Out now is the newest EP by the Nordic electro sensation Code 64. The EP “In Search of Mysteries” is out now on every major platforms and on Digipack CD from the band’s Bandcamp page.

Code 64 is an electronic music band originating from Sweden and Norway originally, but now based in their Swedish HQ in Lysekil. They are best known for their blend of synthpop, futurepop, and electronic sounds. Formed in 2000, the band initially consisted of members Christian Espeland, Henrik Piehl, and Hasse Mattsson. However, Hasse Mattsson left the group in 2013 and was replaced by Bjørn Marius Borg.

Their music is characterized by catchy melodies, lush synth arrangements, and with that are, often exploring themes of technology, futurism, and human emotion. Throughout their career, Code 64 has released several well received albums, including “Storm” (2006), “Departure” (2010), and “Trialogue” (2013).

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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(Photo by Xenturion Prime) Out on April 12 is the all new album by the Swedish/Norwegian synthwave/futurepop duo Xenturion Prime (formally the members of Code 64) aka Bjørn Marius Borg and Hasse Mattsson (Hans-Olof Mattsson). The CD version of this album will be limited to just 300 copies.

This limited edition remix album is based upon the “Prisma” album (2022) and all the tracks has been reworked totally by acts such as Valhall, Lights A.M, Vanguard, Midnight Resistance, Karin My and Technomancer just to name a few. Back in 2022 our reviewer said this about the “Prisma” album: “The band still has something apart from the rest which makes their originality and strength. The global production has been improved from album to album but especially the uplifting  effect from the choruses is a noticeable evolution.”

Check out “Embers” in a Midnight Resistance remix.

Tracks:

• Embers (Midnight Resistance Rmx)
• Last Dance (Technomancer Rmx)
• Renegade (Xenturion Prime Radio Edit)
• Moving on (Tianzi Rmx)
• Premonition (Bariuz Rmx)
• Memory Lanes (Mars TV Redux)
• Shades of Light (Valhall Rmx)
• Distant Voices (Karin My Rmx)
• Renegade (Vanguard Rmx)
• Starburst (Lights A.M Version)
• Pathfinder (Cosmoplex Rmx)

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 electropop act Code 64 are releasing their brand new album “Broken Rhythm” on November 18th. The release will be available in digital format on streaming platforms and as a limited edition CD which will only be available on the band’s Bandcamp page where you can already pre-order the release.

As you can guess, the Lysekil based band is now self-releasing the material. Also good to know, the album was recorded by Christian Espeland and Henrik, the original singer of this project. Christian told us that “you can say it is the follow up album from our classic album ‘Departure’ from 2006.” That promises!

Here’s already a first track to check out.

About Code 64

Code 64 is a synthpop, darkwave, electronica band that signed with the small Norwegian record label, “Angel Productions” only three years after establishing themselves as a group. They released their first album “Storm” in 2003, which contained nine original tracks.

Following this release they continued to work, releasing “Departure” in 2006 on the new label Memento Materia. Code 64’s sophomore album saw US distribution for North America in 2005, when the band signed a multi release licensing deal with A Different Drum. “Departure” was re-released as a 2 CD this time with as bonus disc the “Sea of Stars” single featuring remixes and an exclusive b-side.

Shortly after the release, Henrik Piehl left the band due to musical disagreements. He was replaced by Bjørn Marius Borg and in 2010 the band released its third studio album, “Trialogue”. On July 23, 2013, Code 64 announced that Christian had left the band to spend more time with his family, and the project was disbanded. Hasse Mattsson and Bjørn Marius Borg would then reemerge as the duo Xenturion Prime.

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, Body-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: “Prisma” is already the fourth full length album released by the members of ex-Code 64. Bjørn Marius Borg and Hasse Mattsson brings use eleven new songs.

Content: Xenturion Prime takes off with an overwhelming intro which is directly followed by cool Electro-Pop songs carried by elevating choruses. One of the softer songs features female guest vocals. Next comes a harder cut carried by a solid EBM bass line while the chorus remains Pop-like. The album sounds varied, switching ‘power-pop’ together with happy sounding tunes.

+ + + : Xenturion Prime always brings entertaining Electro-Pop with some extra power and/or EBM on top. The band still has something apart from the rest which makes their originality and strength. The global production has been improved from album to album but especially the uplifting  effect from the choruses is a noticeable evolution. My favorite song however appears to be the most unique from the album. “Renegade” has a strong EBM connotation although still Pop driven.

– – – : The initial magic of the band is a bit gone although Xenturion Prime remains an interesting listening. The song with the female vocals is one of the single pieces which couldn’t convince me.

Conclusion: Intelligent and efficient Electro-Pop!

Best songs: “Renegade”, “Embers”, “Memory Lanes”, “Shades Of Light”.

Rate: 8.

Artist:   www.facebook.com/xenturionprime

Label: www.progress-productions.com / www.facebook.com/progresspro

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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Bjørn Marius Borg and Hasse Mattsson were previously involved with Code 64. They in 2013 set up a new formation called Xenturion Prime and rapidly released a debut EP entitled “Rise” on Progress Productions. They next went on releasing the debut album “Mecha Rising” in 2014. The Swedish duo finally became a trio for their newest opus released in 2017 entitled “Humanity Plus”. This is a noticeable and artistic piece of space-like electro-pop music mixed with some EBM elements and cinematographic passages. It definitely was one of the most creative- and simply best electronic albums from 2017.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: What do you keep in mind from your involvement with Code 64 and how did the move happened towards this new band?

Xenturion Prime: Xenturion Prime is in many ways a continuation of the vision we had for Code 64, but it didn’t feel right to keep that name as it was just one of the original members (Hasse) who left. The positive thing about starting with a fresh, new band name back in 2013 was that we could revamp the sound completely and just be creative. But if you listen to the last Code 64 single “Accelerate” it pretty much sounds like Xenturion Prime! “Accelerate” became the template for our first album “Mecha Rising”.

Q: You’ve now released your second album. Which elements from “Mecha Rising” did you hold on and what did you try to improve, maybe introduce at “Humanity Plus”?

Xenturion Prime: We simply took what we felt were the best elements of “Mecha Rising” and made them better on “Humanity Plus”. We developed a core sound for the band on the first album, and refined it for the second one. Of course, getting Cathrine on board greatly expanded the sound, and made it easier and more fun to experiment with what we had. We try not to stay in the comfort zone, but instead challenge ourselves and improve our skills along the way.

Q: You mentioned Cathrine Räisänen Andersen, which I think is the girlfriend of Hasse Mattsson, right? How does it feel to get involved in a band with your girlfriend and what’s the impact of Cathrine on the new work?

Xenturion Prime: Yes, its true that Cathrine & Hasse are a couple. Having Cathrine in the band brings another dimension to the sound, especially with the vocals and on stage. It’s easier to complete our ideas, and there’s even more space for experimentation!

Q: It’s not that easy to define or label the sound of Xenturion Prime, but it clearly sounds as the fusion between multiple influences. How do you explain this diversity and do you’ve ‘limits’ you don’t want to trespass?

Xenturion Prime: Well, we half seriously call it ‘Powersynth’, but we haven’t really defined what that is. It’s definitely a fusion of many different elements and inspirations. We’re more interested in evolving as a band than to stay ‘pure’. It’s more fun this way! There are no fixed limits as long as we think it fits the sound.

Q: “Humanity Plus” sounds rather intriguing as album title. What’s hiding behind this title and in, which is the theme(s) featured in the artwork?

Xenturion Prime: “Humanity Plus” or “H+” is the abbreviation for Transhumanism, which inspired the artwork and music on the album. We are not involved in the Transhumanist movement, but it’s definitely something that interests us. Combine this with a love for all things sci-fi and futuristic, and you have the heart of Xenturion Prime in our current state!

Q: How do you transpose the Xenturion Prime sound on stage and what’s the importance of performing today?

Xenturion Prime: In our live shows we bring the epic sound from the studio to the stage with some extra visual and musical elements. The key word is energy!

With so much music being released and so many good bands out there, it’s more important to play live now than ever before so that we will be noticed among the masses. In other words: feel free to book us at contact@xenturionprime.com (laugh).

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

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Genre/Influences: EBM, psychedelic, cinematoghraphic, experimental.

Background/Info: Bjørn Marius Borg and Hasse Mattsson were previously active under the Code 64, but they have also set up Xenturion Prime. A first album (cf. “Mecha Rising”) got released in 2014. The band is now back on track featuring Cathrine Räisänen Andersen as an extra member.

Content: Even if “Mecha Rising” was a successful album I wasn’t totally convinced with the complex approach. “Humanity Plus” remains ‘complex’ although more accessible. The work rather sounds as a synthesis between different influences, but with an omnipresent astral/space like dimension. There are four so-called “Artifact”-tracks featured, which are instrumentals with a strong cinematographic appeal, but still with influences reminding me of Van Gelis. It just reinforces the link with space-music and I sometimes get the feeling they’re composing space-EBM.

The majority of the songs are carried by hard-pumping kicks, great bass lines, noticeable sound treatments and cool vocals.

+ + + : I like originality and that’s what this album stands for. Xenturion Prime realized a real masterpiece! The instrumental cuts feature great soundtrack music, which is overwhelming, somewhat dramatic and mainly dreamy. The other tracks left are hard-hitting cuts accomplished with genius sound treatments. The psychedelic touch hanging over the work is something particular, but definitely an element you rapidly recognize. Another important element are the beautiful string parts this work has been made of. Xenturion Prime this way builds a bridge between early electronic music and contemporary productions. I also noticed a more aggreppo song (cf. “Neoexogenesis”) reminding me a bit of Dance Or Die.

– – – : There’s just one single and more electro-ballad like song (cf. “Departed”), which can’t convince me. This is a great piece of music although maybe not the most accessible album of the year.

Conclusion: Hard to say if “Humanity Plus” will become one of the best albums of the year, but there’s no single doubt it definitely is one of the most original and I dare to say, visionary work of the year. This is an intelligent electronic format, which can’t be compared to any other formation!

Best songs: “Vimana”, “Milestone”, “Neoexogenesis”, “Traveler”, “Artifact I”, “Propulsion”.

Rate: (8½).

Band: www.xenturionprime.com / www.facebook.com/xenturionprime

Label: www.progress–productions.com / www.facebook.com/progresspro

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

It will be the first time that Essence Of Mind will play a headline tour in Germany after playing at famous festivals like M’era Luna and Autumn Moon as well as touring with bands like Apoptygma Berserk and Zeromancer. The Synthpop-band Alienare from northern Germany will open the shows as special guest.

Dates, venues, tickets and more are listed right here on the band’s official website. The band has a solid live reputation as we could see during the shows we have seen over the years not in the least thanks to its strong live line-up consisting of frontman Erlend Eilertsen, Christian Paulsen (guitars, bass) and Hasse Mattsson (additional programing, live keyboards).

The Norwegians recently released their EP “After The Break Up” as a sequel to their longplayer “The Break Up!”, you can check it out below.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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The 29th track on our free download compilation “Face The Beat: Session 4” (featuring 92 tracks) is by the Norwegian electro-rock act Essence Of Mind whose Erlend Eilertsen also mastered this volume.

Formed in late 2006 by Erlend H. Eilertsen, Christian Paulsen and Hasse Mattsson this Norwegian act offers alternative electro-rock which will certainly please those who are into Apoptygma Berzerk, Zeromancer, IAMX, etc.. Known for a very strong live reputation the band has toured extensively in Germany and Scandinavia. Make sure to catch up with the band on Facebook!

The band’s most recent material was featured on last year’s “After The Break Up” and also included the studio edit of “The Other Side” which got an exclusive rework here.

Listen to “The Other Side (Vigilante Remix)” below and download it right here.

Check our “Face The Beat: Session 4” page on Bandcamp to discover the other 91 bands. All donations will go to charity.

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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