Corvin’s Breed, a dark industrial metal band from Providence, Rhode Island, was formed by singer/frontman Matty Corvin in 2014.

As we announced a while back, the band performed all over North America in 2023 supporting fellow Metropolis Records signees Psyclon Nine on their From Hell and Back Tour.

Corvin’s Breed have now launched a new single “Straight to the Curb” along with a new accompanying video from their forthcoming sophomore album entitled “Misanthropy”. The album was produced by Nero Bellum of Psyclon Nine and will be released on March 14th on CD as well as through all streaming services. It is available for pre-order on Bandcamp right now.

Here’s the music video for “Straight to the Curb”.

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, Cinematic, Electronic.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: “Obverses” is the third and final album by Not My God. This American project driven by  Tim Skold (Marilyn Manson, KMFDM, Motionless In White, FLA, Skold) and Nero Bellum (Psyclon Nine) has announced a live tour for the end of the year to call it quits. This is the band’s second album released by Metropolis Records.  

Content: “Obverses” moves on where the previous opus “Simulacra” (2022) stopped. The sound remains a true sonic enigma although clearly infused by Industrial sound components the duo now mixes together with bombastic sound arrangements and then with surprising Ballad style. Deep bass lines, icy sequences and slow rhythms come together in pure minimalism with the unique vocals of Nero Bellum on top.

+ + + : Not My God is one of these bands which has created a very personal sound, kind of Industrial sound DNA bringing different genres and subgenres together. It sounds heavy and bombastic on one side and still subtle and refined and the other side. The atmosphere supporting the work remains cold and even a bit tormented. It’s not exactly the kind of music that makes people happy although Industrial-minded music lovers are going to like it. I’m fascinated by the composition and the style of the band which resulted in a few new masterpieces like “Unwind The Helix” and “Hyacinth”. “Deus Vult” is another masterpiece I want to mention for its more club-minded approach. This band is driven by a true creative spirit which needs a few minutes till you really catch the genius and potential of the composition.

– – – : The sound of Not My God remains a bit of a challenge but it makes me sad such a unique formation finally decided to stop their activities. Marketing wise it’s maybe not the best choice to announce the end of the band while the album is just out.

Conclusion: If “Obverses” will be really the band’s final album it will be for sure part of a great sonic legacy consisting of 3 fantastic albums.

Best songs: “Deus Vult”,“Unwind The Helix”,  “Hyacinth”, “Carnations”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/notmygodofficial

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

“Obverses” is the brand new 3rd album by Not My God, the collaboration project of Tim Skold (SKOLD, ex-Marilyn Manson, Shotgun Messiah) and Nero Bellum (Psyclon 9). The album is again blending influences from both artist’s main acts and will be released on May 12th.

The 12 track album will be available on CD and as a limited black vinyl (300 copies worldwide). The vinyl edition will be arriving sometime in June with the same tracks as on the CD.

Not My God was formed in 2020 and so far released 3 albums, “Not My God” (Cleopatra, 2020) and “Simulacra” (Metropolis, 2021) and now “Obverses” (Metropolis, 2023).

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 via Metropolis Records is “More To Hell”, the newest EP by Psyclon Nine, the project by Los Angeles based musician Nero Bellum. The EP is a 30 minute 8-track companion piece to 2022’s “Less To Heaven”, the current album by Psyclon Nine. It includes new tracks plus remixes by Skold, Suicide Commando, Snakes Of Russia, Jay E and Pitch Black, as well as Bellum himself.

Psyclon Nine is an American industrial metal band formed in 2000 in San Francisco, California. The band was initially founded by musician Nero Bellum and has gone through numerous lineup changes throughout its history.

Psyclon Nine’s music is characterized by its heavy use of electronic instruments, aggressive guitar riffs, and distorted vocals. The band’s early work was heavily influenced by black metal and industrial music, but they have since incorporated elements of other genres such as power electronics, techno, and gothic rock into their sound.

You can check the new EP 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

Genre/Influences: Industrial-Metal, Cinematic.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: The last Psyclon Nine-albums haven’t been released on a regular basis so we had to wait another four years to welcome this new opus. Meantime head of the band Nero Bellum however released two solo-albums while setting up together with Tim Skold the project Not My God.

Content: The work takes off with a dark and hell-sounding track moving crescendo till a heavy outburst. Bombastic guitar playing alternated by metal riffs are progressively joining in although the main evolution -and difference with previous work, is the explicit Cinematic format of the songs. The vocals are still expressing the usual rage.

+ + + : The least I can say is that Psyclon Nine don’t repeat themselves. The band already went through several evolutions in style and is now mixing their Industrial-Metal basis together with an obscure and doom-driven Cinematic experiment. It feels like a Soundtrack for hell. The album sounds however varied but the ‘fans’ will be pleased discovering songs like “X’s On Her Eyes” and the already known single “Money And Sex And Death” which are the hardest parts of the work. Because of its Cinematic format the work has a visual appeal so the imagery will be for sure essential during the upcoming live tour.

– – – : I don’t know if the work is less accessible but it’s definitely taking me by surprise. I’m missing the hard side by the menacing guitar riffs and heavy rhythms. 

Conclusion: “Less To Heaven” sounds as a requiem for the modern world we’re living in.

Best songs: “X’s On Her Eyes”, “Money And Sex And Death”, “Catastrophic”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/psyclonnineofficial

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

Out on August 19 via Metropolis Records is the all new Psyclon Nine album “Less To Heaven”.

Psyclon Nine began as an act described as Industrial, and over time evolved through industrial metal. Now with the album “Less To Heaven”, the brainchild of Nero Bellum finds itself mixing elements of metal-core with doom electronics, trip-techno with black metal overtones and experimental cinema soundscapes with alternative rock.

The album includes the current single “Money And Sex And Death”.

Here’s what Bellum says about the single: “It was inspired by the excitement we feel when we see the world burning around us and the abhorrent personal truths that we hold as sacred. The misery of others has never been viewed by so many angles, and strictly for our entertainment. With ‘Money And Sex And Death’ I am presenting your reflection to yourself.”

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

Not My God is a project set up by Tim Skold (Marilyn Manson, Kmfdm, Motionless In White, Shotgun Messiah…) and Nero Bellum (Psyclon Nine). They last year released their self-titled debut-album on Cleopatra Records and this year joined hands together with Metropolis to unleash ten new songs. “Simulacra” is hard to label, but clearly revealing a mix of influences; the work sounds Electronic and has been achieved with numerous Industrial sound treatments while the result has something pretty Cinematographic-like with Tim Skold’s passionate vocals on top. I’d a chat with both members.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: You guys know each other from playing together in your respective bands, but how did you finally come to set up a new music project together? What do you like in each other’s approach of producing music?

Tim: Our differences makes us similar. I know that might sounds a little strange but we are very alike in some of the ways we are different. As humans we do not only exist in a physical sense but also on many other levels and it is in some of those spaces we come together, almost subconsciously, to complement each other. Art is magic, much like a DC Marvel Superhero Universe.

Nero: I think that our individual projects are precious to us so when the prospect of working together came up, a new project was the way to go. An open playground to explore new ideas with no expectations. It almost immediately transitioned from work to ritual.

Q: The sound of Not My God is not easy to define, maybe a mix between Industrial- and Cinematographic music. It however reveals something ‘different’ and maybe ‘visionary’ when compared to other Industrial projects. What can you say about it? Did you have specific references and influences -also lyrical wise?

Tim: We have both done extensive ‘studies’ in the fields you describe above and thought it was time to explore uncharted territory.

Nero: I’m happy to live in an undefined space. To social distance our art from the unexceptional. The further we can step away from convention, the better.

Q: “Simulacra” is an interesting title –and especially considering your sound, as it might stand for ‘the representation or imitation of a person or thing’. What did you try to express by this title? And what do you think about bands, which are just trying to copy others?

Tim: Yes, exactly that and countless other interpretations. It is an ambitious title for a very ambitious collection of music.

Nero: The dead imitate the living. It’s an error in the facsimile. The second coming.

I don’t think about other bands enough to answer the latter half of your question.

Q: How do you manage working together? Is there any specific format and did you notice an evolution from your debut album towards “Simulacra?”

Tim: No! When we start it is a completely open field and it is only when we are on the way we realize what works and what doesn’t. No predefined rules or regulations will be allowed to stunt this development.

Nero: While there is no established format, Not My God has always been about experimentation. There is a subconscious push to do things differently. A song may begin as a patch on my modular system, I might plug a toy piano into a series of guitar pedals and improvise a motif or bow a broken violin through a granular processor. Always recording in the background. What works stays.

Q: What have been the different stages you’d to go through to achieve “Simulacra?” Did you encounter major difficulties and/or challenges?

Tm: Yes, there are many challenges and difficulties on the high road of true art. There is very deep darkness in the unexplored territories of this music.

Nero: The end result is multiple personality disorder. When composing for a specific project I can’t help, but to become the character that lives in that ‘world’, taking on the burdens that character may feel. It can be empowering and it can be devastating.

Q: I can’t get away from the idea your music could be used for a movie soundtrack, which is only accentuated by the different clips you made. Do you’ve specific plans in that direction and tell us a bit more about the clips? Are there new clips in the make for the new album?

Tim: Yes, I think I speak for both of us when I say we completely agree with this. I’d would even say that we know we have created music that will undoubtedly inspire other art including film and that this material will also push the format further and further. We would not mind making clips for every song, but that is of course fiscally impossible for us to do, but we look forward to see what film makers and others do incorporating or at least inspired by our works in the future.

Nero: With film and with music, we both aim to tell a story. It’s a natural marriage. What stories may emerge as an amalgam I’ll leave to the prophets and oracles.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Industrial, Electro, Cinematographic.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: “Simulacra” is the second album by the American duo Tim Skold (Marilyn Manson, KMFDM, Motionless In White) and Nero Bellum (Psyclon Nine). They last year released their self-titled debut-album on Cleopatra and now joined hands together with Metropolis to unleash ten new songs.

Content: It’s not an easy thing defining the sound of this formation. It has less in common with the sound of the protagonists’ respective projects. The tracks are however driven by Industrial sound treatments, the tracks remaining driven by slow tempo. The impact of the overwhelming atmospheres is definitely more important than the power of the production. We’re entering an icy universe, which sounds as a darker and icier version of Haujobb. The charismatic vocal parts are sometimes reminding me of David Bowie.

+ + + : It’s fascinating to see how both artists revealed a hidden side of their sonic brain. “Simulacra” is a great piece of music, which is characterized by overwhelming, icy atmospheres. It has something ghost-like and tormented while there’s a lot of emotion emerging from the vocals. Moving in between spooky- and enraged passages, the vocals have a prominent place in this production. Most of the songs have something Cinematographic, but there are a few exceptions. I especially recommend listening to “21 Grams”, which is the hardest piece of the album, but still a true masterpiece.

– – – : The Cinematographic approach of the work makes it maybe a bit less accessible to a wider audience.

Conclusion: Not My god took me by surprise, releasing a real masterpiece. This project has something different in its global approach revealing it’s still possible to compose original music.

Best songs: “21 Grams”, “Mirage Mirage”, “The Underneath”, “Ashes”, “Crisis”.

Rate: 9.

Artist: www.facebook.com/notmygodofficial

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

As we reported a while back, Tim Skold (Marilyn Manson, Kmfdm, Motionless In White) and Nero Bellum (Psyclon Nine) had joined again to record material for their project, Not My God. The pair were no strangers to working together, having both served as live bandmembers for the other’s projects, but Not My God marked their first artistic collaboration, writing and recording together on a studio album.

Coming up now is an all new album, “Simulacra”, holding ten new songs. The first single and video was “Ashes” (directed by Vicente Cordero / Industrialism Films) and was a good teaser for what to expect next.

“Simulacra” will be released by Metropolis Records and will be available worldwide on CD, a limited edition Vinyl and all major streaming services on October 15th.

Here’s “Ashes”.

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

San Antonio, Texas based dark wave act Death Loves Veronica is back with an all new 2-track EP, “Deception”. “Deception” holds one song, “Fuck Like Me”, composed and recorded by Nero Bellum (Psyclon Nine, Not My God) and a b-side, “Pleaser”, recorded by Death Loves Veronica and mastered by Nero.

“Deception” is available for pre-order and will officially release on August 31. You can check out the release right below.

About Death Loves Veronica

Death Loves Veronica is the project by Veronica Campbell who has composed and performed music for several years with post- punk, and deathrock acts. This solo project includes semi-modular and analog synthesizers, guitars, and experimental methods to give a dark electronic feel reminiscent of the 80s and 90s electronic post-industrial/new wave movement.

A first album was released in 2018, “Vampiros Electric”, followed by “Lucid Dreams” in 2020 via Swiss Dark Nights. In between a string of singles were released as well.

After releasing the album “Chemical” through Cold Transmission Campbell started work with several artists from the dark electronic scene to record material. The single/EP “Deception” is the result of one of those collaborations, this time with Nero Bellum.

The collaboration with a second artist is currently in production.

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 on October 15 via Metropolis Records is “Simulacra”, the forthcoming second album by Not My God aka Tim Skold and Nero Bellum. The album is the follow-up to 2020’s self-titled outing as Not My God (Cleopatra Records).

Just like with their first album, Tim Skold (Marilyn Manson, KMFDM, Motionless In White, Skold) and Nero Bellum (Psyclon Nine) have written and recorded the material together for this second studio album. “Simulacra” will hold 10 new tracks.

The first single from the album is “Ashes” with an accompanying video directed by Vicente Cordero of Industrialism Films.

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, electronic.

Background/Info: We all know Nero Bellum as the spirit behind Psyclon Nine. On “NFRN°” Nero Bellum wanted to get back to the essence of electronic music. The tracks have been composed by modular synths. It took two years to record the songs, which are all improvised.

Content: “NFRN°” clearly has nothing in common with the work and influences of Psyclon Nine. This is a totally different concept. It becomes rapidly clear Nero Bellum has developed a real fascination for analogue gear –and it’s not that surprising that he was under the influence of the famous Buchla. The songs are instrumental edits (except a few pitched and sampled passages) mixing industrial sound treatments with pure experimental work.

+ + + : It not only is an experimental work, but still a pretty minimal one. No doubt about it, you’ll not recognize the charismatic leader from Psyclon Nine behind this production. Nero Bellum has decided to walk on ‘new’ paths, which are totally retro-like, but getting us back to a time artists really had to create their sound to compose their songs. This album is an antidote to modern technology, which is getting so-called musicians ‘lazy’. It clearly sounds experimental, but there are several noticeable cuts featured and also driven by a slow rhythm.

– – – : The experimental side of the work is obviously present and sometimes too much into the improvisation technique. But that’s improvisation isn’t it?

Conclusion: Nero Bellum has realized a real surprising work, which in a way also is a tour de force. I like renowned artists such as Nero bellum who dare to do different things. So in the end it’s a real challenge!

Best songs: “All Feathers Ripped Out”, “A Candle Once Burned”, “Weapon”, “An Angel’s Offering”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/SaintBellum

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

On May 24th, Metropolis Records will release the debut solo album of Nero Bellum, leader of the notorious Industrial-Metal band Psyclon Nine.

The album entitled “NFRNº” was recorded live in the studio over a period of two years, and each piece was improvised, with no overdubs and without the use of computers in the creative process.

Nero Bellum’s “NFRNº” will be released on compact disc and will be available across all digital and streaming outlets.

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-metal.

Background/Info: Psyclon Nine once started as a harsh dark-electronic formation (referring to their debut album released on NoiTekk), but quite progressively the band moved towards industrial-metal fields. This opus is the first new one since 2014.

Content: The industrial-metal influence remains ultra-present, but I also experienced this album as an exploration of new sonic paths. The dark-doom side has never been that present while the oppressive atmospheres are clearly revealing a kind of modern sound-approach. This album has something overwhelming and the bombastic/orchestral arrangements only reinforce the feeling. The power is hiding in obscure and sometimes disturbing spheres. A few passages even have something ritual-like.

+ + + : I experienced this work as the most disturbing Psyclon Nine release in history. This production will freak you out and I simply love it. But I’m also convinced Nero Bellum has accomplished the most soundtrack-orientated opus from the band. “Warm What’s Hollow” is a great song illustrating this obscure, cinematographic side. This is production is characterized by brilliant atmospheres reinforced by the possessed vocals of the front man.

– – – : I can imagine some fans would have expect something harder and more ‘pure’ metal-driven. They’ll only get a few songs into that style.

Conclusion: “Icon Of The Adversary” appears to be a noticeable ‘comeback’ for Psyclon Nine. It doesn’t sound like the start of something completely new although it’s definitely a new chapter that has just begun.

Best songs: “Warm What’s Hollow”, “When The Last Stars Die”, “And With Fire”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/psyclonnineofficial

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

Out via Metropolis on August 24 will be the brand new album by Psyclon Nine called “Icon of the Adversary”. On this new album you can expect a mix of what the label calls ‘concussive, machine-precise drums, hammering guitars, scathing vocals and evil electronics’.

The album itself is now available for ordering, on CD (order details available right here) but also on vinyl (order details available right here).

Psyclon Nine is an American industrial metal band formed in 2000 in San Francisco, CA of which Nero Bellum is the only remaining original member. Originally Psyclon Nine offered mostly electronic music but nowadays the band has evolved into a more industrial metal band.

The new album is the follow up to “Order of the Shadow” and will be followed by a full tour to support the album.

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

Suicide Commando is a long-time leading formation from the dark-electronic scene. The band is an important source of inspiration for numerous new bands. So I got the idea asking a question to artists who are or have been related to Johan Van Roy. What do they think about his music, about the man hiding behind the artist…

I got in touch with Torben Schmidt, Dirk Ivens, Jean-Luc De Meyer, Jan L., Nero Bellum, Markko Barientos and Sakis (aka SynthetiC).

Speaking for myself I got the opportunity to work with Johan on a common project called Toxic Shock Syndrome. That was quite a long time ago now, but all over the years Johan remained the same kind and accessible guy for which I can only express my admiration for the talented artist he is and my respect for the great person hiding behind the artist. There where some artists are ‘struggling’ with their egos, he simply remains himself…

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Torben Schmidt is the owner of Infacted Recordings, member of Lights Of Euphoria and Binnary Park plus long-time live member of Suicide Commando.

Q: We all know Johan Van Roy as an ‘artist’ and ‘performer’, but what kind of man is he behind the scenes?

Torben: I know Johan since more then 20 years now and I have to say that he is one of the most loyal and kind guys I ever met. In fact he turned from an artist I respect into a real friend. We experienced so many cool things in the last 17 years being a part of his band which really made us friends. I’m really happy that I got to know him and that we had the chance to expand our friendship.

Dirk Ivens is a living legend of the electronic underground scene, front man of The Klinik, but still involved with Dive, Sonar, Absolute Body Control… he also was a source of inspiration for Suicide Commando.

Q: The Klinik definitely was one of the main sources of inspiration for Suicide Commando. How much of The Klinik do you recognize in Suicide Commando?

Dirk: It looks like more than 30 years after the release of the first album of The Klinik that these songs are still very much alive and were a big inspiration for a lot of bands during the years.. including Suicide Commando. Johan was one of them and especially his early work before he developed and finally found his own musical touch.

Jean-Luc De Meyer is the singer of the pioneers of EBM, the one and only Front 242! He’s also involved with 32 Crash, Underviewer and Modern Cubism. Jean-Luc De Meyer did some guest vocals on the song “The Pain That You Liked”, which was originally released as EP and featured on the newest Suicide Commando album as well.

Q: Jean-Luc, you already sung in multiple projects and did multiple guest vocals, but I never expected you singing on a song of Suicide Commando. What kind of experience was it for you and what’s your perception of the Suicide Commando sound?  

Jean-Luc: I’m not that sociable you know so I lately met Johan, maybe 3 or 4 years ago now. But I’d seen numerous concerts of Suicide Commando before. Singing on “The Pain That You Like” was a rather easy job because music and lyrics both were already written and I only had to interpret the song. It was quite simple and a bit of an evidence for me as I felt like a fish in the water singing on this kind of music…

Jan L is for sure another leading artist from the electronic underground scene. From Noisuf-X to X-Fusion to Stoppenberg he ever ever set up Kombat Unit together with Johan Van Roy.

Q: You ever set up Kombat Unit together with Johan Van Roy. What did you keep in mind from this experience and what’s your perception of Johan Van Roy as an artist/performer?

Jan L: Yes, we started Kombat Unit some time ago.. and we had a lot of fun making music together. We both have very different ways of working.. but it worked very well in the end, even if we only finished 2 songs. Our problem was only our lack of time. That´s why we stopped with Kombat Unit.

You maybe know that we both know each other since a very long time and we are close friends. I respect Johan as a very nice person and as a great artist. I also love to work with him, when it comes to mixing/mastering his Suicide Commando stuff. His music inspired countless bands since a very long time and he is a very important person in our scene. Without him our scene would be very different.

Nero Bellum is the front man of Psyclon Nine and get featured on the opening song of the new album.

Q: How did you get in touch with Johan Van Roy and what kind of experience was it for you contributing to the opening song (cf. “The Gates Of Oblivion”) of the new album?

Nero: I believe that my first correspondence with Johan took place just as “Mindstrip” was being released. I had just formed my band Psyclon Nine and had just begun work on our first album. Suicide Commando was one of my biggest influences at the time and Johan was happy to give me advice.

“The Gates Of Oblivion” gave us an opportunity to collaborate in a much deeper way. While Johan had most of the music written when he approached me, I was able to bring live, modular synthesis into the picture as well as my lyrical contributions. Performing the track at ‘Wave Gotik Treffen’ 10 minutes before my shuttle arrived was something that I won’t soon forget.

Markko Barientos is without a shadow of a doubt one of the leading artists from the Mexican dark-electro scene, but he in the meantime became a word-wide recognized artist involved with C-Lekktor, Circuito Cerrado and Kromak.

Q: Do you remember the first time you’ve heard Suicide Commando and what did you think? What means this band to you?

Markko: Yeah I still remember that day, the first time I heard Suicide Commando here in Mexico city we have a ‘Music Market’ named “El  Chopo” and I got the “Critical Stage” CD by luck. At that time there wasn’t internet and to find original CDs was something that became a real pain in the ass, but fortunately I found it and it was so blasting that it changed my own panorama from what I was listening to those days. ‘COLD-VIOLENT AND CATCHY’ are my favorite 3 words when it comes to dark electronic music. I just wanted to get more and more from Suicide Commando.

Suicide Commando had already released the “Stored Images”-album around that time I found the “Critical Stage”-album (so you can see how hard it was to find music in Mexico during that time?) From that day I always knew that I was so engaged with his sound and after all these years I still consider it as one of my biggest pleasures and influences in my music. For me “Construct-Destruct” is and will be always one of the best albums. To keep it short, ‘I’M A SUICIDE COMMANDO ADDICT, aren’t you?

Sakis aka SynthetiC from Nano Infect is a Greek artist who definitely found his inspiration in the cold electro sound of Suicide Commando. Johan Van Roy was guest singer on the Nano Infect’s song “Lifeless”.

Q: Suicide Commando clearly sounds like a source of inspiration for numerous dark-electronic bands. What makes the sound of Suicide Commando that special and what specific elements in this sound do you like?

Sakis: What makes Suicide Commando so special to a point that, at least to me, literally everybody is inspired, is the man behind the project; Johan Van Roy himself. He’s a loyal and simple guy while his sound features a straight forward structure plus a melody that gets stuck in your head from the very first moment. Needless to mention the groovy bass lines and that super fat sounding signature snare!
As for the lyrics, you get to see that Johan Van Roy is an everyday normal guy with thoughts like yours and mine… Songs about depression, death, the way the mind works… simple thoughts of a man who feels he has to express them…

It has been an honor to know him and I would like to thank him in public again for everything.

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark-electro.

Background/Info: Belgian proud and master of dark-(h)el(l)ectronics is back on track with the first new album in 4 years. Johan Van Roy has often took the time to accomplish new studio work, but this production also is something special as it was a way to chase personal demons… Notice by the way this album is also available as double ‘deluxe’ disc, as double vinyl together with a CD and last, but not least as a special ‘fan edition’ 4-CD box.

Content: “Forest Of The Impaled” has been introduced as being the darkest and most intimate work of Suicide Commando to date. The opening cut featuring Nero Bellum (Psyclon Nine) definitely sounds as one of the most tormented songs in the band’s history. But if you think that all the upcoming songs are sounding similar, you’ll be surprised to discover slower compositions.

Johan Van Roy also experimented with new ideas, revealing a more sophisticated and intelligent writing process. I noticed songs with refreshing bleeps and even some minimalism. There also is one of the most EBM-minded songs ever written by Johan Van Roy. This is the already familiar “The Pain That You Like” featuring Jean-Luc Demeyer (Front 242, Under Viewer, 32 Crash) on vocals.

“Forest Of The Impaled” reveals a mix between some classic Suicide Commando songs carried by icy sequences, bombast-industrial rhythms and the harsh vocals of Johan at one side and some refreshing pieces at the other side.

+ + + : “Forest Of The Impaled” probably is the most diversified work of Suicide Commando ever. Another obscure and tormented cut is “The Devil” on, which you get the impression that a demon is singing. The album is merging the unavoidable ‘classical’ dark-electro cuts with a few more ‘minimal’-driven cuts revealing a different approach in the sound treatments plus an EBM-inspired song featuring Jean-Luc Demeyer.

This is probably not the album that will enter into history as the ‘best’ album of the artist and yet there are a few outstanding pieces featured. The opening track “The Gates Of Oblivion” featuring Nero Bellum truly is a real masterpiece. The song together with Jean-Luc Demeyer is another essential cut, but I also enjoyed the ‘modernism’ running through “Chasm Of Emptiness” and “Crack Up”. One more interesting cut is the sophisticated “Schiz[o]topia”, which comes closer to the style of Mentallo & The Fixer.

– – – : I just noticed a few single cuts, which left me rather unmoved. “Too Far Gone” and “Poison Tree” aren’t exactly the songs that will enter into Suicide Commando ‘classic’ hits.

Conclusion: Every single new Suicide Commando album always is an event. I don’t know if it’s the artist’s darkest album ever, but it clearly and once again deals with pain and torture. Suicide Commando has chased its demons on “Forest Of The Impaled” with music that sounds even more evil than the most dangerous demon!

Best songs: “Chasm Of Emptiness”, “Gates Of Oblivion feat. Nero Bellum”, “Death Lies Waiting”, “The Pain That You Like feat. Jean-Luc Demeyer”, “The Devil”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.suicidecommando.be / www.facebook.com/IIXIII

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

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 Insane Records label and the Terror Night radio show have joined forces to release “Terror Night Vol.2 – Sounds Of Dead Future”, a compilation album that consists of 100% exclusive tracks by dark electro bands from all over the world. The release date is scheduled for June 30, 2016!

The compilation is the follow-up to the first compilation “Terror Night Vol.1 – Industrial Madness”. Compared to the first volume this volume has a more diversified tracklist catering to more styles related to dark electro. As a result you can expect aggressive Hellektro, but also more melodic songs.

A preview can be listened to below:

The compilation comes as a 6-panel 2 CD digipak limited to just 300 copies. The compilation album will only be available via the official Insane Records webstore as well as on the label’s Bandcamp page.

Here’s the track list:

CD 1
01. Reactor7x – Disorder (v20.16 Harsh Edition)
02. Encono – Visceral Absorption
03. Hell:Sector – ReHumanize
04. Alien Vampires – Harshlizer (Disorder Faith Remix)
05. 00TZ 00TZ – Ouroboros (Vocal Terror Mix)
06. PreEmptive Strike 0.1 – Death Of Talos Live Mas (feat. Totten Mechanismus)
07. Angels Of Suicide – Dancer Diabolus
08. Kill The Sleeper – I Am The Ocean; I Am The Sea
09. Asdeandare – Imprisonment
10. Larva – The Peace Of Suicide
11. Archazard – Revolution In Violence
12. Psyborg Corp. – Of Visions And Blizzards (Subliminal Code Remix)
13. T3RR0R 3RR0R – The God Of Fire (Terror Night Mix)
14. Schwarzblut – Vogala
15. Technolorgy – 23 (Club Mix)

CD 2
01. nolongerhuman – The Pawn
02. DYM – aDeiu (Terror Night Edition)
03. God Destruction – Redentor (A.D.R.O.N. Remix)
04. Bleeding Corp. – Automatic (Terror Night Edition)
05. Reaxion Guerrilla – Sacrifice (Asinaptico Remix)
06. Viscera Drip – Aggrosex
07. C-Lekktor – Juicio Final (Alien:Nation Remix)
08. Thornsectide – City Of Madness
09. Shadow System – Overkill (Exemia Remix)
10. Cygnosic – Crawl (Homicidal Feelings Remix)
11. Benjamin’sPlague – Sunday Night’s Slit Wrist Party
12. Sleetgrout – I Bought Coffins (feat. Cygnosic) (Destructive Noise Remix by Nero Bellum of Psyclon Nine)
13. Chamaeleon – Suppression (Hard Balls Remix by [ Sin.thetic Squad ])
14. Okkulta – Singularity-B
15. Vault-113 – Ami Go Home (Original by Ernst Busch)

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 5 long years Alien Vampires finally returns with the follow-up to their 2010 album “Harshlizer”. “Drag You To Hell” is available in 2 physical formats (a 15-track CD and a 31-track 2CD boxset) via the Alfa Matrix webstore and as an extended bonus download version via Bandcamp including the non-censored artwork cover (which got the boot from iTunes, Amazon etc for being too sexy). The picture that goes with this article is also a censored one because Facebook and Google would block it otherwise…

New is also that Alfa Matrix is now applying a 15% discount code for all orders with more than 1 CD. When you enter the discount coupon code 643578 during checkout, you’ll get an immediate 15% discount on your entire basket. The code is valid until November 21st, so use it now before it’s expired.

On “Drag You To Hell” – which was mastered by Jan L (X-Music Production) – you’ll get collaborations with legendary artists like Attila Csihar (vocalist of black metal act Mayhem and Sun 0))) ), Sin Quirin (guitar player for Ministry), Nero Bellum (vocalist of US aggrotech band Psyclon Nine) and guitarist Charles Edward (Mayhem).

The album is available in a deluxe 2CD carton box limited edition with some special Aline Vampires fan-goodies and an exclusive 16-track bonus disc including alternative versions of album songs and a few remixes, plus 6 versions of the non-album track “All The Fakes Must Die”. The bonus disc is rounded up with the exclusive track “I Love Death More Than Life”.

Available:

• ALIEN VAMPIRES – “Drag You To Hell” CD
• ALIEN VAMPIRES – “Drag You To Hell” 2CD
• ALIEN VAMPIRES – “Drag You To Hell” (Bonus Tracks Version) FLAC / MP3

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