurora (Helalyn Flowers), Maria (Omnimar) and Emke (Black Nail Cabaret) got invited to sing on a few cuts.

Content: Time has passed but Junksista held on to their initial sound approach revealing a kind of ‘evil-punk-pop’ style. The songs are driven by electronics and empowered by guitar playing. The work is pretty diversified and accentuated by the different contributors. Now danceable and carried by Trance leads and then cold and groovy the album also reveals darker and colder passages.

+ + + : Junksista hasn’t lost their ‘anarchistic’ sound approach. It’s not a coincidence they sometimes call it ‘dirty-pop’ as it clearly sounds atypical; not classical Electro-Pop but with a sharp Punk touch on top. I especially recommend the last track “Fuck Your Pretty Face” which also is one of the hardest and darkest cuts but still a cut with menacing guitar play and hot female vocals. Other highlights are the opening song “Phoenix” and “Fragile” featuring Maria Mar (Omnimar).

– – – : The songs with guest singers unfortunately aren’t the most convincing ones although they for sure make this work really exciting. Junksista remains faithful to their initial sound formula although the early magic is a bit gone.

Conclusion: Junksista is Pop music for tough people.

Best songs: “Fuck Your Pretty Face”, “Phoenix”, “Fragile featuring Maria Mar”, “Do you Wanna feat. Emke”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/Junksista

Label: www.facebook.com/copint

About Junksista

Junksista is a German duo formed by Diana Noir and Boog, working in an electro-pop and punk-pop register. “0A” is their fifth full-length album and their first release through COP International, issued on October 7, 2022 with ten songs written and produced by the duo themselves. The album features guest vocals from Yvette Winkler (Vaselyne), Lis van den Akker (Die Krupps, Grendel, Psy’Aviah), Noemi Aurora (Helalyn Flowers), Maria Mar (Omnimar) and Emke (Black Nail Cabaret).

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: Future-Pop, Dark-Electro.

Format: Digital, DCD & 3CD.

Background/Info: “Transcendent” is the eighth studio album by Berliner group Solitary Experiments. The album features an extra disc with remixes and guest singers while there’s also an extra disc available -which is an audio book.

Content: The main disc features 10 songs in the purest and unique tradition of the band. The Electro sound remains always catchy and danceable but still featuring ‘evil’ or call it darker parts. So there’s a song featuring Dirk Ivens (Dive, The Klinik,  Absolute Body Control). But there’s also a totally evasive song featuring Elena Alice fossi (Kirlian Camera, Spectra*Paris) reminding me of an imaginary mix between Delerium and Push.

The bonus disc features a few more guest singers. Among others you’ll discover songs with Patrik Hansson (Vanguard, Uncreated), Gabriella Aström (Me The Tiger) and Nina De Lianin (In Strict Confidence) while remixes have been accomplished by Supreme Court, Rob Dust, Grendel, MC1R, Run Level Zero, Controlled Fusion and Massiv In Mensch.

+ + + : Solitary Experiments remains an established name in Germany and according to me is still recognized enough abroad. The band however remains a great project when it comes to combining danceable vibes, melodies, darkness and Pop singing. The addition of Dirk Ivens and Elena Alice Fossi as guest singers accentuates the diversity of the album. I’ve been impressed by the somewhat Dance/Trance “The Great Unknown” featuring Elena Alice Fossi. Another great piece is “Self-Fulfilling Prophecy” which clearly sounds as a potential hit. Other noticeable cuts are “Wonderland” and “Heart Of Stone” but also the menacing sphere running through “Zeitgeist” featuring Dirk Ivens. The bonus disc brings a nice extra with more guest singers and a great selection of  remixers.

– – – : You can’t really blame Solitary Experiments for holding onto their sound which hasn’t changed throughout the years however the initial magic is a bit gone.

Conclusion: Solitary Experiments stands as an established value; you’ll be never disappointed as they’ve an imaginary qualitative label!

Best songs: “The Great Unknown”, “Self-Fulfilling Prophecy”, “Wonderland”, “Heart Of Stone”, “Zeitgeist”.

Rate: 8.

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

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel Read the news on ‘Transcendent’.

About Solitary Experiments

Solitary Experiments formed in 1994 in Frankfurt (Oder), Germany, and later settled in Berlin-Friedrichshain. Founders Michael Thielemann and Dennis Schober initially recorded under the name Plague before adopting the Solitary Experiments name. Vocalist Dana Apitz featured on the band’s first two demo tapes, “Risque De Choc Electrique” (1996) and “Death in Small Doses” (1998), before Steve Graeber joined on keyboards; Frank Glassl serves as live e-drummer.

The band signed to Maschinenwelt Records in 1999 and released its debut album, “Final Approach”, the same year. It was followed by “Paradox” (2000), “Advance Into Unknown” (2003), and “Mind Over Matter” (2005).

Solitary Experiments released its eighth studio album, “Transcendent”, via Out Of Line in 2022, featuring guest vocalists Dirk Ivens and Elena Alice Fossi alongside additional singers and remixers.

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

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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The Swedish based industrial / dark electro solo-act :Waijdan: is back with an all new single “Rip Them Apart” on the fine Oklahoma City based label Re:Mission Entertainment. Mastered by JD Tucker of Grendel you can expect some excellent dark electro.

You can download the single 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: EBM, Body-Pop.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: This year, American formation DV8R returned with “IO”. It rather looks like a mini-album instead of a true full length, the work featuring six new songs plus four remixes. “IO” was released three years after the debut full-length “Zero Hour”.

Content: “IO” stands for dynamic, hard and elaborated EBM. But it moves further than simply ‘classical’ EBM; it’s an elaborated production, which more than once reminds me of the genius of sound guru Seb Kommor.

The remixes were made by Siva Six, Funker Vogt, ES23 and Grendel.

+ + + : This is what I should call ‘progressive EBM’! It sounds like music for the ‘new’ generation of EBM freaks; a hard and sophisticated production with great sound treatments and impressive manipulations. “Nemesis” and “Beat Alive” both illustrate the potential of the formation, but still their impressive writing skills. A few other tracks have been refined with Electro-Pop arrangements, which mainly emerge during the choruses. The list of remixes is also impressive and I especially recommend the great job accomplished by Siva Six remixing “Nemesis” and Grendel remixing “Anatomy Omega”.

– – – : I can’t find noticeable minus parts here.

Conclusion: DV8R is not like most EBM formations, which simply reproduce the codes, but this band stands for great and alluring modernism!

Best songs: “Nemesis”, “Beat Alive”, “Output”, “Nemesis – Siva Six Remix”, “Anatomy Omega – Grendel Remix”.

Rate: 9.

Artist: www.dv8r.net / www.facebook.com/DV8RBAND

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

About DV8R

DV8R is an American EBM band. Discogs lists the line-up as Matt Sharifi, Corey Wittenborn and Kevin Preston, and documents two albums under the name: the debut "Zero Hour" in 2018 and "I/O" in 2021, the latter styled "IO" by the band and their label.

"IO" was released by Infacted Recordings in 2021 on CD and in digital formats, and collects six new tracks plus four remixes contributed by Siva Six, Funker Vogt, ES23 and Grendel. Side-Line has not covered the band elsewhere, so the review above is the site’s only entry 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.

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Out now is “Split”,the first in five thematically connected EPs by Newark, New Jersey based industrial act Panic Lift. The release cycle will span into 2022. “Split” is the follow-up to 2018’s “End Process”. On “Split” Panic Lift presents two new songs, “Tribute” and “Nowhere Fast”, plus 2 remixes respectively by Grendel and Wesenberg (Krischan Jan-Eric Wesenberg from Rotersand).

Each EP in the five-part series will feature two original tracks and two remixes from different artists.

Each new release will be accompanied by a limited-edition physical product, which will change with each release. “Split” is released as a limited-edition physical cassette tape limited to 50 copies worldwide.

Panic Lift is James Francis, Dan Platt, Ben Tourkantonis and Cristian Carver. For this string of EP releases, the band works with longtime friends and collaborators Primordial Music.

Check the video for “Tribute”.

You can download/stream the first EP right below on 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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(Picture by Renee Parkhurst ) Let’s hope this article doesn’t get flagged by Google, Facebook and related because the follow-up of words in the title is rather worrysome (joke aside).

Adult has launched a remix of the Bestial Mouths song “Unshivered”. A video was equally made and can be seen below. The song is included in Bestial Mouths’ remix album “Thousandneedles” that features collaborations with SRSQ, Ash Code, Void Vision, Light Asylum, and more and which dropped earlier this month.

“Thousandneedles” will be available on vinyl and cassette versions this August via Fill-Lex Records and Soil Records.

In a reaction Adult says: “We got this remix request in the summer from Bestial Mouths and it was just the thing we needed to get us back in the studio again. It wasn’t like looking at a blank canvas and it felt more like collaboration in a way, which was much needed during such an isolating time.”

The track’s visual counterpart offers a psychological portrait of a person clawing their way to meaning. Director Jamie Parkhurst, who has previously worked with Los Angeles post-punk outfit, Death Bells, and experimental electronic artist Trevor powers, was helped by producer Yelena Akopian, stylists and designers Bradley Soileau and Elliott Evan, photographer Renee Parkhurst, DP Connor Ellman, and camera operator Alex Van Putten. The video was edited by editing is by Alex Nicolaou (Drab Majesty).

Here is the video.

Tracklist “Thousandneedles”

1. Grendel – Ruins Remix
2. Adult – Unshivered (If I Could Feel Mix)
3. Rodney Anonymous Or 7th Victim (Of Dead Milkmen) – Withiin Remix
4. Plackblague – Heavy Coil Mix (Industrial Waste Remix)
5. Ash Code -The Bleed Remix (Mixed/Mastered By Doruk Ozturkcan From She Past Away)
6. Nnhmn – The Loss Remix
7. Statiqbloom – The Falls Remix
8. Buzzkull – Lain To Rust Remix
9. Srsq – Reimagination (Souls Take Remix)
10. Shannon F /Light Asylum – Industrial Waste Remix
11. Kontravoid – Dry As Dust Remix
12. Void Vision- (A) Siren Calls Remix
13. Crowhurst – 23 Hours Before Resurrection Bestial Mouths Remix
14. Melania – Inshroudss

About Bestial Mouths

From their inception in 2009, the core root of Bestial Mouths has combined Lynette Cerezo’s voice with several genre influences across the spectrum of goth, industrial, post-punk, new wave, noise, metal, and other underground sounds using live acoustic and electronic drums and analog synthesizers. Since 2018, Bestial Mouths has been the sole project of Cerezo.

2019’s “Inshroudss” EP was the first Bestial Mouths release entirely written and conceived by Cerezo. The EP was released on the independent label RuneE & Ruin, which Cerezo formed together with friend and frequent collaborator Alison Lewis (Linea Aspera / Zanias / Fleisch Records).

In their decade-plus existence, Bestial Mouths have worked with a long list of producers and artists. Zola Jesus, Mick Harvey, Egyptrixx, Boy Harsher, Die Krupps, Mater Suspiria Vision, Zanias, The Horrorist, and Ludovico Technique are just a few collaborators, while they’ve shared the stage with the likes of Psychic TV, Austra, Chelsea Wolfe, DAF, 3 Teeth, OAKE, Front Line Assembly, White Ring, Suicide Commando, David J, King Dude, Youth Code, Cut Hands and Light Asylum.

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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Torben Schmidt gained some experience about label activities working as A&R manager for the legendary Zoth Ommog and Bloodline. He set up Infacted Recordings in 2001 and signed bands like Orange Sector, Namnambulu, Frozen Plasma, Reaper, X Marks The Pedwalk, Prager Handgriff, Heimataerde, Grendel, ES23, Ruined Conflict, Xotox, NZ, Aircrash Bureau, PreEmptive Strike 0.1, Shiv-R, Torul, IC434, Vanguard… but still the own bands he’s involved with Lights Of Euphoria and Binary Park. Twenty years later Infacted Recordings became a reference when it comes to EBM, Electro-Pop and Dark-Electro artists.

(Stéphane Froidcoeur / Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Was there a kind of ‘philosophy’ when you set up your label and did it evolve over the years? How would you define your label activities today?

Torben: My main aim and intention when I started Infacted Recordings back in 2001 was to get independent and release/support the music I love, whenever possible detached from the economical side (which of course is not always possible). I was working for other people/companies before I started my own record company and experienced many good, but  also quite some things, which were to be improved. I  think the big advantage I had from the start was that I knew both sides, working in a record company and being an artist, producer myself.

Q: I can imagine you must have specific and explicit criteria to sign an artist/band. Can you give us more details about this aspect and how important is it for you to know the person(s) hiding behind the ‘artist(s)’?

Torben: Well, to be honest, for me it is basically a matter of personal taste. One rule I  had from the start was to get to know the human behind every band/artist whenever possible to make up my mind about the individuals. If there is a good chemistry in between label and band/artist, that’s the most solid base you can get for a strong work together.

Q: You are already active for numerous years now so you must have seen a lot of things changing and evolving; think about social media, streaming platforms, Youtube channels… but also economic crisis etc. What are the pros and cons of these changes/evolutions and in, which way did you had to adapt/change your strategy and activities?

Torben: I think you already hit the point with the question. Time changes and we, as the motors and creators of this scene had the task to step up with the changes. We are innovators to a certain point, always at the pulse with being DJs, musicians, producers, people who initiate ideas and start projects. For me personal it was always a moving experience to be part of creating something. I think you really have to be where the heart of the scene is, at clubs, at festivals at concerts, meeting fans and supporters and have a good communication.

Q: The ongoing pandemic has affected all artistic life and activities so what’s the true impact on your label activities and do you think it will also affect your long term objectives?

Torben: The main problem we all seek is that one big part of our scene is missing, that’s the live/club thing we have with our bands and our supporting DJs. Many plans we had with touring and release events for 2020 and 2021 had to be shifted. There are fresh ideas with streaming events, but this rarely compensates the feeling most  of  our scene loves and lives. So well, we honestly hope that there will be perspectives again soon. On the other side I am very happy to have so many supporters out there who continuously aid me/us as a label and the bands and DJs directly.

Q: Do you think media (magazines, online platforms etc…) still have an impact and a role to play today? What’s your relationship with ‘journalists’ and how important is their work?

Torben: I can only speak for me personally here, but  I think that print media is losing more and more of its impact due to various factors. Time is running fast and news are spread way more easily digital then in print media. It’s not really blaming, but print magazines concentrate too much on the same bands over and over again (of course often due to demand).

There are exceptions of course and I truly appreciate the support we get and a lot of still really enthusiastic journalists, but I experienced so many people stop buying magazines in the last years and change to digital media to get there information. For me as a label, social media and online media in general is an important key for my promotional work.

Q: What do you consider as your biggest accomplishment(s)? Do you have specific goals/dreams you want to achieve and how do you prepare and see the future of the label(s)? And what are your biggest regret(s)?

Torben: During the years I had the opportunity to work with so many talented artists, known/not so knows, small/big, which is/was truly an honor. So many relationships were started, collaborations occurred and friendships actually did result. My dream to live & work with music did already happen, so I am pretty thankful for this. I have to say that I do not really regret anything. Being in the music scene was great in almost  all time periods and every phase had it great moments. Even on bad experiences you grow and make internal progress.

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, pop-rock, indie.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: The sixth album of Grendel, “Ascending The Abyss” was already released several months ago. The previous opus “Age Of The Disposable Body” saw frontman Jos Tucker ‘reinventing’ Grendel. The early dark-electro and aggrotech style got transposed into a new approach featuring guitar riffs.

Content: This new work only confirms the move towards different influences and clearly sounds as a break with the past. The guitar, played by Erik Gustafson, has a prominent role in the writing, reinforcing the industrial/rock approach. But Grendel also remains electro-driven, which is an aspect that comes mainly through in the melodic side of the album. Another important aspect is the production of the vocals. Jos Tucker’s way of singing is now clear and charismatic. Some songs remind me a bit of IAMX, and especially “Cloak & Dagger” brings this indie pop-rock element to life. If you’re more into electro, “Fire & Light” is for sure a song that will catch your attention for its retro-styled electronics.

+ + + : One thing is for sure, this album reveals a great professional job in the global production process. There’s a right balance between heavy guitar play and carrying electronic parts. The songs are accomplished, but still revealing diversity. Some of you are going to like the somewhat more psychedelic-inspired “Brace The Storm” while others will prefer the indie approach at “Cloak & Dagger”. I like the old-school electronic sound treatments at “Fire & Light” while “Purpose” might be considered as the ultimate fusion between heavy guitar play and solid electro sequences while the vocals have been here produced with a robotic effect on top.

– – – : The album features only 10 songs, which is maybe a little regrettable; especially when you consider there’s an intro cut and an instrumental last song. But the main point that hurts me remains Grendel’s move from the dark-electro scene towards this industrial pop & rock style. There’s nothing with that, but it’s no longer the same project so should another band name not have been more appropriated? We all will have an opinion about it…

Conclusion: “Ascending The Abyss” confirms Grendel’s sonic transformation and even if it has nothing in common with the band’s electro-period, it probably is one of the best albums released by the band.

Best songs: “Fire & Light”, “Purpose”, “Bitter Tide”, “Cloak & Dagger”, “Caught In The Middle”.

Rate: (8½ ).

Artist: https://www.grendel–hq.com / www.facebook.com/grendel.music

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

About Grendel

Grendel is the solo project of Scottish musician Jos Tucker, formed in 2000 and based in Glasgow. Its early albums, including “Inhumane Amusement” (2001), “End Of Ages” (2002), “Prescription: Medicide” (2003), “Soilbleed” (2005), “Harsh Generation” (2007), “Chemicals + Circuitry” (2009) and “Timewave Zero” (2012), established Grendel within the dark-electro and aggrotech scene before “Age Of The Disposable Body” introduced the guitar-driven industrial-rock direction carried through on “Ascending The Abyss”. Grendel has remained active on Infacted Recordings since, releasing the album “The Ranidae” in 2026.

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.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: Athan Maroulis will be always linked to Spahn Ranch and Black Tape For A Blue Girl, but the past few years he got involved with a new project called Noir. The album “Darkly Near” (2013) was a cool introduction to the dark-romantic pop style of the project. A few more EP’s were released while “A Pleasure” (released by the end of 2019) is the newest production. Athan Maroulis got some help from programmer/producer Erik Gustafson (Adoration Destroyed, Grendel), keyboardist/vocalist Kai Irina Hahn (The Sedona Effect), keyboardist/vocalist Demetra Songs and cello player Tracey Moth (Antidote For Annie).

Content: The title song (cf. “A Pleasure To Burn”) is a dark, bombastic outburst with a carrying chorus and featuring the charismatic vocals of Athan Maroulis. The song was remixed by Fires and Seeming.

We next get another new song (cf. “Luxury”), which has been written by Athan Maroulis, Erik Gustafson and Jean-Marc Lederman (The Weathermen ao). This song is more evasive. The last song of the EP is a “Reprise” of “Luxury”, which rather sounds as a short outro. Last, but not least you also will discover a cover version of the famous Fad Gadget song “Back To Nature”.

+ + + : Athan Maroulis remains a brilliant, charismatic singer. His unique timbre of voice injects a true spirit into the music. And the music of the title song is quite interesting for the mixing of bombast and refinement. Among the remixes I especially recommend the up-tempo edit by Fires. Covering “Back To Nature” is not that original, but the way the song has been adapted into the bombastic ‘style-noir’ is absolutely remarkable.

– – – : I didn’t experience “A Pleasure” as an absolute ‘hit’, but Noir isn’t exactly the kind of band achieving poppy-hits!

Conclusion: We can’t speak about a come-back, but “A Pleasure” is a good way to put Noir back on the map!

Best songs: “A Pleasure To Burn”, “A Pleasure To Burn – Fires Remix”, “Back To Nature – Radio Edit”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/NOIRmetropolis

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

About Nøir

Noir is a revolving-lineup project conceived and fronted by vocalist Athan Maroulis, also known for his work with Spahn Ranch and Black Tape for a Blue Girl. The project released its debut album, “Darkly Near”, in 2013 on Metropolis Records, featuring Maroulis alongside Jamie Parganos and Kai Irina Hahn. This “A Pleasure” EP includes a cover of Fad Gadget’s “Back To Nature” and remixes by Fires and Seeming, and was followed in 2023 by the “Fallen” EP, dedicated to the late Metropolis Records co-founder Dave Heckman.

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 New York City-based dark electronic act NØIR will be releasing a 6-song EP entitled “A Pleasure”. It will be the band’s first new material since 2017. NØIR consists of vocalist Athan Maroulis (Spahn Ranch, Black Tape for a Blue Girl) and features programmer/producer Erik Gustafson (Adoration Destroyed, Grendel), keyboardist/vocalist Kai Irina Hahn (The Sedona Effect) and keyboardist/vocalist Demetra Songs.

“A Pleasure” includes the lead song “A Pleasure to Burn” with remixes by Fires as well as the band Seeming along with a new song entitled “Luxury”, co-written by Jean-Marc Lederman (The Weathermen) and features cellist Tracey Moth (Antidote for Annie).

Dedicated to famed English actress Julie Christie, this release also features a cover of Fad Gadget’s “Back To Nature”. “A Pleasure” will be released digitally by Metropolis Records on November 15th and will be supported by a string of select NØIR live dates.

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, aggrotech.

Background/Info: “Join Us” is SynthAttack’s fourth album since the opening full length “To The Floor” (2015). The band is still driven by the creative spirit of Martin Schindler. “Join Us” features ten songs plus seven remixes by other artists.

Content: SynthAttack can be the best compared to an imaginary dance-ogre. The songs are boosted by electro-adrenaline made by heavy, danceable kicks, cold electro sequences and trance-like leads. The vocals feature this cavernous expression while a few cuts reveal female backings. SynthAttack is the perfect fusion between dark-electro and dance/trance music.

Remixes have been accomplished by Aesthetic Perfection, Centhron, Agonoize, ES23, Grendel, CygnosiC and Nachtmahr.

+ + + : SynthAttack clearly composes music for the dancefloor. Each new opus sounds as a sonic bomb to get fans into frenetic dance. It’s not that different for “Join Us”, which is an invitation to move. The heavy, boosting kicks together with the trance-like leads can’t leave club visitors enjoying dark-electronics unmoved. The songs reflect constant power, which feels a bit like a transcendental trip. Songs like “Join Us”, “Enjoy The Pain”, and “Addicted To The Thrill” will definitely convince you from the band’s potential and dance skills. Next to the new songs you also get an impressive list of famous artists/remixers. I here have a little preference for the remix of “Final salvation” by ES23.

– – – : SynthAttack remains a kind of challenge. The fusion of dark-electronics with some commercial-like trance leads is sometimes pretty risky and maybe a bit cheap. I’m especially referring to “Final Salvation”, which reminds me of the lead of Culture Beat’s mega-hit “Mr. Vain”. Despite of the great artists invited to remix I don’t experience this section as a real bonus to the album. The original songs are definitely better!

Conclusion: SynthAttack makes no prisoners blowing everything down! Music is their religion, the dancefloor their temple to convince new adherents!

Best songs: “Join Us”, “Enjoy The Pain”, “Addicted To The Thrill”, “Until The Dawn”, “Final Salvation – ES23 Remix”, “Join Us – Aesthetic Perfection Remix”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/synthattack

Label: www.darktunes.com / www.facebook.com/darkTunesMusic

About SynthAttack

SynthAttack is a dark-electro duo from Hannover, Germany, driven by Martin Schindler alongside singer Nici. Since the 2015 debut “To The Floor” the project has built a catalogue on darkTunes Music Group, including “Harsh Is Back” in 2018 and “Join Us” in 2019. The band went on to release the EP “Harsh Will Never Die” in 2020 and the album “Damnation” in 2021, and has performed at festivals including Wave-Gotik-Treffen, Amphi Festival and E-Tropolis.

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 the release of the last Grendel studio album “Age of the disposable Body” and the re-release of their harsh electro album “Inhumane Amusement” (a 2CD set including bonus tracks), Grendel quickly returned to the studio to record a sixth full-length album.

The new studio effort has 10 all new songs and was mixed and mastered by Kojla Trelle (Soman).

Grendel formed in 1997 and was named after the beast in Beowulf. Grendel was signed by the German record label NoiTekk — a sub-division of the now defunct Black Rain label — which released their first studio album, “Inhumane Amusement”, an expanded and remastered version of their demo CD. The band is currently signed to Infacted.

Here’s a live snippet from last week.

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

Dutch/UK based industrial-rock artist Grendel has announced their North America tour with industrial artists Striplicker, synthwave artist Glass Apple Bonzai and darkwave upstarts Esoterik in support of their upcoming album “Ascending the Abyss”.

Grendel frontman JD Tucker recently changed Grendel’s sound with their 2017 album “Age of the Disposable Body”, demonstrating a shift away from standard industrial, adding elements of rock, synthwave, post-punk, and darkwave. On the upcoming release Tucker mixes aggressive guitars, 80s style synths and intelligent percussion work.

“Ascending the Abyss” will be available this summer on Metropolis Records (North America) and Infacted Records (EU).

Tour Dates

• June 19th Toronto,ON-The Boat
• June 20th Cincinnati, OH-Mockbee
• June 21st Chicago,IL-Reggies
• June 23rd Cleveland, OH-Phantasy
• June 24th Ann Arbor, MI-Necto (DJ Only)
• June 26th Pittsburgh, PA -Cattivo
• June 27th Wilmington,DE-Bar XIII
• June 28th New York, NY-Drom
• June 29th Boston,MA-Once
• June 30th Montreal,QC-Piranha
• July 2nd Baltimore, MD-Metro
• July 3rd Richmond,VA-Fallout
• July 4th Charlotte,NC-Milestone
• July 5th Atlanta,GA-Drunken Unicorn
• July 6th Tampa,FL-Orpheum
• July 7th Tallahassee,FL-926 Bar
• July 9th New Orleans,LA-Goat
• July 11th Houston, TX-Warehouse
• July 12th Austin,TX-Elysium
• July 13th Mcallen,TX-Cine Del Rey
• July 14th Dallas, TX-The Church
• July 17th Mesa,AZ-Club Red
• July 19th Los Angeles,CA-Catch One
• July 21st Oakland,CA-Uptown
• July 22nd Portland,OR-Star Theater
• July 23rd Seattle,WA-Highline
• July 24th Vancouver, BC-Red Room
• July 25th Calgary,AB-Dickens
• July 26th Salt Lake City,UT-Urban Lounge
• July 28th Denver,CO-Herman’s Hideaway
• July 30th Kansas City,MO-Riot Room
• July 31st St Louis,MO-Crack Fox
• August 1st Minneapolis,MN-Red Sea
• August 2nd Madison,WI-Crucible
• August 3rd Detroit,MI-Smalls
• August 4th Buffalo,NY-Mohawk Place

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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Peter Turns Pirate (aka Neal Reed from Grendel) has released a brand new music video: “Jaw Drop”. It’s the 3rd music video for the project from Toronto (Canada) and the track itself is taken from his latest EP “View as strange”.

This video focuses entirely on the hard-hitiing drums of the track and features some of the electro scene’s most respected drummers: Galen Waling (Lords of acid, Julien K, PIG), Cristian Carver (Bella Morte, Panic Lift, Man1k1n) and Ben Tourkantonis (Grendel, Panic Lift).

You can watch the video right here.

Peter Turns Pirate was formed in 2004. In 2015 the project opened The AfterMath Festival in Toronto, and in 2016 Peter Turns Pirate supported PIG and En Esch on their 5 week North American Tour.

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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Background/Info:

About Antibody

Antibody is the solo dark-electro and powernoise project of German artist Jan Laustroer, active since 2013. The project drew wider attention through a remix of Aengeldust’s “Meth Face” and further remixes for Displacer and Binary Division, plus the track “Shrimps” on Alfa Matrix’s “Endzeit Bunkertracks 7” compilation. Antibody’s early singles “Desperation” and “Secrets” both later featured on Side-Line’s “Face The Beat” compilation series.

“Revolution Dance”, released via darkTunes in a 100-copy CD edition, features guest vocals by Technolorgy and Avarice In Audio, plus remixes by Grendel, Cyferdyne and Kant Kino, and is reviewed here.

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

Background/Info:

About Extize

Extize began in 2007 as a one-man project by French producer Cyb3rella. Cyb3rSlut joined on drums a year later, followed by Ionic Matrix on keyboards and Dj Barus on sampling and live mixing.

The band’s album chronology includes “FallOut Nation” (2009, Trisol), “Paradize 2069” (2011, Trisol), “Don’t Fuck With An Angel” (2014) and “Redneck Industrial” (2016), before “Hellcome To The Titty Twister Club”, reviewed here, followed on darkTunes Music Group in 2018.

Extize later returned with the eighth album, “MonStars“, released on 30 September 2022 as a concept album inspired by horror and sci-fi films from the 1980s to the 2000s.

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

Five years have passed since Grendel release his previous album “Timewave Zero“. Now Grendel returns with “The age of the Disposable“ offering 10 new tracks.

The vinyl version of this album is limited to 300 copies and can be ordered now.

Here’s already a track from this album.

Read the review of ‘Age Of The Disposable Body’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

The biggest distributor for the industrial electro scene, Audioglobe, has announced its Top 10 in best selling industrial music labels. The numbers were already out there for the labels to look at it, but here they are also for the regular fans. Note that with 2018, Audioglobe also enters it’s 25th year of existance as the distributor set up shop on 6 December 1993. We will of course have a big extended interview and more with Sebastian Koch regarding this great achievement in a very tough market.

But now the numbers many of you have been waiting for!

The Top 3

First the Top 3. The number 1 label in sales is Trisol which has bands such as Clan of Xymox, Rome, Project Pitchfork, Sopor Aeternus, Nachtmahr, Rotersand, Asp, Mantus etc. under contract. The second label in the list is the Belgian based Alfa Matrix which nurtures the talent of Front 242, Underviewer, Daniel B Prothèse, Metroland, Alien Vampires, Ayria, Leatherstrip, Psy’Aviah, Kant Kino and so many other acts. Note that this label also has a very strong e-shop presence (direct sales are not included in this Top 10 list). The 3rd label is Out Of Line with Blutengel, Combichrist, Hocico, Solar Fake, Heimataerde, Unzucht, Solitary Experiments. Also this label has an own e-shop.

The rest of the Top 10

The 4th label is Fabrika/Dead Scarlet (She Past Away, Lebanon Hanover, Selofan, Kaelan Mikla, M!R!M, Doric…) followed by ArtOfFact (Legend, Frontline Assembly, Haujobb, Psyche, Noise Unit, Dead When I found her, Pankow…) and Metropolis (Birthday Massacre, Aesthetic Perfection, God Module, Lords of Acid, Skinny Puppy, Delerium…). The 7th place is occupied by Rustblade (Morricone, Claudio Simonetti’s Goblin, Leaether Strip, Lydia Lunch, Legendary Pink Dots, Merzbow…). Also Dependent is still in the Top 10, namely on spot 8 with their label roster (Covenant, Mesh, Pride & Fall, Beborn Beton, Seabound, Encephalon, Frontline Assembly, Clicks..). Place 9 and 10 finally are for Manic Depression (Winter Severity Index, Ash Code, Schonwald, Box and the Twins, Sjoblom, Dear Deer…) and Undo (Marsheaux, Girl One and the Grease Guns, Mesh, Fotonovela, OMD, Nikonn, Mikro, Vienna, Liebe…).

And on spot 11 and 12…

2 labels didn’t make the Top 10, namely Hall Of Sermon (Lacrimosa, Snakeskin, Black Moon Secret, Eyes Shut Tight) and Infacted (NamNamBulu, Grendel, Torul, Reaper, Frozen Plasma, Ruined Conflict, Orange Sector, Syntec…). Both labels ended on place 11 and 12.

Here’s the complete list again. The bands next to the label are listed in order of sales results/total turnover per band in 2017 via Audioglobe.

01 TRISOL (Clan of Xymox, Rome, Project Pitchfork, Sopor Aeternus, Nachtmahr, Rotersand, Asp, Mantus…)
02 ALFA MATRIX (Front 242, Underviewer, Daniel B Prothèse, Metroland, Alien Vampires, Ayria, Leatherstrip…)
03 OUT OF LINE (Blutengel, Combichrist, Hocico, Solar Fake, Heimataerde, Unzucht, Solitary Experiments …)
04 FABRIKA/DEAD SCARLET (She Past Away, Lebanon Hanover, Selofan, Kaelan Mikla, M!R!M, Doric…)
05 ARTOFFACT (Legend, Frontline Assembly, Haujobb, Psyche, Noise Unit, Dead When I found her, Pankow…)
06 METROPOLIS (Birthday Massacre, Aesthetic Perfection, God Module, Lords of Acid, Skinny Puppy, Delerium…)
07 RUSTBLADE (Morricone, Claudio Simonetti’s Goblin, Leaether Strip, Lydia Lunch, Legendary Pink Dots, Merzbow…)
08 DEPENDENT (Covenant, Mesh, Pride & Fall, Beborn Beton, Seabound, Encephalon, Frontline Assembly, Clicks..)
09 MANIC DEPRESSION (Winter Severity Index, Ash Code, Schonwald, Box and the Twins, Sjoblom, Dear Deer…)
10 UNDO (Marsheaux, Girl One and the Grease Guns, Mesh, Fotonovela, OMD, Nikonn, Mikro, Vienna, Liebe…)
11 HALL OF SERMON (Lacrimosa, Snakeskin, Black Moon Secret, Eyes Shut Tight)
12 INFACTED (NamNamBulu, Grendel, Torul, Reaper, Frozen Plasma, Ruined Conflict, Orange Sector, Syntec…)

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

Aesthetic Perfection, the American electronic musical project created by Daniel Graves in 2000, has a new EP coming up: “Ebb and Flow”. “Ebb and Flow” includes the original title track and remix by Miggiddo, as well as the previously released cover of N*SYNC’s hit pop single, “Bye Bye Bye” featuring Nikki Misery of New Year’s Day on guitar.

Aesthetic Perfection will also be joining Grendel and Peter Turns Pirate on the Severed Nations North American Tour launching April 5 in Fairfield, OH. The tour will wind throughout North America, wrapping up May 13th in Toronto.

Let’s hope that this new EP is not only to promote a new tour but also a teaser for a forthcoming album. After all “Blood Spills Not Far From The Wound” – and excellent release – already dates from 2015. Check out the Aesthetic Perfection back catalogue here.

You can already check the new track via our Spotify playlist below (check track 4).

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

Read the review of ‘The Abyss Effect’.

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.

Background/Info: Viscera Drip has been set up by American artist Justin Thiele. After a real promising and accomplished official debut-album “Abattoir” (2014) the band stroke back during late 2015 by this new full length featuring a few, great surprises.

Content: From the very first notes Viscera Drip unleashes a hard and enraged electro composition revealing explicit samplings and ultra melodic passages. Some of the melodies remind me to Morticians for the kind of ‘funny-spooky’ line comparable to the tune of “The Addams Family”. This is not exactly the kind of lead I expect for a hard electro act. Quite progressively it all moves back to more familiar and efficient arrangements.

The work sometimes appears to be simple, but efficient. There’s no particular trick and no innovation, but the songs are well-crafted and into powerful, haunting electronics. Some songs make me think to a hybrid between Grendel and Suicide Commando. One of the main –and single, atypical songs is “Don’t Pray For Me”, which reveals great filtered sequences adding some diversity to the work.

The few surprises I was talking about consist of guest vocals by Jan L (X-Fusion, Noisuf-X) and Claus Larsen (Læther Strip). Both songs featuring those living legends of dark-electronics are quite successful.

Last, but not least the work features remixes by Ruinizer and X-Fusion. Jan L did an amazing job remixing “Fuck This Life” into a great and freaky piece of music.

+ + + : The pumping kick and hopping sequences inject a great danceable element to the work. Thiele made an excellent choice asking 2 great guest artists (singers).

– – – : Some of the melody lines during the opening cuts are not convincing at all, but it luckily concerns a few cuts.

Conclusion: Viscera Drip is an interesting band dealing with a familiar format of dark-electronic music. There’s less originality, but simply efficiency! I however belief that there’s much more creativity inside Viscera Drip than show at “Perpetual Adversity”.

Best songs: “Slaves Of No Hope feat. L Læther Strip ther Strip”, “A Stranger To Myself feat. X-Fusion”, “Don’t Pray For Me”, “Dear Enemy”, “Fuck This Life – X-Fusion Remix”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.facebook.com/VisceraDrip

Label: www.advoxya-records.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Advoxya-Records/265765706059

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: Dark-technoid-electronics, body-techno.

Content: Two years after their official debut work “Broken Hearts Corporate Minds” the Australian Sirus combo strikes back with a new, noticeable production. This band set up and driven by the creative mind of Josh Rombout (aka DJ Sirus) deals with a fascinating and modern format of underground electro, which is hard to grasp as one particular genre.

In comparison to their debut album, Sirus hold on to similar influences, which clearly move from EBM to dark-technoid elements, but the global production became more sophisticated. The main characteristic and strength of this band is their taste to manipulate sounds while experimenting with multiple influences, which are going further than EBM and techno-minded formats.

“Satellite Empire” is a progressive-electro work on, which you will notice beautiful ethereal passages featuring the heavenly vocals of Danielle McKay, but also songs revealing elements of d’n’b (cf. “Loic”, “PRISM”), groovy passages (cf. “Neon Dominion”) and a rather cinematographic final cut (cf. “Surfacing”). The work is complex and like in constant movement, revisiting familiar electro elements and mixing different influences with each other.

Today it’s hard and nearly impossible to speak about an ‘innovating’ band, but I like the way Sirus tries to strive for something different. I rather dare to speak about a progressive electro release, but the most important aspect is for sure that there are great songs featured on it.

I’m referring to a kind of sound intelligence emerging from “Surveillance State”, which appears to be the ultimate offspring between EBM, dark-electro and trance-techno music. I already mentioned the somewhat d’n’b driven “PRISM”, which also reminds me of the complexity and genius of Frontline Assembly. But the most surprising song and still my absolute favorite is called “We Have The Technology”. This track is a heavenly fusion between terrific, progressive electro-body structures and the heavenly ethereal female vocals. It’s not exactly a dreamy song, but a hard and transcendental piece of music. The dreamy side is featured on the opening cut “Ministries Of Truth”, which is a kind of magic intro cut.

A last cut I want to mention is the groovy-like “Neon Dominion” where I especially enjoyed the complementary male- and female vocals, which sound a bit like ‘the beauty and the beast’.

Last, but not least I have to mention that the CD format features 3 extra songs, which are remixes by iVardensphere, Grendel and Aesthetic Perfection.

Conclusion: Sirus definitely belongs to this restricted category of ‘progressive’ electro-underground bands trying to innovate and explore new paths. “Satellite Empire” is a work with real big potential!

Best songs: “We Have The Technology”, “The People We’ve Lost”, “Neon Dominion”, “Surveillance State”, “LOIC”, “PRISM”.

Rate: (DP:8½)DP.

Band: www.sirusofficial.com / www.facebook.com/sirusofficial

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

Genre/Influences: Industrial-rave, breakbeats.

Content: Operating from Manchester (UK) Syd.31 unleashed its 2nd EP to the world. The least I can say is that this formation set up by Dr Magic can be simply one of the hottest new sensations in electro land.

“Drowning In Air” features 4 new songs plus a surprising cover version. One of the main sources of inspiration clearly appears to be The Prodigy. Syd.31 experiments with breakbeats injecting a great dynamic and power into the songs, but also some of the sound treatments remind me of the raw and techno-industrial style of The Prodigy. Some other technoid elements remind me to Ultraviolence, which is a somewhat forgotten British master of electronic underground. All those elements have been mixed with a hard industrial-rave style creating a merciless and exciting sound.

It’s not really a surprise that Noisuf-X did the mastering of this EP while contributing to the most surprising song of the EP. The cover version of “Mr. Vain” (originally performed by Culture Beat) is not exactly the kind of song you expect to be covered by a dark-electro formation. It’s fun, it’s totally weird, but ultra danceable and you clearly ill recognize the hard and dry, stumping kick of Noisuf-X.

But this is of course not the main song of this EP. The songs “Disorder” and “Hate” are more appropriated to get an idea about this formation. It all reassembles the aforementioned influences resulting in a dangerous sonic bomb. “Hate” appears to be a potential hit, perfectly illustrating the modern technological approach of this band.

But there’s more to enjoy and I here refer to the song “No Fear”, which is driven by d’n’b inspired rhythms while the sound treatments remain pretty raw and technoid-minded. The song “Revolution” is the one that reminds me a bit to the sometimes hard-core driven Ultraviolence.

Notice by the way that multiple guest artists have been invited to accomplish this EP. I already mentioned Jan L (Noisuf-X), but you’ll also discover names like Kommand + Kontrol and Paresis & Beinaheleidenschaftsgegenstand while Grendel’s J.D. Tucker produced 4 from the 5 songs (“Mr. Vain” being produced by Jan L).

A last element consists of the vocals, which mix numerous samplings and a rather harsh way of singing.

Conclusion: AnalogueTrash Records already have a few cool bands like Machinista, Atomzero, Advance, Neonsol ao, but Syd.31 could rapidly become their biggest sensation. This is a real astonishing release.

Best songs: “Hate”, “Disorder”, “Revolution”.

Rate: (DP:9)DP.

Band: www.facebook.com/Syd31

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: EBM, dark-electro, electro-pop, electro-industrial.

Bands: Grendel, Frozen Plasma, Reaper, Pre.Emptive Strike 01, Orange Sector, E-Craft, Menschdefekt, Skyla Vertex, Modulate ao.

Content: More and more labels are promoting digital releases and that’s precisely what this “Digital Infaction”-compilation is all about. You get a total of 16 bands at a so-called ‘discovery price’. It first of all is an interesting selection of some of Infacted’s finest formations. The fans of the label will not exactly discover ‘new’ stuff, but it’s a great tracklist mixing the different electronic genres the label is dealing with. The majority of the songs are remixes, which always remains an opportunity to discover familiar songs in a different version.

The debut part reveals one of the new potential hits of Reaper, which is taken from the latest EP. “Der Schnitter (Mit Der sense Im Club)” is a great piece of electro-body-tech music. Orange Sector is one of the label’s veterans and their “Sturm” song is another smasher. This track was originally released at their last EP and has been remixed by Martin Bodewell in a merciless old-school EBM way.

E-Craft last year took me by surprise releasing the hard and intelligent EBM-driven “Re-Arrested” album. The song “Blast Zone” was not directly the biggest attention grabber and yet the overwhelming power and heavy blasts are simply terrific. It reminds me a bit of FLA-influences.

The final part of the album is absolutely amazing. Skyla Vertex deals with their usual dark-electro genre, which is absolutely remarkable. Frozen Plasma will please to the electro-pop freaks getting us back to their last year released successful song “Crazy”. Grendel takes us back into the realms of dark-electronics. The famous song “Timewave Zero” has been remixed by Modulate in a hard and merciless way. ES23 is another great electro formation experimenting with the coldest paths of electronics. The track “Enjoy The Light” has been originally released at their last year released album “Mutatio Ex Machina” and is a total smasher.

Last, but not least I also have to mention the terrific and electro-industrial driven side-project of C-Lekktor. Circuito Cerrado last year released the promising debut-album “Distortment” featuring the sexy and somewhat rave-like “Bad Girls Go To Hell”. This song is one of the absolute favorites from this great sampler.

The only negative point is the mastering, which could have been much better.

Conclusion: The first volume of this new digital sampler-series is a great summary of the sound Infacted is dealing with. You’ll be not disappointed to (re)discover this amazing selection of great bands and successful songs.

Best bands: Circuito Cerrado, ES23, Frozen Plasma, E-Craft, Orange Sector, Reaper.

Rate: (DP:8½)DP.

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

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: EBM.

Content: Tyske Ludder is back on track with a new EP while the new full length (cf. “Evolution”) is in the pipeline.

The German EBM combo already got a very positive response to “Meskalin”, which sounds in the purest tradition of the band.

“Meskalin” is driven by some Kraftwerk-like sequences while the chorus is carried by a solid and somewhat raw, but melodic lead. A kind of sampled guitar riff has been placed in the background to inject some extra power although I’ve to say “Meskalin” is not exactly their heaviest piece in history. It simply is a great dancefloor cut in the truest vein of Tyske Ludder, but with a refreshing touch on top.

We next get a noticeable remix by Grendel, which is more into a powerful format, but not exactly the best work I’ve heard from VLRK. I expected much more out of this remix while the remix by NorthBorne is a great surprise. I thought this project was no longer active, but this dark and phenomenal remix of “Meskalin” mixes elements of industrial- and EBM together with the raw chorus.

Concerning NorthBorne some of you will maybe remember Christian Lund already remixed Tyske Ludder (cf. “Abgesang”).

Conclusion: All I can say is that “Meskalin” sounds as a solid teaser to the new album planned for autumn. Tyske Ludder remains a total guarantee for qualitative and powerful EBM!

Best songs: “Meskalin”, “Meskalin – Frexta Remix by NorthBorne”.

Rate: (DP:8)DP.

Band: ww.tyske-ludder.com / www.facebook.com/tyskeludder

Label: www.zyx.de/Labels-36.htm+/l_id/20 / www.facebook.com/GoldenCore-Records-299826863381818

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Read the review of ‘Decimation In H.D.’.

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