Referring to the events that unfolded globally, 2023 has again been a bloody, terrible year. Music continues to be a true therapy for soothing pain and suffering, though it seems to have a diminishing impact on the ongoing horror. Therefore, I’m once again wrapping up the year with a personal selection of my very own ‘best of’ albums.

Throughout the year, over 700 productions were selected, and 450 reviews were conducted. Some productions were declined because the style of music didn’t fit, others weren’t reviewed for not being ‘good enough’, while a final portion of reviews will be postponed to early 2024. I am immensely grateful to all the labels, bands, and promoters for considering my work, and I look forward to collaborating again in 2024.

I extend my deepest gratitude and thanks to Rich Bova (NEIKKA RPM), who has been reading, correcting, and improving the reviews for many years. Without Rich, these reviews would not exist. I also want to thank Bernard Van Isacker, chief editor of Side-Line Music Magazine, for our ongoing, successful collaboration. Last but not least, I thank my lovely wife, Katja, for giving me the time and freedom to pursue my passion.

However…

Looking ahead to 2024, I’ve been scaling back my activities for a few years and plan to reduce them further. Having started with my first reviews and interviews back in 1991, I feel the end drawing near. My aim is to reach 2025, but nothing is certain. I’ve grown a bit tired and disillusioned with how things are evolving.

That’s why I want to express a big ‘F*** you’ to so-called ‘artists’ and label owners who fail to realize or appreciate the work I do in creating reviews and preparing interviews to spotlight them. Guys, I do this for free and in my free time! The attitude and lack of respect shown by some – fortunately a very few – is very, very sad. But, I’m afraid it reflects the world we live in. Behind a genius artist doesn’t always stand a great person. It’s odd realizing that the ‘biggest’ and long-established artists in this scene are often the most accessible.

Writing reviews remains highly subjective and a source of discussion. Remember, it’s always the reviewer’s perception. I assure you, I always strive to substantiate my reviews as best as possible. A review is subjective but must be honest!

Like every year, I’ve selected the best albums of the year 2023. This ‘TOP 25’ encompasses various styles like EBM, Dark-Electro, IDM, Synth-Pop, Ethereal, Dark-Ambient, Industrial, Ritual, Cinematic, Gothic, Post-Punk, Cold/Dark-Wave, Dark-Techno, and a few related genres. It’s always an exciting yet challenging task.

This ‘TOP 25’ is based on the promotional material I received, excluding compilations, ‘best of’ productions, EPs, and singles. So, here’s my ‘TOP 25’ from 2023, and don’t forget to share it with your friends…

Stéphane Froidcoeur (for Inferno Sound Diaries/Side-Line Reviews)

Top 25 albums of the year 2023

1. CERULEAN VEINS “Black” Cold Transmission Music
2. LIEBKNECHT “Fabrikat” Ant-Zen
3. FRONTIER GUARDS “Colony” Aliens Production
4. SOPOR AETERNUS & THE ENSEMBLE OF SHADOWS “Alone At Sam’s – An Evening With…” Apocalyptic Vision / Trisol
5. WAVESHARD “Waveshard” Corvus Records
6. THE EMPATH “Black Hole” Audiophob
7. VNV NATION “Electric Sun” Metropolis Records
8. EFF DST “Incarnate” Ant-Zen
9. ENZO KREFT “XL” Enzo Kreft
10. DELEYAMAN “The Sudbury Inn” TTO Records
11. GIRLS UNDER GLASS “Backdraft” Dependent Records
12. ALIEN VAMPIRES “Return Me To Hell” Alfa Matrix
13. SUN’S SPECTRUM “The Silence After The Fall” Cold Transmission Music
14. DANIEL MYER “Hingab” Sonic Groove
15. SHROUDS “Shrouds” Hands
16. DIARY OF DREAMS “Melancholin” Accession Records
17. MONO INC “Ravenblack” NoCut / SPV
18. ROME “Gates Of Europe” Trisol
19. OHNE NOMEN “The S-Witch” Cold Transmission Music
20. THE SEVEN WHORES OF THE APOCALYPSE “All Through The Waste” Scanner / Dark Dimensions
21. SPANKTHENUN “The Bunker Tapes Vol.3” SpankTheNun
22. BLACKCARBURNING “Watching Sleepers” COP International
23. GOD BODY DISCONNECT “The Weight Of Regression” Cryo Chamber
24. MILDREDA “Blue-Devilled” Dependent Records
25. PASCAL SAVY “Simulacra” Cyclic Law

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-Wave, Minimal-Electro.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Two years after their excellent debut-album “Nighflower” Italian Ohno Nomen duo strike back with their second album. Francesca ‘AngeNoir’ Marlat and Filippo Marlat (Iamnoone) have written eleven songs to this album.

Content: The songs move on there where “Nightflower” stopped. There’s a similar source of inspiration which directly evokes 80s Electro-Wave music. Dark, and minimal, sound treatments have been mixed with danceable rhythms with on top Francesca’s sterile, sensual, timbre of voice. 

+ + + : Ohne Nomen confirm with “The S-Witch” the potential of the debut work. The songs became more danceable while the tracklist reveals a succession of cool songs. I also like the progression of the global production process. There’re less songs which couldn’t convince me. We get an accomplished production featuring danceable vibes, easy, enjoyable, melody lines and the singular vocals of Fra Marlat. She’s injecting a touch of icy, sensuality but still a more passionate approach at “Cold Sadness” -which by the way is driven by a great 80s-like melody line. I don’t want to compare Ohne Nomen to another formation but I think it might appeal for lovers of Paradox Obscur.

– – – : I noticed a very few cuts -which are the softest ones, which couldn’t totally convince me.

Conclusion: “The S-Witch” stands for great, alluring, Electro-Wave music while I hope Ohne Nomen will progressively reach a wider audience.

Best songs: “Darkness”, “Cold Sadness”, “Crystal World”, “Deep Hole”, “Thelema”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/Ohnenomen

Label: www.coldtransmission.com / www.facebook.com/coldtransmissionmusic

About Ohne Nomen

Ohne Nomen is an Italian project driven by Francesca ‘AngeNoir’ Marlat and Filippo Marlat (Iamnoone), formed in 2020. Both were previously members of Marlat, an Italian Dark-Wave and Gothic-Rock band active since 2010. Ohne Nomen released its debut album “Nightflower” in 2021 on Cold Transmission Music, with lyrics written by the duo’s brother Stephan Seth. “The S-Witch” (2023) is the project’s second album.

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

Italian project Ohne Nomen is driven by Francesca ‘AngeNoir’ Marlat and Filippo Marlat (Iamnoone). They this year released the debut album “Nightflower” on Cold Transmission Music. The songs are mixing elements of Electro-Wave and Minimal-Electro reinforced by guitar play. It’s a cold and 80s influenced composition, which I can only, but recommend. I got in touch with Francesca and Filippo.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: How did Ohne Nomen saw the daylight and what’s the music background of the members –thinking of other bands you’re involved with?

Francesca: Ohne Nome was born in 2020, but Filippo and I were part of Marlat, an Italian band active since 2010 and devoted to Dark-Wave and Gothic-Rock music. Our background is varied, but focused around dark, legendary bands like The Cure and Siouxie And The Banshees_, but also new and contemporary Dark-Wave and Electronic projects.

Q: What kind of band and sound did you’ve in mind when setting up Ohne Nomen? Do you’ve specific references when composing your music?

Francesca: Our project is conceived to make people dance. We’re trying to bring some vital energy with our music, which we think it’s important in a strange period like the one we’re living in. We love Electronic music and Dark-Wave music. We love bands with a sound featuring atmosphere and a lot of Electronic energy.  

Q: You this year released your debut album “Nightflower”, which is clearly inspired by ‘creatures’ of the night. Is it a kind of conceptual album? What fascinates and inspires you in this theme and how do you transpose it into music?

Francesca: “Nightflower” is not a conceptual album, but the lyrics are inspired by occult- and magic themes. The creatures of the night are both the creatures who live in this world, but also the people who attend the clubs and who are part of the Goth club culture. Our album is dedicated to both.

Q: How did you experience the writing of this debut album? What’s the input of each member and what have been the main difficulties –and eventually challenges, you encountered in the writing of the album?

Filippo: The album was composed, recorded and produced by Francesca and me. The lyrics were written by our brother Stephan Seth, who is able to transpose our vision into words. The song writing happened easily because we got inspired and we had the sound in mind we wanted to give to the album.

Q: What did you try to express by the clips you made for the album? What do you expect from music videos today and do you think it still has an impact?

Filippo: Also the videos were  shot by ourselves. We like to keep control of every aspect from our work. For example, the clip for “The Fire Within” is an invitation to dance and express our energy. The fire is an active- and energetic symbol. We wanted to invite everyone to dance and spread the fire they keep inside.

Q: What has been the impact  of Covid-19 on the writing of your album and the activities of the band? What are the further plans regarding live performances? 

Francesca: Despite the hard times we’re all living in, the album gave us the possibility to have a perspective. It helped us to feel alive and we’re grateful for that. By the way we did not have the possibility to organize a tour or live performances. We just did a very fun live streaming of three songs from our studio for the lovely ‘Luna Negra. So we’re thrilled by the idea to play those songs live because we’re sure we will get people dancing. News about  further shows will be announced soon.

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: Minimal-Electro, Electro-Wave.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Ohne Nomen is an Italian project driven by  Fra ‘AngeNoir’ Marlat and Filippo Marlat (Iamnoone) while Stephan Seth (still involved with Iamnoone) wrote the lyrics of this debut full-length. 

Content: I never heard of this formation before and discovered an 80s inspired production. The songs are mainly into Minimal/Electro-Wave music, some passages becoming pretty minimal-like while other parts have been reinforced by guitar sounds. Fra ‘AngeNoir’ Marlat sings with a sexy accent, her rather cold expression sometimes reminding me of Kriistal Ann. The song “Fell”, which was previously released as a single has been remixed while there’s another song remixed as well.

+ + + : This work is a pretty cool discovery and an album I would recommend without hesitation. First there’s this sexy accent of the singer, which together with the 80s flavored music has something cool. The first half of the work is a succession of great songs accomplished with efficient choruses. The remix of “Fell” is a potential club-killer.

– – – : The second part of the album is just a tiny bit under the level of the other tracks although “Nightflower” remains a great piece of music.

Conclusion: Ohne Nomen is an interesting newcomer, which I can only, but recommend if you’re into Electro/Wave music.

Best songs: “Fell – Nightflower Remix”, “City Of The Death”, “Feel The Breath”, “Ishtar”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/Ohnenomen

Label: www.coldtransmission.com / www.facebook.com/coldtransmissionmusic

About Ohne Nomen

Ohne Nomen is an Italian project formed in 2020 by Fra ‘AngeNoir’ Marlat and Filippo Marlat of Iamnoone, both previously members of Marlat, an Italian dark-wave and gothic-rock band active since 2010. The lyrics are written by Stephan Seth, also of Iamnoone. The band describes its sound on Bandcamp as “witch wave”, mixing dark wave, electro wave and EBM with occult-themed lyrics. Discogs lists the members as Francesca Mora and Philippe Marlat.

“Nightflower” was released by Cold Transmission Music on 2 April 2021 on CD and as a download. The ten tracks are “The Fire Within”, “Ishtar”, “Fell (Nightflower Remix)”, “Feel The Breath”, “City Of The Dead”, “Alice In The Moonlight”, “Dance Of Death”, “Creatures Of The Night”, “The Call” and “The Fire Within (Loberg Dark Disco Remix)”. The album was recorded, mixed and mastered at La Maison Diev. The duo spoke with Side-Line in the ‘Click Interview’ with Ohne Nomen: ‘Our Project Is Conceived To Make People Dance’ in September 2021.

The digital singles “No Lights” (2022) and “Darkness” (2023) preceded the second album The S-Witch, reviewed on Side-Line in November 2023, all on Cold Transmission Music. “Nightflower” is the project’s debut album.

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