Out on Mute / NovaMute on 6 December is a reissue of Richie Hawtin’s second album as Plastikman, “Musik”, in a remastered version from the original tapes.

The album, originally released via NovaMute / Plus 8, followed 1993’s “Sheet One” and pushed Hawtin into international success. Before the full album hit the shelves, “Plastique” was released offering a teaser of the more dance floor friendly album.

You can listen to listen to an excerpt of “Plastique” below.

The vinyl release, just like “Sheet One”, will be out on bio-vinyl.

About Richie Hawtin aka Plastikman

Born in Oxfordshire, Hawtin moved to Canada at age nine. Growing up, he was heavily influenced by his father’s diverse record collection and developed a deep curiosity for electronics. As a child, he watched his father dismantle, rebuild, and modify various devices, which sparked his interest in technology.

His love for music, technology, and computers naturally came together. Upon hearing early Detroit Techno and Chicago Acid House on Jeff Mills’ late ’80s Detroit radio show, Hawtin found his path. Traveling between his hometown of Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, he (as Plastikman) became a key figure in some of the most intense underground electronic music parties.

Last year marked the 30th anniversary of his debut Plastikman album, “Sheet One”, and “Dimension Intrusion” under his F.U.S.E. alias for WARP’s Artificial Intelligence series. He also co-heads the Plus 8 label with John Acquaviva, runs the M_nus label, and co-founded the PLAYdifferently mixer/technology company. Alongside his music career, he’s expanding into the sake industry with his ENTER.Sake brand and the Sake 36 emporium in Berlin.

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 Paul Heartfield) Goldfrapp co-creator Will Gregory has shared another track, “Parabolic Sleuth”, from the upcoming deluxe edition of the Will Gregory Moog Ensemble album “Heat Ray: The Archimedes Project” inspired by Archimedes’ work. “Heat Ray: The Archimedes Project” has been completely performed on analogue synths, with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

“Heat Ray: The Archimedes Project” is set for release on Mute on 27 September. The deluxe edition features insights from the recreational mathematician, comedian and author Matt Parker, best known for his YouTube series, “Standup Maths”. The nine pieces written and presented by Parker each introduce a track from the album.

The album has been augmented with two bonus tracks, “Heavy Logic” and the track we present today, “Parabolic Sleuth“.

A series of live dates will coincide with the release – starting with Hidden Notes festival in Stroud before three performances with the Britten Sinfonia at the Barbican, London Basingstoke and in Saffron Walden and a further date in Southampton for the ensemble.

The Will Gregory Moog Ensemble members include Portishead’s Adrian Utley, a longtime collaborator of Will’s, who co-produced and plays on the album. Mute’s Daniel Miller is its “kind of executive producer”, and he even played on one of the tracks. “Given he’s been into synths right from his early days, and is a genius with them, that was a good moment”, alongside John Baggott, Graham Fitkin, Simon Haram, Vyvyan Hope-Scott, Ross Hughes, Hazel Mills, Daniel Moore, Hinako Omori, Eddie Parker, Harriet Riley and Ruth Wall. Their instruments include Minimoog, Moog Voyager, Korg 700s, Prophet 6 and Roland JX3P.

Will Gregory Moog Ensemble dates

• 21-22 Sep – Hidden Notes Festival, Stroud
• 8 Oct – Barbican, London – with the Britten Sinfonia
• 9 Oct – Basingstoke, The Anvil – with the Britten Sinfonia
• 10 Oct – Southampton, Turner Sims
• 11 Oct – Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden – with the Britten Sinfonia

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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History Of Guns comes from the 1990s UK EDM / electronic scene and became famous thanks to their ‘meta-modernist’ industrial sound. Their new (and eighth) album “Half Light” out via the Liquid Len Recording Company follows the singles “No Longer Earthbound” and “When You Don’t Matter”. Mixed by Max Rael and Caden Clarkson, this album was mastered by Pete Maher (U2, Pixies, Nick Cave, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails).

On this album, founding members Del Alien (vocals) and Max Rael (keyboards, programming) are joined by guitarist Caden Clarkson (the newest member of History Of Guns). We also hear Andy Webster and Marnie from Spucktute on vocals on “Never Give it Up”, Amon Ásentir and Mark Eris from Xykogen on vocals on “Arcadia” joined by the Arcadia Choir (Emma Mills, Priyanka O’Neill, Sohm O’Neill and Ninotschka G.) and finally Nykky Spectre on vocals on “An Invitation”.

“When we came back from hiatus in 2022, we wanted a completely fresh start so we wrote the industrial rock / metal album ‘Forever Dying in Your Eyes’ from scratch. We had half of ‘Half Light’ at least sketched out as an electronic album back in 2008/2009,” explains Max Rael.

“Fortunately, people seem much more comfortable with us being genre-fluid these days and it’s less cause for criticism. Back in the day, certain camps seemed to have a definite need for bands to fit neatly into particular genres and not stray too far outside of it, which meant some of our early stuff was maybe a bit misunderstood because people didn’t know where to put it. We’ve been genuinely amazed by the reaction to the first two singles and are in nervous anticipation for what people will make of the album”.

Formed in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire in 1996, the duo became frontrunners of the Wasp Factory / FuturePunk scene of the early 2000s. The band went on hiatus in 2012, returning with 2022’s album “Forever Dying In Your Eyes” before setting about finishing an electronic project they’d begun in 2008 – resulting in “Half Light”. The starting point for this album lays in Robert Anton Wilson’s words “The future is up for grabs; it belongs to any and all who will take the risk and accept the responsibility of consciously creating the future they want.” The release contains elements of a story currently being written as a novel by Max Rael, with these 10 tracks exploring inner and outer space.

Below is the video for the single “When You Don’t Matter”.

And this is the video for “No Longer Earthbound”.

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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UK electro-goth post-punk act History Of Guns presents “No Longer Earthbound”, the first taste of their eighth album, “Half Light” out June 20 via Liquid Len Recording Company. “Half Light” was mastered by Pete Maher (Pixies, U2, Nick Cave, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails).

History Of Guns was formed in Hertfordshire in 1996 becoming the frontrunners of the UK’s Wasp Factory / FuturePunk scene of the early 2000s. After going on hiatus in 2012, they returned in 2022 with a new album – “Forever Dying In Your Eyes” – then set about finishing an electronic project they’d begun in 2008. The result is this “Half Light” album, produced by Max Rael and mixed by Max Rael and Caden Clarkson with mastering by Pete Maher (U2, Pixies, Nick Cave, J&MC, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails). On this new album founding members Del Alien (vocals) and Max Rael (keyboards, programming) are joined by guitarist Caden Clarkson, the newest member of History Of Guns.

On the album we also noticed a guest performance by Andy Webster and Marnie from Spucktute on “Never Give it Up”, Amon Ásentir & Mark Eris from Xykogen on “Arcadia”, the Arcadia Choir (Emma Mills, Priyanka O’Neill, Sohm O’Neill and Ninotschka G.) on “Arcadia” and Nykky Spectre on “An Invitation”.

Max Rael says this about the new single: “This is a song about shifting focus away from this planet and to other places or realities.The existentialist question about why worry about saving the planet and endangered species when ultimately life will be unlivable on Earth in 1.3 billion years? If everything ends anyway, where else could we go? We pictured escaping the planet either through space travel, virtual reality or death. It is also about what we choose to leave behind as we shed one existence and go looking for another. That’s not to say History Of Guns don’t care about the planet. We recycle! Though apparently most of it ends up in landfill anyway.”

You can check the video for the new single “No Longer Earthbound” below.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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The collaborative album “Pennine” by Xqui and Dead Voices On Air will be released on July 25, 2023 through Re:Mission Entertainment, a label based in Oklahoma City. This marks the first collaboration between Re:Mission Entertainment and eMERGENGY heARTS, a label from Austin, Texas.

For those unfamiliar with the geography of England, the Pennines is a range of upland hills that run through various counties including Yorkshire and Lancashire. These hills are characterized by deep valleys and have played a significant role in shaping the country’s landscape, particularly during the industrial revolution when towns and cities emerged with chimneys, mills, and railway viaducts.

Xqui resides in Lancashire, while Spybey is based in Yorkshire, establishing a natural connection between them.

Since entering the “no underground” scene in April 2018, Xqui has gained recognition as an innovative and prolific artist, drawing comparisons to Eno, Basinski, and Mansell. Using a mobile phone, Xqui captures field recordings which are then manipulated using apps and combined with found sound clips to create his tracks. Xqui has garnered attention from peers and collaborated with notable artists such as Vince Clarke, Neil Arthur, and Mark Stewart.

Dead Voices on Air, also known as Mark Spybey, has continued his musical journey since his time with Zoviet-France in the 1980s and later as a member of Download. With over 90 releases to his name, Spybey has collaborated with musicians like Graham Lewis of Wire, Michael Karoli of Can, Faust, Robert Hampson, Simon Fisher Turner, and many others. After residing in Vancouver, he has returned to his hometown in the north of England. In recent years, Spybey has released his work through Emergency Hearts, a label based in Austin, Texas, featuring albums and remixes with artists such as Lee Scratch Perry, Mark Stewart, Coil, Corporate Uncle, and Muzlimgauze.

“Pennine” was produced between March and April 2023 in Lancashire and North Yorkshire, and it consists of seven tracks.

Below, you can listen to a preview of one of the tracks from the album and explore the various merchandise items available with this release.

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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Out now is the Black Needle Noise album “These Mortal Covers” which holds a collection of cover version made the past few years for TV, movies, and fun.

You will find songs originally penned by Sonny Bono, Bob Thiele / George Douglas / George Weiss, Farrar John / Farrar John Clifford, Joseph Lee Wood / Michael Paul Roche / Mitchell Dean Margolin / Ronald Lewis Emory, M. L. Gore, Miles Gregory, W.T. Ward / John Osbourne / Tony Iommi / Terence Butler, R. Robinson / C. Robinson, Peter Lawrence Buck / Michael E. Mills / William Berry / Michael J. Stipe, Russ Conway / Lyndon Haley and Chris Butler.

The vocal lines were executed by Anjela Piccard, Dr Strangefryer, Tom Berger, Beca, Anjela Piccard, Rebecca Coseboom, Pinky and Betty X.

You can check out the 12 covers right below.

Side-Line also covered Depeche Mode’s ‘We’.

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 Swiss label Hall of Sermon informs us that Lacrimosa is coming with a new album pretty soon, but due to the shortage of raw materials, specially paper for the booklet, the final release date of the physical CD cannot yet be determined.

The label hopes to establish a release date that would still be somewhere at the end of this year.

If all this sounds strange to you, it actually is not strange at all. Virtually all paper products — from wedding invitations to cereal boxes — are in short supply as mills struggle to keep up with demand because of worker shortages, add to that shipping bottlenecks that cause extra delays and problems for consumers and businesses.

More info on the new album as soon as we get it.

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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Clément Perez is a French DJ and producer who’s already active for several years now. He released an impressive number of EP’s on different labels such as Tripalium Records, Gobsmacked Records, i-Traxx Recordings, Green Fetish Records ao, but he this year joined hands together with Ant-Zen to unleash his first full length album. “The Poison Tree” is a hard-danceable work featuring a perfect harmony between Techno- and Industrial music. The album features twelve heavy cuts (revealing a song together with HYPNOSKULL) plus four remixes by ANTECHAMBER, SHROUDS, CRYSTAL GEOMETRY and MONO-AMINE.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: You’re involved with electronic music for years now, but who do you consider as your personal ‘Godfathers’; those who inspired you to DJ and make your own music? And how do you see yourself as musician/producer?

Clément: I have quite a list of ‘Godfathers’; from Aphex Twin to Jeff Mills or Converter to Ed Rush. I’m listening to a lot of different stuff and for each genres I have favorites for sure. I like artists that have their own visions and keep walking their own path all along their career. A lot of them don’t even tour or do gigs in fact.

DJing is maybe another thing as I have always liked the techniques of DJing itself. For example, I really like DJs like Jeff Mills, or The DJ Producer, Manu Le Malin or Stephanovitch back in the days; artists who are able to blend a real savoir-faire (playing on 3 decks, mixing tracks very quickly) with a great sense of tracks selection to tell their own story in a party. I try to keep it that way, even if it’s a very ‘90s’ attitude.

Speaking about that, that’s also how I see myself as a musician and producer. I’m trying to keep this very ‘hardcore’ and lowkey attitude from the 90s nowadays, moving forward with my own music, using the past without trying to recreate things from the past. Pretty difficult in fact when even kids are trying mostly to make 80s or 90s music.

Q: 14ANGER has released an endless list of EP’s, but “The Poison Tree” is your first album ever, released this year by Ant-Zen. What does this album mean to you and do you think there still a future for full length releases? How do you see things evolving?

Clément: It means quite a lot, as you said I’ve done a lot of EP’s along the years and it was a challenge for me to start doing a full LP. I’ve trying to make music in a different way, keeping things simple and with less editing than usual. Also doing a ‘real’ industrial album was something I wanted to do for a long time. I’m really happy with it and even happier to be featured on Ant-Zen, which is surely the label I’ve listening to the most in my life.

I’m sure full length releases have a future, as it’s (for me), the best way to listen to something seriously, to really enter into someone’s work. Maybe it’s a generational thing, but I listen to a lot of full LP and I will continue doing some in the future.

Q: You just said composing a full length was a challenge so what have been the main ideas and inspiration to compose this work? How did the writing of the songs happened and is there a different approach in writing an album or an EP?

Clément: The main idea behind the album was to focus on the relationship with nature and humans. I’ve spent a lot of time in the forests and mountains around the place where I’m living. I did that for some months, under the very hot sun of Southern France. That certainly shaped the sound of the album. I’ve worked and finished the album on a pretty short period of time, using a sound library I’ve made and using the same synths and FX to have a special sound overall. I also worked with a lot of audio samples, a bit like I was doing when I first started to produce as I was using audio trackers only. It was really different for sure to make a full album and not a Techno EP, it’s way more personal and demanding.

Q: The sound of the album is mainly dominated by a fusion between techno- and industrial music. What makes both genres complementary and how do you perceive both music styles?

Clément: Techno and Industrial are my roots, my 2 main and bigger influences. I basically can’t imagine Techno without Industrial sounds and Industrial music sometimes miss the energy of Techno. I just see the 2 styles fitting together even if the scenes were not the same. It’s less true nowadays though.

Q: You seem to like working with other artists, but especially with Dep Affect. What makes the chemistry between both of you and what did you learn and maybe discover from yourself throughout these collaborative productions? 

Clément: We started to work together 5 years ago and it  really happened naturally, fun and easy. Even if we’re living at the opposite sides of the planet (Dep Affect is Australian), we somehow have pretty close tastes in music, and a lot of common things in our backgrounds. I sure learned a lot of things working with him, and I can say exactly the same about working with Daniel Myer in RENDERED. That could be about mixing, sound design or working more on themes and arrangements – I can definitely say I’m much better in making themes and working on details now.

Q: I noticed you together with an impressive list of French electro/techno artists contributed to a statement about the danger to see electronic artists/music disappear. It’s all because of the Covid-19 pandemic, but can you give us more details and how do you as artist try to manage this situation?

Clément: I was part of the artists who signed this as it’s just hard to watch things disappearing now mainly because politicians are doing again such a bad work. The situation could be so much better right now if good things and preparations have been done. However, I have a fulltime day-job so I’m not really affected by the situation on a financial side, but I definitely miss gigs a lot. I hope things could be better soon with maybe quick tests at doors for gigs and concerts. We have to wait and see, hoping not too much people will struggle and just quit the scenes for good…

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 & Text by UK correspondent Simon Helm) If you are curating an exhibition on electronic music and design, how do you choose what to leave out?

You need to acknowledge the path from the theremin and experimental devices made by pioneering tinkerers to today’s digital synthesisers. You can’t drop Daphne Oram and early adopters of the Moog.

Subtitling the show, “From Kraftwerk to the Chemical Brothers,“ risks excluding essential artists working outside of those brackets.

Have some sympathy, therefore, for London’s Design Museum in their attempt to select materials for their new show, Electronic. After all, they did obtain a laser harp and build Jean-Michel Jarre’s dream studio. They also collected some awesome hardware, from the Korg MS20 to the Quadrantid Swarm. There is a lot of artwork for fans of Designers Republic and Peter Saville Associates.

The main focus of the show, however, is hinted at in the subtitle. What really lies between Kraftwerk (represented here by a 3D film) and the Chemical Brothers (who appear to have contributed an epilepsy test) is the story of Detroit techno and Chicago house.

“Say nice things about Detroit!” reads a slogan on a wall. By all means, let’s celebrate the Motor City personalities who built its influential techno scene – but for every Depeche Mode record cover there are three objects from DJ Jeff Mills. Better make that four.

First the US, then the UK

In the town where Mute Records was founded, there are only passing signs of the legacy the label’s founder, Daniel Miller, who was just as inspired by the Kling Klang sound as the Detroit/Windsor pioneers. There is part of a Synclavier – as used by Miller on many early Mute releases – in the hardware section, and there are smatterings of Mute artists included in the show; but, in Electronic, the UK’s main innovators play second fiddle to the US club scenes.

That just highlights the challenge of curating a show on electronic music. There is so much of it about, and pulling on any thread leads to another. Anyway, Mute has Kraftwerk and New Order, these days, and they feature prominently. The Chemicals presented Bernard Sumner with a lifetime achievement award a few months ago, so everything converges in the end.

The design elements have been organized to coincide with the sounds. Richie Hawtin (Plastikman) appears in a video. Underworld have a significant display of their cover art. Flyers, club membership cards, fashion and dance performances inspired by the music are carefully set out to capture the feelings of different scenes. The masks used in Aphex Twin’s “Window Licker” video are there behind glass.

There is less to look at for fans of Fad Gadget, Silicon Teens, Laurie Anderson or OMD. Stock, Aitken & Waterman, Front 242, Rational Youth, Skinny Puppy and a small army of influential disco producers could have used more attention, too. But, if the beats of underground techno are your thing, then there is Philip Topolovac’s scale model of Berghain, along with plenty of record covers and photographs, to look at. There are also dramatic light works to draw your attention and induce grand mal seizures.

Luckily there’s the gift shop

The balance is restored slightly in the gift shop. Merchandise includes books on Mute’s visual history, Kraftwerk (with Uwe Schütte’sexcellent book on prominent display), and the story of rave culture. In the vinyl record section, New Order are represented by Movement – their least club-friendly album, but also the launching pad for their turn towards dance music.

It is just a reminder that, as fascinating as many of the exhibits are at the Design Museum, the best story of electronic music is always going to be the one that is told by your own record collection.

What to expect visually?

Event details

• Electronic: from Kraftwerk to The Chemical Brothers
• Where: Design Museum, London
• When: On from 31 July 2020 to 14 February 2021 (advance booking essential)

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: Rock-goth, dark-wave.

Background/Info: Walter Glatz, Alexander Steiner and Eva Böhler are Mills ano 2010. “Verletzt” is their second full length album, which has been released after the excellent dark-wave minded “Monochrome” released in 2018.

Content: The main change on the new work is the vocals, which are now sung in German. Sound-wise the band remains faithful to their 80s inspiration although the global production became a bit more rock-minded. This work sounds also more varied than its predecessor. It takes off a rather minimal-electro style, but you also immediately notice the guitar. That leads us towards rock-goth passages filled with melancholia. Some songs are pretty dreamy and even emotive while other cuts reveal harder guitar playing.

+ + + : The guitar remains an essential aspect of the Mills sound. Just as the previous album, the songs create an elevating sensation. There also is a dark and emotional element running through the songs. I especially recommend listening to “Mein Weites Land”, which is a captivating piece in the genre.

– – – : The album brings a nice selection of songs, but I’m missing real highlight. That’s definitely the main change with the previous album.

Conclusion: Mills tried to evolve in their inspiration and compositions, but this new work rather feels as a debut while “Monochrome” definitely had more to offer.

Best songs: “Mein Weites Land”, “Engel”, “Nie”.

Rate: (6½).

Artist: www.millsmusic.at / www.facebook.com/millssound

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

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

JK Flesh is the electronic- or should I say techno project of Justin Karl Broadrick. Internationally praised and renowned for his involvement with Godflesh, JK Flesh brings a totally different exposure of the artist. He recently released the third JK Flesh full length entitled “New Horizon” on Electric Deluxe. It’s not pure techno music, but an interesting and somewhat experimental approach of the genre.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: What kind of work did you want to accomplish with “New Horizon” and how do you perceive the evolution in sound from the debut album “Posthuman” till the new work? 

Justin: The evolution has been somewhat radical; “Posthuman” still contained the residue of my more established works, guitar and vocals much like Godflesh, but fundamentally electronic music, which was the albums intention. Ironically “Posthuman” was designed as a purely electronic statement, but the then label boss of 3by3, Steve, who was also a member of the much missed Cloaks, suggested that I integrate the vibe of my other work with guitars and vocals to make something more arguably unique, at that point I felt maybe he had a good point. So, I set about adding organic instrumentation to the existing songs.

Once he folded both his label and project, I intended to lose all organic/physical instrumentation and return to my original vision for JK Flesh. Each subsequent release has become increasingly electronic based. “New horizon” is an album, so it’s conceptual and should be viewed as a whole work. In a nutshell, it’s an exploration of the darker fringes of what  is essentially ‘dub techno’, as established by such luminaries as Basic Channel, Maurizio and the Chain Reaction label.

Q: One thing is for sure I experienced “New Horizon” as your most ‘progressive’ JK Flesh work to date; it feels a bit like you’re exploring different sonic horizons while accentuating some ‘techno’ influences. What is it all about? 

Justin: Yes, for me it’s still fundamentally techno, and although I generally don’t like work that is considered progressive, much like I’ve never been enamoured with guitar solos! I do agree that texturally this album is indeed progressive; I wanted the machines to breathe and appear as if they’re organisms, which I achieved via constant, but subtle manipulations of every piece of hardware used in this creation.

Q: What did you keep in mind from the entire writing- and production process of “New Horizon” and do you’ve a specific way of working? 

Justin: Maybe I’ve covered this above, but I can add that this album was created via hardware only and then edited on a computer, my task was to make the machines sound alive and consistently in flux, which somewhat mirrors the subject matter of our next stages of evolution, and my emotional response to this evolution; it’s not academic, it’s a reaction.

Q: I’ve been intrigued by the track “The Next Stage”, which has something more soundtrack-like. What is it all about and are there some plans/ideas to ever compose a soundtrack? 

Justin: I recently backed out of composing a soundtrack for a film! I found the process too limiting, and I think ultimately I’m useless at following someone else’s criteria.

“The Next Stage” is probably the pinnacle of the album in the context of it being an exploration of texture; this track is intentionally more concerned with texture than any actual musical content; it lives and breathes, and this was what I was attempting to achieve, but it’s still techno, but stripped of virtually everything, but conversely it’s not really truly minimal because texturally it’s maximal.

Q: Techno music becomes more and more diversified and I especially like the mix with industrial music. What’s your perception about techno music globally speaking and specific evolutions such as industrial-techno in particular?

Justin: Everything appears to be about micro genres now, and I hate to sit within any micro genre due again to the limitations imposed, but I have an obvious affinity with both industrial music and techno loosely speaking, for me my sound is old; it’s rooted in older industrial music like Throbbing Gristle and Cabaret Voltaire and older techno like Jeff Mills and Basic Channel. I see myself fitting somewhere between the two camps, the organic aspect and having some sort of swing to the music is also important to me; I’m less interested in industrial music that is what I’d call stiff and lifeless. I like this music to be on the verge of decay and sound like it’s crumbling apart.

Q: JK Flesh remains a truly sonic enigma to me; a mix of industrial-, minimal-electronics, dark-techno music ao genres. What kind of sound do you want to create and how do you see this project evolving? 

Justin: This project is still in its infancy as far as I am concerned; it’s the beginning, I’m still learning to communicate this sound; it’s somewhat isolated and it’s very personal.

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: Dark-wave, new-wave.

Background/Info: The Austrian Mills has been set up in 1994 by Walter Glatz and Alexander Steiner. The band went through several line-up changes, but both core members remained the only members on board. After a few self-released productions “Monochrome” can be seen as the official debut album.

Content: “Monochrome” stands for sound reverie, reminding the most melancholic hours from the 80s. There clearly is a strong cold-wave inspiration, which has been transposed into a proper sound approach. Guitar and electronic treatments are coming together creating a delicious sound osmosis sometimes revealing elevating choruses.

I also have to say a word about the captivating vocals (sung in English) revealing the great vocal skills of Walter Glatz. Music and vocals together might appeal for lovers of Diary Of Dreams although the music is not similar, but it’s more about the mood running through the work.

+ + + : The guitar playing is an essential element to understand this work. It reminds me of the 80s, but I especially love the emotional content of the play. The music stands for darkness and artistic beauty. The melancholia becomes a sweet feeling of reverie taking the listener away to explore his deepest inner thoughts. The transcendental “Lost” is just one of the highlights and a sweet caress for the ears of music lovers. The arrangements are delicate and still revealing a refined taste.

– – – : The opening song, which can be often considered as an intro, is somewhat hesitant, but once you’ve passed this debut cut you’ll discover an album made of beauty and magic. It’s maybe a pity there are only 8 songs featured, but my real single regret is that there’s no booklet accompanying this album.

Conclusion: “Monochrome” is an invitation to dream away rocked by the beauty of the sound. Mills is pure ecstasy!

Best songs: “Lost”, “Edge”, “Border”, “New World”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.millsmusic.at / www.facebook.com/millssound

Label: www.echozone.de / www.facebook.com/EchozoneMusic

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: Cold-wave, new-wave, dark-rock, wave-pop.

Background/Info: Set up in the late 90s Berlin based Golden Apes progressively got some recognition on the international goth-rock scene. They played at some famous festivals and have now released considerable number of albums. “Malvs” is their newest opus, which was released during late 2016.

Content: First of all I have to confess I didn’t get that wild for the previous Golden Apes albums. It was not that bad and even easy to listen to, but I missed something. That’s maybe what “Malvs” makes me realize. This new work is more like going back to the roots and the 80s influences. It remains somewhere in between good-old new- and cold-wave music with elements reminding me (mainly) of The Cure, but still holds on the dark-rock style the band has established over the years.

“Malvs” is a dark and moody piece of music and a powerful production. Notice by the way this album also features a surprising female guest singer. Arianna (The Frozen Autumn) contributed to one of the songs.

+ + + : “Malvs” has reconciled me with Golden Apes. This work is much more into the good-old new/cold-wave spirit and that’s definitely a nice move. The songs are carried by great guitar playing and sometimes a bit refined by a wave-pop touch reminding me of The Cure. The deep throated vocals perfectly match with this moody style. “Ignorance”, “Grinding Mills” and “Shadowplay” are real attention grabbers.

– – – : Like most album there’re just a few songs leaving me a bit indifferent. I’m referring to the ‘softer’ cuts, which are not exactly missing power, but a kind of highlight.

Conclusion: Golden Apes is back with what could be their best work ever! They’ve constructed a great sonic bridge between new-wave and dark-rock music.

Best songs: “Ignorance”, “Grinding Mills”, “Shadowplay”, “Cedars Of Salt”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.goldenapes.com / www.facebook.com/GoldenApes

Label: www.af–music.de / www.facebook.com/afmusic.de

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

Before joining Front 242 in 1981 the two Brussels-based artists Patrick Codenys and Jean-Luc De Meyer used to be working together as a duo (since 1978) under the Underviewer moniker, using a bass, synthesizers, rhythm boxes and a tape recorder. Some of that older material ended up on the “Geography” remaster released via Alfa Matrix a few years ago. But for the rest the project laid dormant for over 30 years.

The duo however recently recovered tracks from their early 4-track tape recordings and even recreated some of them by meticulously reusing the same vintage machines.

The first result is the 2-track download “Nobody But You” which was released out of the blue on Friday evening via Bandcamp (Side-Line readers following Front 242’s Instagram account got an exclusive preview snippet after which the ball really got rolling). Included in the single are 2 tracks: “Nobody But You (redux)” (03:12) and “I Remember” (02:41). The single is just a first teaser as the band is prepping a forthcoming full length album, “Wonders & Monsters”.

The reaction of those who bought the single instantly (even without pre-listening to the tracks) is more than clear, this release is exactly the good news they wanted. Peter Louies says: “These tracks are good! Love it. Typical Front 242 style was already present in these tracks. Looking forwards to the album.” The same positive sound came from Marcus Krummacher: “Bought it and I am positively surprised, I was expecting stuff like on the 2nd disc of the Geography remaster.” Didrik Peterson describes his surprise in 3 words: “Truly. Splendid. Damn!” Further feedback came from Hampton Mills (“These two tracks are fantastic!”), Mark Bristol (“Purchased. HIGHLY recommend. Great analog sound!”), Hálás Elod Joszef (“Impressive!!!!”), Luc De Schrijder (“Great great great great!!!”) and many many more.

Below is the Instagram post by Front 242, the single can be found right here:

Pre #Front242 material by #Underviewer to be released. First 2-track single now available via alfamatrix.bandcamp.com/music #ebm #jeanlucdemeyer #patrickcodenys

A video posted by Front 242 – Official (@front242official) on Oct 28, 2016 at 6:15am PDT

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.

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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After US$ 1,100.00 NIN shoes, there’s now also a 250 UK Pound NIN book measuring 15″ x 13″ x 2″. Titled “Cargo in the Blood”, the book comes in a limited edition (2000 copies) featuring Russell Mills’ art for “Hesitation Marks”, the 8th studio album by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, released on September 3, 2013.

It was the band’s first album since 2008’s “The Slip”, and their first release on Columbia Records, making this their first album released on a major label since 2007’s “Year Zero”.

The book holds 320 pages and comes accompanied by an original mixed media painting by Mills housed in a cor-teen steel frame. Added is a custom laser-etched steel card numbered between 1 and 2000. Each set is bound in a plush cotton and rayon flocked material while the exterior features debossed and foil stamped lettering and a hand cauterized mark. The pages have been printed with metallic silver and 4CP UV inks.

Each set will contain original artwork and markings that will vary in appearance compared to the picture we show above. You order it here.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com