British trip-hop band Massive Attack has triggered widespread controversy after projecting footage of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and his family in Gaza tunnels during a June 8 concert at Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena, part of the Lido Festival.

The provocative display, part of a video montage titled “Open the Doors to the Merchants of Death”, has drawn fierce criticism for its perceived insensitivity, given Sinwar’s role in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, which killed over 1,200 people, including 360 at the Nova music festival.

BREAKING @MassiveAttackUK screen footage of mass murderer Yahya Sinwar and his family in tunnels on October 10, 3 days after his men butchered people at a music festival very much like @TheCoopLive and @lidofestival where the video was shown!

Irony really is dead pic.twitter.com/rEbpNI9GvI

— The Electronic Uprising (@uprising_1) June 8, 2025

The footage, originally released by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on February 13, 2024, shows Yahya Sinwar, his wife, and children in a tunnel under Khan Younis on October 10, 2023 – three days after the Hamas-led massacre that sparked the ongoing Gaza war. Additional IDF footage from October 19, 2024, depicted Sinwar preparing a bunker with luxury items like a plasma TV and cash, clearly prioritizing personal survival over Gaza’s civilians. Sinwar, killed by the IDF on October 16, 2024, in Rafah is considered a terrorist leader but viewed by some Palestinian supporters as a resistance figure.

Massive Attack reacts

Massive Attack’s montage, which also featured Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, J. Edgar Hoover, and IDF soldiers, was intended as a critique of global militarism and power structures, per the band’s June 9, 2025, statement.

pic.twitter.com/6shRdzHfaK

— Massive Attack (@MassiveAttackUK) June 9, 2025

The backlash was immediate though. Alex Gandler, deputy spokesperson for Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called the display “just disgusting,” accusing Massive Attack of glorifying a terrorist responsible for the October 7 attack. Marc Levy of the Jewish Representative Council for Greater Manchester stated, “Projecting images of Yahya Sinwar, who orchestrated the murder of hundreds at a music festival, in a similar setting is an affront to victims.”

Massive Attack’s history of criticizing Israel, including supporting Palestinian causes and boycotting Israeli events, fueled accusations of an anti-Israel agenda. The band had previously demanded the removal of Barclays Bank signage from the Co-op Live Arena, citing its alleged investments in arms companies linked to Israel.

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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Trip-hop pioneers Massive Attack will headline Manchester’s Co-op Live arena on June 5, 2025, delivering what will be the UK’s first fully plant-based major concert event. The show is the only UK arena date on the band’s current tour, which also includes performances in London’s Victoria Park, Paris, and Mallorca.

The Bristol-based band, long associated with environmental advocacy, has coordinated with Co-op Live to implement a wide-ranging sustainability initiative for the event. The venue, already operating on 100% electric power and boasting solar panels, rainwater harvesting systems, and a zero-waste-to-landfill policy, will now also serve a completely plant-based food menu. Options will include burgers, bao buns, masala fries, and vegan pizza, plus a selection of mushroom chocolate bars.

According to Co-op Live’s sustainability and community director Sara Tomkins, the collaboration shows the venue’s commitment to supporting artists’ values. “Hosting Massive Attack with a completely plant-based food menu for the first time demonstrates how we can collaborate with artists to go further – creatively and sustainably,” she stated. “It’s a powerful example of the venue’s flexibility and our dedication to encouraging fans to consider sustainable choices.” Mind you, there is no news if the plant-based hamburgers are ultra-processed are not.

Robert “3D” Del Naja of Massive Attack emphasized that the concert will feature a production model focused on minimal emissions. “The Co-op Live gig allows another iteration of the show to materialise and for us to underpin that production with the lowest emissions measures possible,” he said. “We’re pleased that this event will be the first ever 100% plant-based major show in Manchester with an extensive, curated menu, and that the arena is powered by renewables.”

The band also encourages gig-goers to take the train when attending the Manchester performance. “We’ll also be taking the train on part of this tour leg, and if fans can do the same, we’re then acting in unity to create smarter, cleaner events without avoidable pollution, which has to be the future,” Del Naja added.

Tickets are available via the Co-op Live website.

About Massive Attack

Massive Attack was formed in 1988 in Bristol, United Kingdom, by Robert Del Naja (3D), Grant Marshall (Daddy G), and Andrew Vowles (Mushroom). The group emerged from the Wild Bunch sound system and helped pioneer the trip-hop genre, blending electronic music with hip-hop, dub, and soul influences.

Their 1991 debut album “Blue Lines” introduced their atmospheric sound to critical and commercial success, followed by influential releases including “Protection” (1994), “Mezzanine” (1998), and “100th Window” (2003). Del Naja has remained the band’s visual and political voice, integrating artwork, activism, and stage design into live shows.

Massive Attack’s early work circulated among underground audiences before signing to Virgin Records in the early 1990s. The band has remained consistent in its release schedule with a discography that includes EPs, soundtracks, and collaborations with artists such as Elizabeth Fraser, Tricky, and Hope Sandoval.

The current lineup centers around Del Naja and Marshall, with Vowles departing in 1999.

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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(Photos by Doug Moore, Lisa Hagen Glynn, Brady Tuazon and Erik Meharry) Portland-based psychedelic gaze-wave band Sun Atoms has teamed up with Isaac Brock, the frontman of Modest Mouse, to release the single, “Narco Polo“.

Sun Atoms is composed of a group of musicians: Peter G. Holmström (The Dandy Warhols, Pete International Airport) on bass and production, lead vocalist Jsun Atoms (The Upsidedown, Daydream Machine), multi-instrumentalist June Kang, saxophonist and trumpeter Mars de Ponte, drummer Eric Rubalcava, and guitarist Derek Spencer Longoria-Gomez (Hi Hazel).

As Sun Atoms was working on their forthcoming album “Everything Forever”, set to be released on November 8 via Little Cloud Records, Holmström sent Brock early mixes of the track “Narco Polo”. Months later, Brock invited Holmström to his Ice Cream Party Studio in Portland, where Brock recorded his vocal contributions. The song was mixed by producer Jagz Kooner (Massive Attack, Primal Scream) and mastered by Keith Tenniswood (Spiritualized, Death In Vegas).

Ahead of this release, Sun Atoms dropped two singles from their sophomore album. “Ceiling Tiles”, a new wave-influenced track, was paired with a tribute to Leonard Cohen, “Tower of Song”.

Another single, “Take This Love,” came with the B-side “And The Lion Saw The UFO” accompanied by a sci-fi-themed music video shot at Oregon’s famous Airplane Home.

Sun Atoms’ music mixes psychedelic rock, indie pop, and post-punk. Their debut album, “Let There Be Light” (2021), was produced by Holmström and mixed by Stephen Street (Blur, The Smiths). It included collaborations with Alex Maas of The Black Angels, Jasno Swarez of The Vandelles, and producer Gregg Williams (Sheryl Crow, Blitzen Trapper).

Sun Atoms Concerts

• Nov. 09 – Portland, OR – Show Bar at Revolution Hall (with The Veldt, Asteroid #4, and Los Mundos)
• Nov. 16 – Portland, OR – Belltown Yacht Club (with Valley Suns)
• Dec. 11 – Portland, OR – McMenamins Mission Theater (with LSD & The Search For God and TREMOURS) – Little Cloud Records Showcase celebrating The Dandy Warhols’ 30th Anniversary

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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Here’s something for the more eclectic readers. Fresh from his collaboration with producer Adrian Sherwood in 2022, Horace Andy returns with a new album, and a new partnership, too. “Timeless Roots” was recorded with Jah Wobble with production by Jon Klein (Siouxsie & The Banshees).

“Horace is a living legend,” says Wobble. “It is an honour to be able to back him, along with my sons and Jon Klein, on this classic selection of tunes.”

Dropping today, Andy’s new single “One Love” was recorded first in 1991 with trip hop pioneers Massive Attack.

And this is the original version of the track.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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Haujobb has revealed its new video single “Opposition”, which is featuring guest vocals by Emese Árvai-Illés from the Hungarian pop noire duo Black Nail Cabaret. The track is taken from the bandµ’s forthcoming new album “The Machine in the Ghost”. The German duo’s tenth full-length is slated for release on September 20, 2024.

Haujobb says this about the track: “Adding guest vocals towards the end of the song was basically the idea of a Saturday afternoon”, programmer Dejan Samardzic explains on behalf of the duo. “Emese is such a reliable artist, she delivered her impressive vocals within 24 hours. Maybe she sensed the urgency this had for me. I could hardly wait to add that new element to the arrangement as it brought a strong organic feel to it.”

Emese Árvai-Illés adds: “Dejan had some wordless singing in mind, like the side vocals of the Eurythmics’ classic ‘Sweet Dreams’, and he asked me to just improvise”, the Hungarian singer reveals. “I recorded a couple of takes and did some random Adlibs at the end. That gave me somewhat of a Massive Attack ‘Unfinished Sympathy’ feel, but in a more industrial way.”

The video, which you can see below, was created by Boris May (Klangstabil).

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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Portland’s psychedelic gaze-wave band Sun Atoms has unveiled their new 7-inch single “Take This Love” including the B-side “And The Lion Saw The UFO”. The single (out via Little Cloud Records) includes a sci-fi video shot at Oregon’s Airplane Home, created by Bradley Tuazon.

“Take This Love” was mixed by Jagz Kooner (Massive Attack, Primal Scream) and mastered by Keith Tenniswood (Spiritualized, Death In Vegas). The B-side, “And The Lion Saw The UFO”, was recorded with Gregg Williams (Sheryl Crow).

The single follows their earlier release, “Ceiling Tiles” / “Tower of Song (in the key of JAMC)”, and comes ahead of their sophomore album, set for autumn release.

The band members of Sun Atoms are Peter G. Holmström on bass and guitar, Jsun Atoms handling vocals and guitar, June Kang as a multi-instrumentalist, Mars de Ponte on guitar and keys, Eric Rubalcava on drums, and Derek Spencer Longoria-Gomez on guitar and vocals.

They debuted in 2021 with the album “Let There Be Light”, produced by Peter G. Holmström and mixed by iconic producer Stephen Street (Blur, The Smiths, The Cranberries), involving contributions by The Black Angels’ Alex Maas, The Vandelles’ Jasno Swarez and Gregg Williams (Sheryl Crow, Blitzen Trapper).

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 New Hampshire-based electronic duo Delusive Relics have unveiled a new single, “Fairy Ring”. The single is the follow-up to last year’s “Mercury in Retrograde” single.

“Fairy Ring” is available on all major digital platforms including Bandcamp and Spotify.

Delusive Relics mix elements of genres such as synthpop, industrial, eBM and electronic rock and are inspired by artists such as Depeche Mode, Massive Attack, NIN, Gary Numan.

Regarding the song’s title, a fairy ring is a naturally occurring circular or arc-shaped pattern of mushrooms or other fungi that grows in grassy areas. These rings are formed by the underground mycelium (network of fungal threads) of certain fungi, and the mushrooms or toadstools that appear above ground are the reproductive structures of the fungi.

Fairy rings can vary in size, with some being just a few feet in diameter and others reaching up to 50 feet or more. The mycelium in the soil expands outward from a central point, and as it depletes nutrients in the center, mushrooms sprout in a ring where the mycelium is still active.

Throughout history, fairy rings have been surrounded by folklore and myths. In European folklore, it was believed that fairy rings were created by dancing fairies during the night. Different cultures have various superstitions and legends associated with these mysterious rings, often linking them to magical or supernatural events.

Here’s the video for the track.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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Genre/Influences: Dark-Jazzy, Chanson, Experimental.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: This is the self-titled debut album of Italian formation Waveshard. Driven by Adriano Vincenti,  Giovanni Leonardi and singer Simona Navasinskiene “Waveshard” has been also featuring Belgian wind instrumentalist, Izzy Op de Beeck.

Content: “Waveshard” is mixing styles and influences becoming a true sonic symbiosis and revelation. You for sure gone notice Dark-Jazzy influences accentuated by trumpet parts and other wind instruments but the composition is also featuring Electronic sound treatments and field recordings. A slow rhythm brings all the elements together resulting in an imaginary offspring between Melanie De Biasio and Massive Attack.

+ + + : I really had a crush listening to this album which I’ve listened to non-stop during the past few days. It’s a styled, refined, and fully artistic creation revealing enlightening melancholia. The mix between all instruments and especially the symbiosis between electronics, field recordings and real instruments has something supernatural. The sound of trumpet excels, creating the spirit of this work. The fragile vocals of Simona Navasinskiene are complementary with the music. The album features 8 songs and there’s no single cut to throw away. This is the right music for an imaginary film-noir but also a great composition to relax and dream away in darkness.

– – – : I don’t have real minus points to mention.

Conclusion: Waveshard is a great and talented formation which I can only encourage to move on. This band has something magic and that’s because of their authentic sound.

Best songs: “Hardships Fade”, “Horse’s Eye”, “Borealis”, “Murder By Love – Seaside Remix”.

Rate: 9.

Artist: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089688952847

Label: www.corvusbg.com / https://www.facebook.com/CorvusRecordsBG

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: Industrial-Pop, Electro, Experimental, Chanson.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: “Black Spaced dust & Memories” is the new album by the duo Martin King (Test Dept.) – Roberto Soave. They invited singers Frankie Nardiello aka ‘Groovie Mann’ (My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult), Jared Louche (Chemlab, Prude), Steven Archer (Ego Likeness, Stoneburner), Coral Scere (Scere, Silver Walks), Cat Hall (Dissonance), Daz Sharp and Melodywhore.

Content: This album covers a wide range of influences which have been mainly carried by Industrial sound treatments and slow rhythms. It’s quite surprising discovering Chanson and Minimal-Pop driven by Industrial sound treatments. Dogtablet brings different genres together, sometimes connecting totally unexpected elements with each other. I also noticed several sensual passages because of the deep vocals and cadence. It might appeal to lovers of Massive Attack. I don’t know if the last cut “Back To Black” might be seen as a free, instrumental, adaptation of the famous Amy Whinehouse song but it clearly sounds like a cool wink.

+ + + : This album took me by surprise. It took me a few seconds to realize I was listening to something totally different from what I’m used to. The dark sound treatments and Industrial sphere caught my attention -so you’ll not be surprised that a Test Dept. member is hiding behind this project. But I’m totally devoted to this creative process revealing a brilliant and challenging approach. It sounds minimal and somewhat inhibited on one side but also features heavy, blasting, Industrial sound treatments on the other side. There also is a very nice selection of vocalists which really adapted themselves to the music. I definitely like the Massive Attack inspired “Fall Panic” feat. Jared Louche but also “Tar Pit” feat. Daz Sharp, “Profiler X&Y” feat. Melodywhore, “These Remains” feat. Steve Archer and the already mentioned, instrumental, “Back To Black”.

– – – : The single cut that couldn’t convince me is “The Dreamer” feat. Catt Hall. This one sounds as if there’s no real match between music and vocals. 

Conclusion: This work sounds totally out of the box but it’s the kind of challenge I fully support; original and efficient featuring a few beautiful cuts.

Best songs: “Fall Panic”, “Tar Pit”, “Profiler X&Y”, “These Remains”, “Back To Black”, “Even & Only”, “Desire”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/Dogtablet

Label: www.distortionprod.com / www.facebook.com/distortionproductions

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: Trip-Pop, Experimental.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: Lucy Kruger is a German artist who has already released a few albums. Together with ‘The Lost Boys’ who are guest musicians she this year released her newest work “Heaving” which is also available through Metropolis.

Content: It’s not that easy defining the sound of this project but it comes pretty close to Trip-Pop and reminds me of great projects like Portishead, Massive Attack and even Björk. I’m not saying Lucy Kruger is a copyist as the sound also has something personal with the singer’s fragile timbre of voice on top.

+ + + : Trip-Pop or simply ‘Free-Pop’ style; the stamp you’re putting on it doesn’t make sense. The music is good, personal and accessible. It sometimes sounds like ‘controlled chaos’ mixing electronics together with different instruments like drums, guitar, bass guitar, piano, violin… I like the fragile timbre of the voice which is also passionate. This album sounds sweet and dark.

– – – : The music is accessible but not directly comparable to established standards so it might take a few listening before you get into it.

Conclusion: Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys is an interesting project for its retro-visionary approach.

Best songs: “Howl”, “Tender”, “Burning Building”, “Undress”.

Rate: 7½. 

Artist: www.lucykrugerandthelostboys.com / www.facebook.com/LucyKrugerOfficial

Label: www.facebook.com/Uniquerec

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: Cinematic, Electro-Ambient.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Romane Millet is a French, female, artist hailing from Lyon. I noticed she already released a few more works while “High On The Moon” features five songs.

Content: This is an instrumental production taking off with a track reminding me of Massive Attack for its deep, penetrating, bass line mixed with a slow cadence and a dark atmosphere. The other tracks left are a little different although still supported by dark and mysterious sound collages. I noticed some extra elements like Psychedelia and Trance accentuated by the effect of chants.

+ + + : This artist wants to make you travel and I think that’s exactly what the music stands for. It sounds a bit unique, making the originality of the project. The darkness creates a mysterious touch which is empowered by low, resonating, bass lines. I like “Alien” for its Massive Attack flavor but also highly recommend listening to “Lamania” for the uplifting rhythmic and “Icaros” becoming a bit Trance-like.

– – – : I regret there are only 5 songs featured while I’m wondering how the project would sound like with a few vocal lines.

Conclusion: Hallucinoscope doesn’t set the world alight but it’s a project to keep an eye on and I really hope to hear more stuff from this artist.

Best songs: “Icaros”, “Lamania”, “Alien”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: https://linktr.ee/hallucinoscope

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

Mark Stewart, a pioneering figure in post-punk and industrial hip-hop, passed away in the early hours of Friday, 21 April 2023. Born on 28 April 1960, Stewart was an English singer and founding member of The Pop Group.

Mute label boss Daniel Miller, a close friend of Stewart, shared his fond memories: “I’ve known Mark as a mate and fellow traveller for over 40 years since he was the lead singer of The Pop Group. I have countless brilliant memories of him – some odd, some outrageous, but always inspiring and somehow purposeful. His musical influence has been far greater than often recognised. He was always supportive of young artists, particularly those local to him in Bristol – many have gone on to become international stars. His warmth and kindness as a friend have always been incredibly important to me. We had so many laughs together, and he had such creative energy. The last time I saw Mark was a few months ago in Bristol, performing an improvised set with Lee Ranaldo. He was nothing short of hilarious, his piece essentially a stand-up routine, and after the show, we spent hours putting the world to rights, a fantastic memory. I’ll miss him dearly. Mark, I can’t imagine you being anything other than restless, but I hope you find your unique peace.”

Gareth Sager, founding member of The Pop Group adds: “Mark was the most brilliant mind of our generation, rest in peace.”

Adrian Sherwood, who collaborated with Stewart via his On-U Sound Records label, expressed his heartfelt appreciation: “Cheers, my brother. You were the most significant musical influence in my life, and our extended family will miss you dearly. Eternal love.”

Stewart formed The Pop Group in Bristol in 1977 as a teenager. Influenced by dub and reggae, driven by political conviction and sonic experimentation, the band released their debut album, “Y”, that same year – a defining album of its era. After The Pop Group disbanded following a final performance at a significant CND rally in 1980, Stewart continued working with CND and, inspired by the emerging hip-hop scene in New York, collaborated with dub pioneer Adrian Sherwood to create the 1983 album “Learning to Cope with Cowardice”. His solo discography continued with 1985’s “As the Veneer of Democracy Starts to Fade” and spanned the next two decades, culminating with 2012’s “The Politics of Envy”.

In 2010, The Pop Group reformed, driven by renewed political disillusionment, and delivered a series of incendiary live performances, recording two new studio albums. Their last performance with Stewart took place in the ruins of Coventry Cathedral, invited by Terry Hall for Coventry UK City of Culture 2021.

Stewart recorded for On-U Sound Records and Mute Records during his career. He leaves behind a unique and significant body of work, encompassing The Pop Group, his solo efforts, collaborations with artists such as Trent Reznor, Tricky, Massive Attack, Chicks on Speed, ADULT., and Primal Scream, and his conceptual art. Mark Stewart’s creative impact has been immense – as Nick Cave stated, he “changed everything” – and his influence will continue to resonate through the music, art, and political activism of generations of artists inspired by his creative work, energy, and spirit.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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(Photo by Nick Knight) – Elita announces the release of their debut album, Dysania, available today through the Opposition label. The album addresses themes such as narcissism, mental health, gender stereotypes, and coping with intrusive thoughts while incorporating humor and a lighthearted tone. The album artwork was created by British photographer Nick Knight, known for working with Björk, Lady Gaga, Massive Attack, Billie Eilish, and other artists.

The opening track, “Serial Killer,” follows previously released singles “Mentally Not Here,” “It’s a Joke,” “Sleep Paralysis,” and “She Bangs Like a Fairy On Acid.”

Discussing the follow-up to the band’s 2021 EP, “Anxiety Angel”, guitarist/keyboardist Tim Rypien says, “We wanted to explore new sounds and keep the songs simple. We toured the U.S. in 2021 following the release of our last EP. Playing live made us want to write music that was more impactful. Most of Dysania differs significantly from our past, more understated sound. Some parts may surprise our fans.”

Elita’s debut album delves into a dystopian world that lies between a dream and a nightmare. It tells the story of a femme fatale and can be described as a soundtrack reminiscent of Fight Club meeting FernGully. The music combines nostalgic and modern elements, creating a hi-fi/lo-fi atmosphere with a diverse range of sounds, including instrumentals that experiment with video game core and Nintendo-inspired drums.

A notable track is the before mentioned opening track “Serial Killer” which exemplifies the dystopian themes of the Dysania album. The song portrays an individualistic mindset in pursuit of fame in Los Angeles and adds a playful spin to this common sentiment. Discussing the song, Rypien says, “Many of our interactions in LA were unusual. People seemed indifferent towards one another. Most of the individuals we encountered were self-absorbed and overly opportunistic, as if their sole purpose was to promote their brand and climb the social ladder. It’s not exclusive to LA, though. Much of social media shares this aspect. We channeled our inner psycho-narcissist for this song.” Elita Harkov adds, “For me, the lyrics address fame and how people in the entertainment industry are treated, as if they’re being drained. There’s a prevailing vibe in LA that people will do anything to become well-known. I find the song amusing.”

Check out the video for “It’s a joke”.

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: Trip-Pop, Indie-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: “Borders” is the debut album by the Düsseldorfer (Germany) trio SixTurnsNine.

Content: It’s not that easy defining the sound of this band but it’s clearly driven by Trip-Pop influences -sometimes reminding me of Massive Attack, and a kind of Minimal-Pop approach. The songs are all Electronic although carried by deep, resonating, bass lines played by a real bass. The rhythm is slow while the female vocals have something captivating and now and then reminding me of Tori Amos.

+ + + : There are pretty good ideas running throughout the work but I especially want to mention the excellent bass lines and some of the vocal parts. “Fatigue” is a great piece of music which will definitely appeal for Massive Attack fans.

– – – : Different aspects of the production -like the repetitive drum patterns and the lack of elaboration, could be improved.

Conclusion: Nothing groundbreaking but a few pleasant songs featured on this work.

Best songs: “Fatigue”, “Flames”.

Rate: 6½.

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

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: Ethereal, Industrial.

Format: Digital, Vinyl.

Background/Info: Three years after Orbel’s debut album “Hegan” the French group delivers a second opus featuring eight songs.

Content: It’s not an easy job defining the sound universe of Orbel. The opening track sounds dark and intriguing, briefly evoking Massive Attack with ethereal vocals on top. The Ethereal aspect appears to be a red line all over the album featuring heavenly, female, voices and Basque. Sound-wise you’ll discover heavy, Industrial, like guitar play mixed with dark atmospheres and slow rhythms.

+ + + : Orbel’s sound universe has something fascinating and mysterious. They bring different influences together resulting in a kind of ‘Apocalyptic-Industrial-Ethereal & Post-Rock’-sound. It makes the particularity and originality of the work while the vocals have this bewitching sensation.

– – – : I regret there are only eight songs featured while some of them are pretty short.

Conclusion: Orbel is an interesting discovery dealing with an interesting mix of Ethereal and Industrial.

Best songs: “Irentsi”, “Orbain Irekiak”, Heriozko Giltza”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.weareorbel.com / www.facebook.com/weareorbel

Labels: www.usopop.com/fr/usopop-diskak/ www.facebook.com/usopop / www.facebook.com/medicationtimerecords

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

Trepanation Recordings has announced the imminent release of “The Anchorhold Dissolution” by Leicester (UK) based Phil Stiles versus Seattle (USA) based DJ Shane Aungst on digital download and limited edition CD on 10th June. You can pre-order your copy, as well as a bundle featuring “The Anchorhold” and “The Anchorhold Dissolution”, right here from Bandcamp.

For this release the duo was influenced by the likes of Nine Inch Nail’s “Fixed” and Massive Attack Vs The Mad Professor. “Dissolution” is a fresh take on 2021’s “The Anchorhold” album with DJ Shane Aungst rebuilding the album from the ground up, remixing each of the pieces and adjusting the running order to create something entirely new. As we all know the splendid work Shane Aungst has delivered for our “Face The Beat” series, you can be sure that this album follows the same quality path.

Phil actually first encountered Shane via his remixwork for our very own “Face the Beat” series, produced in conjunction with Side-Line Magazine.

The result was not unlike the original Anchorhold collaborations, where each of the guest artists brought something wholly unique to the record, and the pair began talking. Initially, the idea was for Shane to remix one or two songs, but in the end ideas for a grander project formed – a full album remix that would allow Shane to put his own stamp on the whole record. The musical conclusion is “The Anchorhold Dissolution” billed as ‘Phil Stiles Vs Shane Aungst’.

Of the project, Phil said: “I honestly never expected that Shane would have the time or the interest to create an entirely new vision for the album. When we started talking, it was one of our various late-night rambles and we were chatting about some of the artists that we both love. Perhaps inevitably Nine Inch Nails came up, and we started talking about how amazing it was that Trent was able to present versions of his records that were substantially different and yet really added something to the experience.
The next thing I know, Shane starts sending through these amazing versions of songs from The Anchorhold. Each take offers something different, but what I didn’t release until the end was that Shane had a masterplan, creating a new sequence that saw the songs become increasingly splintered until the molten-vinyl finale of It Follows Me. For me, despite having worked for over a year on the original record, it was like hearing the album for the first time, and I am so happy that Shane was able to create something that took the intent of the original and filtered it through his own, highly individual vision.”

With new artwork, once again from Final Coil’s Jola Stiles, and additional mastering from Phil, “The Anchorhold Dissolution” is now available in pre-order. You can already check a first track, “C21H22N2O2”, right below.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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Available now is the brand new video from the LA based dark trip-hop act Shexist, “Jove”. For the video the band has partnered with The Psychodelics Trips, a Chilean producer. Expect a blend of ingredients from Massive Attack, Mazzy Star and Portishead.

Here’s what Shexist as to say about this new video: “I experienced frequent lucid dreams while pregnant in 2021. One dream in particular was so profound, it was conceived out of the dreamscape and escaped into waking life. ‘Jove’ is the experience of a cycle of life and birth coinciding with the transition of the planet Jupiter.”

Here’s the video for “Jove” and check here to find more releases from Shexist.

About Shexist

Born and raised in Central California, Shexist landed in Los Angeles California in 1999. Beginning at the time of her arrival – and under several artistic names and guises, she began working with local artists and producers in the Los Angeles underground Hip Hop and Electronic music scenes.

Over the following years, Shexist recorded, guest performed and/or shared the stage with legendary artist Phoenix Orion, Dutch audio / visual fine artist and electronic music producer 0010×0010, Zen r.el.z.m of The Visionaries, David Harrow, Storyteller and futurist Mark Gonzalez, Spontaneous, Brendan Russell, European producer/artist Mirrorman, Mr. Moods of Dusted Wax Kingdom, TAWk, Soulflower, Dead Prez, Goapele, The 7Seven Sisters and more.

In 2012 she released “In The Fog“, a collaboration album between artist/producer Mirrorman and Shexist. More recent projects include, “She’ll never be me” a song by 0010X0010 and Shexist which was featured in the movie “Compulsion” starring Analeigh Tipton. “Just You and Me”, a song by Adolfo Alexi and Shexist was featured in a Dolly Parton Netflix series,”Heartstrings”. Shexist’s primary project with bandmate Brendan Russell, Tigercide, released their EP “The Remedy” in 2019 and are currently working on the release of a remix album of “The Remedy” due to be released in Spring of 2022.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

13 years ago, that’s how long Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser has not released new solo music, but that is about to change as she will release a Record Store Day related EP. The EP, released under the Sun’s Signature moniker, will be the first release by the singer since she recorded and released the song “Moses”, written with Damon Reece and the late Jake-Drake Brockman, in 2009.

The title of the EP is simply called “Sun’s Signature” and will be out on April 23rd on black vinyl. The EP will hold five songs and will be released through Partisan Records. Only 8000 copies will be available worldwide.

Tracks included are “Underwater”, “Golden Air”, “Bluedusk”, “Apples” and “Make Lovely The Day”.

Sun’s Signature is the duo consisting of Elizabeth Fraser and English drummer Damon Reece (Spiritualized, Echo & the Bunnymen, Lupine Howl, Massive Attack, The Orb, Way Out West, Feist, Goldfrapp, Fuzzy Logic)

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

Out now is the newest single by Emika & Rødhåd who united for the track “I Knew Your Name Before You Were Born”. The track is taken from part two of Emika’s “Vega” trilogy, a collection that shifts between synths, minimalist piano, and pounding techno.

On “Vega” you can expect collaborations with Horace Andy (Massive Attack), Leila Moss (The Duke Spirit) and Robert Ames. All in all it celebrates 10 years since the release of Emika’s debut self-titled album on Ninja Tune.

Check out the single below.

About Emika

Ema Jolly aka Emika, is an English electronic musician of Czech origin currently residing in Berlin. Since 2009, Emika has appeared on tracks with the likes of Pinch, Kryptic Minds, Paul Frick and MyMy.

Her self-titled debut album was released in October 2011 via Ninja Tune preceded by several single: her debut single “Drop the Other”, the second single “Double Edge” (May 2010), “Count Backwards” (April 2011) and “Pretend/Professional Loving” (September 2011).

Since then she released various albums, mini-albums and singles next to a string of collaborations.

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 2020 Transmission unleashed the debut album “Cosmos” on Wave Records. The French solo-project is driven by Sandrine Deville. She’s dealing with a rather Minimal-Electro/Wave style with some violin tunes on top. It’s a fascinating- and accomplished experiment revealing an artist with a very own and creative approach. Here’s what Sandrine has to say about Transmission.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: How did you get contaminated by the music virus and finally come to set up your own music project?

Sandrine: I began to learn how to play violin at the Ferney-Voltaire regional conservatorium of music, in France, when I was ten years old, during four years. And, this was the time I listened to bands like A-Ha, Alphaville, U2, Pink Floyd, The Cure at the junior high school of my city, and, maybe one of the most influent band that led me to practice guitar, Dire Straits and the song “Money For Nothing”, for which I recorded a tape with this same only track, that I listened to for hours, showing me the power of music to immerse myself in a very special universe, at a high noise levels of my headphones.

I could define for Dire Straits a word that I will use to define my own music project: ‘soundscape’, when you discover landscapes from beautiful sounds. There also was Depeche Mode with the track “Never Let Me Down Again”, and, of course, Joy Division with the incredible bassline of “She’s Lost Control” were offering beautiful soundscapes to my ears when I was a teenager. Today I feel the same, but with other bands like Massive Attack, Bauhaus, Bowie, Linea Aspera, The Soft Moon, Kraftwerk, PJ Harvey, Nine Inch Nails, Kas Product.

On one hand, I wanted to play guitar in a band when I was teenager, but on the other hand, there were a lot of excellent guitarists and I was not, so, I decided to learn playing bass guitar. First, I was a bass player in a Funk/Folk /Psyche band called Hopupu and later on in between 2011 and 2016 in a Cold-Wave duo called Rive Droite Rive Gauche.

Then, I wanted to create my own music project and, after a few years of involvement with various bands, from Post-Punk to Punk, I decided to create the Electro/Dark-Wave solo-project called Transmission, recording first the track “Cosmos”.

Q: The name of your project is clearly reminding one of Joy Division’s legendary songs. Is it just a coincidence or clearly a link with some of your main sources of inspiration? What kind of sound did you’ve in mind when setting up Transmission?

Sandrine: Joy Division is one of my favorite bands. I adore all their songs and the atmosphere of “Shadowplay” gives me goosebumps each time I listen to this track. As I passed my bachelor in design in Toulouse (France) in 2018, I presented “Transmission”, the all white 3D printed Electro-Acoustic violin I created, inspired by pulsars shape, those mysterious white lines that we can see on the artwork of the LP “Unknown Pleasures” from Joy Division, and designed by Peter Saville. So, in this way, I could say that the name of my project is inspired by Joy Division, but mainly the white lines of the artwork of “Unknown Pleasures”. We can discover more about my violin called ‘Transmission’ on my own artist website here:

https://www.bluefactoriz.com/transmission

And we can discover more about my violin too, from pages 277 to 286 of the book of Pedro Peñas y Robles called “Joy Division, Paroles De Fans”, Editions Camion Blanc, 2018, here:

http://www.camionblanc.com/detail-livre-joy-division-paroles-de-fans-1216.php

Regarding the sound of my project, the effects are allusion to any effects used by the brilliant Martin Hanett for the soundscape of Joy Division, but, the kind of sound, the essence of the sound, come from a lot of references, as Kraftwerk, Nitzer Ebb, Covenant, Nine Inch Nails, Massive Attack, Linea Aspera, Boy Harsher, Buzz Kull, Minuit Machine, Years Of Denial, Kas Product.

Q: You last year released your debut album “Cosmos”. Tell us a bit more about the writing- and production process of this opus and what did you try to express lyrical wise?

Sandrine:The process of the composition was the same for all the tracks; I switched on my Korg Minilogue, synchronized with the little Korg Volca Sampler for the drums, and I tried to play live with this set up, recording a bass line using the Minilogue when I thought I could have something interesting. Then, recording this on my PC using Ableton software, I began to look for a structure, and sing the violin line, and the melody, or writing the words for the future track. Many times, I wasn’t able to record the exact bassline I wanted on the synth, and then, I tried to do my best with this new sound. Tracks like “Cosmos” and “Désuétude” both are like soflty spoken words; tracks like “De Stijl” or “Echouées” both are using punchy spoken words. As a reference, I could say that “Désuétude” is inspired by the way Anne Clark is ‘screaming’; “Cloud 9” and “Illusion” are both mixing spoken words, and a melodic chorus. I was very happy, too, in the way I used different languages: French, English, German, and Spanish too. For the lyrics, sometimes, first, I wrote them, and sometimes, they came after the soundscape, it depended of the feeling I had at the moment of the creation phase.

Q: I’m always wondered why there’re no more female artists composing Electronic underground music? Do you’ve an explanation and what have been your experiences as female artist in this scene so far?

Sandrine: I really don’t know why there are no more female artists composing Electronic underground music. Well, one of the most iconic is Anne Clarke, but today, we have the excellent solo-project of Alison Lewis called Zanias who’s also involved with the excellent duo Linea Aspera and Keluar. In France we have the excellent female duo from Paris, called Oktober Lieber. And there is also the excellent female solo-project called Hante from Hélène De Thoury who’s also member of the female duo Minuit Machine.  In the USA, even if it is a mixed duo, there is the excellent Boy Harsher. And I recently discovered the solo-undergound artist from New-York called Ani Klang. I also think to the excellent first LP “Push” from the L.A based Iranian producer and DJ Maral. In Germany there is in a dark, clubby style Ellen Allien.

So even if there are less female artists involved, I think that there will be more and more female Electronic underground artists. As I am beginning in this scene, I don’t have yet a lot of experience, the only thing I could write, is that I think that maybe women have to forget their shyness (if they are), and to prove by themselves that they can make Electronic underground music as well as male artists.

Q: Transmission has been introduced as a solo-project although you got some help to achieve “Cosmos”. Tell us a bit more about this collaboration and what has been the impact and bonus on the final result?

Sandrine: At the beginning of the year of 2019, I had a first demo of the track “Cosmos”, and I was wondering how to go on with this project. Thanks to my duo Rive Droite Rive Gauche I met a lot of people of the Gothic scene of Bordeaux who became good friends. In January, I went with two friends to the Nitzer Ebb gig in Bordeaux, and, then, we met a lot of friends of the Gothic scene of the city like Jean-Philippe Torres who has his Drone Studio. He is also one of the musicians of the excellent duo Dark Line Spectrum; Speaking with him, it became to me an evidence that he could be the most appropriate friend to achieve “Cosmos”. I sent him the demo of “Cosmos”, “Désuétude” and “Echouées” in order to know if this project could have an interest for him, and, as he was enthusiastic about this, then, we began a very friendly and productive collaboration.

The process was for each track the same; I sent to Jean-Philippe the ‘pre-mixed tracks’ by wetransfer, and then, he added his additional synths and old-school rhythm box, made the sound design and the arrangements, and the mix and mastering. It was perfect! I am used to comparing him to Martin Hanett. Martin Hanett defined the special soundscape of Joy Division, and Jean-Philippe defined the special soundscape of “Cosmos” and I think that he made my dream come true: having my debut LP realized on a good label.

Q: It’s probably a bit risky and also a true challenge to release a debut album during the ongoing pandemic. How do you –and Wave Records, manage this aspect and how do you expect things evolving considering live performances, further releases and  plans?

Sandrine: I really thanks so much Alex from Wave Records. I know that, in this special context of this long pandemic, the action of releasing albums for new artists, is a very risky business for the labels, moreover, for independents labels, as they don’t know how they can sell the albums and if people will buy or not a debut work.  Alex is doing his best for the promotion of the album with a large number of contacts, with an effective sharing on the social network, on Youtube too for the videoclips of various tracks I realized myself.

I gave my first gig on the 2^nd of July, thanks to the association Distopia Mutante of San Sebastian in Spain, and it was an unbelievable good moment as there was a good interaction between the public and me. It is since January that Distopia Mutante tried to organize a gig for my project. But finally we did it, at the beginning of July, and we hope that there will be others. I hope I will be able to perform at other places and in other countries, even if we don’t know what the future will be.

Thinking about the second album of Transmission, I will not change the way I am using to create the sounds, and I am thinking about around ten tracks that could explain a lot of feelings that we are facing to in a whole life, using various BPM’s.

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

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange) “Fasan” by Norwegian Giants is released on their own label Norwegian Giants, established in 2015. Tarjei Krogh is the main producer, having his wingmen Joakim DenGode and Markus Storm by his side. Their goal is to gather all kinds of vocalists and instrumentalists all over the globe to create new types of music and exciting combinations and variations, their motto being: We don´t follow trends, only our hearts!

Tarjei told us more about the project via chat and e-mail.

Side-Line: There’s a lot of collaborations on this album – care to take us through song by song, telling it’s story and who participated?

Tarjei Krogh: ‘Hello Aloha’ is a collaboration with a great Norwegian sound designer and artist, Continental Fruit. He is very into modular electronic equipment,  which is easy to hear in his other releases available on various platforms. He tweaked one of our older tracks into something new and made it more refreshing.

‘Good God’ is a collaboration with Kim Castle and Lisa Rockfield, two vocalists and producers we will collaborate with more in the future. They have such open minds and have been producing rap songs, rock and lots of various electronica.

‘Mhmhm‘. Ten years ago I met this amazing young jazz singer/songwriter Renate Rubini. She had a significant voice reminding me of Janis Joplin, but a softer version of that. It took some years to make her like my electronic tracks, but we ended up recording lots of songs and are actually nearly ready with an album. You can find two of our earlier tracks on Spotify and two videos on YouTube if you look up “Cupid Rubini”.

‘You‘ is a collaboration with the brilliant talented Norwegian singer/songwriter Hanne Haugsand, also known as Tundra Mode and Psykosister. She has also been involved with Kant Kino and Anstalt, has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest and been on several big tv-shows in Norway. And the weird thing is, I have only met her two times. One of the times was when Nitzer Ebb and Skinny Puppy played live in Rockefeller, Oslo. Even took a picture of her and Ogre!

‘Shelter‘. Manuela Hofer is a digital artist and has a voice that stands out from the crowd. I was originally remixing a track with her ten years ago, and asked her to send me some vocals and ended up pasting her in on an older track . I met Isak Rypdal in my early 20’s and he was supposed to join our band Anstalt at that time, but we ended up being friends instead. I’ve been remixing his band Electro Spectre back in the days, and I just had to cut out some of their vocals to combine them with Manuela. I have never met Manuela in person, so thank God for the internet!

‘Here we go again‘. Some years ago I shared an office with the best rap managers in Norway. One of these guys had a girlfriend named Lisa who was very into electronic music, and we started sharing music online. This could have been a great collaboration, but we totally lost contact, telephone numbers and email. Luckily I got 4 vocals and just had to release the first one. Never met her either.

‘Move on‘. I met Elvebakk at a barbeque on our peninsula Nesodden, right outside of Oslo. We ended up discussing music and I was surprised he loved stuff like Thom Yorke, The Cure and Joy Division. A very kind being with a rich taste in music. He sent me some of his own stuff and I loved the characteristics in his voice. Strangely we ended up with a dance track. I hope to get him to participate in some downtempo stuff in the future.

‘Perpetual‘ is a dive into what always will be a big part of me, Electronic Body Music and Synth Pop. I tried many different vocalists on this track, but ended up keeping it almost instrumental. I used a lot of analog and some modular equipment on this one. It is one of my own favourites. I guess less is more sometimes.

S-L: What’s the connection between this album and all the Norwegian Beats releases on Spotify?

TK: Norwegian Beats was a way to inspire vocalists to contribute to our future releases. We have made 20 collections so far, but will in the future focus mainly on releasing our “real” albums. ‘Fasan’ is our first real album and the beats are up for grabs for anyone to contribute, so we can include new artists on our future releases. Norwegian Giants is supposed to be a mix of a label and a band – a big collective where anything is possible. Like if you combined Röyksopp, Gorillaz or Massive Attack with Mute Records and Ninja Tune. Maybe a bit outdated references, but these are the best examples that comes to mind when concerning brilliant work.

S-L: More releases ahead or other plans?

TK: We are doing things backwards, so we are now gonna make three EPs with remixes, radio versions and videos for three of the songs on the album ‘Fasan’. We also have a new album almost ready to be released early in 2022 named ‘1969’. We will also continue to search and find new artists to collaborate with in Norway and in Europe as well. And set sails like the vikings before us.

Jan Ronald Stange

Sometimes – when I’m not cooking, biking, listening to music or attending concerts, I write stuff for Side-Line.com. Mostly about Norwegian bands, but it’s been some Swedish, English, American, Danish, German and others too… 😉

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Maytea Cruz, singer of the defunct idm electro act Lethargy, is back with an all new project: Golden Tears. Out now is Golden Tears’ debut EP “Yggdrasil” which dives into arctic circle electronic sounds and pagan chants. Musically you can expect a mix of ancient drums, horns, voice, synths. Maytea describes the EP as “a magical ritual journey created as an offering to the Goddess Freya and the God Odin from the Norse mythology.”

Lethargy was one of our favorite electronic acts back in the good old days. Formed in Madrid (Spain) in 1992 by Mayte Cruz and Julio Tomé it mixed electronics with sensual female vocals. The duo offered a kind of a mix between Massive Attack and Autechre, with a touch of Lassigue Bendthaus. They debuted with the album “Escapa” on Núcleo Records in 2001 and then released “In-Macula” on Black Flames Records in 2003. Their 3rd and so far final album was the 2008 release “Music Biz” on Zoo Recordings.

After Lethargy Maytea Cruz has continued making music for example under the Aruna May moniker offering relaxing soft music. Aruna May released one album so far (“Human” in 2018) and 3 singles (“Vida” in 2021, and “Monosílabo de sal” and “White whale” in 2020).

The “Yggdrasil” EP features 4 tracks as you can see below (2 tracks and 2 ‘Underscore versions’). Warmly recommended.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

(Photo by Sheffield Leithart) Gone to Color is an experimental rock/electronic music duo originally formed in Cincinnati and currently coexisting in Atlanta and Washington D.C. Core members Tyler Bradley Walker and Matt Heim frequently and they have just released their newest single “Illusions” featuring guest vocalist Ade Blackburn of Clinic.

The release acts as a teaser for Gone To Color’s debut LP will also feature Angus Andrew (Liars), Martina Topley-Bird (Massive Attack / Tricky), Kurt Wagner (Lambchop), Jessie Stein (The Luyas), Carson Cox (Merchandise) and members of Wilco and Guster. The record was co-produced by Brian Deck (Modest Mouse, Grandaddy) with additional engineering from John McEntire (Tortoise).

“Illusions” is the band’s 3rd single so far from the forthcoming self-titled debut album, out October 15. Next to guest vocals from Ade Blackburn of Liverpool band Clinic, the song also features contributions from Pat Sansone of Wilco, Luke Reynolds of Guster, Brian Deck and Richard Devine.

You can check it out below.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Out in a little more than a week is the collaborative project between Nordic electropop diva Karin Park (Årabrot) and legendary electronic pioneer Lustmord. “Alter” is the pair’s first collaborative work and holds nine tracks.

You can already check out a first track “Hiraeth” right below. And for those unaware who these two excellent artists are, below we added some extra info.

About Karin Park

Karin Park made her debut in 2003 with the single “Superworldunknown”. After the release of her second album “Change Your Mind” (2006), the music developed in a new, darker and more synth-based direction. The third album, “Ashes To Gold” (2009), was produced by Fredrik Saroea, frontman of the Norwegian band Datarock.

Following this record, Karin has continued to develop a more experimental, beat-oriented sound. Karin Park is also a well known producer, who has done remixes for other bands and co-produced the latest Årabrot record “Who do you love” with her husband Kjetil Nernes, frontman in Årabrot.

Together with her brother David Park, Portsmouth based producer Barry Barnet and the Swedish producer Christoffer Berg (known for his work with The Knife, Fever Ray, Massive Attack and Little Dragon’s Yukimi Nagano), she made her fourth album, “Highwire Poetry” (2012). In 2015, she released her fifth studio album “Apocalypse Pop”.

Her new band project Pandora Drive is London based and released their first EP “Albino Heart” in 2018.

Aside from her musical career, Karin Park occasionally works as a model and an actress. She starred in the Norwegian horror film Hidden (2009) and her song “Out of the Cage” was the theme track to the film.

About Lustmord

Brian Williams is a Welsh industrial musician, sound designer and film score composer. He is often credited for creating the dark ambient genre with albums recorded under the name Lustmord.

Williams was raised in rural Wales, before relocating to London in his late teens where he befriended Throbbing Gristle members Cosey Fanni Tutti and Chris Carter, who urged him to make his own music. He started recording as Lustmord in 1980 before joining SPK in 1982.

Some of Lustmord’s most notable collaborations include Robert Rich on “Stalker”, Jarboe, John Balance of Coil, Monte Cazazza, Clock DVA, Chris & Cosey, Paul Haslinger, and Melvins on “Pigs of the Roman Empire”.

In short, an electronic music pioneer.

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: Wave-Pop, Industrial, Ambient.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Originally set up in 1986 and remaining active until 1991, Swedish formation Fatal Casualties went into hibernation until they started a second life in 2010. After having released three significant albums on Seja Records they now joined hands together with i-Traxx to unleash this new opus, which is the first one in four years.

Content: Fatal Casualties is a band in constant evolution. This new work is however the most difficult one to catch and that’s because of its eclecticism. It remains an Electronic composition, which takes off a rather Doom-like way to move next into Minimal-Electronics. We next get a kind of Trip-Hop cut reminding me of Massive Attack. There also is a strong Industrial approach running through multiple cuts. Some passages are into darker atmospheres while others are into 80s Wave-Pop melancholia.

+ + + : The main strength of this work is the sensation of travelling. Fatal Casualties is not dealing with one explicit genre, but travels throughout different influences creating their most versatile work to date. The album has something stubborn, but it creates the fascination for this work. Finally a band daring to defy established music genres. All I can say is that it resulted in a few little jewels like “Punk Ghetto”, which is a great Minimal-Electro piece with a carrying chorus. Another major song is “It Could Have Been You” for the link with the Massive Attack-style.

– – – : If there’s one single reproach I should make it’s precisely the album’s diversity. I’m sometimes missing a bit of cohesion between the songs. 

Conclusion: Fatal Casualties remains one of the most atypical and personal Swedish Electronic formations, which is masterly exposed at this new opus.

Best songs: “Punk Ghetto”, “It Could Have Been You”, “Café Art”, “Repository World”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.fatalcasulaties.com / www.facebook.com/FatalCasualtiesBand

Label: http://musex-industries.es / www.facebook.com/itraxxrecordings

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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(Photo by Elsiane) Elsiane is one of those few bands which immediately caught my attention after War-n from Hungry Lucy pointed them out to me a few years ago. The mix of sensual and very recognisable vocals by frontwoman Elsieanne Caplette swimming in subtle dark wavish pop (with a clear reference to Cocteau Twins) did its work really well.

Out now is “Sinai”, the brand new – and long-awaited – single by the female fronted duo Elsiane. And it’s again a perfect merge between these two highly talented musicians. Just check the new single below!

Peru and Canada united

Elsiane was formed in the year 2000, after singer/musician/composer Elsieanne Caplette emigrated to Montreal, Canada from Lima, Peru, and met drummer Stephane Sotto. The duo are an unlikely match to say the least, merging the classically trained Caplette with the self-taught Sotto, and doing so with unprecedented style. With shared influences spanning across jazz, rock, electronic and world music, and an intriguing nod to the trip hop of Massive Attack, Portishead and Tricky, the pair creates a musical experience that is entirely unique. 

The 2007 debut album Hybrid established them as the hottest new act in Canada, which was followed up by ecstatically received live performances, including tours with Delerium and Beast, as well as performances at the Montreal International Jazz Festival and Toronto International Film Festival. A devoted live following began to form, drawn to the shadow-filled dreamscapes of songs like “Vaporous,” and the arresting visuals and the hypnotic intensity of Elsieanne Caplette’s voice and stage presence. 

In 2012 Elsiane followed Hybrid with a self-produced second album, Mechanics of Emotion, which further galvanized both their sound and following. Their third album, Death of the Artist, was released independently in 2017, receiving high praise and being regarded by many as their best work. Elsiane then began working non-stop, with two European tours, performing with Cirque Du Soleil, and releasing an album in collaboration with science fiction author Rich Shapero for his multimedia interactive novel Rin, Tongue and Dorner. 

After the passing of Sotto’s father in 2018, the duo settled down and began to write a new album in dedication to his memory. They feel inspired to take their creativity to the next level and embark on a new chapter, and with the first single “Sinai” out in June 2020, fans will get a preview of the forthcoming transformative era of Elsiane. 

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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Like many other music lovers, I discovered Mohamad Reza Govahi aka ‘Morego Dimmer’ as the great instigator behind the dark-ambient project Xerxes The Dark. But the artist is also involved with other projects. One of them is Morego, which is more influences by styles like IDM, psy-trance, ambient and experimental music. A Few months ago now Morego released its third full length album on Ovnimoon Records. The work sounds as a truely sonic fusion between different genres while carried by a slow cadence. The work is an absolute masterpiece and a good reason talking with Morego Dimmer.  

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: We mainly know you from your work under the Xerxes The Dark moniker, but you’re still active as Morego for a few years now. What was the main idea and eventually concept to set up Morego?

Morego: The reason can be divided into two parts: logically and emotionally! Logically I wanted to experience music in different styles and genres, for example I was also involved with some metal- & electronic bands during the past decade. Emotionally when you make music you are transferring energy from a sort to another sort. Simply, converting emotions into sonic and music mediums.

My long-time interest in progressive and rhythmic electronic music forced me to start Morego project. Morego is something groovy, energetic, modern and rhythm oriented. Xerxes The Dark is subtle, creepy and atmosphere oriented. Through these different portals, I can transform more different sorts of energy to another.

Q: I’m always fascinated by artists being involved with different projects. How do you transpose yourself from one project till the other? What are the differences when it comes to your way of working, the sound research and –production, equipment etc?

Morego: The production approaches are different; for Xerxes The Dark I use field recordings, my own sfx, I’m using analog synths to make pads, combine different lines to reach the desired sound experience. Usually I used specific tempos and notations. It’s a contrast with the Morego project, in which I’m using analogue synths to make arpeggios, sequences, etc. I used drum machines to make the basic drum/beat lines, then manipulate them with analogue/digital effects to the way that satisfy my taste.

The mixing process is also completely different. For Xerxes The Dark I use several, own created techniques based on the dark-ambient styles I’m working on (ex: space-ambient, experimental, industrial or ritual/drone). For Morego I use modern, mixing techniques, which follow the standards (but I add my own spices to the standards (lol).

Q: I noticed an interesting evolution in sound from your previous album “Solivagant” towards your new work “Astrophile”, which has something more psychedelic-minded. The album is also carried by an impressive sound production. Where does this evolution comes from and what kind of album did you wanted to achieve?

Morego: Haha, I think evolution is something natural, don’t you think? Sure, I’m educating myself in every aspects I can, music production techniques and modern electronic music mixing are evolving, you can mix different techniques to make a new unique one, so studying and practicing, researching, experiencing are always welcome to me. I love new ideas, I love to manipulate old techniques and tricks to make ‘new things’. But the new things are not necessary ‘correct things’ so they need to be evaluated, and sometimes I use them on my music and wait for feedback.

Another important parameter is upgrading gears and devices. A good studio can make the magic happen. My studio is not a  very top and expensive one, but it is standard and I can access basic and important options on my sessions, the more I have, the more I can use and improve my skills.

On “Solivagant” I wanted to compose short songs with a minimal approach and  a maximum rhythmic to create an optimum standard. “Solivagant” is a short trip for self-motivating everyday people who think different and they love their environment, they love nature as well as themselves.

“Astrophile” is a further step featuring the mix between more complex rhythms and deep emotions emerging at the surface. It’s all about nostalgic feelings and somehow uncertain feelings about the future are lurking behind each opus. “Astrophile” is not as happy as “Solivagant”, because when I started to produce “Astrophile” I was just informed that I’d a kind of rare cancer and it was bitter to me, so ‘trauma’ is dedicated to this bitterness. Hopefully, the situation is under control and not deadly at this phase, but it totally affected my mood and my life. So it feels that “Solivagant” is an intro for “Astrophile”.

Q: I can’t get away from the idea you’re definitely a freak when it comes to sound creation and –treatments. What’s your way of working and do you’ve specific references and criteria –or maybe artists, when it comes to sound?

Morego: I think it goes back to my taste of music, I love metal- and rock music since my childhood. Gradually I listened to other good genres like classic, jazz, blues, new age, folk and eventually electronic music. When I listen to music my mind starts to analysis music, the notes, the bars, melodies, rhythms, beats, ideas, intro and outro of songs, transitions, instrumentations, the way energy drops and how it rises ect. Many times I ask myself how they made that specific effect or technique, and how can I possibly made that with my low-budged instrumentation and studio?

Quite recently I started to use AI (Artificial Intelligence) for some lines of my music; it’s fun and I’ll consider it as a good assistance in my studio in the near future.

It’s really hard to mention specific bands or musicians, because there are too many, from classic rock bands like Pink Floyd to metal bands like Death, Esoteric, Void Of Silence, and from great electronic artists like Shpongle, Infected Mushroom, to Aes Dana, Carbon Based Lifeforms and Asura; Massive Attack, Archive, Portishead to Aphex Twin, Moderat to Jon Hopkins, Crippled Black Phoenix to Mono, Long Distance Calling and… are my favorite artists and their sound design and sound signatures are always magnificent and impressive to me and surely influenced my thinking.

Q: You also released a new EP “Blessed Seed”, which is even more psychedelic-minded. How did the title song saw the daylight and what is it all about?

Morego: Well the EP supposed to be released under my other side project Ostanes; but Amir HP who set up this project together with me left the project quite suddenly. So as this project no longer exists, I decided to polish those songs which were originally written and partially recorded during Summer 2016. So while I was working on them I decided to add more psybient/psydub elements to the mixes, also I made a new remix for our previous song and released it.

The EP is named after the first song entitled “Blessed Seed” and the name just presented the vibes, for blessing you need to catharsis and then ‘hemelvaart’ happens (lol).

Q: I guess it’s not a coincidence that the new album has been signed on Ovnimoon Records, which is clearly dealing with psy-trance artists. How did you get in touch with this label and what do you as an artist expect today from labels?

Morego: Firstly, I must thank Ovnimoon Records and parent label Geomagnetic Records for their supports and well-managed teamwork. I knew Ovnimoon for a while now and some of my friends worked together with them before, so I sent a demo to them and they said to love my album and to want it in their ‘chill out’ catalogue.

Generally speaking, finding a proper label is a serious thing for all musicians. Labels can be more supportive, and more innovative, they can promote in more effective ways, can help artists to book festivals and live shows.. But if you are from Iran things can be very weird or even crazy. That’s all because of the risk for sanctions; artists can’t breathe! There are no royalties as long as we are living in Iran, and you need a Paypal account for direct selling in music websites like Bandcamp.. I’m almost tired of being stuck in this situation (after 15 years of making music), most of my royalties are in hands of labels that can’t transfer money to an Iranian artist! On the other hand, many labels and many music providers and magazines are somehow afraid of Iranian musicians because of sanctions. Can you imagine I know some great record labels that didn’t work with me just because I’m from Iran… The only option I (and many other artists like me) have, is to be patient and earn money from other skills and invest this money for our music .

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 brilliant Stockholm based electropop act Daybehavior have released another track from their forthcoming new album “Based On A True Story”. “There’s Nothing Else” turns out to be a very luscious track in the good tradition of Daybehavior: an exquisite song structure, catchy hooks and a sweet vocal line by frontwoman Paulinda Crescentini.

This is actually the second single from the upcoming album, as the 2015 track “Change” will also show up on the new album, albeit in a new dress. You can listen to the new single below.

Daybehavior is a Swedish indie-pop trio, founded in Stockholm, in 1993 by Tommy Arell, Paulinda Crescentini and Carl Hammar. Their debut album “Adored” was released in 1996 by Swedish indie label North of No South Records (NONS). Per Gessle’s company JimmyFun Music, released the album in 15 countries worldwide. During 1998 and 1999 they,recorded their follow-up album with Kevin Petri, engineer on Massive Attack’s debut album “Blue Lines” (1991). NONS, dealing with financial problems, went into bankruptcy in 1999 and the album was locked from being released.

By 2003, Crescentini and Hammar decided to finish the album, now updated with some new material. Their second album, “Have You Ever Touched a Dream?” was released in 2004 by American indie label A Different Drum. In 2009, Arell thought it was time to rejoin the band and started to work on new material. During summer and fall 2010, the band recorded their new album, “Follow that car!”, which was released September 2012.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Industrial, electro-ambient.

Background/Info: Sylker is the meeting between two French projects. It all happened in 2009 when Soul Stalker joined hands together with the more familiar Sylvgheist Maëlström (known from the Hands roster). They originally covered bands like Portishead, Massive Attack, NIN ao and went on creating their own songs. After a hiatus of several years Sylvgheist Maëlström VS. Soul Stalker has been renamed into Sylker. This is the band’s self-titled and self-released album.

Content: “Sylker” features 9 songs, which are mixing heavy, bombast sound treatments together with industrial atmospheres and Klinik-al sequences. Some songs indeed remind me of the experimental Klinik-side, but also to Mortal Constraint. Slow rhythms, dark strings and icy arrangements are the main elements to the Sylker sound.

+ + + : Sylker’s sound is raw and unpolished, reminding me of great 90s projects mixing electronics and industrial influences. I like this vintage approach resulting in several noticeable cuts. The songs have been accomplished with alluring sound treatments and great, cold atmospheres. I also like some sweeping effects and the slow rhythmic, which has something sensual-like.

– – – : There are a few songs featured, which I think could have been more accomplished.

Conclusion: Sylker has something fascinating so let’s hope this duo will move on while improving some aspects of their work.

Best songs: “No Noise”, “I Gave You”, “Killed”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/sylker01

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-ambient, experimental, IDM, down-tempo.

Background/Info: This project with a crazy name started in 2014 as a solo-project by Joyanna M. She later on met singer Lily Bell who joined in. “Anartist” is the newest album of the band featuring eleven songs.

Content: I’d never heard of this band before, which brings a delicate and subtle opus. The songs are driven by slow tempos. there’s a constant darkness recovering the composition, which often feels like a deeply, melancholic flavor. There’re several instrumental songs featured next to a few others with Lily Bell on vocals. The songs have been composed with electronics and also feature multiple guitar parts.

+ + + : It’s not that easy to define the sound of Aquamarine Space Unicorns, but some cuts remind me of Massive Attack, but with a much darker exposure. The composition is elaborated and resulting from a real creative process. I like the contrast running through a few pieces between the sensuality of the vocals and the pretty dark sound. The vocals aren’t only sensual, but sometimes also ghost-like. Songs such as “Anartist” and especially “Anymore” both are little sonic jewels.

– – – : I regret there are no more vocals featured at the work because they really add something extra –and even exotic when sung in French on “J’en Ai Marre”. I noticed a few explicit experimental passages (cf. “PTSD”), which can’t totally convince me.

Conclusion: This album a dark, but enlightening discovery; a beautiful piece of artistic grace mixed with melancholic spheres.

Best songs: “Anymore”, “Anartist”, “Late On The Eight”, “Again Begin”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.aquamarinespaceunicorns.com

Label: https://arkayartists.com 

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: Experimental, dark-cinematographic, trip-pop.

Background/Info: Dren is a Polish duo set up in 2018 by producers/DJs Natt and Akton. “Time & Form” is their debut work released in their homeland by Zoharum Records.

Content: The work is mainly characterized by darkness. You rapidly feel entering an obscure sonic universe, which is driven by slow tempo’s and a kind of industrial trip-pop approach. The opening piece reminds me a bit of Massive Attack, but much darker and tormented! You’ll also hear a more experimental side running through other songs and even a pure cinematographic composition.

+ + + : The opening piece “Time” is an absolute masterpiece; it feels frightening and leading the listener into an imaginary horror vision. The songs clearly have a strong visual strength, which is accentuated by the cinematic passages from the work. One of the best cuts comes in the end. “Shadow Of The Sun” has something industrial-like; drones and tribal percussion passages lead the listener into a transcendental state.

– – – : The sound formula is efficient, but a bit similar after a while.

Conclusion: This debut album is quite promising and a real strong basis to move on with. Let’s keep an eye on this Polish duo!

Best songs: “Shadow Of The Sun”, “Time”, “Instynkt”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/drenpl

Label: www.zoharum.com / www.facebook.com/zoharum

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: Ethereal-wave, trip-pop, experimental.

Background/Info: Some of you might remember Rhea’s Obsession, a Canadian band that was mainly active in the second part of the 90s. They released two albums. Indarra is not really a resurrection of this band, but it features singer Sue Hotton who has been joined by numerous guest artists.

Content: “Walk On Fire” is a truly music trip mixing multiple influences. Most of the songs are pretty dreamy-like, mainly driven by a slow rhythm and Sue Hotton’s sensual timbre of voice. The compositions have been composed with electro gear, and also with authentic instruments. The dreamy atmospheres are sometimes a little bit mysterious, which might remind you of Delerium. I can also mention Massive Attack for the darker and trip-pop driven passages.

+ + + : This album is al cool surprise. The music has something pretty authentic and artistic. The songs are styled and refined. It often sounds as a delicious sonic caress, which is accentuated by the impressive vocals of Sue Hotton and the mysterious atmospheres. The album is progressively growing reaching multiple states of climax.

– – – : There’s some versatility running through this work, which I can imagine might not please all listeners.

Conclusion: This is an album I highly recommend to music lovers in search of a truly artistic creation. Indarra brings different influences together on a graceful and fully enjoyable work.

Best songs: “Colour Of The Rising Sun”, “Melody Of The North Winds”, “To Make Change”, “An Innis Aigh”, “Falling Into You”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/indarramusic

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

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

If you think Massive Attack, you instantly think “Teardrop”, the massive hit Massive Attack had in 1998. “Teardrop” features lead vocals and lyrics by Elizabeth Fraser, the lead singer for the Cocteau Twins. It was released as the second single from their third studio album, “Mezzanine”.

Now, 20 years later, Massive Attack announces that they are taking 1998’s “Mezzanine” back on the road in Europe and North America in early 2019 with collaborators including Cocteau Twins’ Liz Fraser. This will be Fraser’s first time touring since she toured with the group in 2006.

The song Madonna was about to record…

Small but important detail, songwriter Andrew Vowles originally sent the demo to Madonna as he wanted her to record the vocals for the song as the band had previously worked with her on their 1995 reworking of the song “I Want You”. The two other band members Robert Del Naja and Grantley Marshall on the other hand wanted Elizabeth Fraser of the Cocteau Twins to record the vocals. Madonna was very keen to record the vocals, and was disappointed when the two-to-one vote went in Fraser’s favour.

The concert dates

• 01-28 Glasgow, Scotland – SSE Hydro
• 01-28 Manchester, England – Manchester Arena
• 01-31 Brussels, Belgium – Palias 12
• 02-01 Amsterdam, Netherlands – AFAS Live
• 02-04 Frankfurt, Germany – Jahrhunderthalle
• 02-05 Munich, Germany – Zenith
• 02-06 Milan, Italy – Mediolanum Forum
• 02-08 Rome, Italy – Palalottomatica
• 02-09 Padua, Italy – Kioene Arena
• 02-11 Paris, France – Zenith
• 02-13 Nantes, France – Zenith de Nantes Metropole
• 02-14 Bordeaux, France – Bordeaux Metropole Arena
• 02-18 Lisbon, Portugal – Campo Pequeno
• 02-22 London, England – O2 Arena
• 02-24 Dublin, Ireland – 3Arena
• 03-01 Bristol, England – Steel Yard, Bristol

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: Experimental, indie-rock, trip-pop, lounge.

Background/Info: Pascal Deweze is a Belgian musician, singer and producer who gained some fame as member of bands such as Metal Molly, Mitsoobishy Jacson ao. He also composed music for TV series and has now unleashed his solo-debut “Cult Of Yes”.

Content: “Cult Of Yes” has been introduced as a solo-debut although numerous guest artists contributed to the composition. The sound is not that easy to define and doesn’t really belong to one established music genre. Pascal Deweze is experimenting with multiple influences moving from experimentalism into vague trip-hop passages to dark tracks with exotic rhythms to experimental-rock and even lounge plus vintage, funky-pop parts.

One of the main characteristic running throughout all cuts Deweze’s special timbre of voice. His voice is rather high. There’re also songs featuring female vocals.

+ + + : “Cult Of Yes” is a work like no other. It’s impossible to label and that’s for sure an aspect revealing certain originality by the artist. I really love the kind of Massive Attack sounding “Beautiful Penelope” for the great balance between electronics and guitar and the global progression running through this song. Every single song reveals new elements to discover. “I Only Have A Yes For You” is another attention grabber for its funky touch and sensual female backings. The song is carried by some deep, vibrating sound treatments, which is another cool element of this song. It’s a bit similar to “Strange Behaviour”.

– – – : The work sometimes sounds such as a sonic exorcism made by an artist and his mates who had a lot of influences in mind. I like the concept, but the result is not that really compact. You sometimes get the impression it’s more a compilation instead of a real band album.

Conclusion: Pascal Deweze’s solo-debut is a sonic-enigma, which is impossible to label although enjoyable to listen to.

Best songs: “Beautiful Penelope”, “I Only Have A Yes For You”, “Think Of Me”.

Rate: (7).

Band: www.facebook.com/pascal.deweze

Label: www.starmanrecords.com / www.facebook.com/StarmanRecords

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: Cinematographic, electronic, triphop.

Background/Info: I got the opportunity to discover Elastik by previous releases. Driven by Thomas Prigent this French formation strikes back with a 6-track work, which more looks like a mini-album.

Content: Thomas Prigent invited a few guest singers to contribute to his new work. The sound is like the offspring between movie soundtracks and dark trip-hop reminding me now and then of Massive Attack.

There’s a noticeable difference between some of the singers, which also injects a different sensibility to the composition. Some vocal parts are soft and even fragile while others are more into a half spoken style. “Opak” also features instrumentals, which increase the cinematographic approach.

+ + + : Elastik remains an interesting formation, which on “Opak” reveals a more pronounced and exciting trip-hop approach. “Une Ville A Deux” is a fully accomplished piece, which will possibly appeal to fans of Massive Attack. “Ecrire” feat. Horror 4o4 caught my attention for the more experimental trip-hop style while the French spoken-like lyrics are pretty freaky. The soundtrack-inspired cuts are well-crafted as well and revealing intriguing moods (especially on “Station”).

– – – : Elastik is maybe missing a few little details that could make this band become really interesting. The cinematographic-like pieces are cool, but not exactly setting the world alight.

Conclusion: Elastik is a formation on which I already kept an eye on and “Opak” only confirms the growing maturity of the band. This band definitely deserves a break through.

Best songs: “Une Ville A Deux”, “Fast And Glorious feat. Faustine”, “Ecrire feat. Horror 4o4”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.elastik.fr / www.facebook.com/ELASTIK-195447804172

Label: www.komarecords.com / www.facebook.com/Koma–Records-133587800038620

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 Daily Mail has come up with an interesting theory regarding the real identity of guerrilla graffiti star Banksy. An investigative journalist, Craig Williams, claims that the artist behind the elusive artist could well be Massive Attack‘s Del Naja (also a graffiti artist known as 3D), or a team of people led by him and linked to Massive Attack who combine their concerts with graffiti.

To support the theory Williams plotted Banksy murals around the world and showed that on 6 occasions more than a dozen appeared shortly before or after Massive Attack gigs in the same cities over the past 12 years.

Ironically Banksy has always said that he was inspired by Del Naja aka 3D when starting his career: “When I was about 10 years old a kid called 3D was painting the streets hard; I think he’d been to New York and was the first to bring spray painting back to Bristol. Graffiti was the thing we all loved at school – we did it on the bus on the way home.”

You can read more about his theory right here.

About Banksy

Banksy is an England-based graffiti artist, political activist and film director of a yet unverified identity. His satirical street art and subversive epigrams combine dark humour with graffiti executed in a distinctive stenciling technique. Some have criticised the “obviousness” of Banksy’s work, and accused it of being “anarchy-lite” geared towards a middle class “hipster” audience.

Much of this criticism came forward during his series of works in New York in 2013. Many New York street artists, such as TrustoCorp, criticised Banksy, and much of his work was defaced.

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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Recoil and Japan fans, this is something for you. Electronic music act Genre Peak (who recently was featured in our industrial music Spotify playlist with the track “Portal Groove”) has collaborated with a variety of musicians for the new album “Your Sleekest Engine”. Genre Peak’s Martin Birke (formerly active with the electropop act Casualty Park) worked with a huge list of people including Steve Jansen (Japan/David Sylvian), Jon Hassell (Brian Eno/Peter Gabriel), Richard Barbieri (Japan/Porcupine Tree), Matt Malley (Counting Crows) next to Lesley Braden (Fast Arrow), Charlie Woodward (Falco/Strinx), Palestinian artist Manal Deeb and the late Mick Karn (Japan/Dalis Car/David Torn).

The release was co-produced by Christopher Scott Cooper and Martin Birke for In Code Music (Publishing) over a period of 3 years. The album will be released on Gonzo Multimedia UK on March 4, 2016 and is the follow-up to the ambient album “9 Microspheres”, released in 2013.

Here’s how the new album started to take shape: “I wanted to get back to where I could collaborate with singers and players. I approached Steve Jansen to remix a track off “Preternatural” I did with the late Mick Karn, Steve agreed but did much more than a remix, he composed a whole new original song which blew me away. I had Lesley Braden of the Seattle band Fast Arrow write & sing over it and I think it’s dark and glorious much like most of the songs I write. I then contacted Jon Hassell who has been a huge influence and is the reason I’m an electronic-percussionist, and we came up with the instrumental “Metanoia”. I started writing more songs with singer Charlie Woodward who sounds a bit like Jon Anderson of Yes to me (another favorite band) and we just clicked – thanks to Edo Castro (Pat Metheny Band) for introducing us.”

Rob Ayling of Gonzo Multimedia introduced Martin to Matt Malley of the Counting Crows and he delivered the bass on “God Fearing Men” and “American Civil Rage”. Award winning poet Michael Spring spoke his poem “First Born of the New Millennium” Martin wrote the music for that one, and Richard Barbieri did a remix of “Fix Me Deeper”.

Speaking of “Fix Me Deeper”, it’s not the first time that Birke has collaborated with Manal Deeb. Last summer Martin also recorded a track with the Palestinian-American multi-media artist for the Arabesque song “Fix Me Deeper”, which you can hear below.

Birke modelled Genre Peak after Alan Wilder’s Recoil and Massive Attack: “I find this the most exciting way to work, it’s always different and working with artists you grew up listening to is quite rewarding for me. I like to call Genre Peak’s music ‘electronica-organica’ as I use electronics with a warm live cinematic sound.”

This is what our Side-Line reviewer said about the project a while back: “Genre Peak realised a quite diversified piece of music, mixing different vocal, ambient and rhythm elements. There also is a real will and attention to distill great sound treatments. This is modern music covering a wide range of influences.”

You can order the “Your Sleekest Engine” CD right here on Amazon.

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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Jean-Michel Jarre will be working with the Pet Shop Boys and Gary Numan on the follow-up album of last year’s “Electronica Vol. 1: The Time Machine”, released on 16 October 2015 by Columbia Records. That album was recorded with the help of 15 separate collaborators, including Vince Clarke, Gesaffelstein, M83, Armin van Buuren, John Carpenter, Robert “3D” Del Naja of Massive Attack fame, Pete Townshend (from The Who) and the late Edgar Froese of Tangerine Dream. The new album is scheduled for a mid-May release.

The new album, “Electronica Vol. 2: The Heart of Noise” will also feature collaborations with Peaches, Siriusmo, Primal Scream, Julia Holter, Jeff Mills , Yello, The Orb, Sébastien Tellier, Christophe, film composer Hans Zimmer, and Cyndi Lauper. You can view a trailer below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xr3l29LykUU

The album is a tribute to Italian composer Luigi Russolo, who is considered the godfather of electronic music and experimental instruments. “Electronica Vol. 2: The Heart of Noise” will be Jarre’s nineteenth studio album to date. Jarre has described the two albums as being his “most ambitious project.”

Jean Michel Jarre himself is a French composer, performer, and music producer. He is a pioneer in the electronic, ambient, and new-age genres, and known as an organiser of outdoor spectacles of his music featuring lights, laser displays, and fireworks.

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: IDM, cinematographic.

Content: I already had the opportunity to discover previous work of Genre Peak, but this newest opus is without a shadow of a doubt the one that I’ll keep in mind. Behind this American band is operating Martin Birke. He’s used to work with guest musicians and mainly singers. He now joined hands with Manal Deeb who’s a Palestinian American artist who has exposed his artwork all over the world.

“Fix Me Deeper” is inspired on an original artwork of Deeb, which is the front cover of this EP. Genre Peak composes a slow tempo driven sound with some epic and drama-like sound creation, which is pretty cinematographic-minded. The half spoken-like lyrics have been sung by Martin Birke and create a delicious match with the female, Arabian chants of Manal Deeb.

There also is a remix by Richard Barbieri, which is a fascinating trip through mysterious astral atmospheres carried by bombastic rhythms. This mix is pretty dark and a bit like a raw and unpolished version of a Massive Attack-song.

Both songs left are brilliant pieces as well. Birke seems to unleash his most sophisticated writing getting into pure IDM. I really love the sound sculptures and global production, which is brilliant.

“Portal Groove” is a great piece in the genre while “Egg’s First flight” is a little more into danceable vibes. The only regret I have about both songs is that they are a little bit too short and that’s especially because they are great pieces of intelligent electronic music.

Conclusion: Genre Peak took me by surprise revealing a highly creative and poignant work, which mixes elements of IDM, ambient electronics and cinematographic music.

Best songs: “Portal Groove”, “Fix Me Deeper featuring Manal Deeb”, “Fix Me Deeper – Richard Barbieri Mix”.

Rate: (DP:9)DP.

Band: www.genrepeak.net / www.facebook.com/GenrePeak

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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(All pictures by Dorothy) A map featuring the history of electronic music (albeit without dates), who could ever have imagined that someone would create that. Well, it does exist alright and is called “Electric Love Blueprint – A History of Electronic Music” and is for sale for 35 UK£ at Dorothy, a Manchester based art shop annex studio.

The 60 x 80cm big poster is based on the circuit board of a theremin, one of the first electronic musical instruments ever built. The blueprint features over 200 inventors, innovators, artists, composers and musicians who (in the opinion of designer James Quail) have been pivotal to the evolution of electronic music from the invention of the earliest known sound recording device in 1857 to the present day.

Key pioneers featured in the map include the usual suspects Léon Theremin, Bob Moog, Karlheinz Stockhausen, John Cage, Brian Eno, Kraftwerk and Aphex Twin. The print loosely groups genres, from the obscure Musique Concrète (Pierre Schaeffer) to the better known Krautrock (Kraftwerk, Can, Tangerine Dream, Neu!, Faust, Cluster, Harmonia and Amon Düül II) synthpop (Gary Numan, Human League, Depeche Mode, Yazoo and Pet Shop Boys) and electronica (New Order, The Prodigy, Massive Attack, LCD Sound System and Daft Punk).

There are also references to the experimental BBC Radiophonic Workshop and the record labels Mute and Warp.

A pity it totally forgets the industrial & ebm scene with such artists as Front 242, Nitzer Ebb, Die Krupps, Skinny Puppy etc which all have had a huge impact. Let’s see who will create a more complete map…

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