Mexican electro-industrial duo Hocico released a Deluxe Edition of their album “Unseen Horror Scenes” via Out Of Line Music, making the previously CD-exclusive bonus disc “Hidden Horror Scenes” available on streaming platforms for the first time. The digital deluxe release adds six tracks: “Lines of Death”, “Midnight Hunter”, “La Tumba Sin Nombre” and remixes of “Fallen Paradise” by Funker Vogt and Dominator, plus a Trycerapt remix of “10 Seconds Left”.

“Unseen Horror Scenes” was written and recorded by Erk Aicrag and Racso Agroyam, and first released on Out Of Line Music on 8 May 2026. The album’s fifteen original tracks include “Hey Tú!”, featuring Rafael Reyes of Prayers, alongside “Brainrot”, “The Screen” and closer “Echoes in the End”. The bonus disc’s remixers – Funker Vogt, Trycerapt and Dominator – now join the streaming release alongside the studio tracks. Physical copies of “Unseen Horror Scenes” remain available as a 2CD digipak with the bonus disc, a chili-filled “Fuego Puro” vinyl limited to 100 copies, a 2LP splatter vinyl, cassette, and a numbered fan box set of 400 containing the 2CD, a Mexican death whistle, an Aztec-style necklace and a ceramic tile.

The Deluxe Edition follows a summer of festival dates for Hocico, including Till Fest in Leipzig, M’era Luna and Brutal Assault. The band now heads into a South and Latin American run this autumn with label mates Ghostbells, running from Puebla, Mexico on September 23 through Santiago, Chile on October 3.

Hocico tour dates

• September 23, 2026 – Puebla, Mexico
• September 24, 2026 – Monterrey, Mexico
• September 25, 2026 – Texcoco, Mexico
• September 27, 2026 – Cuautitlán Izcalli, Mexico
• September 28, 2026 – San José, Costa Rica
• September 29, 2026 – Quito, Ecuador
• September 30, 2026 – Lima, Peru
• October 1, 2026 – Medellín, Colombia
• October 2, 2026 – Bogotá, Colombia
• October 3, 2026 – Santiago, Chile

About Hocico

Hocico is an electro-industrial duo from Mexico formed by cousins Erik García, known as Erk Aicrag, and Óscar Mayorga, known as Racso Agroyam. Their catalogue on Out Of Line Music includes the 2023 single “A Symphony Of Rage“, the 2025 EP “The Screen“, and the “Hey Tú!” collaboration with Prayers, first issued as a single in late 2025 and expanded into a four-track EP that December. Hocico released the full-length album “Unseen Horror Scenes” on 8 May 2026, and Rammstein’s Till Lindemann released a Hocico remix of “Und die Engel singen” via Out Of Line in July 2025. The Deluxe Edition brings the album’s CD-exclusive bonus material to streaming as the band prepares for its Latin 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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Hocico needs no introduction to any fan of Dark-Electro. The Mexican duo has been active continuously since 1993, delivering countless hits and brilliant albums. This new album took a little longer to arrive—around four years—and is available with an extra disc and/or vinyl featuring six additional tracks, including three remixes, one of them by Funker Vogt.

With “Unseen Horror Scenes”, Hocico takes aim at various aspects of our contemporary world. Our environment has been in decline for some time, providing a potent source of inspiration for the duo. Musically, the album contains classic, instantly recognizable Hocico tracks infused with a heavy dose of power and aggression. They remain relentless in this regard, yet highly effective in their compositions and rage-filled vocals. However, the album also seeks to introduce some innovation. We encounter various experiments, ranging from pure Electro-Punk and a breakbeat-driven track to Cinematic instrumentals and even a song featuring a touch of Rap. Notably, the main album contains only one Spanish-language track, which is a departure from their usual approach. Hocico has been trying to introduce some evolution into their work over the years, an effort I certainly applaud. Unfortunately, they do not quite succeed on this record. Despite a few strong tracks, I am left feeling somewhat unsatisfied.

“Unseen Horror Scenes” has merit on many levels, but it is certainly not the album I would choose to introduce Hocico to someone who has just discovered the Dark-Electro scene. Not every album can be the best. (Rating:7).

Listen to “The Screen”:

About Hocico

Hocico is the Mexican electro-industrial duo of cousins Erik Garcia (Erk Aicrag, vocals and lyrics) and Oscar Mayorga (Racso Agroyam, synthesizers and programming). The pair formed the project in Mexico City in 1993, taking their stage names as reversals of their given names, and played their first concert on 18 February 1994.

Early cassette releases such as “Autoagresión Persistente” and “Misuse, Abuse And Accident” in 1994 and “Triste Desprecio” in 1996 were self-released. The studio albums that followed include “Odio Bajo El Alma” in 1997, “El Día De La Ira” in 1998, “Sangre Hirviente” in 1999, “Signos De Aberracion” in 2002, “Wrack And Ruin” in 2004, “Memorias Atrás” in 2008, “Tiempos De Furia” in 2010, “El Último Minuto (Antes De Que Tu Mundo Caiga)” in 2012, “Ofensor” in 2015, “The Spell Of The Spider” in 2017, “Artificial Extinction” in 2019 and “HyperViolent” in 2022.

The duo records for Out Of Line. Recent releases on the label include the four-track “The Screen” EP in March 2025 and the collaboration with Prayers on “Hey Tú” in November 2025, expanded into a four-track EP in December 2025.

“Unseen Horror Scenes” arrives four years after “HyperViolent” and was announced by Side-Line in May 2026.

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The Mexican electro-industrial duo Hocico has released the new 15-track album “Unseen Horror Scenes” via Out Of Line. Physical editions include a black/white splatter 2LP and a 2CD digipak with an extra bonus disc.

The label says the record “dissect[s] the digital age’s paranoia, addiction, betrayal and spiritual decay.” The album includes the previously shared track “Fallen Paradise”, and “Hey Tú!” which features Rafael Reyes of Prayers.

The 2CD edition adds the bonus disc “Hidden Horror Scenes” with 6 tracks, of which 3 are exclusive to this CD and 3 are remixes of album tracks: “Lines of Death,” “Midnight Hunter,” “La Tumba Sin Nombre,” “Fallen Paradise (Funker Vogt Remix),” “10 Seconds Left (Trycerapt Remix),” and “Fallen Paradise (Dominator Remix).”

About Hocico

Hocico is a Mexican electro-industrial duo from Mexico City formed in 1993 by cousins Erik García, known as Erk Aicrag, and Óscar Mayorga, known as Racso Agroyam. Aicrag handles lyrics and vocals, while Agroyam is responsible for programming and electronics. Before settling on the Hocico name, the pair worked under the names Niñera Degenerada and Hocico de Perro. Between 1993 and 1996 they released the demo cassettes “Misuse, Abuse And Accident,” “Autoagresión Persistente,” and “Triste Desprecio,” before releasing the full lengths “Odio Bajo El Alma” in 1997 and “Sangre Hirviente” in 1999.

“Signos De Aberracion” followed in 2002, and “Wrack And Ruin” arrived in October 2004. After a 4-year silence the band resumed with “Memorias Atrás” in February 2008 and “Tiempos De Furia” in October 2010. Later full-lengths included “Ofensor” in 2015, “The Spell Of The Spider” in 2017, “Artificial Extinction” in 2019 and “HyperViolent” in 2022. Out Of Line also released the members’ parallel projects, with Erk Aicrag active in Rabia Sorda and Racso Agroyam in Dulce Liquido.

And now there’s the new album “Unseen Horror Scenes,”out on May 8, 2026.

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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‘Mexican electro-industrial duo Hocico release the 4-track EP “Hey Tú!” via Out Of Line Music, expanding their collaboration with Mexican-American cholo goth project Prayers into a full single package with new remixes and limited physical editions.

The title track “Hey Tú!” first appeared as a standalone digital single on 10 October 2025 running just over four minutes. The new EP collects four versions: the original collaboration with Rafael Reyes (Prayers), Hocico’s own “Cómete tu Mierda H-RMX”, the club-oriented “Frank Spector Remix”, and the “90’s Ibiza Summer Mix by Feindflug”.

The EP appears digitally and in two physical configurations on Out Of Line Music. A limited Minimax picture CD collects all four versions, while a 7″ picture vinyl combines “Hey Tú!” on side A with “Hey Tú! (Cómete tu Mierda H-RMX)” on side B.

About Hocico

Hocico is a Mexico City electro-industrial and aggrotech duo formed in 1993 by cousins Erik García (Erk Aicrag) on vocals and lyrics and Oscar Mayorga (Racso Agroyam) on programming and synthesizers. Before adopting the name Hocico, they worked together in projects such as Niñera Degenerada and Hocico de Perro and issued several cassette releases in the first half of the 1990s.

The duo released its debut album “Odio Bajo El Alma” in 1997 on Mexican label Opción Sónica, with European distribution handled by Out Of Line Music.

During the 2000s and early 2010s, Hocico released a sequence of full-lengths including “Signos de Aberración” (2002), “Wrack and Ruin” (2004), “Memorias Atrás” (2008), “Tiempos de Furia” (2010) and “El Último Minuto (Antes de que Tu Mundo Caiga)” (2012). A 2013 retrospective followed “Los Días Caminando En El Fuego” marking two decades of activity.

The mid-2010s saw the EP “In The Name Of Violence” and the album “Ofensor”, alongside the EP “Forgotten Tears”.

In 2019, Hocico issued the album “Artificial Extinction”, again via Out Of Line followed by the 2022 full-length “HyperViolent”.

From 2023 onward, the duo released new singles and EPs including “A Symphony Of Rage”, the 2025 four-track EP “The Screen”, and the digital single “Brainrot”, integrating these into an ongoing touring schedule. Erk Aicrag also parallelly worked as Rabia Sorda and collaborations such as the joint single “Obscured” with Blutengel and remix and guest roles with other acts.

In 2025, Hocico’s activities concluded with the “The Screen” EP, the single “Hey Tú!” with Prayers, a remix contribution to Till Lindemann’s “Und die Engel singen”, and now an extended “Hey Tú!” EP.

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 Mexican electro-industrial duo Hocico returns with a new single, “The Screen”. In the 4 tracks on the new EP the duo delivers “a scathing critique of modern society’s darker side, focusing on the cruelty and cowardice that thrive behind the anonymity of digital screens.”

More specifically, the lyrics of “The Screen” for instance are a direct attack on the toxic behaviour of online trolls and keyboard warriors who hide behind their devices to spread hate and venom. In Aicrag’s lyrics it sounds like this: “You spit your filth, while you’re unseen” and “Your boldness dies when we’re eye to eye.” Besides “The Screen”, the EP holds the tracks “Fallen Paradise”, “Twisted Promises” and “A Symphony of Rage”. Note that the Bandcamp version is just a 1-track single.

Musically, The Screen is classic Hocico. “The Screen” is out now.

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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C-Lekktor, a leading name in the dark elektro scene alongside Hocico, Rabia Sorda, and Amduscia, celebrates its 20 years anniversary. Markko B. has now released a special “2.0” double-CD deluxe digipak on Alfa Matrix. This release includes fan-favorite club hits and revamped versions of 12 classic tracks.

This 2CD version is available now via the Alfa Matrix website, the download version via Bandcamp. The album is also available in a special combi pack along the new releases from AD:keY and Miseria Ultima.

On this new album Markko B. has breathed new life into frequently requested songs performed at concerts. Updated tracks such as “An Empty Soul”, “Infected”, “Paralisis”, “See My Hate”, “El Comienzo De La Muerte”, and “Our Dark Side” are reimagined and rearranged, while classics like “World Of Fantasy”, “Juicio Final”, “Hellektro Convulsion Therapy”, “Solo En La Oscuridad”, and “Silence Remains” have received powerful makeovers.

The release also features harsh elektro tracks in their original form from recent albums, including fresh tracks like “God Killer” and “Are You Ready For The Bass?” alongside dancefloor cuts “Out Of My Way”, “Cyborgs”, and the track “Animals”.

Additionally, the double-CD set includes the exclusive unreleased track “I Don’t”, originally written during “The Silence Procession” era, and a cover of Depeche Mode’s “Always You”.

You can listen to all of the tracks below.

Fans of dark hellektro music, especially those who enjoy Suicide Commando, Hocico, Alien Vampires, or Noisuf-X, will find this double-CD essential.

About C-Lekktor

C-Lekktor, spearheaded by Marco Antonio Barrientos (Markko B.), has been an important force in the dark elektro scene for over two decades. Emerging from the vibrant Mexican electro scene of the 1990s, C-Lekktor made its first appearance with the demo CD “Re-a-Gression”.

Known for its aggressive and energetic sound, characterized by harsh vocals, pounding beats, and dark, atmospheric melodies, the project gained widespread recognition with performances across Mexico and internationally.

In 2005, the project released the maxi-CD “Words of Evil” and participated in the “Electro Map-Latam Compilation”. The following years saw C-Lekktor performing extensively, including concerts in Peru and Chile, and performances on major events like the “Necropolis Fest”.

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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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Industrial band Clockwork Echo has unveiled their brand new single, “Hallowed Be Thy Pain”. The track explores themes of deceit, faith, and the far-reaching consequences of a single lie.

The band adds: “In a world where belief often triumphs over evidence, “Hallowed Be Thy Pain” critiques the exploration of faith and the ease with which people are swayed by spiritual narratives, often lacking concrete evidence. Phrases such as “shadows in their eyes” evoke a sense of collective blindness, a willingness to be deceived in exchange for spiritual comfort.”

“Hallowed Be Thy Pain” is available on all major streaming platforms, including Bandcamp and Spotify.

About Clockwork Echo

Based in Denver, Colorado, Clockwork Echo is an industrial metal band with a strong aggrotech influence. Formed as a side project in 2018 by Gabriel Ryan, the band became a serious act in 2021. Gabriel handles vocals, synthesizers, arrangements, programming, and guitars, with rotating live musicians.

Clockwork Echo’s sound is influenced by industrial acts like Hocico, Ministry, and Psyclon Nine, as well as metal bands such as Arch Enemy and Death.

The band has toured with Psyclon Nine, Skold, and Not My God in 2023, with Hocico in 2022, and has performed at festivals such as Mechanismus and Fvck Industrial Fest over the past few years. Clockwork Echo’s music often tackles controversial philosophical and socio-political themes while maintaining a sense of tongue-in-cheek humor. They are currently releasing a series of singles, all available on major streaming platforms.

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 German dark electro combo To Avoid has joined forces with the Belgian electro label Alfa Matrix for the release of their new studio album, “All Gods Are Gone”. Before that the label first releases “1989” which is a first taste of what is to come.

The track itself is a reflection on the enduring legacy of the fall of the Berlin Wall 35 years later. Through the lyrics they delve into the complexities of a society still grappling with the divisions between East and West, challenging the lofty ideals of German reunification.

The 9-track EP features the title track “1989” and a 2011 demo version of “Aerial Warfare”, plus 7 remixes of the title track by Erk Aircrag (Hocico, Rabia Sorda), Fektion Fekler, Ntrsn, Proleturan, Sluk Motoren, Synaptic Defekt, and Töt. You can order the download version now on Bandcamp with other platforms to follow.

For the die-hard fans and CD collectors out there, Alfa Matrix also offers a MCD version which is limited to 200 copies and which is normally only available at concerts by To Avoid.

A video was launched as well for the track “1989”.

About To Avoid

To Avoid was formed just outside Berlin in 1998 by GrandT and Marc. Musically the band fuses late 80s EBM industrial with 90s melodic dark electro. The aim was to create music that corresponded to the band’s own view of electro and to counteract the increasing wave of future pop.

Later on the duo was joined by producer Cheffe (DJ Starve) and Jean, who from then on also took over the design/graphics tasks in the band.

A first single was launched in 2000, “Aggressive Conglomerations”, and by 2002 their debut album “Resurrection” followed. Two more studio albums followed with the last one beging “Passion And Pain” in 2009 (followed by the mini live album “Live @ Luckenwalde” in 2010). In 2022 they resurrected with two singles, “Driver” and “Trust”.

Now they prepare a brand new album, their first in over 15 years.

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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Celebrating its 30th year, Audioglobe, the most important distributor in the darkwave scene, just shared a statistical review, revealing the shifts and trends in the darkwave (and related) music genre.

Our readers will surely remember that we have reported on these stats for years, until 2018, the first year that Audioglobe didn’t communicate these stats. Sebastian Koch from Audioglobe explains: “Some customers never really cared that much about these, as they have better things to do than reading boring mails from the undersigned. But… Surprisingly there are quite a high number of customers, that sort of ‘complained’ about the fact, that no stats were being done any longer… The reason is: I was simply always far too busy in past years. Anyway: Here we go with the first new stats since 2017!”

So here are some export facts.

Top 10 Bestselling Labels of 2023 (export)

1. FABRIKA/DEAD SCARLET
   • She Past Away, Lebanon Hanover, Selofan, Kaelan Mikla, M!R!M, Doric…
2. METROPOLIS
   • Birthday Massacre, Delerium, Front Line Assembly, A Projection, KMFDM, Legendary P.D…
3. ICY COLD/MANIC DEPR.
   • Twin Tribes, Je T’aime, Traitrs, Kill Shelter, Closed Mouth, Talk to Her, Schonwald…
4. ALFA MATRIX
   • Alien Vampires, Front 242, Metroland, Die Robo Sapiens, Elm, 808 Dot Pop, Helalyn Flowers…
5. RUSTBLADE
   • Claudio Simonetti, Ennio Morricone, Lycia Lunch, Spiritual Front, Ketvector, Legendary Pink D…
6. OUT OF LINE
   • Blutengel, Hocico, Solitary Experiments, Suicide Commando, Signal Aout42, Erdling…
7. TRISOL
   • Sopor Aeternus, Rome, Clan of Xymox, Asp, Ostara, Skinflicks, Nachtmahr, Mantus, Soman…
8. DEPENDENT
   • Kirlian Camera, Girls Under Glass, Spectra*Paris, Mildreda, Black Nail Cabaret, Beborn Beton…
9. ARTOFFACT
   • Actors, Noise Unit, cEvin Key, Kaelan Mikla, Ploho, Sacred Skin, Kauan, Ken Mode, Spectres…
10. AUERBACH
    • Spiritual Front, Sol Invictus, Tenhi, Moon and the Night Spirit, Haavard, Hekate, Orplid…

Best Export Territories of 2023

If we look at the Audioglobe stats, we notice that Germany and Greece remain the company’s strongest markets, continuing a trend that has been consistent for ages. However, the 2023 statistics reveal some notable shifts.

Canada, once a prominent market for Audioglobe, has surprisingly disappeared from the export landscape. In contrast, the United States and the United Kingdom have re-emerged as significant territories, marking their return to prominence in the darkwave music scene after several years.

The most unexpected development in 2023 is the rise of Australia as a key market. This growth stands in stark contrast to Switzerland, which, despite its affluence, has seen a sharp decline in sales. Sebastian Koch adds: “The (by far!) lowest sales of all countries where we export to, was to Switzerland… The rich Swiss don’t buy records! Since I left the country (1990), something is wrong back home!”

Here is the top 10 list of export territories:

1. Germany
2. Greece
3. Netherlands
4. Portugal
5. USA
6. United Kingdom
7. Australia
8. Spain
9. Russia
10. Poland

Not in the top 10, but France, Japan, Malta, Brazil, Sweden, Mexico, and Perù are also good export territories for Audioglobe.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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Genre/Influences: Dark-Electro.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: The fourth album of Stupre was already released a while ago; by the end of 2021 to be exact. “Make Nazareth Great Again” is a free-interpretation of bible themes by this French project. Notice by the way a double album has been released as well featuring songs from two unreleased EP’s. Multiple guest singers contributed to the album.

Content: Stupre moves on exploring paths of Dark-Electronics. The bible themes are easily recognizable throughout the song titles, samplings and atmosphere hanging over the work. The sound reveals a haunting Electro-format featuring, hard, pumping, kicks and enraged vocals in French and English. This is the kind of music appealing for fans of Hocico and Suicide Commando. The last 3 songs are remixes by Gunmaker, Larva and Suspifun.

+ + + : I’ve been never a huge Stupre fan but this work took me by surprise. The artist isn’t reinventing Dark-Electro but clearly transformed its own sound into a mature, elaborated, and efficient production. This is powerful and haunting dancefloor stuff driven by pumping kicks and icy, elevating, leads. I like the bible sphere running through the work like a red line. It injects a particular touch to the album. There are numerous attention grabbers featured but I’ll recommend listening to “Mathieu 23.10.2” which is the absolute club-song featuring an irresistible, cold, lead. Other essential cuts are “Corinthiens 10.3.5”, “Galates 5.19” and “Galates X Mathieu 2.0”.

– – – : The remixes don’t exactly add a bonus to this cool work.

Conclusion: Stupre has accomplished a great piece of work which is an album Dark-Electro fans need in their collection.

Best songs: “Mathieu 23.10.2”, “Corinthiens 10.3.5”, “Galates 5.19”, “Galates X Mathieu 2.0”, “Psaumes 90.12.4”, “Proverbes 18.3”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/STUPREofficial

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

About Stupre

Stupre, also styled STPR, is the dark electro and EBM project of French musician Nico, based in Strasbourg. The debut album, “Priceless”, was released in 2009 on Cortex Records.

Stupre moved to Advoxya Records for “Das Ist Electro Dark” in 2013. The 2019 album “You Are Made For Me” followed on the same label, with Notreguide of the French crossover act Dolls of Pain contributing lyrics and vocals to half of the tracklist. “Make Nazareth Great Again”, a concept album built around bible themes, arrived on Advoxya Records at the end of 2021.

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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After their last album “HyperViolent” (2022), Mexico’s dark electro act Hocico is now back with “A Symphony Of Rage”.

Erk Aicrag and Racso Agroyam say this about the new single: “‘A Symphony of Rage’ is a powerful and intense song, with lyrics that embody strength and determination, the song channels an unyielding energy! It portrays a protagonist who refuses to back down and confronts the challenges they face head-on.”

With the single the duo also refers to them being survivors of the physical and mental violence rising daily on the streets of Mexico City.

Emerged in 1993, Hocico celebrate their 30 year anniversary this year with a tour & multiple packed festival shows. Here are the dates for their “HyperViolent” European tour in August:

• 13.08. M’Era Luna, Hildesheim GER
• 18.08. VooDoo, Warsaw, PL
• 19.08. Fekete Zaj Festival, Gyöngyös, HU
• 24.08. De Helling, Utrecht, NL
• 25.08. W Festival, Oostende, BE

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 Denver, Colorado-based aggrotech act, Clockwork Echo, has announced a tour in direct support of Skold (ex-Marilyn Manson, KMFDM & Shotgun Messiah). The tour begins on July 6th in Denver, Colorado, and ends on July 30 at the Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood, California.

Between 2022 and 2023, Clockwork Echo has toured through North America supporting bands such as Luna 13, Psyclon Nine, and Hocico. On the upcoming tour, the band will be supporting their latest album, “Death Rebirth Repeat,” and will also be debuting material from their forthcoming album.

“Death Rebirth Repeat”, released last year, is an album about loss. Clockwork Echo’s mastermind, Gabriel Ryan, says: “I experienced some severe loss and trauma during that period. My mood ended up descending into hopelessness and self-destruction before giving way to acceptance and renewed strength. With adversity comes the opportunity to rebuild yourself into something far superior than what you had before.”

Here’s an idea of what the band sounds like live:

These are the dates for Clockwork Echo supporting Skold, with special guests GRIMM and The Amatory Murder.

• July 6, 2023 – Denver, CO – HQ
• July 7, 2023 – Lincoln, NE – 1867 Bar
• July 8, 2023 – Kansas City, MO – Vivo Live
• July 9, 2023 – Chicago, IL – WC Social Club
• July 11, 2023 – Lakewood, OH – Winchester Tavern
• July 13, 2023 – Mechanicsburg, PA – Lovedraft’s
• July 14, 2023 – Pittsburgh, PA – Preserving Underground
• July 15, 2023 – New York, NY – Stimulate
• July 16, 2023 – Richmond, VA – Fallout Night Club
• July 18, 2023 – Greensboro, NC – Hangar 1819
• July 19, 2023 – Columbia, SC – New Brookland Tavern
• July 20, 2023 – Atlanta, GA – Boggs Social
• July 21, 2023 – Memphis, TN – Black Lodge
• July 22, 2023 – Shreveport, LA – Bears
• July 23, 2023 – Dallas, TX – Sundown at Granada
• July 25, 2023 – Houston, TX – Scout Bar
• July 26, 2023 – El Paso, TX – Rockhouse
• July 27, 2023 – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
• July 28, 2023 – Phoenix, AZ – Nile Underground
• July 29, 2023 – San Diego, CA – Brick By Brick
• July 30, 2023 – West Hollywood, CA – Whisky A Go Go

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

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

Below is the video for the track.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark-Electro, EBM.

Format: Digital, 2CD.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/Clekktor

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

Listen to “New World Disorder”:

About C-Lekktor

C-Lekktor is a Mexican dark-electro project led by Marco Barientos, known as Markko B, who also records as Circuito Cerrado. After three self-released and four official albums, the project signed to Alfa Matrix and returned with “New World Disorder” following a five-year hiatus, released October 28, 2022 as a 2CD and digital bonus-tracks edition with remixes by Xperiment, Centhron, ESA, Nevel, Llumen, The Psychic Force, Skynthattack, Venal Flesh, Neikka RPM, Chamaeleon, Nano Infect, FabrikC, Third Realm, Aesthetische, Miseria Ultima and Circuito Cerrado.

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

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: Dark-Electro, Cinematic, Industrial.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl, Cassette.

Background/Info: Twentynine years after their creation the masters of Mexican Dark-Electro are back on track unleashing their newest full length. the title speaks for itself. The fans will be ravished to know the album is available in different formats and with nice little extras.

Content: “HyperViolent” moves on from where “Artificial Extinction” stopped. Erk Aicrag and Racso Agroyam remain driven and inspired by dark themes but the sound is evolving again. The main part of the work is still touched by power, sonic aggression and harsh vocals but they move on to elaborate Cinematic parts but also injecting elements like D’n’B and Metal -including a cover version of Ministry.

+ + + : There was a time Hocico released great but predictable albums. This has changed now. Even if they’re still dealing with pure Dark-Electro the global production became more open-minded while featuring Cinematic breaks. Hocico even dares to experiment with D’n’B patterns while adding Metal riffs. The production of the vocals became also more diversified, revealing a less ‘distorted’ voice on several tracks. I can’t say this is Hocico V.2 but the band is clearly in evolution and that’s an aspect I fully respect. The song “Acts Of Aggression” is an absolute masterpiece for its elaboration and cool sound effects. “Broken Empires” -previously released as a single, remains another essential piece. It also shows the evolution of the band exploring different paths.

– – – : I can imagine Dark-Electro die-hard freaks will be disappointed by some songs which are no longer in the ‘classical’ Hocico style.

Conclusion: The new Hocico is still holding on to its sonic basis but also accentuating their exploration of new  ideas. It probably is their most versatile work.

Best songs: “Acts Of Aggression”, “Broken Empires”, “Lost World”, “What Are Nightmares Made Of”, “Peccata Mundi”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/hocicoofficial

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

About Hocico

Hocico is a Mexican electro-industrial duo from Mexico City formed in 1993 by cousins Erik García, known as Erk Aicrag, and Óscar Mayorga, known as Racso Agroyam. Aicrag handles lyrics and vocals, while Agroyam is responsible for programming and electronics. Before settling on the Hocico name, the pair worked under the names Niñera Degenerada and Hocico de Perro. Between 1993 and 1996 they released the demo cassettes “Misuse, Abuse And Accident”, “Autoagresión Persistente” and “Triste Desprecio”, before releasing the full lengths “Odio Bajo El Alma” in 1997 and “Sangre Hirviente” in 1999.

“Signos De Aberracion” followed in 2002, and “Wrack And Ruin” arrived in October 2004. After a four-year silence the band resumed with “Memorias Atrás” in February 2008 and “Tiempos De Furia” in October 2010. Later full lengths included “Ofensor” in 2015, “The Spell Of The Spider” in 2017 and “Artificial Extinction” in 2019.

Out Of Line also released the members’ parallel projects, with Erk Aicrag active in Rabia Sorda and Racso Agroyam in Dulce Liquido. “HyperViolent” arrived in 2022 and was followed by the “The Screen” EP in March 2025 and the album “Unseen Horror Scenes” in May 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

Carlos Ruiz got involved with the Spanish Dark-Electro duo Dioxyde. The band gained recognition in its genre, but Carlos left in 2004 to move on with his solo-project Asseptic Room. The sound became different although still driven by good-old Dark-Electro vibes. The albums “Morbid Visions” (2006) and “Visceralophobia” (2011) saw the daylight. It next took ten years to Asseptic Room to strike back. Carlos Ruiz got joined by Mario González to compose the new work “Extinction Or Reawaken”. The opus has been again released by Advoxya Records and became a double album revealing next to the Dark-Electro influences at the first disc a more Cinematic exploration at the second disc. I asked a few questions about the past, the present and the future to both protagonists.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: I noticed you first started in the scene as DJ. What kind of music were you playing and how did you finally made the step to compose your own music and getting involved with Dioxyde?

Carlos: I started as a professional DJ in a famous club in Madrid somewhere at the end of 1987 – beginning of 1988. I started collecting vinyls since I was 14 years old and my ear was always attracted by genres that were not very commercial at that time. One day a couple of vinyls came into my hands in an import store, (“Party Hate” from Click Click and “Freiheit Fuer Die Sklaven” from Pankow), which made me listen to genres such as Industrial, EBM from the 80’s and especially Dark-Electro from the 90’s.

I started to compose my first tracks in 1991, when I was able to buy my first great computer ever and a Kawai keyboard. But it wouldn’t be until 1998 when I would meet Marcos Calvo and decided to take the leap to produce an album. During one of my sessions as a DJ in a famous Club in Madrid, I met Marcos Calvo who told me about the idea of ​​making music together. In a short lapse of time we had a lot of good songs; Marcos had already composed some good songs, and at that time I had many bases and consolidated themes, which we finally managed to adapt to create the first Dioxyde album “Torschlusspanik”.

I decided to send a cassette with a small sample to Johan Van Roy (Suicide Commando). I never thought  he would answer that soon with the intention to know more about the project. It was the beginning of a beautiful story.

Q: How did you finally come to set up Asseptic Room and what makes the difference in sound and approach with Dioxyde?

Carlos: My experience with Dioxyde was incredible. It allowed me to grow as an artist and develop all my creativity and to create my own compositions. Time passing by I found the need to do something on my own and create that dark sound that had been spinning around in my head for so many years. So in 2006 I decided to take a leap into the void and started working for my most personal project.

With Asseptic Room I wanted to explore other types of genres, perhaps more retro, Experimental, more Ambient, but without neglecting the hardness of the percussion and the melodies that have been so successful in my previous work with Dioxyde and used to create songs. such as “Acto Primero”, “Angel (Espina Mortal)”, “Panzerfaust”, “Primary Structures” or “Torschlüsspanik”, a track that I had created for a long time and which has a lot of strength.

That same year (2006) I sent my first demo to Tommy T (DSBP Records) to release the first album “Morbid Visions”. The album responded satisfactorily to my expectations and proof of this is the long list of compilations that wanted to include songs from that first album.

Also, it gave me the opportunity to do some remixes for bands like: Alien Produkt, Vigilante, Aengeldust, Haushetaere, Tyske Ludder or Acylum (Pedro Engel’s project with whom I have had contact on several occasions to create some of my best remixes). Nor will I forget, the magnificent remixes that have been created for Asseptic Room, to highlight among others those of Totalverlust, Acylum, Hioctan, Reality, Suicide Solution, Proyecto Mirage, Larva and many others.

During these years I got in touch with my great friend, Mario González and we had the opportunity to work together in the studio, developing a track for this album. Next I personally went through dark and very difficult years. It was like this until 2011 and the release of the second album “Visceralofobia”. It was a difficult album, like a challenge going through a restless and desperate period. But in the end and with a lot of efforts I was able to release the album thanks to Advoxya Records. After this album I’d to go though the most difficult moments of my life resulting in abandoning the creation of music for many years.

Q: So does the new album you released last year feel like a new beginning? How did it feel all these years without releasing new material? What brought you back to compose new songs?

Carlos: Finally, after the loss of my partner and two years of mourning I came back to surface. One night some musical notes began to sound that I could not stop listening to over and over again. I had to get up and play it in the middle of the night. The first thing I thought was that it was different and it was born from deep within. Those were the first notes of “The Memory Of Silence”; I even imagine to play it in a great philharmonic. A nice dream;)

Around the same time I got back in touch with Mario after many years and everything started flowing quickly. The Covid 19 pandemic came into our lives and for us there were moments of great creativity that helped us to create many new songs.

Q: The new album “Extinction Or Reawaken” has been released as a double album and there clearly is a difference between both discs; than main disc is pure Dark (h)El(l)ectro music while the second disc sounds more into Soundtrack. Tell us a bit more about both discs and the global production process of the work?

Carlos: When we began to develop the songs for the new album, we realized that we had a lot of material and we did not want to leave any song off the album, for this reason we had to think that “Extinction Or Reawaken” should be a double one. It is true that in a few months we had a large and varied number of songs, some songs are pure Dark-Electro, but I incorporate new elements to the compositions that make them different from other personal works.

We had to stop for a moment to reflect if we wanted to create classic dark music or experiment to achieve what our heads wanted with these new compositions. We finally decided to open up and experiment with a multitude of genres.

We had classic songs, perfect to be played in an orchestra, with epic choirs and we had to learn to work with this type of instrument. We also had tremendously hard and dark tracks and other ambient and epic songs.

In the end, all those tracks were a mixture of feelings and emotions, which tell a story full of symbolism for us. It has been a very hard job that has lasted many months, and we are very satisfied with the final result.


Q: What have been the main sources of inspiration to compose this new work and what did you try to express by the title? What has been the input of Mario González and how did you get in touch?

Mario: The inspiration came mainly from the recent loss of our family members. They were very hard times for both of us, but thanks to this we have done our best work.
We explore many sounds with our equipment and for the first time we did not dare to put any limits on creativity and we were open to explore and experiment   even antagonistic genres.

We try to go beyond the Dark-Electro genre by simply trying to imprint the soul of Asseptic Room by using influences from classical music, epic passages, Tibetan sounds and even pure noise.

The album title was chosen on the edge of life’s bad circumstances and somehow represents the nature of human life that transcends good and evil to survive/self-extinct.

Carlos: Mario and I got in touch at the end of 2019 at a perfect time and with all the past experience we had making some tracks for the “Morbid Visions”-album. The process happened automatically and we rarely even talked about how to make music because of a very special connection. We really enjoy doing these things.

Q: How do you see Asseptic Room evolving and what are the further plans –especially in times of ongoing pandemic? 

Mario: Our next plans are to prepare the concert in Madrid with Hocico. We have finished taking up the album “Visceralofofia” with a new production. Eight tracks are included in this new work and our idea is to release it in a special vinyl edition. Now we have to assess the budget to launch it in the coming months.
We have also started working on new songs for Asseptic Room and doing a review of tracks created in my period with Dioxyde. A special way to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the project.

Carlos: The pandemic has not stopped our illusion of continuing to do what we like and now our creativity is at a high level and we are excited about the amount of work we have in our hands. The pandemic has been very hard, as for everyone, but thanks to music we have been able to escape from this madness.

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

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

Here’s a video promo clip.

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

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

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

By the end of 2021 Mexican formation Sodomy Down The Cross unleashed the gfull length album “Sodomy Down The Cross”. The album was released by Insane Records revealing a powerful and enraged Dark-Electro format. The band introduced their work as ‘Reborn from the ruins of a country consumed by violence where every day crime steals the front pages of the main national newspapers, where people live in fear of being riddled with bullets, where the sound of bullets becomes in the usual aural landscape inside and outside the big cities Sodomy Down The Cross explores through a new sound the reverberation of constant fury and aggression in a corrupt society.’ This is a production I highly recommend to all lovers of great Dark-Electro music. I asked a few questions to ‘BlackNeyton’ and ‘Ivanov Scylla’.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Can you tell us a bit more about the origins of Sodomy Down The Cross? How did the band saw the daylight and what have been the main sources of inspiration?

BlackNeyton: The origins of Sodomy Down The Cross are going back to 2001 at the border between Mexico and the United States, Texas and Tamaulipas to be more exact.

My personal influences that in turn gave life to the project initially were bands like Mysticum, Samael, Limbonic Art, Ulver, Burzum, Arcturus, Satyricon, Marduk, Deicide, Aura Noir, Nocturnal Breed, Morbid Angel, Mayhem etc and of course bands like Wumpscut, Skinny Puppy that allowed me to merge styles. I was looking for a new sound that combined the brutal atmospheres and riffs of Metal with Industrial and rhythmic sounds, with a heartbreaking voice, a theme of incitement to violence, the macabre, obscurantism, evil and thus influence the music to the listener.

Ivanov Scylla: Sodomy Down The Cross serves as an opportunity for me to share that dark vision of the world through music, to generate a catharsis and allow a bit of liberation for the alter ego that we all have inside.

The inspiration comes from my observation of the world and reality that often surpasses fiction and invites us to reflect, to annoy each other and shout at the world with the things that we do not agree with, the things that we continue to allow to happen thanks to the selfishness that becomes like the hydra in our consumerist society. My influences are bands like Tactical Sekt, Aslan Faction, Hocico , Suicide Commando , Skinny Puppy , Ministry etc…

Q: The name of the band definitely has something aggressive and provocative, which also comes back in the lyrical themes of the album “The Dead Live The Living Kill”. What do you try to express and what’s the importance to externalize aggressive topics throughout your music?

BlackNeyton: The name itself is a metaphor that can have the meaning each person wants to give it, the image that each one forms in its mind, perhaps something religious, satanic, worldly, sexual or perverse.

For me personally it reminds me of the story of Genesis 18.20.21 of Sodom and Gomorrah, everything that these cities represent in other cultures, starting from there I imagine music taking that place as a reference but besieging it in the present and future.

Ivanov Scylla: The lyrics are a reflection and a projection of human wickedness, that which causes us to continually stay at war, that which allows us as humans to remain stoic in the face of human pain, all that anger that remains imprisoned every time we see the news and we realize the decadence in which we live, it is a scream of fury!

The aggression in our lyrics is an invitation! To know and investigate what each of the stories we want to tell with our music is about.

Q: What kind of album did you’d in mind when starting the writing of “The Dead Live The Living Kill”? What’s your way of working and what’s the input of each member?

BlackNeyton: From the beginning we thought of making an album with Industrial rhythms and EBM overtones, more urban sounds and gloomy atmospheres, focused on the dancefloor as an experiment to give way to a new sound and new releases to come.

My way of working could be said to be that of any composer, on a day-to-day basis I begin to create sounds and melodies in my mind, which later accompany me, I put together like a puzzle and you focus on them in the studio until you create and polish what you imagine. There are sessions of 6 hours per day, non-connective, but most of the composition is mental, I travel a lot and my team always accompanies me, that is my case. I’m in charge of music production.

Ivanov Scylla: Definitely something Industrial!! There is no aspect that represents technological evolution and social involution as much as Industrial music, the automatism of the roar and the creak of the machines, mixed with harmonies, melodies and dark atmospheres, the human part of the band.

I try to contribute in the vocals, lyrics and visuals, everything that the musical part of Sodomy Down The Cross projects to me. It is an intense conversation between the rhythmic and melodic sequences, with the lyrics in each of the songs, my job is to achieve that our visions merge to make the message of the band unify, to enter the same journey.

Q: What elements of the album make you proud and what are the elements you would like to improve?

BlackNeyton: The songs give me a good feeling which makes the music more expressive. It creates emotion and allows you to escape from reality. We try to do something different than the standards so we experiment with other styles. The response of the people has been surprising in such a short lapse of time.

Artem from Sleetgrout mastered the album and did a great job. He managed to give quality and strength to the sounds. His work was very professional and got my my respect.

The improvements like new rhythms and more elaborated atmosphere will be heard at the next album which we are working on.

Ivanovscylla: I love listening to the album over and over again and never got a bored feeling. It makes me think that there is something special and addictive coming through the music.  I can’t help it but I move, dunk, sing… so every time I can it feels exciting to rediscover the album again.

If there was something that I wanted to improve, maybe it would be personal. Sometimes it is difficult to deal with that alter ego that we constantly talk about in our songs and let him allow us to work in peace haha it is a constant internal struggle, the point will be to agree more with us ourselves to be able to express everything we still can, through music.

Q: I noticed there’s a lyrical clip for the song “Die Fünfte Sonne”, which I think is not exactly the most representative song for this aggressive album, but it also is the opening track. Why did you make a clip of this song and what’s the importance of a debut track?

Blackneyton: “Die Fünfte Sonne” is a song that tells a story about our culture. We are part of that ‘Preshispanica Aztec, Mayan, Olmec’ culture. We see it everywhere, we live it, eat it and breathe it, it flows in  our blood and spirit. We wanted to tell the story of the fifth sun, the story of a new beginning. People who know that story will understand the clip as it is a journey, which we were looking for to share.

Ivanov Scylla: “Die Fünfte Sonne” is the door that allows us to enter our musical journey, we try to tell a story about our traditions, our past, one that is often unknown even to our own society that allows us to illustrate how life acts in a cyclical way; create and destroy , remember and forget. It is our metaphorical way of creating a bridge between albums (a new beginning).

Q: The album has been released during the ongoing pandemic so I can imagine it’s not an easy thing considering aspects as promotion and live shows. How do you manage this situation and what are the further plans about shows, remixes, releases etc?

BlackNeyton: The theme of the show, which is something that interests us in the future, as soon as conditions allow us. Without a doubt, we will enjoy that energy that is felt in the live shows, but at this moment our priority is to compose music.

It was because of the pandemic that Sodomy Down The Cross began to work on new music and become interested in new projects. This was possible thanks to meeting interesting and talented people like Vladimir Mironov, who introduced us to Evgeniy Fesslav Vorozheykin from Insane Records, who is a very  professional and good friend.

Insane Records is a very good label doing a professional job. We we are already working on remixes and very soon on the next album.

Ivanov Scylla: The pandemic has reduced on a large scale the way in which society relates and we are not the exception, but in pandemic times we have found new ways of working, of conversing and of meeting again musically, it has not been easy by any means, but we will focus our batteries on new releases, on the visual accompaniment of our music, and continue doing what we like. Sodomy Down The Cross is our revulsive, our way of liberating, our way of putting society in front of a mirror to realize how terrific it can be.

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-Electro.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Sodomy Down The Cross is a Mexican project, which by the end of 2021 unleashed its official debut album on the Russian label Insane Records. The work is inspired by violence in the streets of Mexico.

Content: You rapidly notice the ‘Mexican’ touch emerging at the surface. The hopping rhythms are clearly reminding me of Hocico. There also is a similar harsh and terror-like Electro composition, which is carried by some transcendental leads and classical Dak-Electro structures. The ghost-like vocals are sometimes a bit fragmented, creating an efficient effect.

+ + + : I can’t remember to have ever heard of this band before, but Sodomy Down The Cross sounds like a provocative band name for great Dark-Electro music. I like the power and rage running through the work, but still the way the songs are evolving crescendo towards an imaginary climax. There are several attention grabbers like “We’re The Ones”, “Narcosatanica”, “Hatred” and “The Eleventh Key”. There’s a perfect balance between powerful sequences, harsh sound treatments and melody lines.

– – – : I noticed a few hesitant songs, but globally speaking there’s not much to throw away.

Conclusion: Mexico remains a prolific ground for qualitative Dark-Electro music and Sodomy Down The Cross is a name you better can keep in mind.

Best songs: “We’re The Ones”, “Narcosatanica”, “Hatred”, “The Eleventh Key”, “Zurück In Den Wald”, “Mirror”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/sdownthecross

Label: www.insane-records.com /  www.facebook.com/InsaneRecordsEU

About Sodomy Down The Cross

Sodomy Down The Cross is a Mexican duo formed in 2001 by Ernesto de la Garza, who works as Blackneyton, and Erick Ivanov, who works as Ivanov Scylla and handles vocals and lyrics. The album is titled “The Dead Live The Living Kill”.

It is the duo’s first album recorded for a label and was recorded at the Santa Elena ranch in Matamoros, Tamaulipas. Insane Records released it in December 2021, digitally and as a limited CD in a 6-panel digipack with slipcase, as reported in Side-Line’s album announcement. The band described the record as a response to daily violence in Mexico: “Reborn from the ruins of a country consumed by violence where every day crime steals the front pages of the main national newspapers […] Sodomy Down The Cross explores through a new sound the reverberation of constant fury and aggression in a corrupt society.”

The album “Enter The Void” followed on DSBP in 2022. The duo discussed its themes in Click Interview with Sodomy Down The Cross: ‘Something Religious, Satanic, Worldly, Sexual Or Perverse’.

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, Body-Pop, Industrial-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Four years have passed since Super Dragon Punch!!’s debut-EP “Shatter”. The Belgian based project driven by Jérémie Venganza is now back on track, unleashing the official debut album “Feral”. The work features twelve songs, which have been mixed and mastered by Racso Agroyam (Hocico) while one song has been mixed by Krischan Wesenberg (Rotersand).

Content: This project remains inspired by retro video games and 80s synths. It’s an element clearly emerging throughout the entire album, but the real sound of Venganza is hard to define. It has something EBM-driven, but still refined with Poppier passages although this Pop-element sounds pretty naughty and a bit Industrial-like. Most of the vocals have been mixed in the background.

+ + + : Super Dragon Punch!! sounds definitely Electro-like, but clearly mixes different influences together. From EBM to Electro/Industrial-Pop to a few Techno aspects, the work has an open-minded approach. It’s a kind of ‘free-style’ of Electronic underground music. I like the opening part of the work where the vintage sound treatments are cool. It’s a dynamic composition accentuated by pumping kicks and rough vocals. But this heavier side has been masterly mixed with a more melodic approach. The songs are well-crafted and here again I especially refer to the opening part of the album.

– – – : I’m a bit wondered about the mix of this album. The vocals are somewhat in the background while the sound has something buzzing. It clearly has something old-school reminding me of 90s productions so I guess it’s intentional –especially when the mix is made by an experienced artist, but I’m not totally convinced. The final part of the album is less convincing, the tracks becoming less cohesive.

Conclusion: Super Dragon Punch!! is a project with its own sound, which is hard to describe. But it’s definitely something different and personal!

Best songs: “Distance”, “Wire”, “Sutura”, “Inhale”.

Rate: 7.

Artist: www.superdragonpunch.com / www.facebook.com/superdragonpunch

Label: www.scent-air.com / www.facebook.com/ScentairRecords Read the news on ‘Feral’.

About Super Dragon Punch!!

Super Dragon Punch!! is the solo project of Mexican-Belgian musician Jérémie Venganza, based in Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve. Discogs files the act under synthpunk and industrial. Venganza managed a video game store and performed live with futurepop, industrial and EBM projects for more than fifteen years before starting the project.

The debut EP “Shatter” arrived in October 2017. “Feral” followed on 15 May 2021 as a limited CD on ScentAir Records, with twelve tracks, mixing and mastering by Racso Agroyam, additional mixing by Krischan Jan-Eric Wesenberg and artwork by Tony Midi.

Three singles appeared in 2023: “Rise”, “Haste” and the six-track “Split”, the latter carrying remixes by Dulce Liquido, ESA, SITD and Toxxic Project. The album “Thorns” followed on Advoxya Records in 2024.

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 Mexican industrial-electro act Hocico have just released a lyrics video for their brand-new single “Backstabbers”. You can check it out below.

Here’s what Erk Aicrag comments on the new Hocico song: “’Backstabbers’ is an angry anthem for the betrayed. The lyrics deal with the problems many friendships and love relationships face, when someone you care for stabs you in the back and then pretends to be the one bleeding, I think we all can relate to that!”

So what can you expect musically? Racso Agroyam explains: “This is an energetic industrial/drum and bass song ready to set the clubs on fire!” We didn’t expect anything else from the duo of course.

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

Stahlnebel and Black Selket met via Myspace in early 2008 for a remix contest. Sander Kapper (Black Selket) from The Netherlands was looking for a singer while Ralph Neuhaus from germany (Stahlnebel) was in search for someone to make the music. Stahlnebel & Black Selket was born and started to release albums. The sound is not just Dark-Electro driven, but clearly empowered by Trance leads and other Technoid elements. It makes the originality of this formation, which has a very distinguishable sound.  The newest full length “The Darkest Hour” released on Advoxya Records doesn’t really innovate, but simply confirms the dance potential of the band. I talked about it all with Sander Kapper.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Stahlnebel & Black Selket are now active for numerous years and have released multiple productions so what makes the chemistry between you guys and what do you consider as your major accomplishments?

Sander: Our chemistry just works well to get results and that makes us strong in what we do. I still think “Lifeless” was our best selling album and “Noise” was our first box set sold by Advoxya Records. I am most proud of our vinyls because it is in my genes since I come from the early days of dance music. I produced a lot of vinyl during that time. This is different for Ralph.

Q: Throughout the years you created a very own- and recognizable sound, kind of ‘sound DNA’, which is mainly dancefloor orientated. What makes the essence and specificity of this sound?

Sander: The basis of our music has never really changed. Raw beats with a Trance build-up. We have tried to change our sound and production, but it just doesn’t work for us. Even when we make a remix, we try to keep that ‘sound DNA’ in it. This also distinguishes us from the main-stream

Q: Every band has its own sound formula and a proper way of working. What’s yours and what’s the input of each member?

Sander: We often work with a starting idea. This can be a sample or just something from the news or contemporary activity and Ralph starts writing a text for that and I lay the foundation for the melody. Ongoing production -we often adjust a lot of things to make it a composition and so you can hear that this is us.

I produce all the music, Ralph arranges the lyrics and vocals and Branko is mainly active on stage for the ‘live’ instruments.

Q: When did you start the writing of the songs for “The Darkest Hour” and how did the composition process happened in pandemic times? Did you try to change and/or improve specific aspects of the production and was there a particular focus?

Sander: “The Darkest Hour” is based on a real 90’s sound. Influences of Skinny Puppy and Hocico from that time. And the title of the song grew out of the dark days and the beginning of the pandemic. But as you may have heard in our old songs, Ralph has been writing about this for years so this pandemic gave us an extra boost.

Q: “The Darkest Hour” sounds as an appropriated title in times of Covid-19, but is there a real connection? What did you try to express lyrical wise  and especially by the song “Never Surrender” featuring famous samplings of Winston Churchill?

Sander: “The Darkest Hour” actually stands for several aspects. War, pandemic, overpopulation and these themes always come back in our productions.

The title says it all, “Never Give Up Or Give In”. Even when time is not good and things are heavy.

Q: How do you see the project evolving throughout the years? Do you’ve a kind of referential album or is every new work just the best one? Further plans?

Sander: This is our eighth album and personally I don’t really have a preference for a particular CD or song. For each of us we have our own preference and, which track we like best. Since I have two young children, it is a bit more difficult to produce these days. I have to manage my time well. I also do a lot of Techno and ‘Hardstyle’ so Stahlnebel & Black Selket always comes first for me. After the release of the box set “Decalogy” I first took some rest and started working on some new tracks. So… more music will follow… maybe a new single. The first thing we are waiting for now is our new “12 inch” We Never Surrender”. 

Since vinyl is back on the swing, the production time is extremely long. We thank Advoxya Records for this. Because the costs are very high to realize this, but we are glad we did it. And of course we want to  thank our loyal fans without them we cannot realize this.

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 Belgian industrial act Super Dragon Punch!! has landed its debut album: “Feral”. The debut full length holds twelve tracks of techno-infused body music inspired by retro 80s video game soundtracks. It continues the sonic path chosen with the band’s debut EP which was released in 2017 and held remixes by Assemblage23, Terrolokaust, Iszoloscope & WO††W.

“Feral” was mixed and mastered by Hocico and Dulce Liquido mastermind Racso Agroyam at Liquido Labs. Racso also added some additional punch to the creations while “Frame” has been mixed by Krischan Wesenberg at Studio-600.

Super Dragon Punch!! is the synthpunk/EBM/industrial project of frontman Jérémie Venganza. Live the band consists of Jérémie Venganza, Sem Roosen on bass and Noémi Meteors on synths.

The video for the song, “Sutura” can be watched 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!

side-line.com

Biomechanimal and Sentinel Complex have joined forces and now release the single “Crown of Glass”. Musically it is a mashup of sounds and styles, from symphonic metal, midtempo to harsh industrial, dubstep, and more. The song deals with the negative side of our ego, how it can lead us to view others and ourselves in a distorted way.

Biomechanimal hail from London, UK and mix harsh vocals with massive bass and pounding kick drums. Active since 2013, the act has toured the UK multiple times and have played shows with Covenant, Hocico, Aesthetic Perfection, and many more. 2020 was a big year for the band, dropping 4 singles and multiple remixes, along with maintaining a strong livestream presence. Sentinel Complex from their side bring aggressive metal fused with modern electronic and traditional orchestral elements.

The single features remixes from Moris Blak and Dawn Of Ashes. Here’s the video for “Crown Of Glass”. Read the review of ‘Biomechanimal’.

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

Belgium based Super Dragon Punch!! launch their 12-track debut album “Feral”. Out now is the video for the song “Sutura”, you can view it below. Expect techno-infused body music inspired by retro 80s video game soundtracks. “Feral” was mixed and mastered by Hocico and Dulce Liquido mastermind Racso Agroyam at Liquido Labs. Racso also added some additional punch to the tracks. The track “Frame” was mixed by Krischan Wesenberg at Studio-600.

Super Dragon Punch!! is the synthpunk/EBM/industrial project of frontman Jérémie Venganza who is half-Belgian, half-Mexican. The project released it’s first EP in October 2017, includiong remixes by Assemblage23, Terrolokaust, Iszoloscope & WO††W.

Below is the video for the song “Sutura”. Read the review of ‘Feral’.

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.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: “Genocidio Espiritual” is the second official album by the Chilean project Distoxia. The album features 10 songs plus five remixes.

Content: From the very first notes and sequences you clearly recognize the influence of Mexican leading formations of Dark-Electro. I’m referring to Hocico and Amduscia. The work is characterized by hopping rhythms, haunting atmospheres, cold leads and Spanish vocals. The songs are pretty danceable although the last cut is more into an obscure, dreamy approach. Remixes have been accomplished by Empyres vs. Viscera Drip, Godless Cross, Sector 516, Shinigami IND and CyberLich.

+ + + : Chile already reveals a few interesting and qualitative Electro-underground bands. Among the darkest projects, Distoxia definitely sounds like a promising name. The new work sounds like a powerful exposure, which will definitely appeal for fans of Amduscia and Hocico. I like the switch from powerful cuts into dark-evasive passages. The ghost-like production of the vocals is matching with the sound. “Armadura De Clavos” and “Salvajismo Primordial” both are cool cuts, but I also recommend listening to the last song “Miles De Recuerdos”, which has a spooky, dreamy touch on top. Among the remixes I especially recommend “Contemplador Del Ocaso” remixed by Empyres vs. Viscera Drip. It’s also interesting discovering unknown artists who have been asked to remix.

– – – : Distoxia isn’t exactly what I would call an ‘original’ project although it’s an interesting album.

Conclusion: If you like Dark-Electro stereotypes, this album will definitely catch your attention.

Best songs: “Armadura De Clavos”, “Salvajismo Primordial”,  “Miles De Recuerdos”, “Contemplador Del Ocaso – Empyres vs. Viscera Drip Remix”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/distoxia

Label: http://insane-records.com / www.facebook.com/InsaneRecordsEU

About Distoxia

Distoxia is a dark electro project from Chile. Its discography on Discogs runs from “Brote Psicotico” (2012) and “Naturaleza Humana” (2013) through “Fuga Sensorial” (2015) and the Insane Records EP “Maniobra Evasiva” (2017), followed by “Visiones De Medianoche” (2018).

Side-Line previewed the single “Conjurador Astral” in February 2021 and reported the following month that the project was returning with a new album after three years of silence. That album, “Genocidio Espiritual”, was released via Insane Records in March 2021.

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, Electro-Pop, Gothic.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: This sampler features ten bands from the Mexican Electro/Gothic scene. Most of the bands are part of the Sector Industrial Producciones roster, a label run by Dimitri Berzerk. The compilation has been released in collaboration with the Norwegian label Sub Culture Records.

Artists: Infected Sound System, Vyrtual Zociety, Oxomaxoma, Dramatic, Dimitri Berzerk, Modelo De Placer, Fire In Paris, Cibernia, SFX DJ, Die-Go.

Content: This sampler is a new opportunity to get a bit more familiar with the Mexican scene. We always link Mexico to Hocico, Amduscia and C-Lekktor (to name the most famous ones), but there’s much more to discover. From pumping Aggrotech to powerful electro-Pop to Industrial-Wave to EBM to Electro-Pop to Techno-Body music to Acid every single band has something of its own. I also want to mention a bonus track featured in the digital format, which is a mix of 37 minutes. 

+ + + : What I like with such compilations is to discover new or less familiar artists. And I here discovered a great debut song by Infected Sound System, which is driven by an alluring Aggrotech lead. Vyrtual Zociety delivers a solid Electro-Pop song infused with some extra adrenaline and darkness. Modelo De Placer is another interesting discovery for its robotic kind of Electro-Pop. Fire In Paris brings a more classic Electro-Pop format with fragile female vocals on top. Last, but not least I also discovered a great song by Dimitri Berzerk himself; a mix of EBM and catchy Pop.

– – – : The mix and mastering of the compilation could be more professional.

Conclusion: This is a great compilation revealing some talented artists from the Mexican scene.

Best bands: Infected Sound System, Dimitri Berzerk, Vyrtual Zociety, Fire In Paris, Modelo De Placer.

Rate: (7½).

Labels: www.sector-industrial.com / www.facebook.com/sector.industrial.producciones / www.subculture.no / www.facebook.com/norwegiansubculture

About Dimitri Berzerk

Dimitri Loyo, known under the artist name Dimitri Berzerk, is a Mexican DJ, producer and remixer based in Mexico and the founder of the label Sector Industrial Producciones, the imprint behind most of the acts on this compilation. He started as a DJ in the mid-2000s and began producing remixes in 2009 before releasing his own material, working under the signature DMT Berzerk for over 100 remix credits. His EP catalog on Sector Industrial Producciones includes collaborations with guest vocalists such as Claus Larsen of Leaether Strip, and the EP “A.I.C.Q.T.I.L.”, built around Jean-Luc Godard’s film “Alphaville”. In a Click Interview with Side-Line, Berzerk described his main influences as EBM, Synth-Pop, Industrial and New-Wave. “Whispers Of The Future Vol. 02” places his own track alongside nine other acts from the Sector Industrial Producciones roster, released jointly with the Norwegian label Sub Culture Records.

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

KREIGN is an American set up in 2010 by featuring Ryan Hutman and Xiån Austin. They met thanks to a mutual friend. Ryan was involved with HARDWIRE and in search of a drummer. Xiån was drumming for Sang:Rael and Alter Der Ruine at the time and finally joined HARDWIRE. Some HARDWIRE songs were pretty EBM-driven, which was the reason to start a side-project. KREIGN was born and asked Dave Strand (THE STRAND) to join in as singer. But he finally decided to move on with THE STRAND. Being a side project, KREIGN didn’t really move anywhere for 10 years even though they had quite a few songs started and set aside. But KREIGN finally released their self-titled and self-released debut album in 2020, which got rapidly re-released by Scanner (Dark Dimensions). The work is a powerful mix of good-old EBM with an impressive sophisticated production on top. “Kreign II” is a true masterpiece and one of the best EBM releases from the past years.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: KREIGN has been set up as a tribute to ‘old-school’ EBM. What makes this ‘old-school’ style that special and what do you like in EBM sound? 

Ryan: It evokes aggression from me and I like that. I like the groove. I like that it is simple and minimal. 

Xiån: I grew up a New-Waver… in Utah of all places. My first glimpse of EBM and I’m not sure  if it could be categorized as such, but it was MINISTRY’s “Twitch”-album. I could not stop listening to “We Believe”. It was the driving bassline and simplicity of the beat that gripped me. I wanted to hear more. I was now on the hunt for something similar. Back then there was no Internet. The only way to find new music at the time was via magazines, clubs and/or word of mouth. A friend of mine had a DJ buddy in New York City. He would send him mixtapes of music he was spinning. I discovered bands like FRONT 242, NITZER EBB, DAF, PANKOW, SKINNY PUPPY, FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY and more. I would comb through record stores for hours and I would buy anything with cool cover art that looked Industrial or EBM. That’s how I discovered the now legendary Wax Trax Records. 

In the late 80’s, early 90’s, Salt Lake City spawned a killer Industrial club called ‘The Pompadour’. We would go religiously every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night. The DJ was awesome and he knew his shit. Funny thinking about it now, he was probably more annoyed at the fact that, almost every song, we’d go to the booth and ask who he was spinning. Haha! 

Q: You guys got both involved with HARDWIRE while you were still active in other projects as well. What did you learn out of these previous experiences and what makes the difference with KREIGN? 

Ryan: Jonah from HARDWIRE taught me to not always use the ‘easy’ word to make a rhyme and to put more thought into my lyrics. Now, I am proud of my lyrics, even though they are usually simple. I can say more with less words. 

Mike from HARDWIRE and I learned early on that a live drummer can take a show to the next level. Even though I admit I suck at playing drums, I do it for KREIGN when Xiån sings “Disco King” and “In That Frame Of Mind”.

Xiån: I learned that it’s very difficult to manage multiple projects. Haha! All good though, the experience was worth every moment. I enjoyed traveling, playing shows and meeting cool peeps. As far as the difference with KREIGN, I think Ryan and I have very similar mindsets. When we hook up to write, it just flows. It’s a freak of nature I suppose.

Q: Old-school EBM often sounds simple and powerful; solid bass lines mixed with a danceable tempo plus harsh vocals and eventually metallic percussion parts. I consider KREIGN as one of the first bands breaking the codes; your music being definitely old-school like, but much more sophisticated and elaborated. Tell us a bit more about ‘sound’ and writing/production of the songs? 

Ryan: I figured out how to bend notes with soft synths in Cubase and I couldn’t stop doing it. We then translated that forced portamento back into the Nord Lead 2. Then Xiån and I would grab a few knobs on the Nord while the computer played the midi and recorded whatever we thought sounded cool. Fucking with FM, octave selector, pitch, and cutoff was so fun. We couldn’t do it without four hands on it and us laughing at the crazy sounds it made as we pushed the keyboard to it’s limits. It became a signature bass sound in most of the songs. It is rare for us to leave a bass sound without at least messing with the cutoff. Almost every sound is modulated by hand or is programmed to modulate.

Our formula also includes a few other hallmarks like basslines that play for just one verse, break downs that go to ultra minimal and then build up bigger, random sounds that only happen once in the song, ambient creepy background noise, and lead synth lines.

Q: How did the self-titled debut album “Kreign” see the daylight? What have been the influences, triggers, maybe references, lyrical themes and criteria to achieve the album? 

Ryan: I was really influenced by WULFBAND and GESSAFELSTEIN. I went back through a bunch of our songs and randomly detuned them after hearing WULFBAND for the first time. GESSAFELSTEIN influenced me to go back and crank the treble on the synths.

Lyrically, most of the songs have an upbeat message about how to deal with stress, anxiety, and tragedy. “Live Fast” is about my love for my Harley Davidson. “Disco King” is a fun song written with tongue in cheek.

Xiån: The push came from our good  friends in HOCICO. Erk invited us to play a show with them in Mexico City. We couldn’t decline the offer. We only had a couple finished tracks at that time. I think we had three or four months to complete the album, learn the songs, and rehearse them enough to perform a decent show.

It was an amazing experience. To this day I can’t believe we pulled that one off. (Still breathing heavy)…

Q: The limited edition of the album is something really special featuring only great remixes by mainly great names from the EBM scene. How did this bonus disc see the daylight and tell us a bit more about the different artists and the remixes they made?

Ryan: We had previously done a remix CD and an EP with some remixes with HARDWIRE. We met Jürgen Engler first through Facebook when we asked him to remix HARDWIRE. We got to meet him in person on the FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY-tour. When we asked him to take a look at KREIGN, he liked it and wanted to remix “5 Layers Of Chaos”. He also wanted to sing a duet with Xiån on “Disco King”. I thought it would be cool if he would sing it in German and he agreed, even though he was unsure if German lyrics would even fit the song. I think it sounds perfect. 

I had worked with REACHING FOR SHADOWS on some of the songs on her debut album. We met SPANKTHENUN, NZ, and NOVA STATE MACHINE through Facebook and Bandcamp. As much as I hate Facebook, sometimes it comes in real handy. 

Xiån: Peter ELM and I have been friends for many years. He was one of the first people we asked to do a remix. His amazingness never fails. A number of years ago I was invited to play drums for VOLVO:242 (a side-project of SPETSNAZ) at ‘Familientreffen 5’ back in 2009 (there’s a couple of cornball videos on YouTube) and I met the guys in AUTODAFEH who were also on the bill. These guys are top notch! Loved their music and performance. They later asked me to play drums on a couple tracks for their upcoming album, “Identity Unknown”. (“Evil Doll & Love Hate” and “Pain” to be exact). I was honored to do so.

Q: 2020 has been for sure a horrible year to release a debut album. How do you experience the pandemic versus your artistic activities? And what are the plans for post-Covid 19?  

Ryan: We would like to play more shows. We did a livestream show called “Isolation Room” and it was fun, but it was in an empty room. We usually feed off of the energy of the audience. It pushes us further to perform harder. We’d like to eventually play shows in Europe.

Xiån: Luckily we’ve stayed healthy throughout the pandemic and have spent a lot of time in the studio writing for our next album. Hope you will all stay tuned. New ideas and sounds are brewing…

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-Wave, Electro-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: This EP is the result of a friendship collaboration between Chris Pohl and Mark Massive. Blutengel and Massive Ego went on tour together; the front men became friends and finally wrote a song together.

Content: The title song is a catchy, danceable Electro-Pop/Wave cut with both artists singing together. The chorus has something elevating. We next get six remixes by Alex VRT (Omnimar), Auger, Omnimar, Rob Dust and Scot Collins (Massive Ego). There also is an “Alternative Version” accomplished by Blutengel and Massive Ego.

+ + + : I have endless respect for Blutengel and Massive Ego so seeing both front men working together can be only result in a great song. That’s also what happened on “Obscured”; an EP released earlier this year as collaboration between Blutengel and Hocico. “Nothing But A Void” is a catchy, danceable song with a cool chorus. Chris and Mark create a perfect duo singing. Among the remixes Rob Dust is once more the one that caught my attention, boosting the original edit to a harder and somewhat Trance-like remix. I personally prefer the “Alternative Version” instead of the original edit; this version is also a bit harder and clubbier.

– – – : “Nothing But A Void” is a good song that you’ll easily keep in mind, but it’s absolutely not what both artists have done as best thus far. It sounds a bit easy and the chorus line has something predictable. I also expected a bit more from the remixes.

Conclusion: I have some mixed feelings with this EP; it’s an honest song, but it doesn’t stand for the real talent of both artists. I’m afraid friendship is not enough to create great music.

Best songs: “Nothing But A Void – Rob Dust Remix”, “Nothing But A Void – Alternative Version”.

Rate: (7).

Artists: www.blutengel.de / www.facebook.com/BlutengelOfficial / www.massiveego.co.uk / www.facebook.com/massiveego

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

About Blutengel & Massive Ego

Blutengel is fronted by Chris Pohl, while Massive Ego is the project of vocalist Marc Massive, with Oliver Frost on drums and Scot Collins on synths. The two acts had previously toured together, which led to the collaboration on this single.

“Nothing But A Void” followed Blutengel’s 2020 collaboration EP “Obscured” with Hocico and was released in November 2020 on Out Of Line as a limited, hand-numbered CD single including six remixes.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

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The ‘Electrostorm’-sampler is back. On volume 9 Out Of Line unifies the best of its dark electronic acts on one CD including 17 partly brand-new and exclusive tracks (new songs, limited remixes, and rarities). The sampler also holds 2 newcomers on the label, namely Kiberspassk and Yellow Lazarus.

Here is the video of the new Kiberspassk track “Derevna”.

Tracklist:

1. Solar Fake “I Despise You”
2. Too Dead To Die “Tropical Gothic”
3. Blutengel “Wir Sind Unsterblich”
4. Ashbury Heights “Wild Eyes (feat. Madil Hardis)”
5. Solitary Experiments “The Struggle (Midnight Resistance Remix)”
6. Blutengel+Hocico “Obscured (Club Version by Hocico)”
7. Suicide Commando “Bunkerb!tch”
8. Amduscia “Just Feel And Enjoy”
9. Dive “Death Machine”
10. Kiberspassk “Derevna”
11. Yellow Lazarus “Vicious Memories”
12. Massive Ego “Digital Heroin”
13. She Hates Emotions “Don’t Leave Me”
14. Rummelsnuff “Interkosmos”
15. Hocico “Cross The Line (Remixed by Zardonic)”
16. Combichrist “Last Days Under The Sun (Fear Of Domination Remix)”
17. Ost+Front “Sex, Schnaps und Gewalt (Dickpik Remix by Yellow Lazarus)”

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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Genre/Influences: Dark-electro.

Format: Digital, 3CD.

Background/Info: Mexican Amduscia is back on track, unleashing a new album (cf. “Existe”), but still a kind of celebration edit featuring two extra discs to celebrate the band’s 20^th anniversary. There have been two periods in the band’s history; the first one featuring the Acevedo brothers Edgar and Polo, plus Raul Montenogo and the second period, which came after Edgar’s death (2010). So “Existe” will bring you the first new album since 2013 (cf. “Filofobia”) plus a ‘best of’ album and a last disc featuring the songs from the band’s self-released debut album “Perdicion Perversion Demencia”.

Content: Get ready for 39 songs of heavy dark-electronics. We take off with the new album “Existe” where you rapidly will recognize the main ingredients Amduscia has always used to accomplish their music; heavy rhythms, hopping sequences, cold leads, Spanish spoken samplings and the harsh vocals’ production of Polo Acevedo. Time moved on, but had no real impact on this band! Especially the second part of the work reveals the best cuts. Polo sings in Spanish- and English language, but the lyrics remain hard to understand, expressing rage, hate and fear!

The second disc brings a ‘best of’ where the band selected 13 tracks from their discography. Amduscia gets back to the early years of the band, when Edgar was still the front man. It’s an opportunity to rediscover some of the Mexicans biggest hits such as “Dead Or alive”, “Impulso Biomecanico”, but also other favorites such as “Seal You In Red”, “Melodies For The Devil” and “Solo Maquina”.

Last, but not least the last disc is a real must have if you never heard the self-released debut album of the band. It sounds rough, but still revealing the typical sound DNa of Amduscia. Some cuts are demo versions. There also is a bonus track.

+ + + : Amduscia is without a shadow of doubt, together with Hocico and C-Lekktor the Mexican, one of the absolute masters of the Mexican dark-electro and aggrotech scene, but still one of the most prominent bands in the genre world-wide. They’ve what I call a proper sound DNA, which you’ll immediately recognize. The songs are nearly all danceable, but the main characteristics remain the hostile atmosphere recovering the songs, which are carried by a devilish tempo and menacing bass lines while the shouting vocals make you feel all the anger and rage. This album is a must have for bringing the past and the present together. The third disc is a nice gift. The digipak format is a great artistic format to celebrate this band’s twenty anniversary.

– – – : I can’t affirm “Existe” is the best studio album from Amduscia. I’m here speaking about the new work! The second part of the album sounds cool, but globally speaking this is not the Amduscia album I would recommend to discover this great formation.

Conclusion: Amduscia is back with new work plus a special celebration release. I guess the fans can be only satisfied!

Best songs: “Muerte Sin Control”, “Existe”, “9 Letters” + “Solo Maquina – Antihuman Remix”, “Melodies For The Devil”, “Seal You In Red”, “Evil song – Paradise Mix” + “Perversión, Perdición, Demencia”, “Perverse Part”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/AmdusciaOficcial

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

About Amduscia

Amduscia was founded in 1999 in Mexico City as a trio of Polo, Edgar and Raul, taking its name from a duke of hell from medieval demonology associated with music, according to Discogs. The band continued as a duo after Raul’s departure until Edgar’s death in March 2010. “Existe” marks the 20th anniversary of the project and was released on Out Of Line. Polo later launched the side-project Project TrES-2b in 2024.

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-electro, dark-pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Two of the Out Of Line flag holders were supposed touring together and surprise their fans with a common single. The tour has been postponed, but the single “Obscured” has been released as a collaboration between both artists.

Content: “Obscured” is a surprising song, which has been clearly composed to hit the dancefloors. It’s also crazy to hear a perfect mix between the harshness of Hocico and the refinement of Blutengel. Both bands appear to be fully complementary and even for the vocals. Chris Pohl and Erk Aicrag both have different styles of singing, but a kind of chemistry happened while backing vocals by Ulrike Goldmann just inject an elevating sensation during the chorus.

The song has been transformed by Hocico and then by Blutengel while the last cut of the CD is a remix by Dulce Liquido (side-project of Rasco Agroyam). The digital version features an extra remix by [:SITD:].

+ + + : “Obscured” simply sounds like a real great hit; it also is a great mix between the harshness and power of Hocico on one side and the melodic, wave-pop refinement of Blutengel on the other. I like the duo between both vocalists while the female backing brings something heavenly on top. All the remixes are worthy of examination, but I here have a preference for the Blutengel version. It seems that this song has been composed in two days so I can only say it’s a lucky shot, but a damned good single/EP.

– – – : It would have been cool to get another remix by one of the artist’s side-projects instead of the [:SITD:] remix.

Conclusion: I didn’t know what to expect, but this work is absolutely great. This is a truly sonic symbiosis between dark-electro and dark wave-pop music.

Best songs: “Obscured”, “Obscured – Into The Void Version by Blutengel”, “Obscured – Dark Dance Version by Dulce Liquido”.

Rate: (9).

Artists: www.blutengel.de / www.facebook.com/BlutengelOfficial / www.facebook.com/hocicoofficial

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

About Blutengel and Hocico

Blutengel is a German electronic band from Berlin, founded in 1998 by Chris Pohl, who had earlier led Terminal Choice as well as Miss Construction and Tumor. Pohl built Blutengel out of an earlier project called Seelenkrank, and the band has released one album after another for more than 25 years on Out Of Line, mixing dark-pop, electro-wave and cinematic elements; Ulrike Goldmann has long contributed backing vocals to the project.

Hocico is a Mexican duo officially formed in 1993 by Racso Agroyam (synthesizer, programming) and Erk Aicrag (lyrics, vocals), stage names formed from anagrams of their real names, Erik Garcia and Oscar Mayorga. The pair had experimented with electronic music mixing industrial and EBM since their early teens, and played their first live show on February 18, 1994. Agroyam also records as Dulce Liquido, while Aicrag’s side-project is Rabia Sorda. “Obscured” paired the two Out Of Line acts on a single planned around a joint tour.

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-electro.

Background/Info: Stephen Bailey and Joel Walker aka ‘Svipal’ are back on track unleashing the second album from their Offerings To Odin project. I discovered the band a few years ago by their debut work “Ravenous”, which revealed some cool ideas although the global production suffered from a lack of professionalism.

Content: “Hoc Voluerent” features 10 songs plus 2 remixes. The sound is clearly influenced by dark-electro although the leads also have something cold-techno like. The global production process became more professional and also the songwriting has improved. Offerings To Odin doesn’t deal with the ‘classical’ harsh and merciless dark-electronics; the sound and especially the rhythmic is more controlled. The vocals remain however harsh and extremely distorted.

The tenth song is a cover version of the famous “Goodbye Horses” (originally performed by Q Lazzarus) followed by two remixes by Alien Vampires and Hocico.

+ + + : I noticed a serious improvement compared to the debut album, which might explain why this work has been promoted by X-Beats (Jan Loamfield from Noisuf-X). This album is totally devoted to dark-electronics and yet there’s something unique running through it. I think it’s maybe of the cadence, which is never exaggerated and the leads having something technoid on top. Both remixes are cool, but especially the one by Hocico, which also is the best song from the album.

– – – : There is still too much linearity in this work. The sound formula is repetitive, the songs becoming a bit predictable after a while.

Conclusion: I can’t say this album is a major success, but it clearly features a band that has made a serious step forward.

Best songs: “Death Throes – Hocico Deathfloor Remix”, “A Delicate Balance”, “Death Throes”, “Mad As Hell – Alien Vampires Remix”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.offeringstoodin.com / www.facebook.com/offeringstoodin

Promoter: www.facebook.com/xbeatspromotion

About Offerings To Odin

Offerings To Odin is a Denver, Colorado duo of Stephen Bailey and Joel Walker, who also performs as Svipal. Active since 2012, the project has drawn on mythology and runic themes alongside its dark-electro and EBM sound. “Ravenous,” the band’s 2016 debut album on Forced Music, was followed three years later by “Hoc Voluerunt,” which closes with remixes from Alien Vampires and Hocico.

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-electro, EBM, techno-body, minimal-electronics.

Background/Info: Next to the first volume of this series, which is devoted to gothic music, we here get a new selection of 32 bands dealing with the underground side of electronic music. The compilation has been compiled by Dimitri Berzerk.

Artists: C-Lekktor, Circuito Cerrado, Cid Project, Electrovot, Dimitri Berzerk, Neuvision, Nordika, Vyrtual Zociety, Red Industrie, Oxomaxoma, Vox Humana ao.

Content: Mexico has always been a prolific ground for alternative electronics and this sampler reveals the welfare of the country when it comes to dark-electronics, EBM and related genres. The compilation brings a nice twist between famous and established names at one side and upcoming talents at the other side. It’s first of all an opportunity to discover great danceable songs from bands you better can keep their names in mind.

+ + + : Here again I have to congratulate the efforts of Dimitri Berzerk to release such an artistic and informative compilation; great artwork and a nice selection of bands. The booklet is an essential tool to get you a bit more familiar with the featured artists. It’s an opportunity to discover great, danceable songs, which will ravish DJ’s. It will lead me too far mentioning all noticeable artists, but I hear great work from La Bande-Son Imaginaire (probably the most original song from the sampler through the addition of violin sounds), Red Industrie (for the minimalism and sound intelligence) and Infected Sound System plus Chaotic Rave System (both for composing stumping ‘oontz’ electronics).

– – – : I think it’s a pity bands such as Hocico and Amduscia weren’t featured. I know they belong to the best Mexican exports from this scene so we all know them, but it would have been cool to get them on board.

Conclusion: This compilation is a terrific exposure of the talented Mexican electro scene! It’s an absolute must-have!

Best bands: Chaotic Rave System, La Bande-Son Imaginaire, Red Industrie, Infected Sound System, C-Lekktor, C-Phalea, Neuvision, Ego Bliss, SFX DJ.

Rate: (8½).

Label: www.sector–industrial.com / www.facebook.com/sector.industrial.producciones

About Sector Industrial Producciones

Sector Industrial Producciones is a label run from Mexico City by Dimitri Berzerk, also active as a DJ, event promoter and remixer under the name DMT Berzerk. The label paired this volume with a companion compilation, “Mexico Underground Vol.01 – The Dark Side Of Mexico”, covering the country’s gothic and dark-wave side. Sector Industrial Producciones later issued the compilations “Whispers Of The Future Vol. 02” and “Whispers Of The Future Vol. 03” in 2021, both again featuring label artists from this series.

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

‘Erk Aicrag’ (Erik Garcia) and ‘Racso Agroyam’ (Oscar Mayorga) set up Hocico in 1993. The Mexican duo rapidly became one of the references when speaking about dark-electronic music. They released an impressive list of successful album and got numerous hits played by DJ’s all over the world. Hocico definitely belongs to the dark-electronic music history. They now released their new opus “Artificial Extinction” (Out Of Line), which has something refreshing while carried by an impressive, mature sound production. I contacted singer Erk Aicrag to get more details about this album.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: It’s the first time Hocico fans had to wait such a long time for a new studio album. How do you explain this hiatus of four years and when did you start the writing of “Artificial Extinction”?

Erk: We already made our fans wait for about the same amount of time between the albums “Wrack And Ruin” and “Memorias Atras”. Besides being busy with the family life in the time between “Ofensor” and “Artificial Extinction” we were busy touring the world as usual plus we released our first “Best Of” record (cf. “The Spell Of The Spider”) in 2017 along with an EP full of fresh songs entitled “Spider Bites”. In 2018 I was busy recording a new Rabia Sorda-album and playing shows with this band too. There’s no rest for the wicked!    

Q: What is the new album all about? What have been the main sources of inspiration and how do you look back at the writing and recording of this album?

Erk: The title deals with two concepts, ‘Artificial Intelligence’ and ‘Human Extinction’. The idea that we, humans could go extinct due to unforeseen events in the development of our own technology, precisely ‘Artificial Intelligence’ has captured our attention since it might not seem a threat right now, but it might be in the future. 

Bright minds like Elon Musk or Stephen Hawking warned us about it and they both think (thought in the case of Stephen) it is already too late for humans to reverse the effects of artificial intelligence in the future. This is the overall scenery that this album presents, especially the self-titled song. It is a way to describe how the world is turning to a dark place due to the misuse of our technology.

We wrote this album during the winter of 2018 and 2019, and it was real fun to achieve it. Somehow, we feel we are getting good at making records, we are fucking proud of it!

Q: I personally experienced “Artificial Extinction” as one of your most innovative releases in history; the production of the vocals sounds more polished while the sound treatments reveal some new elements as well. It all feels like something has changed and I even dare to say it’s one of your most accomplished works to date! Did you feel the need to try something new and maybe different?

Erk: We have learned a lot about making records along the years; everything from the technical side of things, like recording and producing to vocal techniques and song-writing. We made use of all of that on “Artificial Extinction” and fortunately the magic happened.

Ever since we started making music, we have always tried to make something different on every album, but it seems we managed to do it this time. We really prefer to fail trying something different than repeating the same formula from album to album. 

Q: There always has been a strong cinematic element in your music, but here again “Artificial Extinction” reveals a few great songs in the genre, but especially “El Ballet Mecanico”. Tell us a bit more about this song and the cinematic side of the album? What would you think about releasing a real soundtrack?

Erk: The title was inspired by Kurt Schmidt’s theater play from the 1920’s; it is based on the mechanic movements of the body. The song brings to mind the movements and sounds of a doll music box.

Hocico has always explored the cinematic music because basically you can express feelings without words in it. We have already contributed with music to a couple of films like “Perfume De Violetas” and “The Guest” and certainly it would be cool to be involved in a soundtrack of a full movie.     

Q: Artwork has been always an important element, but what can you tell us about the artwork for “Artificial Extinction” and the link with the lyrical content?

Erk: Last year we discovered this amazing German artist called Jochen Schilling; he had the perfect artworks to express graphically what we wanted on this album. Basically portraits of humanoids, that give the impression to be part humans, part machines living in a dark world.   We contacted him and he was willing to collaborate with us. The rest of the design and artwork was made by our long time designer and collaborator Userdx.

Q: There’s a new live tour in the pipeline. After all these years of touring do you still feel the same sensation when playing live and especially when playing in your homeland? Can you give us more details (setlist, image, live visuals…) about the new shows?

Erk: Oh yes, one of the most exciting things about being involved with Hocico is that we get to play all these shows around the world and besides the hassle of security at the airports and traffic on big cities, it is still worth traveling to be close to our fans. It always is special to play in Mexico as we get to meet our families and old friend’s there. Our live set is composed of 30% songs of “Artificial Extinction” and 70% of songs from almost all our history, including the songs that our fans regard as ‘hits’. We created brand new visuals for it and we hope some of you will join us on one of the shows!  

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: Gothic, goth-metal, industrial, dark-rock.

Background/Info: Ten years after the first official release (cf. “Dry the Rain”) Lord Of The Lost the German band set up by Chris Harms unleashes this massive ‘best of’. There are different versions and format available, but we here get a fine selection of four discs.

Content: The first disc is the one and only ‘best of’ looking back at the band’s first decade of existence. Lord Of The Lost deals with goth-metal music, but sometimes move into a more electro/industrial sound. From heavy metal guitar assaults to melancholic ballads, this first disc will give you an interesting summarizes of this band.

The second disc features ‘rarities’ featuring 2 songs together with Hocico front man Erk Aicrag. This is an opportunity to (re)discover less familiar cuts.

We next get a disc with remixes by a much diversified list of artists active in different –although related, music genres. We here get 18 (!) remixes by bands such as Blutengel, Chrom, Formalin, Solar Fake, Subway To Sally, Mono Inc., Rabia Sorda ao.

Last, but not least the last disc features demo versions.

+ + + : No doubt about it, this is a real complete ‘anthology’-album and a must have for the fans. Speaking for myself, I think the first disc (cf. ‘best of’) brings an interesting view upon the past ten years of the band. From their legendary and totally funny “La Bomba” to the ballad like “See You Soon” to the “2019”-version of the title song this album reveals the diversity of Lord Of The Lost. Another interesting disc is the one featuring the remixes. You’ll hear a real eclectic selection of remixes from pure metal to electro to orchestral to rock a billy.

– – – : Lord Of The Lost are ‘big’ in their homeland, but outside Germany they’ve never reached a similar status. So in the end it mainly remains a German phenomenon!

Conclusion: This kind of albums is always interesting for die-hard fans, but also for music lovers who want to discover a band they aren’t really familiar with.

Best songs: “Drag Me To Hell”, “Till Death Us Do Part 2019”, “La Bomba”, “See You Soon”, “Raining Stars” + “The Most Radical Thing To Do”, “Morsal” + “ Afterlife Of Death -Afterlife Remix by Unzucht”, “Kill It With Fire – But Kill It Good – Rabia Sorda Version”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/lordofthelost 

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel Read the news on ‘Till Death Us Do Part’.

About Lord Of The Lost

Lord Of The Lost is a band from Hamburg, Germany, founded by vocalist and guitarist Chris Harms, who released the group’s debut album, “Dry The Rain”, in 2009. Ten years and several albums later, “Till Death Us Do Part” gathers a best-of disc, rarities including two songs recorded with Hocico’s Erk Aicrag, 18 remixes and a disc of demo versions.

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-electro.

Background/Info: Four years have passed since the previous studio album “Ofensor” (2015). The Mexican duo Erk Aicrag (lyrics & vocals) – Racso Agroyam (programming) are active under the Hocico moniker since 1993 and became a long-time leading ship from the dark-electro scene. The new work is also available as vinyl format and a limited boxset featuring an extra CD with remixes and goodies for the fans.

Content: The new work remains easily recognizable through the typical haunting atmospheres, sometimes moving into pure cinematographic music, but “Artificial Extinction” is without a shadow of a doubt the most ‘atypical’ album since the band’s debut. The production of the vocals is different on several songs. Erk Aicrag is still singing in a powerful way, but there’s less rage in his voice. Sound-wise several songs are also touched by some modernism, which you’ll hear in some bleeping passages. The opening song “Dark Sunday” perfectly symbolizes this evolution in sound.

+ + + : This album remains ‘pure’ Hocico-like, but there are some new elements in the global production work. There seem to be a will to evolve towards ‘new’ sonic path while holding on the harsh, haunted and powerful sound. The dark cinematographic input is nothing new, but here again the duo has accentuated some elements of it. “El Ballet Mecanico” even can be considered as the best track they’ve ever written in this style. I however prefer the more danceable cuts and I would like to mention “Shut Me Down!” with an irresistible lead and “Damaged” for its global power mixed with icy, bleeping sequences. “Palabras De Sangre” is another attention grabber, which an anguishing, mysterious mood hanging over the track. One of the main ‘differences’ is according to me the production of the vocals, which are more spooky and maybe less enraged. Speaking for myself I prefer it like this.

– – – : This is a great work and I don’t see real minus points although the somewhat punkish-styled “Cross The Line” is not my favorite one.

Conclusion: I can’t say that Hocico has reinvented its sound, but “Artificial Extinction” became different and yet very Hocico-like. This is a great opus confirming the long leading status of this band in the dark-electro scene.

Best songs: “Shut Me Down!”, “Damaged”, “Dark Sunday”, “Psychonaut”, “Breathing Under Your Feet”, “Palabras De Sangre”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/hocicoofficial 

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

About Hocico

Hocico was formed in 1993 by cousins Erik Garcia and Oscar Mayorga, who record as Erk Aicrag (lyrics, vocals) and Racso Agroyam (programming); the Mexican duo played their first live show on 18 February 1994. “Hocico” is Spanish for “snout”, chosen for its derogatory, “ugly” connotation. “Artificial Extinction” followed the 2015 album “Ofensor” as the band’s first new studio album in four years, released by Out Of Line in multiple formats including a limited boxset with a bonus remix disc.

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

Coming up is the Lord Of The Lost best of compilation “Till Death us do part”. The 2CD version of this best of additionally contains a CD with rarities and B-sides (18 tracks in total) incl. guest features of Der Schulz (Unzucht) and Erk Aicrag (Hocico). A double LP is also planned and for the treasure hunter there is a 4CD-digibox-Version that features an exclusive remix CD and (on CD4) a series of demo versions, some of them more than 20 years old and written and recorded long before the band was found.

Lord of the Lost is a German dark rock band from Hamburg created by singer and frontman Chris Harms. Founded in mid-2007 by Chris Harms as a solo project, Harms originally called the project Lord, but changed the name of the band to Lord of the Lost to avoid possible name disputes with Lordi and The Lords. Before Lord of the Lost, Harms was a singer and guitarist of the rock band Philiae (1999-2004), a guitarist and second singer with the Glam-Metal-Band The Pleasures (2004-2007), as well as a musician on various projects like Big Boy or Unterart.

The debut single “Dry The Rain” was released in 2009 and the debut album “Fears” was released in 2010 with the independent label Out of Line. More albums followed: “Antagony” (2011), “Die Tomorrow” (2012), “From the Flame Into the Fire” (2014), “Empyrean” (2016) and “Thornstar” (2018). Next to that the band also released several DVD’s and compilations. Read the review of ‘Till Death Us Do Part’.

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

“Artificial Extinction” is the brand new album by the Mexican dark electro devils Hocico which will be released later in July.

The new Hocico album sees a release in 3 formats: 2LP, 2CD Box and a regular CD. The double vinyl edition comes in blue and silver and is limited to 500 copies

The deluxe boxset is limited to 1000 hand-numbered copies and includes an exclusive 10-tracks bonus CD with remixes and collaborations.

Tracks CD 2 (only available in the Boxset): Read the review of ‘Artificial Extinction’.

• Damaged (remixed by Hallucinator)
• Artificial Extinction (remixed by ErilaZ)
• Cross the Line (remixed by Tragedy of Mine)
• Dark Sunday (remixed by LUCKIID)
• Cross The Line (remixed by Zardonic)
• Dark Sunday (remixed by Poizon Party IV)
• Shut Me Down! (remixed by Kreign)
• Shut Me Down! (remixed by 89s†)
• Palabras de Sangre (remixed by Nohycit)
• Artificial Extinction (remixed by Static of Masses)

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark-electro, industrial-metal.

Background/Info: Driven by Kristof Bathory, Los Angeles (USA) based Dawn Of Ashes became an established formation in the industrial-metal scene. This new work brings us back to the original sound of the band, which was inspired by pure dark-electronic music. Some of you for sure remind both official debut albums “In The Acts Of Violence” and “The Crypt Injection” released on the defunct NoiTekk.

Content: “The Crypt Injection II” indeed is a move back to the dark-electro and tormenting sound of Dawn Of Ashes, but still spiced with some heavy metal guitar riffs emerging at the debut of the work. The song “Hexcraft” features Johan Van Roy (Suicide Commando) who clearly is a source of inspiration for the dark-electro side of the album. The album end reveals remixes by Hocico and Chris Vrenna (Army Of The Universe).

+ + + : The intro cut is an instrumental, overwhelming piece of music announcing a merciless opus. And that’s precisely what is emerging from the debut part, which is a heavy fusion between industrial-metal and dark-electronics. The vocals sound like they are emerging from the throat of a possessed soul. The songs aren’t only powerful, but masterly accomplished with great sound treatments. The ‘classical’ dark-electro side is also absolutely impressive. Power and bombast create a total state of terror, which sometimes makes me think of :Wumpscut: (pay attention for “Abuse The Abuser”). Dawn Of Ashes has achieved a masterpiece, which is ended by two great remixes.

– – – : I’m not especially a ‘metal’-addict, but I’m missing some metal power in a few cuts. However I’m not really complaining.

Conclusion: This album is a real major opus, which is perfectly mixing the dark-electro side of the early years with the metal-industrial work of the later period.

Best songs: “Ahriman”, “Reborn In Fire”, “Sitra Ahra”, “Hexcraft”, “Abuse The Abuser”.

Rate: (9).

Artist: www.dawnofashes.com /  www.facebook.com/Dawnofashes

Label: www.metropolis–records.com / www.facebook.com/MetropolisRecords Read the news on ‘The Crypt Injection II / Non Serviam’.

About Dawn Of Ashes

Dawn Of Ashes originated in Los Angeles, USA, in the early 2000s as a dark electronic and aggrotech project built around founder and vocalist Kristof Bathory. The project evolved into a hybrid of industrial, black metal and extreme electronic music, with a visual and conceptual focus on body horror and occult symbolism.

Early releases came through the German label NoiTekk, distributed via COP International and the Russian label Gravitator: “Sacred Fever” (2005), the debut full-length “In The Acts Of Violence” (2006) and “The Crypt Injection” (2007). “Genocide Chapters” (2010) and “Anathema” (2013) shifted the sound toward blackened metal and symphonic elements.

Dawn Of Ashes signed to Metropolis Records for “Theophany” (2016) and the occult-themed “Daemonolatry Gnosis” (2017), before revisiting its early catalogue on “The Crypt Injection II / Non Serviam” in 2019, featuring Johan Van Roy of Suicide Commando on “Hexcraft” and closing remixes by Hocico and Chris Vrenna of Army Of The Universe.

The band returned to Metropolis Records in 2025 with “Infecting The Scars”, followed the same year by the remix set “Reinfecting The Scars”.

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, dark-electro, future-pop, electro-pop, gothic, industrial-rock, industrial-metal.

Background/Info: The latest volume of the Out Of Line compilation “Awake The Machines” brings us 3 CD’s for a total of 45 artists.

Artists: Blutengel, Solar Fake, Rummelsnuff, Ordo Rosarius Equilibrio, Heimataerde, Rave The Reqviem, Fear Of Domination, Davey Suicide, Combichrist, Rabia Sorda, Ost-Front, Solitary Experiments, Melotron, Hocico, Signal Aout 42, Accessory, Dive, Suicide Commando, Amduscia ao.

Content: The first disc is the most eclectic one although more focalized around gothic-inspired formations. The second disc reveals the ‘newest’ direction of the label, which is inspired by metal-related formations. This is an opportunity to discover different bands that aren’t (or not yet) signed to Out Of Line. Finally we get the last disc revealing electronic bands that have made the name and reputation of Out Of Line.

+ + + : This new edition is quite fascinating for its diversity revealing a label, which has seriously enlarged its sonic horizon throughout the years, but especially during the past few years. The tracklist is impressive and confirms the leading status of the label. When a label has bands such as Blutengel, Suicide Commando, Hocico, Dive, Solitary Experiments, Ost-Front, Combichrist, Ordo Rosarius Equilbrio, Client ao flying under their wings you only, but agree this is a major company.

– – – : From a very personal point of view I’m not totally convinced by the metal direction of the label although it clearly will catch the attention of a wider -and different audience. But my main regret is that the familiar bands have been featured with known songs. I even noticed Angels & Agony with a song from 2015!
Conclusion: This is a colossal compilation, which is really interesting if you’re not that familiar with Out Of Line and/or simply you’re a die-hard fan of the Berlin-based label.
Best bands: Blutengel, The Ritualists, Heimataerde, Rave The Reqviem, Rabia Sorda, Solitary Experiments, Massive Ego, Chrom, Dive, Amduscia.

Rate: (7).

Label: www.outofline.de / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

About Out Of Line

Out Of Line is an electronic music label, mail-order service, and online shop covering Electro, EBM, Industrial, Gothic, and Dark Wave. Formerly based in Leipzig, Saxony, the label moved to Berlin in 2007.

“Awake The Machines Vol. 8,” reviewed here, is the eighth installment of the label’s flagship compilation series, gathering artists from across its roster, including Blutengel, Suicide Commando, Hocico, and Combichrist.

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

When Erk Aicrag set up Rabia Sorda in 2003 it all sounded as a side-project to his main band Hocico. The original dark-electronic sound progressively evolved from album to album. Fifteen years later Rabia Sorda released its fourth full length in history entitled “The World Ends Today” (Out Of Line). It’s without a shadow of a doubt the hardest and most enraged work ever. The band now consists of Erk Aicrag (vocals, lyrics, machines), Marcus Engel (guitars, keys, percussions) and Maxx (drums). Erk gave me more details about the work.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: The new album “The World Ends Today” is without a shadow of a doubt your darkest and hardest album ever. Tell us a bit more about this evolution in sound and darkness plus what has been the impact of the new band members?

Erk: Right from the beginning I was set out to create a furious and violent sound for this album. My band mate Marcus took the plunge and supported me to create “The World Ends Today” all the way long! Having Marcus and Maxx in the band has definitely made a great impact on Rabia Sorda’s music, they are wild, energetic and crazy too, It’s been refreshing to have them around for the last years.

Q: The new songs are bringing multiple influences together; from metal to industrial to dark-electronics and even punk. How do you explain this diversity and how did the writing and recording of the songs happened?

Erk: I have always been an eclectic music lover for the main part of my life so most of the music I enjoy will definitely find a place in Rabia Sorda’s songs. “The World Ends Today” is an album that at some point Rabia Sorda had to make, just angry, hard and fucking loud. I think a great album has to offer many facets of an artist and “The World Ends Today” has absolutely that.  I had a bunch of songs I had written over the past 3 years and as I showed them to Marcus he got excited and joined forces to bring this album to life.

We both made a great team and started meeting regularly in my studio and slowly started shaping the sound of “The World Ends Today”, we even wrote some songs from scratch together, later on Out Of Line hooked us up with Nils Lesser who did an extraordinary job mixing the album and gave it that extra punch you feel when you listen to it, overall the whole process was a very enriching and stimulating experience!

Q: It’s quiet interesting to see the evolution in sound and influences from your debut album “Métodos Del Caos” (2006) till “The World Ends Today”. It all feels a bit like two different bands! What means this project to you? And tell us a bit more about this artistic freedom and how do you see Rabia Sorda evolving? 

Erk: Rabia Sorda’s sound has been evolving according to my personal artistic and sometimes obsessive needs. In this moment I need an aggressive guitar-driven sound and to scream as loud as possible to produce adrenaline! And I am very proud of how “The World Ends Today” came out, it matches the way Rabia Sorda really sounds in my head. I enjoy the artistic freedom that Rabia Sorda allows me to explore music and I am glad the first album sounds different than the last one, because I am a different person.

Q: Lyrical wise the new album is also filled with extremely dark themes while the vocals have been never that enraged. Tell us a bit more about this interest (maybe fascination) for the ‘evil side of life’ and what does it say about your own perception about life and humanity?   

Erk: I definitely have a fascination for the dark side of life; I am Mexican and that seems to be part of our cultural DNA. I think you have to acknowledge the darkness inside of every human in order to fully enjoy life and there is no better way to do that than having the chance to be violent and furious inside an artistic environment. I think I am good at bringing out the rage and the fury of growing up in a Western modern society. I still want to write music that challenges me and challenges the fans, music that punches you and puts a smile on your face at the same time. Going through the process of writing songs keeps me well-balanced…

Q: “The World Ends Today” features great songs to play live! How do you look back at the latest concerts where you played the new tracks of the album and how would you describe Rabia Sorda on stage?

Erk: The energy of Rabia Sorda during a live concert is amazing, I am addicted to it, there is something really special going on while we three perform. We like to rehearse as much as possible to bring out the best we have on stage. The new songs are lots of fun to play live, We had the chance to play a handful of them in Berlin last May and the audience reaction to them was amazing, it felt fucking good!

One of the biggest motivations to write the songs has always been bringing them to a live performance situation, that is the authentic fun part of being in a band.

Q: Erk, how important is it for you as an artist to get involved with Rabia Sorda, which sounds definitely more ‘rock’n’roll’ than Hocico?

Erk: It is vital for me to have my own personal way to express myself through music. At the other hand it has been mind-blowing being part of Hocico for the last 25 years, so I am very happy being active with both. They offer me different experiences and make me feel complete at this moment and I am very proud of how both bands have been developing creatively through time, still going strong!

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-metal, dark-electro punk.

Background/Info: Hocico singer ‘Erk Aicrag’ set up Rabia Sorda in 2003. Five years after the previous opus “Hotel Suicide” the Mexican front man joined hands with drummer Maxx and guitarist Marcus Engel to release what has been announced as the ‘hardest’ Rabia Sorda album ever.

Content: The regular album features 17 tracks and the least I can say is that the sound indeed is pretty hard. The song stand for total sonic violence mixing elements such as industrial-, metal-, dark-electro- and punk music together. “The World Ends Today” reflects a hell vision transposed into enraged vocals and heavy songs.

The limited edition features an extra disc of 8 cuts. You here will discover a few more new- and alternative cuts plus remixes by Cypercore, The Chemical Sweet Kid and Sahlvader. This mini-album also features 2 cover versions (including a song of the album covered by Prismatic Shapes).

+ + + : Speaking for myself I think it’s really interesting to see the evolution of Rabia Sorda throughout the years. While the debut album was a bit hesitating and a kind of dark-electronic alternative to Hocico, the next releases progressively featured a different and harder sound. The guitar playing becomes really important now, creating this hard and merciless industrial-metal approach. The rage appears everywhere at this opus. The vocals (mainly sung in English) are just accentuating the ‘evil’ side of this work. I also noticed a cool punk touch running through several songs. On the bonus disc I especially want to mention a cool remix by Chemical Sweet Kid.

– – – : I expected a bit more from the bonus disc. The remixes are cool, but I can’t say they are adding something extra to the album. It sounds more like songs that were made for fun (cf. Los Saicos cover version) while the usual remixes are quite common for limited releases.

Conclusion: “The World Ends Today” is a nihilistic title for a furious release and you know what, I don’t give a damn sh** if the world would end with such a terrific opus. This is definitely the best Rabia Sorda album to date.

Best songs: “Violent Love Songs”, “We’re Not Machines”, “Perfect Black”, “The World Ends Today” + “Violent Love Song – Chemical Sweet Kid Rmx”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.rabiasorda.com / www.facebook.com/rabiasordaofficial

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

About Rabia Sorda

Rabia Sorda is the solo project of Hocico frontman Erk Aicrag, who launched it in 2003 as an outlet for material outside Hocico’s established framework; Aicrag relocated to Germany in 2005. The project released the albums “Métodos Del Caos” and “Save Me From My Curse” in 2006, the maxi-single “Radio Paranoia” in 2009 and “Hotel Suicide” in 2013, followed by the EP “Animales Salvajes” in 2014 and the single “King Of The Wasteland” in 2016.

“The World Ends Today” follows on Out Of Line in 2018, expanding the regular 17-track album with a limited bonus disc of alternate cuts, remixes and cover versions.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

On 11th and 12th August 2018 the annual M’era-Luna festival takes place in the area of Hildesheim-Drispenstedt, Germany. M’era Luna exists since 2000 and is one of the biggest Gothic festivals in the European scene. Gothic, new wave, electro, EBM, industrial and medieval bands are featured on 2 stages.

Besides watching concerts you can also visit parties, markets, artist signing events, gothic fashion shows, readings by David Grashoff, Markus Heitz and Christian von Aster. The Gothic Garden, an oasis of calm right in front of the festival infield, offers demanding festival-goers comfort, space and conveniences to make your stay more exclusive, pleasant and more relaxing. At the M’era Luna Academy you can follow special workshops which will be announced soon on the official website.

The last years the festival was every time sold out and had about 25.000 visitors. This year some of the confirmed artists are: The Prodigy, Front 242, Ministry, Eisbrecher, In Extremo, Saltatio Mortis, Apoptygma Berzerk, Peter Heppner, L’Ame Immortelle, London After Midnight, Clan Of Xymox, Das Ich, Lord Of The Lost, Hocico, The 69 Eyes, Atari Teenage Riot, In Strict Confidence, Rotersand, Nachtmahr, Tanzwut, …

The interactive M’era Luna app can be downloaded here and tickets can be ordered here.

Genre/Influences: Dark-electro.

Background/Info: I discovered the Mexican duo Devilsight by their official debut album “Luna” released in 2015 on Advoxya. “Rabia” rather appears to be a mini album featuring 7 new cuts plus 5 remixes.

Content: I was already impressed by the “Luna” album and “Rabia” only holds on to the great work. This formation doesn’t bring anything new to dark-electronics, but has found the magic grimoire of dark-electronics. The sound is made of hard-pounding kicks, deep-resonating bass lines, sharp melodies and heavy distorted vocals. I also noticed a track with bewitching female backing vocals.

Remixes have been made by DMT Berzerk, Amduscia, C-Lekktor, Brain Over Dust and Antibiosis.

+ + + : If you’re into (h)el(l)ectronic music Devilsight is a band you must already know and, which simply confirms its great potential. The songs are hard, powerful and danceable. The title song is a brilliant exposure from this ‘young’ band’s talent. The lead running through this cut is absolutely amazing. The opening track “This Is The Feeling Of My Hate” is another attention grabber and the single tracks that has been remixed by the other artists. I’ve been totally seduced by the dark-poppy touch injected by DMT Berzerk while I also have to mention great contributions from 2 of the Mexican leaders in this music genre: Amduscia and C-Lekktor.

– – – : If you’re in search of progressive dark-electronics this band is not for you! Devilsight is one of the numerous bands dealing with the usual dark-electro standards. I don’t care when it’s a great production and I like this band. The only little point Devilsight maybe has to reconsider is the vocal production, which is saturated by harsh, distorted effects.

Conclusion: Devilsight still operates in the shadow of Mexican legend Hocico and some of their hottest followers C-Lekktor and Amduscia, but you better keep an eye on this band, which reveals a great talent.

Best songs: “Rabia”, “This Is The Feeling Of My Hate”, “Destiny” + “This Is The Feeling Of My Hate – Special Remix by DMT Berzerk”, “This Is The Feeling Of My Hate – Special Remix by C-Lekktor”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/Devilsightoficial

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

About Devilsight

Devilsight is a dark-electro project that self-released the EPs “Del Cartel” and “La Ceguera” in 2011.

The project signed to Advoxya Records for the album “Luna” in 2015, followed by “Rabia” in 2017.

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 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!

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C-Lekktor progressively became one of the leading formations at the wider fields of dark-electronics. Master mind Marco Antonio Barrientos (Markko) has been busy experimenting and releasing music for his side-projects Circuito Cerrado and Kromak, but now strikes back unleashing the fourth official full length of C-Lekktor. “Out Of My Way” also is the first album released on DWA (Digital World Audio) and will ravish all electro heads and fans of the band. This album will only increase the status of the band. I got in touch with the always friendly and accessible front man to answer a few questions.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: After the previous C-Lekktor-album (cf. “Final Alternativo”) you were busy releasing material for Circuito Cerrado and Kromak. How does it feel to strike back with your ‘main’ project and the new album?

Markko: I really needed getting back to C-LEKKTOR, which really reflects a lot of very different feelings and thoughts from my daily life. This new album stands for the accumulated energy that was inside me. I feel alive!

Q: Can you tell us a bit more about that and are there some new music elements you tried to incorporate in the production?

Markko: Actually when Jorge and I started working on this new album, we talked about the idea to return to the old structure of the songs we like from the first albums, but we wanted to experiment with some fresh sounds. So this is the result of the ideas we got in mind. We wanted to please our fans all over the world who were missing the ‘old’ sound, but on the other hand we also tried to please the people who liked the sound of “X-Tension In Progress”. So I think we are somewhere in the midst (laugh)

Q: I experienced “Out Of My Way” as your most diversified work; moving from EBM to dark-electronics to industrial-trance. What have been the main sources of inspiration to compose this new work?

Markko: Thanx for the words, that’s really appreciated. The main basis for this new album definitely was our first two albums.. We somewhere changed ideas and technical skills on the latest album so we wanted to recover our old sound formula, but we love music and we enjoy listening to it; new and old music. So I guess we used different ingredients to get and different flavor on this new album (laugh)

Q: Next to the ‘regular’ edit, the album has been also released as a so-called ‘audio-book’ featuring a bonus disc. Tell us a bit more about this concept, the artwork and the bonus disc featuring hard-hitting songs?

Markko: Jamie from DWA is always putting great efforts and passion in everything he is doing. We didn’t only notice his interest in our music, but still a real friendship and total support in the products he is realizing. We already noticed it with the 7″ vinyl of  “Radioakktivity” and now with this gorgeous version of the album on digibook. We feel so proud of it; the artwork was done again by DJ/VJ Psyklon and I can tell you this time it was not a deception at all. He immediately caught the idea and concept we were looking for and ‘bang’ there it was.

About the extra songs on the bonus disc the answer is quite easy. We had too much songs so they couldn’t all be released on one disc and decided to put the songs on a bonus disc.

Q: You in 2015 did a noticeable cover version of Kraftwerk’s “Radioactivity”, which I think is a real great dark-electro version of this legendary song. How did it feel to cover such a great band and do you’ve other songs in mind you would like to cover?

Markko: I can’t say if it is a good cover version or not, but I just wanted to pay tribute to one of the bands that changed my life and turned my way into the right music. I didn’t only make covers of Kraftwerk, but still a few more from bands like Depeche Mode, Suicide Commando, Front 242, Hocico and a few more… cause all these bands are in my mind and my ears… and now that you say it, I feel so honored that you like it… It means that not everything I’m doing is shitty (laugh).

Q: Together with Hocico and Amduscia, C-Lekktor is without a shadow of a doubt one of the leading dark-electro bands from Mexico. How does it feel to have reached this status and what’s the relationship with other Mexican artists?

Markko: Well to be honest, I’ve never thought about this, but thank you for this great compliment. I think every band or project has its own place and I don’t compose music for a competition or so, it was never my intention to get a place or number on anything… I’m actually not looking for fame, I’m just a guy trying to share the sounds that are living in my head and my heart. I’ve a lot of respect and admiration for each of my country mate musicians, but also for all the other artists all over the world.

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-electro, EBM.

Background/Info: Marco Barientos is a busy artist. After releases with his side-projects (Circuido Cerrato and Kromak) he now strikes back with a new opus of his master project C-Lekktor. It’s the first album since “Final Alternativo” (2014) and the first album released on Digital World Audio. The ‘limited’ edition has been released as a so-called digi-book and features an extra disc of 4 tracks.

Content: “Out Of My Way” is an album that first of all moves on there where previous C-Lekktor work stopped. It remains a powerful and dark/hard-electro inspired work joined by the harsh screaming vocals of Marco Barientos. But the album also moves into other ‘dark’ directions, carried by EBM bass lines reminding me of a more dark-electro/techno style, which is more comparable to Noisuf-X. The work also reveals a few more evasive cuts.

The bonus disc brings us back to the ‘classical’ C-Lekktor format, which stands for sonic violence and pure dark club music.

+ + + : C-Lekktor confirms their leading status of Mexican dark-electro bands, but the band already reached a word-wide recognition in their music genre. This is the kind of work that will appeal for fans of Suicide Commando and Hocico (for the ‘classical’ pieces), but still for more electro-industrial & rave freaks à la Noisuf-X. “Out Of My Way” appears to be the most versatile album of the band, but that’s an evolution I like as it opens new horizons. The music is not only powerful, but accomplished with great sound treatments, icy sequences and pumping bass drums. The harsh and distorted vocals totally match with this haunting atmosphere and sonic violence. I also enjoyed the more evasive cut (cf. “Mundo Adverso”) featuring delicious female backing vocals. It’s a mature and professional production.

– – – : The versatile aspect of the work maybe makes this album a little less unique. I expected more (h)el(l)ectronics, but C-Lekktor took my by surprise by experimenting more technoid and industrial-rave paths.

Conclusion: This is without a shadow of a doubt an album numerous dark-electro lovers were waiting for and I think they’ll not be disappointed discovering the violence of the sound and the efficiency of the songs!

Best songs: “Tonight You’re Mine”, “Don’t Mess With Me”, “Move On”, “King Of The Underworld”, “Mundo Adverso” + “Answers”, “Ser Interior”.

Rate: (8½).

Band: www.facebook.com/Clekktor

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

Read the news on ‘Out Of My Way’.

About C-Lekktor

C-Lekktor is a Mexican dark-electro project founded in 2004 by Marco Barientos, who also records as Circuido Cerrato and Kromak. “Out Of My Way” follows 2014’s “Final Alternativo” and is C-Lekktor’s first release through Digital World Audio, issued as a limited digibook with a bonus four-track disc.

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 of the blue the belgian Alfa Matrix label releases the 2nd volume in their massive ‘Electronic Body Matrix‘ series. The first volume of this compilation series (check the release here) got qualified by many as the ultimate anthology of the EBM / electro-industrial scene. The 2nd edition of the “Electronic Body Matrix” compilation box once again manages featuring a real “who is who” artist selection bringing all new, exclusive or rare tracks.

This 2nd edition presents some 76 bands across 4 CD’s plus an exclusive download link giving you access to another 40 additional bands for a total music play of 116 songs (over 70% rare or previously unreleased tracks), an astounding 10 hour sonic journey! Marketed as a deluxe carton box with an extensive 28-page booklet with band pictures and credits.

All together on one same compilation, the leaders of the electronic scene of yesterday and tomorrow come together and include: FRONT 242 (exclusive mix), NITZER EBB (exclusive mix), FIXMER/MC CARTHY, RHYS FULBER, DANIEL B. PROTHESE, DIVE, BRUDERSCHAFT, POUPPEE FABRIKK, ARMAGEDDON DILDOS, KOMOR KOMMANDO, ELEGANT MACHINERY, AYRIA, FUNKER VOGT, PLASTIC NOISE EXPERIENCE, NOISUF-X, NEUROTICFISH, AESTHETISCHE, THE PSYCHIC FORCE, IMPLANT, [SITD], ALIEN VAMPIRES, HOCICO, ORPHX, NÖVÖ, METROLAND, PITCH YAR OF MATTER, MONDTRÄUME, CULTURE KÜLTUR, TOLCHOK, DEUTSCHE BANK, AVARICE IN AUDIO, THE SEXORCIST, PSY’AVIAH, AIBOFORCEN, ELEKTROKLÄNGE, R.I.P. (ROPPONGI INC PROJECT), ENTRZELLE, and many more, without forgetting the impressive remix work contributions of bands like EISFABRIK, FADERHEAD, ORANGE SECTOR, NZ, ELM, etc.

Add to this all hardcore ambassadors of today’s pure EBM league in the likes of SPETSNAZ, ELM, NZ, AD:KEY, AUTODAFEH, AGREZZIOR, ORANGE SECTOR,KANT KINO, CELLULOIDE, LIGHTS OF EUPHORIA, DIFFUZION, PATENBRIGADE: WOLFF, ACCESSORY, CEPHALGY, AMORPHOUS, VENAL FLESH, PROTECTORATE, STOPPENBERG, CENTHRON, LLUMEN, CARDINAL NOIRE, MILDREDA, CRYTEK, KONER, etc.

The exclusive bonus download link included in this 4CD box also gives you access to some 40 additional songs from artists like MENTALLO & THE FIXER, ACYLUM, SERPENTS, ZOMBIE GIRL, AENGELDUST, EQUITANT, NETZ, STUDIO-X, SIVA SIX, NEIKKA RPM, ESSENCE OF MIND, DEKAD, INTERFACE, NEUTRAL LIES, CIRCUITO CERRADO, TRAGIC IMPULSE, WANT/ED, HELALYN FLOWERS, DIVERJE, SCHWARZBLUT, TOTEM OBSCURA, DIGITAL GEIST, KILMARTH, SIGNAL OPERATOR, ELECTRO SYNTHETIC REBELLION, DIGITAL GEIST, TECHNOID, DEN C.T. BUG, and many more!

The full track listing can be checked right here.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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