Placebo &#8211; SIDE-LINE

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!

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Gothminister surprising candidate in Norway’s Eurovision Song Contest

Jan Ronald Stange — Sat, 13 Jan 2024 16:28:04 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange / Gothminister press release) The Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) season is upon us again, and there’s no denial that most songs participating aren’t in the scope of Side-Line readers. But fortunately there are exceptions – one of them being Gothminister from Norway, competing in Melodi Grand Prix, the Norwegian semi-finals, this Saturday!

Gothminister is Bjørn Alexander Brem’s heart child and alter ego. During the day, the Oslo man works as a lawyer, but at night Gothminister rises from the dark. Bjørn Alexander brings out his creative side through impressive costumes and music. Gothminister recently played to over 30,000 people in Germany, and has toured in more than 40 countries over the years. Last year they released the album ‘Pandemonium’, which won the Dark Album of the Year award, ahead of Rammstein and Placebo among others. Gothminister has numerous chart positions in Germany, and won a total of 19 international film awards for two of the music videos last year.

The song ‘We Come Alive’ was a collaboration with producer Jesper Borgen (Alan Walker, Coldplay), and is about the value of play, about believing in yourself and standing together against all injustice. With him on stage in MGP, he has, among others, chorister Hege Rødfjell, who has extensive experience from bands, orchestras, TV and film.

Between rehearsals and preparations for tonight’s semifinal we managed to slip in some questions:

SL: What made you participate again, 11 years after last time?

Bjørn Alexander Brem: In 2013 I met a famous producer called Jesper Borgen (Alan Walker, Coldplay). He told me he always wanted to produce a Gothminister track. 10 years after I called him and he was still interested.

‘We Come Alive’ is the result of the discussions between metal man Gothminister and pop man Jesper Borgen. In the end I think we landed a perfect hybrid between pop and industrial gothmetal, and suddenly the song was picked as 1 of 18 among about 2.000 songs to compete in Melodi Grand Prix, which is the national selections in Norway for Eurovision.

SL: There’s been mixed reactions; fans and music commentators don’t agree – what’s your take on that?

BAB: Yes, the song got mixed reviews – in the MGP podcast it got 5/6, but in Nettavisen 1/6 and they wrote that «the song is best when it is over.» This shows the typical commercial attitude to the Dark scene, and towards something that is different. Gothminister has always and is still representing the different ones.

PS! A hilarious note on the Nettavisen reviews of the songs: they added a voting form for their subscribers at the end of the article, ending up with Gothminister as the overwhelming victor with over 50% of the votes for the six contestants, leaving the next best with 17%!

SL: If you go to the finals or to Malmö, what can we expect?

BAB: I can’t say, but you know Gothminister is always «over the top», so it will be crazy, that’s for sure!

SL: What are you looking most forward to during this contest?

BAB: To show the Dark side, to show that it’s possible to be different and still good. And all the people out there who has felt rejected, mocked, struggling in life etc, like myself – I am performing for them first and foremost.

‘We Come Alive’ is about being different and thus being a bit outside. Gothminister has always been a champion for this group and for justice to be done. I myself was bullied by my former best friend at school and felt what it was like.

But being different also gives you unimaginable superpowers. Among other things, it makes you better able to understand others around you, and to respect them. Never be afraid to be different. Believe in yourself and never let go of your dreams, one day they will come to life. You must respect others and always strive to make others comfortable in your company.
If everyone stands together we are more alive, instead of being dead inside!

Check out the various versions of ‘We Come Alive’ right below.

Do also check out the official video here!

And don’t forget to vote tonight if you’re Norwegian, you can register at https://delta.nrk.no/mgp/.

Jan Ronald Stange

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

Korinthians – A Major Walk (Album – Korinthians)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Thu, 21 Sep 2023 07:00:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Pop-Rock, Dark-Wave, Indie-Pop-Rock, Post-Punk.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: Belgian DIY formation Korinthians are back on track unleashing their second full length. Three years after the excellent “Chaos Control” the band released a few singles to announce “A Major Walk”.

Content: The work reveals 9 songs which sound-wise are bringing different influences together. There are definitely some Dark-Wave and Post-Punk inspiration running through the songs but there’s also a Pop-Rock approach. There’s a perfect balance between guitar and synths bringing power and melody together. The sound again reminds me of great artists like Placebo and The Editors.

+ + + : I first of all highly respect the ‘do it yourself’ attitude of Korinthians but on the other hand, I can’t understand why this band hasn’t been signed to a cool label. “A Major Walk” just confirms the band’s talent to mix different influences together, creating a well-crafted production. There’s an interesting twist between power and melody and between darkness and catchy choruses. The guitar playing has an elevating effect which together with electronic arrangements bring several songs to a total apotheosis. There’s maybe not an absolute hit like “Icarus Airlines” -featured on the debut album, but we get multiple genius cuts instead. “Reconsider” is one of the highlights but I also have to mention “Leader Of The Night” and “Well” (previously released as single) plus the impressive and Placebo-like “Wake Me Up”.

– – – : I realize there’s no song to throw away but the opening cut -and also the previously released single “No Future” isn’t the best song from the album but just a cool warm up.

Conclusion: Korinthians confirm their strong potential by “A Major Walk” which is a must have for open-minded Dark-Wave / Post-Punk /
Indie-Pop & Rock lovers.

Best songs: “Wake Me Up”, “Leader Of The Night”, “Reconsider”, “The Whimper”, “Well”, “Normal Lives For Normal People”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.korinthians.be / www.facebook.com/korinthians

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.

Placebo’s Brian Molko sued by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for defamation

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Tue, 08 Aug 2023 13:00:03 +0000

The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, is suing Brian Molko, the lead singer of the rock band Placebo, for defamation. The singer publicly labelled her a ‘racist’ and ‘fascist’.

Brian Molko made these comments during a performance by his band at the Sonic Park festival in July. The festival was held in Stupinigi, near Turin. “Giorgia Meloni, piece of shit, fascist, racist,” he appeared to shout in footage circulating on social media. This footage was posted by fans who attended the concert.

“Georgia Meloni,pedazo de mierd#%,fascista,racista”…el vocalista del grupo de rock PLACEBO,Brian Molko será demandado por la primera ministra de #Italia por insultarla..? pic.twitter.com/b2aS4QmPHs
— CARLOS AGUIAR.geopolítica 🌐™️®️! (@aguiar_tm) August 2, 2023

A week later, prosecutors opened an investigation into Molko’s remarks for insulting state institutions, according to The Guardian. The Italian Penal Code provides for prosecution for defamation. According to the code, anyone who “publicly defames the republic” – which includes the government, parliament, courts, and the military – can be fined from 1,000 to 5,000 euros.

In response to the lawsuit against Molko, the International Press Institute has called for a “thorough review” of Italy’s defamation laws. They argue that these laws should be consistent with freedom of speech protections but currently are not.

Dark triphop duo Elsiane preps October release for all new album, simply titled ‘Elsiane’

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Mon, 31 Jul 2023 17:29:34 +0000

On October 3rd Elsiane will release their 5th studio album, simply titled album “Elsiane”. The new album was again produced by David Bottrill. David Bottrill is a Canadian recordproducer who formerly owned the Rattlebox Studios in Toronto, Ontario with producer Brian Moncarz. Bottrill’s credits include production work for Peter Gabriel, David Sylvian & Robert Fripp, Muse, Placebo, The Smashing Pumpkins, IAMX, etc.. In 2020 he also produced Elsiane’s “Sinai” album.

The new album will be out on vinyl (200 copies) and as download/streaming.

Elsiane is a Canadian band composed of Elsieanne Caplette and Stephane Sotto. Elsieanne grew up in Peru, became a singer in a group in Peru and then moved to Montreal in 1999, where she met Stephane Sotto. When Sotto, a self-taught musician, met Elsieanne, they decided to form the band Elsiane whose name is formed from the first four letters of the first name of the singer and the last three letters of the musician’s first name.

The duo began their collaboration in 2000 and published their first (excellent!) album entitled “Hybrid” on May 1. The album was released a little over a year later in the United States under the label Nettwerk. During the summer of 2011, Elsiane announced the release of a second album preceded by the first single “Underhelped”. The album “Mechanics of Emotion” was released on April 10, 2012. Because they were struggling with the music industry, their third album “Death of the Artist” was released independently. “Rin, Tongue and Dorner” followed in 2018, and was self-released, in collaboration with Rich ShaperoThey.

More on the new album and pre-order info on this website.

The Livelong June – Self Oppressor (Album – ScentAir Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Tue, 23 May 2023 07:00:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Electro-Pop, Indie-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Five years after their great debut album (cf. “The Art Of Living”) Swedish duo The Livelong June strike back with “Self Oppressor”.

Content: The sound remains in the line of the debut work; a perfect fusion between Electro- and Indie-Pop. The songs have been empowered with guitar play while remaining melodic. One of the main characteristics remain the singer’s very particular timbre of voice reminding me of Placebo frontman Brian Molko.

+ + + : I remain addicted to the ‘power-pop’ style of this band. They don’t reinvent anything and yet this is not a typical Electro-Pop production. There’s a naughty touch on top of their work; something unpolished and yet melodic. It makes the band’s originality resulting in a few new noticeable songs like the opening title song, “The Greatest Loss”, the slower “The Weight Of The World” and the somewhat Body-Pop sounding “Love Song”.

– – – : I’m still not a fan of the album’s front cover. Production wise the sound mixing could have been better. I’m not a huge fan of the last song which sounds like white noise until something happens after 9 minutes. “Self Oppressor” is however a cool piece of music but with fewer highlights than the previous album.

Conclusion: The Lifelong June remains my referential band from the ScentAir roster; great and powerful Electro/Indie-Pop music.

Best songs: “Self Oppressor”, “The Greatest Loss”, “The Weight Of The World”, “Love Song”, “Betrayal”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.thelivelongjune.com / www.facebook.com/thelivelongjune

Label: www.scent-air.ru / www.facebook.com/ScentairRecords

Four vinyl reissues for German cult dark electro act yelworC

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 08:58:56 +0000

YelworC was a highly influential Dark Electro group from Munich, Germany, formed by Dominik van Reich (later amGOD) and Peter Devin on New Year’s Eve 1987/88. They released three highly regarded demotapes before their pathbreaking debut album “Brainstorming” came out in December 1992 on the infamous Celtic Circle Productions label. The album was marketed as a “futuristic and neo-apocalyptic Electro-Dark synthesis” and drew comparisons to Placebo Effect’s “Galleries of Pain.” The legendary EP “Blood in Face” followed in 1993, featuring the club hit “Soulhunter” and more.

The band disbanded shortly after, and Dominik van Reich went on to found the project amGOD. Two more yelworC albums and an EP were released in 2004 and 2007 on In Strict Confidence’s Minuswelt label, but only featured Peter Devin. The following four vinyl re-releases – via GH Records – are officially authorized versions and not bootlegs:

“Dis-cover & Con-trol” (Limited White Edition, 12″ Vinyl) – A collection of their first self-released tape from 1989, limited to 200 copies on white vinyl.
“Brainstorming” (2 × Vinyl, Limited, Blue or White) – A double-vinyl reissue of their debut album and EP, available in either blue or white, limited to 150 copies each.
“Flash, Wards And Incubation” (Limited Red Edition, 12″ Vinyl) – The first-ever vinyl release of their second self-released tape from 1989, limited to 200 copies on red vinyl.
“A.I.W.A.S.S.” (2 × Vinyl, Limited, Silver or Orange) – A double-vinyl reissue of their third tape from 1990, available in silver or orange, limited to 150 copies each.

These re-releases offer a unique opportunity for fans to own officially authorized vinyl versions of YelworC’s rare and influential works.

Æsthetic Will – What Do You Say (Mini-Album – Aesthetic Will)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Fri, 17 Mar 2023 08:00:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Shoegaze, Dream-Pop, Dark-Wave.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: Italian formation Æsthetic Will has already released several songs in a rather short lapse of time. This work features six tracks.

Content: The work only features 6 tracks and yet there’s an impressive diversity running through the work. The influences are however related; moving from Shoegaze to Dream-Pop to Dark-Wave. The songs are mainly driven by guitar while featuring passionate female vocals. The male vocals remind me to Brian Molko (Placebo).

+ + + : This work features different great and well-crafted songs. There’s a great diversity in the songwriting resulting in brilliant exposures carried by magic guitar playing and the charisma of their female singer. “Scent Of Light” has a true elevating effect but I also have to mention “Jealousy” which is the perfect offspring between Shoegaze and Dark-Wave resulting in a true sound climax.

– – – : I only have one regret with this work; we only get six songs!

Conclusion: Æsthetic Will was totally unknown to me but “What Do You Say” is a true revelation featuring a succession of great songs.

Best songs: “Jealousy”, “Scent Of Light”, “Gate”, “Manifesto”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/aestheticwill

Stella Sleeps – Anemic City (Album – Icy Cold Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sun, 17 Jul 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Dark-Wave.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: This is the debut album of Swedish project Stella Sleeps. The work features eleven songs including four tracks previously released on the EP “Anemic Dream”.

Content: This work stands for typical Cold-Wave music driven by mewing, melancholic guitar. The songs are filled with melancholy while the vocals are sometimes reminding me to Brian Molko (Placebo). You’ll also notice fine, electronic bleeps and other passages with catchy, electro, tones.

+ + + : I like the evasive and melancholic mood of the album with dreamy vocals on top. The dry snares, bass drums and guitar playing are pure 80s like. The song “Caught” is a noticeable cut driven by a cool, dark, chorus.

– – – : There’s only one song going over the 4 minutes so I regret cool songs aren’t a bit more extended.

Conclusion: This work sounds like an honest debut but this band is for sure able to do better.

Best songs: “Caught, “Rain”, “Blood”, “Operator”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/stellasleeps

Label: www.facebook.com/icycoldrecords

Digital Factor re-releases 1996 album ‘On Demand’ in remastered version + launches all new single ‘What?’ + new videos

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Fri, 01 Apr 2022 11:35:17 +0000

The German electro pop / EBM act Digital Factor was co-founded in 1993 by Mike Langer. The band soon played supporting acts for well-known electro bands such as Placebo Effect or X Marks the Pedwalk and quickly established itself as a sought-after live act in the electro scene. In 1994 the band signed to the Danish label Hardrecords where it released its first EP called “Falling Down” (re-released in 2021).

In 2021 Digital Factor’s Mike Langer decided to revisit the band’s repertoire and re-release with Alfa Matrix the fully remastered versions of his back-catalogue.

‘On Demand’ remasted

After the “Falling Down” EP and “Relationchips” album re-releases, we now get the re-release of “On Demand” in a fully digitally revised remastered version. Originally released in 1996 on Hyperium / Hypnobeat, this is the band’s second album.

It was also their breakthrough album on the German dark EBM scene thanks to songs like “Go Ahead” and “X-Rayzor” for which a video clip was also shot during the European tour for “On Demand” which Digital Factor made together with Evils Toy.

On Demand (Remastered) by DIGITAL FACTOR

New single ‘What?’ and first 2 videos

Also released today on Bandcamp is a brand new single featuring 6 tracks: “What?”. The release holds 3 exclusive brand new songs, each accompanied by a remix version from Alfa Matrix label mates. You can expect one video clip per song. The first two are available now right below.

“What?” reveals a more upfront dance floor approach although staying faithful to its electro pop / EBM roots.

What? EP by DIGITAL FACTOR

And here are the first two videos…

Norwegian post-punk act Permafrost returns with Pyxis remix of ‘Come Back To Surprise’

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Tue, 15 Feb 2022 16:51:28 +0000

The Norwegian post-punk act Permafrost follows up its recent release “Come Back To Surprise” with the Pyxis remix of the track which is out on Friday the 18th on their own Fear of Music label. Pyxis is the remix moniker of producer/mixer Paul Corkett.

You can check out a trailer for the new single below.

Permafrost is a post-punk band, originally from Molde in Norway, which was formed in 1982 by school friends Frode Heggdal Larsen & Kåre Steinsbu. Robert Heggdal & Trond Tornes joined in 2001 and Daryl Bamonte in 2016. They take their name from a song by Magazine and other influences are Joy Division, The Cure, Talking Heads, Pere Ubu, Yello, Fad Gadget, The Residents, Wire and Wolfgang Press.

To date they have released the “Godtment” EP (on a limited edition of 50 numbered cassettes) in 1983, the “Permafrost EP” on vinyl in 2019 and digitally in 2021, and three singles in 2021 being “Femme Fatale”, “Closed Eyes” and “Restore Us”.

About Paul Corkett

Paul Corkett got his start as an engineer in the mid-1980s, engineering singles and albums for bands as varied as ABC, The Chameleons, Twelfth Night and The Heart Throbs. He landed his first big engineering gig in 1992, recording the single “China” for Tori Amos’s debut album “Little Earthquakes”.

In 1994 he produced his first full album, the second album by Adorable. His engineering work on The Cure’s tenth album “Wild Mood Swings” led to him producing the band’s next album, “Bloodflowers”, released in 2000. After engineering Placebo’s second album “Without You I’m Nothing”, in 1999 Corkett was invited to produce the band’s third album “Black Market Music”.

The early 2000s saw him producing albums for small alternative British bands The Cooper Temple Clause, Biffy Clyro and Queenadreena. In 2012 he teamed up with Love Amongst Ruin frontman Steve Hewitt to engineer albums for French band Lys and Italian band Spiral 69.

Corkett often works at Moles Studio in Bath, having recorded albums by Billy No Mates, Queenadreena, Dionysos, Fiction Plane and Love Amongst Ruin there.

Station Echo – Control Voltage (Album – Infacted Recordings)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Fri, 22 Oct 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Indie-Pop, Electro-Pop, Pop-Rock.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Station echo is a French formation active since 2013. This year they signed to Infected Recordings unleashing the successful EP”Say you’re Sorry” followed by the official debut album “Control Voltage”.

Content: Station Echo deals with a well-crafted mix of Electronics and guitar. The sound comes closer to Electro-Pop and pure Indie-Pop, reminding me of formations like IAMX and Placebo. The album takes off with the familiar EP-title song and moves on with 10 more songs featuring other potential EP-title tracks. There are a few softer passages while the last part of the album features 1 song in 3 chapters.

+ + +: Station Echo took me by surprise unleashing a mature and accomplished production. Even if the sound isn’t completely new and you sometimes recognize a clear link with IAMX and even Placebo, this work reveals a few outstanding cuts. Next to the already mentioned “Say You’re Sorry” the biggest potential hit is “You’re Wrong”. This song is driven by a terrific bass line and an irresistible lead, but it also reveals a great balance between guitar and synths. Another noticeable cut is the somewhat harder and guitar driven “Guilty” featuring an elevating chorus.

– – – : The final part of the work features the song “The Magic Place”, which is composed of 3 parts/tracks. It’s not that bad, but rather sounds like an anticlimax compared to the global album.

Conclusion: “Control Voltage” is a surprising album revealing a band with a huge potential. Station Echo seems to be a great French hidden secret that has been now revealed thanks to “Control Voltage”.

Best songs: “You’re Wrong”, “Say You’re Sorry”, “Guilty”, “Spasmodic”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.stationecho.com / www.facebook.com/stationecho

Label: www.infacted-recordings.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Infacted-Recordings/124099254321690

Nox Novacula – Ascension (Album – Manic Depression Records / Bat-Cave Productions)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 19:30:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Cold-Wave, Post-Punk.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: Nox Novacula is a Seattle (USA) based formation, which previously released its official debut album by Bat-Cave Productions (CD) and Manic Depression Records (CD).

Content: The opening song sounds like the offspring between Placebo and Killing Joke with powerful female vocals on top. I can’t say the debut song is totally representative of “Ascension”, which progressively evolves towards Cold-Wave music. The songs are carried by dark bass lines and heavy guitar riffs while accomplished with some Electro arrangements. The female charismatic vocals are somewhere in between Siouxsie & The Banshees and The Skeleton Family.

+ + + : I never heard of the band before, but discovered a true promising formation. Charlotte Blythe is revealed to be a charismatic singer with a bewitching timbre of voice. She also injects a true passion in her vocals, which is perfectly matching with the powerful sound. The heavy guitar play comes through at “Pray For Sleep”, “Last Will And Testament” and “Victim”. These songs also have an elevating effect.

– – – : My single regret is that the work only features 8 songs; obviously pretty retro-like, but when you’re listening to a cool album you always need more.

Conclusion: Nox Novacula is a name to keep in mind; this debut album sounds like great Cold-Wave driven music.

Best songs: “Victim”,“Pray For Sleep”, “Last Will And Testament”, “Drug (Bitter Pill)”, “Against The Wall”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/nox.novacula

Label: www.manicdepressionrecords.com / www.facebook.com/manicdepressionrecords

Canadian post-punk act post-punk act Traitrs to launch new album, check out 2 album tracks already

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 14:54:43 +0000

There must be some post-punk in the drinking water in canada… Out via Freakwave on November 19 is the new album from the Canadian post-punk act Traitrs: “Horses in the Abattoir”. The release will be out on CD and vinyl. The band is known for mixing emotive melodies, propulsive rhythms, angular guitars and dark cinematic electronics into one complete mix.

Traitrs consists of Sean-Patrick Nolan and Shawn Tucker, the duo formed the band during the summer of 2015 in Toronto, Ontario Canada and released their debut in April 2016. They then released the LP “Butcher’s Coin” via Pleasence Records / Manic Depression / Alchera Visions in May 2018.

The bands that influenced the duo most are New Order, Tears For Fears, Phillip Glass, Protomartyr, Talk Talk, The Smiths, Placebo, The Cure… and so on. The band explains how especially Phillip Glass inspired them to write the album track “Oh, Ballerina” .

Nolan: “While on tour, I became obsessed with the minimalist composer Phillip Glass. His music completely changed the way I thought about melodies and composition. That’s how “Oh, Ballerina” started, as this minimal and abstract piano piece with some atmospheric textures and very little else. I played it for Shawn and he liked it so we took it to rehearsal and recorded a 10 minute demo. I had insomnia a few nights later and decided to listen to the demo very late at night and mid-way through the improvised recording, it was like the song suddenly revealed itself to me. Like a crack in the sky, I suddenly heard the drums and bass in my head and realized that what we worked on was literally just the beginning. At 3 am, I grabbed my laptop, quickly programmed some drums and we finished scripting it all the next day. We opened all of our fall 2019 shows with ‘Oh, Ballerina’ just to study the audience’s reaction to see if it held up with the rest of our catalogue and it always did.”

Check out “Oh, Ballerina” below.

And this is their latest single, “Magdalene”.

Cerulean Veins – Blue (Album – Cold Transmission Music)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sun, 01 Aug 2021 18:30:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Cold-Wave, Rock-Wave.

Format: Digital, CD, Cassette.

Background/Info: Cerulean Veins is an American duo set up by married couple Dustin Frelich and Amanda Ashley Toombs. They’ve been active since 2013 and have released an impressive number of singles. “Blue” is the band’s third album, which was originally released in 2020 on cassette format by Reclusion Records. Cold Transmission Music has now released the album as a CD.

Content: I never heard of this band before “Blue”. The work is merging different 80s related influences; from Cold-Wave reminding Joy Division for the guitar and The Skeletal Family for the energetic drums to Post-Punk and a kind of Dark-Rock. The work is diversified, the songs being often carried by strong choruses. Parts of the album also remind me of Placebo and the Belgian formation The Customs.

+ + + : “Blue” is a great and fully enjoyable work because of its diversity and especially the fusion of all influences. It takes off a rather dark and Cold-Wave style featuring great opening songs (cf. “Fell In Love” and “Hello, Darkness”) and progressively evolves towards a more Rock-Wave style (cf. “Ghost Memory” and “Dance In The Darkness”). The drums, played by a real drummer, inject a true boost of energy. Last, but not least I should say a good band always needs a great singer and Dustin Frelich definitely has a charismatic voice.

– – – : The artwork of this album looks pretty sober, maybe a little bit too sober although clearly matching with the title of the work; it looks simply blue.

Conclusion: This album sounds like a true revelation; Cerulean Veins is a band I can strongly encourage you to discover.

Best songs: “Fell In Love”, “Hello, Darkness”, “Dance In The Darkness”, “Boo”, “Ghost Memory”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/CeruleanVeins

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

Chemical Waves – Stories From The World Before (Album – Wave Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Tue, 27 Jul 2021 19:30:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Cold-Wave, Dark-Wave.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: After having released last year albums on Unknown Pleasures Records and ScentAir Records, Italian artist Marco Cattani (Halo Effect, The Mark) strikes back with a new opus on Wave Records. Chemical Waves have again invited numerous guest singers. Vocalists from Bedless Bones, The Arch, The Purge, Death Loves Veronica, Sara Stuttgart, Then Came The Rain, Velvet Kills, Iris Capricorn, XTR Human and Social Station contributed to the work.

Content: The sound formula hasn’t really changed. Chemical Waves remains driven by the dark legacy of 80s Cold/Dark-Wave music. The singers again each inject a very personal touch to the work, which creates an interesting diversity. From sensual vocals to low, resonating vocals there’s a lot to experience while you’ll also notice two instrumental cuts.

+ + + : Chemical Waves holds on the true spirit of Dark/Cold-Wave music, which is mainly created by the magic of the guitar playing. I heard some good matches with the singers of The Arch, The Purge and especially Su Eko/Velvet Kills, reminding me a bit of Placebo.

– – – : The global approach of this project remains interesting and sometimes exciting although I’m missing ‘the’ singer of this band. I also preferred previous productions, the sound becoming a bit too predictable while the songs are less efficient. Being too prolific is sometimes undermining quality…

Conclusion: This is not the album from Chemical Waves I would recommend listening to first.

Best songs: “Rangers On The Road”, “Demon In Me”.

Rate: (6 ½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/chemicalwaves

Label: www.waverecordsmusic.com / www.facebook.com/waverecords

Norwegian post-punk act Permafrost releases new single ‘Closed Eyes’ through Fear of Music

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Mon, 07 Jun 2021 17:20:00 +0000

(Photo by Sofie Amalie Klougart) Out since today is the new single “Closed Eyes” by the Norwegian post-punk act Permafrost. The new single is again produced by Permafrost and mixed by Paul Corkett (The Cure, Placebo, Nick Cave) and is released on the band’s own Fear of Music label, through TBC Records/Secretly Noord distribution.

Note that Daryl Bamonte is also involved in this project. We all know Daryl as the artist manager, known for working for Depeche Mode and the Cure. And of course also als the musical replacement for Andrew Fletcher in 1994 for the second leg of the US Devotional Tour, as well as six shows in South America.

About Permafrost

Permafrost is a post-punk band, originally from Molde in Norway, which was formed in 1982 by school friends Frode Heggdal Larsen & Kåre Steinsbu. Robert Heggdal & Trond Tornes joined in 2001 and Daryl Bamonte in 2016. They take their name from a song by Magazine and have been influenced by Joy Division, The Cure, Talking Heads, Pere Ubu, Yello, Fad Gadget, The Residents, Wire and Wolfgang Press.

To date they have released the “Godtment” EP (on a limited edition of 50 numbered cassettes) in 1983, the “Permafrost” EP (on vinyl only) in 2019 and the “Femme Fatale” single in the spring of 2021. The band are scheduling more releases on their own Fear of Music label, beginning with “Closed Eyes”, available on 7th June 2021.

Below is also a video for the new single.

League Of Lights – Dreamers Don’t Come Down (Album – Eightspace Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Tue, 11 May 2021 18:00:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Indie-Pop, Electro-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: This is the third full length album for the duo Farrah- and Richard West. The British duo composed this work during the lockdown in 2020.

Content: The opening song (still released as single) “Modern Living” reveals a vibrating, deep resonating bass line with some fine Electro-Pop on top and the sensual vocals of Farrah West. The song doesn’t necessarily fully represent the rest of the work, but the Electro/Indie-Pop approach definitely remains the main basis of the work. I sometimes get the sensation of discovering a more poppy format of Placebo. Some of the choruses have a true elevating effect. The songs have been accomplished with delicate piano arrangements. Most of the songs have a sweet taste of melancholia mixed with pure emotional vocals. This album sounds sweet, but also revealing a few club-friendly pieces.

+ + + : I honestly can’t remember to have heard of League Of Lights, but the opening song “Modern Living’ directly caught my attention. This song is simply brilliant for the deep, sensual bass line merged with the captivating and hot vocals of the singer and the elevating effect of the chorus. “Ghosts” and “Persephone” both have a similar impact. But the album is mainly featuring softer and sweeter songs, but here again “Dreamers Don’t Come Down” has a few nice surprises; beautiful songs with delicate sound treatments. I especially recommend listening to “The Collector”. I also want to salute the great and informative booklet of this digipak. League Of Lights this way reveals to have an eye for every single detail; a great production sold in an artistic digipak.

– – – : I was less convinced by a few ‘softer’ songs although they also have something sensitive and delicate.

Conclusion: League Of Lights took me by surprise unleashing a refreshing work with a few outstanding songs.

Best songs: “Modern Living”, “The Collector”, “Persephone”, “Ghosts”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: https://leagueoflights.com / www.facebook.com/leagueoflightsofficial

‘Click Interview’ with Seven Trees: ‘Trying To Break Patterns And Challenge Ourselves’

Inferno Sound Diaries — Thu, 06 May 2021 17:00:00 +0000

There’s a hiatus of twenty four years between Seven Trees’ debut album “Embracing The Unknown” (1997, Zoth Ommog) and their new opus “Dead/End” released on Progress Productions. Johan Kronberg and Henrik Karlsson both remain the single members on board. It’s not an easy thing to label their music, but it sounds to me as the offspring between The Klinik, Project Pitchfork and Front Line Assembly. You never got the feeling this band has stopped composing music for such a long time; “Dead/End” has something retro-like, but still personal and featuring multiple great songs. I talked about it all with Henrik Karlsson.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: When evoking SEVEN TREES people are always getting back to your debut album “Embracing The Unknown” released in 1997 by Zoth Ommog. What did this album and the fact it was released by Zoth Ommog mean to you and what has been its further impact on your career?

Henrik: It meant a lot to us; it was the perfect label to be on at the time, and we got a lot of exposure. People seem to really like that album, which is equally important for a career in music; it acts as a mental booster for future compositions. Also, our tour with MENTALLO & THE FIXER most likely had an impact.

As for today… I think signing with a prominent label like Progress Productions most likely strengthened the interest in the first ‘come back’ release, the “Trauma Toxicity”-EP. Finally, the expanded re-release of “Embracing The Unknown” in Infacted’s “Classixx”-series was definitely very important too.

Q: There’s a hiatus of 24 (!) years between the debut album and your new opus “Dead/End”. Do you feel it’s still the same band with a similar approach and perception about music or is this something totally different? What are the most noticeable changes & evolutions?

Henrik: We have put a lot of effort into developing our sound to a more modern soundscape, while at the same time leaning towards the more old-school Dark-Electro. We still have the same visions for SEVEN TREES, while at the same time trying to break patterns and challenge ourselves. I think this is quite evident if comparing the EP and the new album, which has a more carefully considered neater production.

Q: Over now to “Dead/End”. What kind of album is it all about and did you’d specific ideas in mind about sound and production? In which way is there a connection between “Dead/End” and the “Trauma Toxicity”-EP from 2017?

Henrik: There is quite a strong connection, despite the differences in production. They both deal a lot with for example the consequences of being subjected to extensive and prolonged trauma. With the EP we were trying out our grounds, see how we wanted the ‘new’ SEVEN TREES to sound. It’s a very dark EP. When working on the new album we felt like we wanted to do something even darker, especially when it came to the lyrics, all the while making that work with our ‘new’ sound. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out. We did not plan for a specific production, it came naturally as we were working on the album.

Q: I was just asking you about the ‘sound’ of SEVEN TREES, which according to me is hard to label, being more a kind of sonic osmosis between different music genres. What does it say about your potential sources of inspiration and do you handle specific criteria and/or references when it comes to writing and production?

Henrik: We don’t have much of criteria at all, except for that we will stay in the Dark-Electro realm. Also, we don’t really like doing club tracks or similar, it’s just not our thing. Honestly as for genre, we don’t really know where to place us either, but people say Dark-Electro so I guess that’s what we do.

We’re both very broad in our taste in music; my favorite band is PLACEBO, and Johan listens quite a bit to Black-Metal. We grew up on Electronic music of various kinds, but eventually broadened our horizons. We both listen to a lot of Electronic stuff nowadays too though, but varying it with other genres.

As for lyrics I draw inspiration from for example Brian Molko and Robert Smith, while incorporating my own style of writing.

Q: “Dead/End” is an intriguing title for lyrical themes, which are clearly evoking despair, disillusion… which can be summarized with one of your songs: dystopic illusions! What did you try to express and what does it reveal about your perception of life and society?

Henrik: Funny you should ask, because this particular song is something we’ve never done before, it’s very different from the other tracks on the album (the lyrics). It is very political, something I never thought we’d do, but with everything that was going on last year over here I guess I felt like trying it out. I wanted to do it in a rather cryptic way though, so it might not be very obvious. There’s quite the pitch black worldview in that song, and I guess in most of the other tracks too.

Q: What are the further plans and especially considering we’re actually going through this ongoing pandemic? Dystopia became reality don’t you think?

Henrik: Yeah, it certainly did. It’s been a crazy year, and it’s been tough for us all, especially being isolated, and to exercise every precaution to not get Covid. May this nightmare end soon! As for further plans, we do have a release coming up, but I can’t say anything about it yet.

Pyrroline – Struggling (Album – Electro Aggression Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Wed, 05 May 2021 18:00:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: EBM, Dark-Electro.

Format: Digital, 2CD.

Background/Info: German duo Arnte and Schmoun aka Pyrroline doesn’t release new albums on a regular basis, but they now strike back with the fourth album to date. Both protagonists were also involved with Nordschlacht, which unfortunately only released one single album in 2007.

Content: Four years have passed since the previous album, but nothing has really changed when it comes to influences. Pyrroline doesn’t innovate, remaining faithful to their old-school EBM reminding Skinny Puppy and Mentally & The Fixer. The work has a strong déjà-vu feeling, but globally speaking Pyrroline has seriously improved little details of the global production. The songs have been supported with haunting synth atmospheres while accomplished by Industrial sound treatments. I also noticed a few delicate passages. Arnte’s vocals are totally fitting to the ghost-like EBM while Schmoun is now and then injecting a female touch to the vocals.

The bonus disc features a few extra songs, which sound in the same vein as the main disc. But we also get an impressive number of remixes by The Opposer Divine, G.O.L.E.M., Sleepwalk, Amorphous, Fix8:Sed8, Jihad, Terminal State and 2 remixes by Placebo Effect.

+ + + : No doubt about it, “Struggling” is Pyrroline’s opus magnum! The production never has been that elaborated, revealing a great songwriting with dark and Industrial sound treatments. There’s a right balance between the sound and the vocals. Especially the 3 debut songs left me breathless; Pyrroline here reveals its harder side, but every single note and synth sound at the right place. I like when an album gives me the feeling of mathematics… The work is powerful, but also very atmospheric, the band here again reminding me to music from Benestrophe, Noise Unit ao.

Among the bonus disc I also discovered 2 excellent extra songs (both debut cuts) while there’s an interesting list of remixers. Most of the bands are dealing with a similar sound, but it’s great to see Fix8:Sed8 (definitely the new Master when it comes to composing Skinny Puppy-inspired Electro) and Placebo Effect. My favorite remixes are however these by G.O.L.E.M. and and especially Terminal State.

Last, but not least I also have to say a word about the cool digipak format of the album. Electro Aggression Records doesn’t release that much stuff, but each time again, it’s a very artistic and professional layout!

– – – : A very few songs couldn’t totally convince me, but you don’t hear me to complaining. I just can imagine some Electro heads will consider this band as inferior to the real masters in the genre… but it’s quite a long time ago since Skinny Puppy achieved such a masterpiece!

Conclusion: If you like intelligent old-school driven EBM, Pyrroline is for sure a great addition to your collection!

Best songs: “Song Of Deliverance”, “Battleground”, “This Dusky Faith”, “What Might Have Been”, “The Divine Image” + “State Of Things”, “Atelier Complex”, “Stop Acting So Small – Remixed by Terminal State”, “Song Of Deliverance – Remixed by G.O.L.E.M.”

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/arnteANDschmoun

Label: www.electroaggressionrecords / www.facebook.com/ElectroAggressionRecords

Korinthians – Chaos Control (Album – Korinthians / Wool-E Discs)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 20:30:00 +0000

Genre/Influences: Indie Rock-Pop, Wave-Pop, Post-Punk.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: Korinthians is a new Belgian band I discovered by this debut album featuring ten songs.

Content: From the very first notes and songs Korinthians remind me of the imaginary hybrid between The Editors, Placebo and Depeche Mode. But this band is not an emulation of any of the aforementioned bands, but I just give some references they make me think about. The songs are carried by powerful and elevating guitar playing while accomplished with melodic Electro arrangements. The charismatic vocals create a perfect match with the music. There’s something to say about nearly every single song –and even the cover version of Joy Division’s “A Means To An End” has been masterfully accomplished.

+ + + : It’s a pleasure discovering new talents and Korinthians have something extra. This band has the potential to become the ‘Belgian next big thing’ after Whispering Sons. Both aren’t comparable in style and approach, but they simply distinguish themselves from the rest. Every single detail sounds right and at the right place. “Icarus Airlines” is the absolute ‘hit’ of the work; a catchy, powerful song with some lyrical content as a reflection about the world we’re living in. But I can also mention “You And Island” for its progression and sensitive side or “Aura H671” for the empowering guitar playing. The aforementioned cover of “A Means To An End” is easily recognizable, but I especially like the way Korinthians transposed the original song into their own style. This album sounds mature and totally accomplished! Respect guys!

– – – : My only little regret –if there’s one to mention, is the rather poorly inspired last song… which also is the title song of the album; strange!

Conclusion: Korinthians” is a band to keep in mind while “Chaos Control” is a true earworm!

Best songs: “Icarus Airlines”, “You And Island”, “Aura H671”, “A Way With Words”, “A Means To An End”; “Beat”.

Rate: (9).

Artist: www.facebook.com/korinthians

Distributor: www.wool-e-discs.be / www.facebook.com/woolediscs

Brand new Digital Factor album ‘A Chemical Process’ available now as a ltd CD digipak with 2 exclusive bonus tracks not available as download

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Fri, 19 Feb 2021 08:07:00 +0000

In October 2020, one of the most missed cult electro-EBM bands from the early nineties took everyone by surprise with the release of the “Come With Me” come-back EP and 2 associated video clips. We are talking about Digital Factor of course!

Out now via Alfa Matrix is “A Chemical Process”, the German band’s 9th studio album. The new album merges modern electro techno elements with synth pop song arrangements mixed with pure industrial / EBM elements. Interesting detail, for this album Mike Langer decided to create his new songs first on a guitar before recreating them on synths. He was helped in the process by Austrian bassist and guitarist Georg Kostron.

Music collectors should be informed that the limited CD digipak edition of this album holds 2 exclusive bonus tracks: the hypnotic dancefloor killer “Into My Eyes” and the club remix of “Come With Me” by The Saint Paul. These will not be made available for download.

You can order the download album via Bandcamp while the ltd CD digipak version with 2 extra tracks is available via the Alfa Matrix webstore.

A Chemical Process by DIGITAL FACTOR

Enjoy the official video clips for “Come With Me” and “I’m Dangerous”.

About Digital Factor

Digital Factor was founded in 1993 by Mike Langer, Torsten Heise and Tino Schmidt. The band soon played in the opening act of well-known electronic bands of that time such as Placebo Effect or X Marks the Pedwalk and quickly established itself as a popular live act on the electronic scene. In 1994 the band signed to the Danish label Hardrecords which released the band’s first EP called “Falling Down”.

In 1995 the Hyperium / Hypnobeat label (including Project Pitchfork , Die Form) took a license and released five albums.

But after the 1999 album “Over One Million Times”things got rather quiet around Digital Factor. Founding member Tino Schmidt left the band that year. After a long break and with guitarist Guido Litke on board, Digital Factor released their seventh album “One More Piece” on Wannsee Records in 2006. In mid-2007 the band went back to the studio and started working on a new album. After the online single “Dein Herz” the “Look Back To Go Forward” album was released in 2009. For this, Digital Factor worked together with artists such as Steril and Leonardo von Leibnitz.

In 2010 Torsten Heise left the band and was replaced by Leo von Leibnitz and they started work on a new studio album “Trialog”, which was released in 2011 via Black Rain.

In 2020 the band got revived and signed to the Belgian label Alfa Matrix. A first single / EP “Come With Me” was released in October.

Come With Me EP by DIGITAL FACTOR

‘Click Interview’ with Placebo Effect: ‘Placebo Effect Was Never A ‘Band’ That Met To Make Music Together’

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sun, 03 Jan 2021 18:00:00 +0000

2020 has been the year of the real come-back of PLACEBO EFFECT. This German trio driven by Axel Machens, Christoph Kunze and Achim Windel was active between 1989 and 1999. They gained instant recognition with the cult-album “Galleries Of Pain” released in 1992 on Danse Macabre. The songs were dark, tormented and aggressive. “Manipulated Mind Control” released two years later on Ausfahrt was less aggressive, but confirmed the status of the band. In between both albums they also released the EP “Slashed Open”. After a long hiatus the band reformed in 2014, but two years later Achim Windel passed away. But Axel Machens and Christoph Kunze went on and this year self-released the new full length “Shattered Souls”. The work sounds as a true offspring between the rage of “Galleries Of Pain” and the atmospheric content of “Manipulated Mind Control”. This new work brought me to get in touch with front man Axel Machens.

(This interview has been possible thanks to Anju Asariel –who also did the artwork for “Shattered Souls” / Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: More than twenty years after your last album, PLACEBO EFFECT is back! I can imagine a lot of things must have happened including the loss of Achim Windel. How do you look back on the past years and what incited you to work on new music again?

Axel: Yes, a lot has happened in the meantime. 20 years is that long. A moment full of joy, experiences and unfortunately also losses. A life experience that you don’t see at the horizon as a youngster. I have been working or making music for a long time, almost every day. In other words, it didn’t become so important for me to publish something anymore, but just to make music for me, which is actually enough for me personally. Some of the tracks from “Shattered Souls” were created and ‘listened to for the long haul’ years ago to appear on the album. Others were created at short notice. It was only thanks to our loyal fans with their tireless desires for love that “Shattered Souls” ended in an album 🙂

Q: A lot of things have changed since the 90s, but I especially think about technology, equipment, social media, streaming platforms etc. How do you look at all these changes and evolutions and how would you compare composing music in the 90s and today?

Axel: I think it’s a great time. It has never been so easy to draw the attention of people around the world to your artistic work. The only thing that has changed is the simplified access and centralization of the data. A few years ago we went to a record store to buy the music, but nowadays you almost always buy everything online. Content and medium are the same. There has always been a lot of music and musicians. As far as making music is concerned, the step from the 70s to the 80s was bigger; from analog to digital. The emerging workstation concept, according to which multiple instruments could now be played on one device, recording

and being able to edit (all of our early albums were created this way) is truly groundbreaking. If you compare it to today, not much has changed. Of course there are software instruments that would be difficult or very expensive to build as hardware, but the way in which they are made has remained the same. Today 8 tape tracks were recorded on infinite digital tracks. Basically, not much has changed. Features have been added. And the displays are bigger

now 🙂 And of course ‘making electronic music’ is accessible to everyone, including on the mobile phone.

With today’s DAW, you can link instruments to effects, layer them, and do other wild things. But is it still musically expressive in the end?

Q: It took you several years to achieve the new album “Shattered Souls”, but what kind of work did you finally wanted to accomplish and how did it all happened without Achim?

Axel: A dark atmosphere is the key word for “Shatterd Souls”. And that’s the headline that was on the album from the start.

Placebo Effect was never a ‘band’ that met to make music together. This only happened a few times in the initial stages.

Tracks were always written alone and they came together on one album.

Q: “Shattered Souls” is a dark title for a dark album, which is mainly dominated by obscure atmospheres. The album is also released in very dark times… but what is the album all about and what does it reflect about reality?

Axel: The album is not a ‘Covid-19’-album. Except that we can’t present it live at the moment, not much has changed for me personally; wearing a mask and keeping distance in everyday life nothing else. Textually, Placebo Effect was never really ‘tangible’ for us, it doesn’t pursue a concept like ‘I write a text sit down at the piano and develop a song’ or ‘we have the very important message here’… It only follows an intuition when playing. Words come quite automatically that was always so.

Q: I noticed the artwork of the album (at least the front cover) is clearly reminding your previous albums. What is it all about and what did you try to express by the artwork of “Shattered Souls”?

Axel: The atmosphere is above beats per minute.

Anju: When it came to the artwork I created for PLACEBO EFFECT, I was inspired by the music alone and it was very important to me to reflect the dark atmosphere that touched me. The listener should not only be touched by the music, but also by the visual impression, like in a book or in a film, the visual impressions are very important and also decisive whether you can let yourself fall into the music or the text. Both simply belong together.

Q: How much of the young artists you were in the 90s do you still recognize today and in “Shattered Souls”?

Axel: The curiosity about how electronic sounds are produced is still there and when I feel a shiver while listening to music, which I like.

Q: Are there things you would have done a different way and what brings the future for PLACEBO EFFECT?

Axel: Today I would rather have invested money in piano lessons and composition lessons than in one or the other synthesizer.

As soon as it is possible we want to present the album at a few selected festivals. I’d rather not promise another album,

our fans are very accurate, the never forget us and can be very persistent …:-)

‘Click Interview’ with AD: KeY: ‘We Don’t Want To Limit Ourselves‘

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sun, 20 Dec 2020 18:00:00 +0000

Set up in 2007 by René and Andrea Nowotny AD: KEY rapidly became a noticeable band in the ‘old-school’ EBM style. The band’s debut works were released by the now defunct Electric Tremor Dessau (a true reference in this music genre) while they next signed to Emmo.biz, which is another label that is no longer active. The German duo finally joined hands together with Belgian label Alfa Matrix. They this year released their sixth full length album “Resonanz”. It remains an EBM experience although AD: KEY experienced with new elements so this work is maybe opening new paths for René and Andrea.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

I can't feel you EP by AD:KEY

Q: “Resonanz” is your sixth full length album. How do you look back at the writing and production of this album and what is it all about?

Rene: “Resonanz” is primarily about interpersonal relationships. We tried to reflect on daily life; less our own lives than what we hear, see and read.

Andrea: It’s about love and hate, about hurt vanities. But also about problems such as sexual harassment, where every woman is sure to have had her unpleasant experience. This is exactly what our song “Ich Will, Dass Du Jetzt Gehst” is about, for example.

Q: I experienced “Resonanz” as your most sophisticated and maybe mature work to date. How do you explain the evolution in sound? Is it just growing experience & maturity or still a will to experience with new sounds, equipment and ideas?

Rene: The fact that “Resonanz” sounds a little different from the previous albums has several reasons. At first, our goal was not to repeat ourselves over and over again. This time we wanted to push the EBM attitude a bit into the background and work more song-oriented. We are also constantly looking for interesting sounds. And since we’re fans of the 70s and 80s electronics, we went the opposite way that many other bands take. We didn’t want to use modern equipment or software, but analog synthesizers. So we rebuilt our studio and bought a lot of new / old equipment.

Andrea: We are also older (except me):-D, maybe more mature.

Q: The song “Electro Musik” sounds to me as a homage to DAF and Gaby Delgado. What did you try to express with this song and do you want to say something about the tragic loss of Gaby who definitely belongs to the icons of EBM?

Andrea: Gabi Delgado’s death in Spring hit us hard. I’m a big DAF fan -Gabi and Robert‘s music has always had a certain influence on AD: keY. Then we made a cover version of “Verschwende Deine Jugend”, because this song speaks to us from our hearts. Maybe someday we will release this cover version.

Rene: Our song “Electro Musik” was written a few months before Gabi’s death. The song is the result of a jam session that we did together with Axel Machens from Placebo Effect in the AD: keY studio. We wanted to test one of my new synthesizers -and Axel had his Korg MS 20 -a synthesizer that DAF used very often. In principle, the basic structure of “Electro Music” was ready that evening. The song name speaks for itself -a nod to the roots of electronic music.

Q: I always link EBM with energetic live performances so I can imagine it must be frustrating because of Covid-19 to no longer play on stage. What are you feelings about this situation and how do you expect to see things evolving?

Rene: Yeah. It is very frustrating not to be able to go to any more concerts and not be able to play any more live concerts. We miss that very much. But in September this year we were very lucky to be able to perform at the NCN Festival for a concert under strict hygiene rules. It was an indescribably good feeling.

Andrea: But we see the need to implement these tough restrictions. We hope that the situation will improve in the foreseeable future. But this COVID 19 virus doesn’t just go away on its own. So we retired to the studio and work on new music. There will be a new AD: keY EP in December.

Rene: At the same time, I’m working on my side project, a new RECTOR SCANNER album that is due to be released next year.

Q: René, you’re still pretty close with ARMAGEDDON DILDOS and became member of ORANGE SECTOR too. What’s your input with these other bands and is there something like a big German EBM family?

Rene: Yes, I’m good friends with Uwe from the ARMAGEDDON DILDOS. Nothing has changed about that, even if I‘m no longer a live member. We sometimes stil work together making music. Uwe recently made a remix for AD: keY and I did a mix for ARMAGEDDON DILDOS. Uwe has always been a kind of musical mentor to me, and I value his opinion very much.

With ORANGE SECTOR it’s a lot of fun on stage. It’s just as great as it was with the ARMAGEDDON DILDOS. Martin, the mastermind of ORANGE SECTOR, produces the songs and the basic concept. The main work is up to him. He sends the files to me, I add my files and tracks and he mixes everything together.

Overall, one can say that the EBM / Electro scene in Germany is kind of a big family. Because the scene is relatively clear, you know each other, respect each other and are friends.

Q: How do you see AD:KEY evolving towards the next few years? What might we expect and what are you still dreaming of?

Rene: I don’t know how AD: keY will develop in the coming years. We are open to new influences because we don’t want to limit ourselves. We like to experiment. AD: keY will always sound like AD: keY. We stay true to our basic sound.

Andrea: In any case, we will start a new AD: keY album in 2021. We just let ourselves go -and we’ll see what comes out of it in the end.

Placebo Effect – Shattered Souls (Album – Placebo Effect)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Thu, 03 Dec 2020 19:00:22 +0000

Genre/Influences: Dark-Electro, EBM.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: This album stands for one of the most surprising and exciting comebacks from the last few years. German trio Placebo Effect was active between 1989 and 1999. Driven by the trio Axel Machens, Christoph Kunze and Achim Windel the band gained instant recognition with the referential album “Galleries Of Pain” released in 1992 on Danse Macabre. The next album “Manipulated Mind Control” released two years later on Ausfahrt didn’t get a similar success although it confirmed the status of this band. Johan Van Roy (Suicide Commando) once affirmed Placebo Effect probably was one of the true inventors of the Dark-Electro style. Placebo Effect reformed in 2014, but two years later Achim Windel passed away. But now the band is back as a duo self-releasing their first new album in twenty six years!

Content: “Shattered Souls” features 15 songs and is much diversified work. A few songs remind me of the harshness and power of “Galleries Of Pain” while most of the compositions reflect a Dark-Electro atmosphere. I can’t say that it sounds typically 90s, but you for sure recognize some elements while the vocals of Axel Machens are more polished, but still aggressive. You’ll also notice a few shorter tracks, kind of intermezzos in the tracklist.

+ + + : This album is an important production as Placebo Effect definitely belongs to the collective memory of the 90s. I think it makes no sense comparing the new stuff to “Galleries Of Pain”, the band members being now 28 years older. It probably explains why there’s no longer the same rage, which has been replaced by an omnipresent dark atmosphere. This album has something haunting revealing well-crafted songs with cool strings. “Evil Dead Trap” is for sure one of the most noticeable songs in this genre, but I can also mention “Feed Your Creatures”, which simply is a beautiful track. I however prefer the few harder cuts, like a wink to the past… “Pain” and especially “Hard Work” (which is an older song that has been reworked) both are potential hits. I also have to mention “Down On Your Knees”, which is another cut belonging to the harder side of the work. Last, but not least I also have to say a word about the artwork of this album; if you know the older releases you’ll directly notice the link with “Shattered Souls”.

– – – : I think a few songs could have been a little bit extended. And I’m not referring to the kind of intermezzos, which I’ve to say don’t really add an extra to the album. I also regret there’re not a few harder cuts featured.

Conclusion: Placebo Effect is one of the numerous comebacks and I’ve to say I wasn’t disappointed. This band still has a real potential while bringing something different to the Dark-Electro scene, which remains a music genre that is too often repeating itself.

Best songs: “Hard Work”, “Pain”, “Evil Dead Trap”, “Down On Your Knees”, “Slave”, “Feed Your Creatures”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/PlaceboEffect.official

Loveblind – Sleeping Visions (Album – Saint Marie Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Tue, 14 Jul 2020 18:30:05 +0000

Genre/Influences: Indie-rock, rock-pop, shoegaze.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl, Cassette.

Background/Info: Loveblind was set up in 2017 by Saint Marie Records owner Wyatt Parkins. He rapidly got company from Joshua Garman (Crash City Saints) and German based singer Dorian Electrique (Dear Strange, Seasurfer). Mikel Wegener (Seasurfer) and Neal Burkdoll (Whimsical, Point Of Our Resistance). After a few singles they’ve their debut album ready featuring ten songs.

Content: One of the main characteristics that caught my attention is Dorian E. very particular timbre of voice, which reminds me to Brian Molko (Placebo). And there’s also something to say about the music, which features elements reminding to Placebo. Guitar play and electronic arrangements are pretty complementary, creating this indie-wave-pop & rock touch. The tracklist is alternating harder cuts and other dreamy like songs. There’s also a flavor of melancholia hanging over some parts.

+ + + : First of there’s a cool, enigmatic and artistic digipak of the album. Physical copies will be always so much more than listening to music on streaming platforms. Next there’s the content of this album revealing an accomplished work carried by impressive guitar parts. The guitar play injects this 80s like spirit into the work. I especially like the more shoegaze driven “Sleeping Visions”. I also like the dark-like atmosphere recovering the songs and excelling at “Ice Song” and “White Piano Black Dress”. I prefer the harder side of the work (cf. “War Planets”, “Goodbyes Without Goodbye”), but the diversity of the tracklist is enjoyable. Last, but not least, the album ends with the remarkable “We Land” creating a pure climax.

– – – : Comparisons with bands like Placebo will be unavoidable, but does it really make a point when the global production is great?!

Conclusion: A band doesn’t always have to be in the same room to compose a great production! This debut album is nice surprise and definitely a great album!

Best songs: “Goodbyes Without Goodbye”, “War Planets”, “We Land”, “Ice song”, “White Piano Black Dress”

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.loveblindband.com / www.facebook.com/loveblindband

Label: www.saintmarierecords.com / www.facebook.com/SaintMarieRecords

In praise of folly (Bonus Tracks Version)
Viva Insanity EP
Mirror Terror EP

Alfa Matrix reissues back catalog electro act Synapsyche via Bandcamp (with bonus tracks) – available right now

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Mon, 13 Apr 2020 18:25:01 +0000

The Italian electro industrial band Synapsyche joined the Belgian electro industrial label Alfa Matrix in 2018. Since then they released the highly successful “Praise Of Folly” album and its two related EPs “Mirror Terror” and the most recent “Viva Insanity”. The label has now also reissued the band’s previously released material including bonus material.

Already released by Alfa Matrix are the following releases:

So what do we find in this reissue series? Let’s have a look.

First there’s the “Wait / Hate” EP (available here on Bandcamp) which was originally released on January 31st 2013. The “Wait/Hate” EP is the very first self-released EP from Synapsyche from their early days offering upbeat harsh and noisy dark elektro EBM.

Wait / Hate EP by SYNAPSYCHE

Next is the “Crashdown Connected” album (available here on Bandcamp) which was originally released on December 19st 2014, and also includes their cover of HIM’s “Your Sweet 666” in a rather well-executed way. The re-release of this album features the exclusive bonus “requiem version” of “Suicyber Girl” by First Black Pope.

Crashdown Connected by SYNAPSYCHE

Next is the “Meds” EP (available here on Bandcamp) which was originally released on September 30th 2015 and which features a stunning cover version of Placebo’s “Meds”. Next to 4 new tracks, including the other club hit “Push”, this 9-track EP also served exclusive bonus tracks from the “Crashdown Connected” album recreated by dark industrial/elektro friends like Chamaeleon, First Black Pope, Binary Division, M.O.D. and Thornsectide. The re-release of this EP features the exclusive bonus remix of “Hyperfuck” by T-Error Machinez.

Meds EP by SYNAPSYCHE

Principe Valiente – Oceans ‘Deluxe’ (CD Album – Aenaos Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Wed, 16 Oct 2019 18:00:21 +0000

Genre/Influences: New-wave, gothic, goth-rock, indie-rock.

Background/Info: “Oceans” is the third full length album released by the Stockholm-based Principe Valiente. The opus has been also released as vinyl format by Manic Depression Records. The original edit has been released in 2017 and now re-released as a ‘Deluxe’-edition featuring the entire tracklist plus the remixes, which were only available as download. The artwork has been re-edited as well.

Content: “Oceans” feels a bit like bringing the good-old new-wave spirit back to life. Some of the guitar parts remind me of The Cure (“The Head On The Door”-period), but I also can mention Killing Joke for the harder cuts. But Principe Valiente also add a very own touch and more contemporary approach, which I think might appeal to fans of Placebo. Frontman and singer Fernando Honorato also has a very typical-, kind of deep timbre of voice, which is totally fitting with the dark and evasive style of the music. A few female vocals can be noticed as well.

The album features 8 songs plus 4 remixes by Mister Monell, Big city Bright Light and New Canyons (2 remixes). The last song is a live piano version of “When I Learned To Crawl”.

+ + + : Principe Valiente stands for the reincarnation of new-wave music. You can still hear the 80s spirit hanging over the songs while there also is a more personal and contemporary element. The elevating guitar playing is one of the main strengths from this work. But it’s more than simply a great guitarist and talented singer; there’s a great songwriting and global production emerging from this work. That’s why you’ll discover many noticeable songs. There also is a great progression in the structure of the songs. Among the remixes I especially want to recommend the remix of “Strangers In the Night” by Mister Monell.

– – – : My only single regret about this album is that there are only 8 songs. I would like to have got more tracks because this work sounds great. I think it could have been cool for this ‘Deluxe’-edit to get at least one exclusive ‘new’ song.

Conclusion: “Oceans” sounds like a modern new-wave production. But the most important thing is not how you would define this album; it simply is a great piece of music composed by a band, which deserves more recognition!

Best songs: “Untouchable”, “Strangers In The Night”, “When I Learned To Crawl”, “No Time”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: https://principevaliente.com / www.facebook.com/principesweden

Label: https://shop.af-music.com

Unplaces – Changes (CD Album – Tangrami / Timezone)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Wed, 17 Oct 2018 18:30:40 +0000

Genre/Influences: Indie-pop, pop-rock.

Background/Info: German Unplaces trio strikes back with a new album, which seems to be their second one.

Content: “Changes” is a fascinating and diversified piece of work consisting of well-crafted songs composed with electronics and guitar. The songs are switching from reverie to more powerful passages. I know and then noticed passages reminding me of Placebo. There also accomplished a honest cover version of Talk Talk’s legendary “Such A Shame”. The timbre of voice of front woman Dorette Gonschorek also has something pretty fascinating; being sometimes a bit androgenic.

+ + + : The songs have been composed with a perfect harmony between electronics and guitar, but globally speaking the production is also fully accomplished. There’s a real maturity emerging from this work, which resulted in several noticeable cuts. The cover version of “Such A Shame” can’t compete with the original version, but it’s however a cool cover version. I also have to say I was impressed by the vocals. There’s a sensuality and at the same time some fragility emerging from Dorette’s singing. Last, but not least this CD version reveals a great artwork. It’s a digipak format featuring 2 booklets where each single song has been illustrated by a picture.

– – – : No doubt about it, the songs reflect a real maturity and great writing skills, but the only –and essential element, I would have seen more accentuated, is more elevating and hitting choruses.

Conclusion: “Changes” is a cool and beautiful work, but missing a real highlight.

Best songs: “Freedom”, “Changes”, “Lost In Space”, “Against Ourselves”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www .unplaces .de / www .facebook .com /Unplaces

Label: www .timezone –records .com / www .facebook .com /plattenlabel .timezone

Richard Von Sabeth – The King Of Nothing (CD Album – Rehab Records & B-Music)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sun, 01 Jul 2018 19:30:23 +0000

Genre/Influences: Cabaret-gothic, goth-pop.

Background/Info: Behind Richard Von Sabeth is hiding Riccardo Sabetti (Spiral 69). “The King Of Nothing” is the debut album of this Italian artist who has been inspired by horror movies from the 90s and atmospheres from Eastern-Europe.

Content: It’s pretty difficult to really seize what this artist has tried to accomplish. The songs mix elements of cabaret, gothic and pop. It’s an eclectic work supported by deep atmospheres of sorrow. A few songs are much more into ‘classical’-pop and even make me think to IAMX with some lyrical passages reminding me of Placebo. Both last songs are already different like revealing a more artistic approach.

+ + + : Melancholia seems to have been the muse to this album. Richard Von Sabeth has achieved a very personal and diversified piece of pop music, which has been mixed with different influences. There also is something authentic in the production. I like the songs “Kiss Your Darkness” and “Agony” for reminding me a bit of IAMX while “Death Motel” and “Fall” both are real beautiful and poignant songs.

– – – : I think this album is just missing a few little details to speak about a real masterpiece. There’s maybe a little bit too much diversity between the songs, but globally speaking this work is a nice surprise.

Conclusion: I like artists trying to compose something different from the usual standards. That’s precisely what this album is all about. It’s hard to label although revealing great and beautiful songs.

Best songs: “Kiss Your Darkness”, “Death Motel”, “Agony”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www .richardvonsabeth .com / www .facebook .com /riccardo .sabetti

Label: www .facebook .com /rehabrec

The Livelong June – The Art Of Living (CD Album – ScentAir Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sat, 19 May 2018 18:30:28 +0000

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, pop-rock, indie-pop.

Background/Info: The Livelong June is a Swedish duo active since 2013. Benny Gustavsson and Marcus Rejnevik joined hands together with ScentAir Records to unleash their official debut album featuring 11 songs.

Content: ScentAir Records is a label, which revealed some real interesting electro-pop artists during the past few years, but The Livelong June probably is the one that caught more of my attention than others. It’s not just classical electro-pop music, but a harder format, which sometimes sounds a bit pop-rock as well and especially carried by the charismatic vocals of Benny Gustavsson. Placebo is one of the band’s sources of inspiration and the least I can say is that the vocals are rapidly reminding me of Brian Molko. You sometimes get the impression of hearing Placebo on an electronic trip.

But this album also reveals a great electronic approach, sometimes pretty retro-like, but also empowered by guitar parts and heavier electronic treatments.

+ + + : I like most aspects of this album: first of all it’s a powerful production composed with alluring and solid electronic treatments joined by guitar playing and next you’ll get great vocal parts. The songs have been accomplished with great synth melodies. I especially like the way this band mixes different influences together. So in the end it remains electro-pop and even indie-pop minded music, but first of all great music revealing a new and promising formation.

– – – : The only single regret is the poorly inspired front cover of this album! Such a great release deserves a more creative and noticeable cover. I think it’s a real important item especially considering the CD-format is going downwards every single day.

Conclusion: The Livelong June has released an impressive piece of music, which definitely belongs to the best productions I’ve heard on the ScentAir roster. This is an album you definitely have to purchase!

Best songs: “(You Put Me In) Robot Mode”, “Friends”, “On My Own”, “Nothingness”, “The Life We Could Have Lived”.

Rate: (9).

Artist: www .thelivelongjune .com / www .facebook .com /thelivelongjune

Label: www .scent –air .com / www .facebook .com /ScentairRecords

Placebo Effect to release new album – first teaser online and Bratislava show confirmed

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Wed, 08 Nov 2017 17:30:06 +0000

Placebo Effect will release their new album “Shattered Souls” in March 2018, their first new CD in 20 years. You can already listen to a first teaser called “Voices from Hell” right below. More details will be revealed soon. Placebo Effect is now reduced to a duo after the death of Achim Windel who died unexpectedly in July last year.

But there’s more, the band also confirmed a first show, namely an exclusive pre-show in Bratislava on March 10th 2018. More details can be found in the below poster for the show.

And for those who can’t get enough, here’s another teaser that was posted on Facebook a while ago.

For those who were too young to have know Placebo Effect, they are a German dark electro band based in Duderstadt/Hildesheim which was formed in the late 1980s by Axel Machens, Christoph Kunze, and Achim Windel. The band split up in 1995 but Machens teamed up with Ecki Stieg to form Accessories and later on launched another project called Breathe. The return doesn’t come as a real surprise as Placebo Effect played live at the Wave Gotik Treffen Leipzig in 2014 where they also performed 2 new songs: “Nothing to Cry” and “Slave”.

Principe Valiente – Oceans (CD Album – Principe Valiente/AF-Music)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Tue, 12 Sep 2017 18:30:56 +0000

Genre/Influences: New-wave, gothic, goth-rock.

Background/Info: “Oceans” is the third full length album released by the Stockholm-based Principe Valiente. The opus has been also released as vinyl format by Manic Depression Records.

Content: “Oceans” feels a bit like bringing the good-old new-wave spirit back to life. Some of the guitar parts remind me of The Cure (“The Head On The Door”-period), but I also can mention Killing Joke for the harder cuts. But Principe Valiente also add a very own touch and more contemporary approach, which I think might appeal for fans of Placebo. Frontman and singer Fernando Honorato also has a very typical-, kind of deep timbre of voice, which is totally fitting with the dark and evasive style of the music. A few female vocals can be noticed as well.

– – – : My only single regret about this album is that there are only 8 songs. I would like to have got more tracks because this work sounds great.

Best songs: “No Time”, “Untouchable”, “Wildest Flowers”, “Monsters Of The Sea”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www .principevaliente .com / www .facebook .com /principesweden

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

The Psychic Force’s newest album ‘Welcome To ScarCity’ out now on CD/2CD + download and streaming – preview here in its entirety

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Mon, 23 Jan 2017 20:20:00 +0000

The German cult dark electro duo The Psychic Force earned a huge reputation in the early nineties in the dark elektro scene next to bands like Yelworc, AmGod, PNE and Placebo Effect. Michelle Christiansen and Jörg Charnowski resurfaced only recently when in Summer 2015 they released the EP “Relapse” followed by the album “Traces”.

With their new full length album “Welcome To ScarCity“ the band again offers old school EBM with a modern and melodic touch. You can listen to the album below or download it right here.

Next to the normal version of the album, there is also a 2CD boxset holding 12 bonus tracks including an exclusive cover version of The Klinik’s classic “Someone Somewhere” hit as well as remix works by such fine bands as Eisfabrik, Ad:Key and Acylum.

‘Click Interview’ with Throbberstalk: ‘It Wouldn’t Make Any Sense To Continue What Ended More Than 15 Years Ago’

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sat, 08 Oct 2016 18:30:11 +0000

Based in the Southern part of Germany Throbberstalk has been active in between 1995 and 1999. The band was driven by dark-electronic music mixed with obscure atmosphere and industrial elements. Years after the band’s split they got contacted by Monopol Records to release their work for the very first time on CD format. “Lest We Forget” got released in 2012 while we this year discovered “From Nought To Nowhere”. I got in touch with Lars to get back into the 90s and evoking possible further work.

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Can you briefly remind us who’s hiding behind Throbberstalk and what has incited you to set up this band?

Lars: The person behind Throbberstalk is me, Lars, but as other people sometimes were part of the creating process I rather prefer to call it a project than a band.

Before 1995 I was recording music in the neo-classical gothic style together with a friend. But we developed into different ways and so we had to split. He moved into drum’n‘bass and I moved into dark-electro stuff. This was nothing planned and I also never had the need of spreading a message or teaching people. So Throbberstalk was just there for my very own pleasure, discovering new sounds and at the same time it was a kind of therapy.

Q: You were active in between 1995 and 1999 so what did you keep in mind from the active years and what have been your main sources of inspiration?

Lars: It was a wild time, everything went into extremes. I had some horrible relationships and at the same time moments of unbearable happiness, especially when I was able to put all the pain, the pleasure, all disappointments and hate into a song. It was like hiding it all in a box -out of sight, but still there…

My main source of inspiration were -of course, girls. Especially the live performances were remarkable. During the first performance in April 1996 a guy with a megaphone jumped on the stage during my show and was shouting weird things. And while performing a song in October 1996 somebody screamed ‘Fuck You!’ over and over again. I wanted to scare this person and I took an axe (which was part of the show) and smashed it into a kind of fence that was placed between the stage and the audience. After the show SALT (from Ant-Zen records) came to me with a slightly greenish and pale face and said ‘Wow, Larsi, that was really close! You almost hit me….’ He had video-taped the show and so I had the chance to see how close it was. Damn – that really scared me…

Q: I read that :Wumpscut: was impressed by your music and even used some of your sounds and patterns while I noticed he also composed a song entitled “Throbberstalk”. Can you reveal us more details about it all?

Lars: The song “Throbberstalk“ was done long before the project Throbberstalk and there is no connection between. But Rudy (:Wumpscut:) and I met quite often after his “Dried Blood”-CD came out, and of course we inspired each other more or less… After his “Embryodead”-album was out for some time we lost each other out of sight.

Q: Monopol Records discovered your work and decided to release it on CD format for the very first time. That’s a rather crazy story especially for a band that stopped all activities since 1999. How did it all happen and what do you think about both albums released on Monopol Records?

Lars: I can assure you -I was almost shocked when Michal from Monopol Records asked 15 years after we had met the last time if I liked to have my old stuff released. After so many years I never expected somebody to remember Throbberstalk and gone release any of these tracks. Unfortunately all master recordings were in a horribly bad condition and Michal didn’t spare any effort to erase all the noises and distortions from the masters. The result is far from being high fidelity, but it is the best we could gain. The master archive contains songs with a playing time of almost eleven hours, so Michal did a great job with his selections.

I love both regular albums and also all the bonus CDs. Sometimes I ask myself what might have happened if they were released two decades ago…

Q: The question is to know if there will be ever new music composed by Throbberstalk? I mean you composed real intelligent music so why not getting back into business again?

Lars: It wouldn’t make any sense to continue what ended more than 15 years ago. So therefore I’m quite sure that there won’t be anything new of Throbberstalk. Even if I ever recorded again, it would surely sound completely different.

Q: Are you still interested in the electro-underground music of today and what’s your opinion about it?

Lars: To be honest -when I stopped recording music, I also stopped being an active part of the ‘scene’ and therefore I have absolutely no idea what is being played in the clubs today. But I still have my old albums of Click Click, Placebo Effect, Dive, Coil, Front 242, Clock DVA and so many others. Now and then I put them on and they are still unbeatable…

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

‘Click Interview’ with Larva: ‘We Want To Be Loved Or Hated’!

Inferno Sound Diaries — Fri, 25 Mar 2016 21:20:19 +0000

Based in Barcelona InqUesT and Anoxia are better known as Larva. This dark-electro formation started in the late 90s as Morbid Mind, but changed their name into Larva. InqUesT got joined by 2 new members, but the current line-up consists of InqUesT (machines, vocals & lyrics) and Anoxia (sequences).

Larva became one of the ‘oldest’ servitors of Advoxya Records, on which they released an impressive number of productions. They last year released their most accomplished full length to date “Abominations” while the band is actually working on new material for their next album.

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Larva is already active for quite a long time so what do you keep in mind from the early days, the way it all started and how do you see the evolution of Larva all over the years?

InqUesT: I always try to keep in mind how it all begun. I’m looking to the past in a sweet way; a period without money, without almost tools, but only with great energy and motivation.

And the way we evolved during the last years? Mmmm…

I think age affects everything and also in our way of composing music. We of course have more knowledge now, so it van be noticed in the production and the overall sound of the new work. You can even notice it in the lyrical aspect; the lyrics becoming more elaborated and deeper whatever the subject.

Q: Right now you are in between 2 albums so how do you look back at the “Abominations”-album and what might we expect from the new work? Do you see an evolution regarding influences, sounds and production?

InqUesT: Yes, right. I think the fans and followers can expect more complex songs and structures. We didn’t lose our taste for experimentation and the exploration of new skylines.

Our influences are basically the same (and I’m even listening these days to more ‘conventional rock music’); but the knowledge it’s always growing. Maybe the new work will be a bit faster; but without losing the slow classic Larva’s songs.

Q: The image of Larva seems to be an important- and an essential element in your work. Tell us a bit more about it and what are the feelings/emotions you try to expose?

InqUesT: Well, our image was really natural to us… it’s not really a thought concept. We try to incorporate the elements that we feel inherent to our music, and the things that make us feel comfortable. We are punks in essence (in a way of life, I mean).

And talking about our live performances; we try to offer something special (not just a usual live show). A complete experience for the audience. In the end we want to be loved or hated. Extreme positions!

Q: After a previous ‘tribute song’ to Placebo Effect, the song “In The Edge Of The Blade” (featured on “Abominations”) is featuring Axel M. from Placebo Effect. Tell us a bit more about the accomplishment of this ‘special’ song and your fascination for this band?

InqUesT: As teenagers we grew up listening to this kind of bands (dark-electro or industrial bands from the 90/80). So, we felt paying a tribute to one of our favorite bands could be interesting. We knew Axel, and started to interact almost day by day to finally get the ‘tribute song’

Finally we ended doing a few songs together (or sketches as I say); and this one was the selected to be part of the CD. For us it was an immense honor to collaborate with a band that we liked and followed for all those years. That’s the magic of music!!

Q: In which way does the economic crisis in your homeland affect you as a musician?

InqUesT: In a lot of different ways… Economic crisis means less money for the people, which means less people paying for culture (as a music product, live show, merch., etc). We are lucky enough to have a few countries with a consistent and growing fanbase. So they support us and make us feel loved, and of course, thanks to them, we can continue doing what we want to do.

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

Larva – Abominations (CD Album – Advoxya Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Thu, 10 Mar 2016 20:05:10 +0000

Genre/Influences: Dark-electro.

Background/Info: InqUesT (vocals, lyrics & sequences) and Anoxia (sequences) are already active since a couple of years now. Both mates from Barcelona have released an impressive number of albums in a rather short lapse of time. They definitely belong to the selected list of most ‘tormented’ dark-electro acts of the scene.

Content: This new opus clearly reveals a great evolution in the global sound production. “Abominations” definitely is their most accomplished and successful album to date. The sound and influences haven’t really changed, Larva remaining a sick format of dark-electronics. InqUesT sings like a possessed soul and you really feel all the rage and torment coming out of his throat. The songs are sung in Spanish.

The music is quite familiar for its power and coldness, but the main evolution appears to be the little and subtle arrangements this work has been made with. It all consists of little bleeps and delicate treatments injecting a refined and artistic touch to the work. It creates a delicious contrast with the main aspect of the composition, which moves into merciless and furious hell-electro music.

There also is a surprising song featuring Axel Machens from Placebo Effect. This is a rather experimental cut and one of the slowest pieces of the work revealing a kind of dark reverie.

+ + + : The power and global sound production is absolutely amazing. I’ve not always been an adept Larva, but this work is absolutely well-crafted and efficient. There’re multiple dancefloor killers on “Abominations”.

– – – : The softer and slower songs are not their most convincing side although I’ve to admit it brings some diversity to the album.

Conclusion: I can’t remember to have ever liked to hear “Abominations”, but Larva transformed pure horror themes and imagery into beauty and transcendental dark-electro music.

Best songs: “Mi Mundo Nunca Fue El Vuestro”, “La Vida Se Desmorona”, “Comfortably Broken”, “No Podran Conmigo”, “El Hombre Triste Que No Liora Jamas”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.larvas.net / www.facebook.com/larva.official

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

Digital 21 & Stefan Olsdal – Rebellion (Digital EP – Emigrant Limited)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Thu, 14 Jan 2016 11:01:41 +0000

Genre/Influences: Minimal, experimental-techno.

Background/Info: Behind this project is hiding Miguel López Mora (Spanish producer) and the Placebo bassist Stefan Olsdal. Both musicians passion for electronic rock and classic music brought them together.

Content: “Rebellion” features 4 songs and is a rather surprising, and exciting electronic creation joined by a string quartet. The title song is driven by an amazing and deep vibrating bass line plus dark and somewhat technoid electronics. The song “War” sounds more into wafting sound sensation and is a little bit soundtrack-inspired.

“Rebellion” was remixed by Dave Clarke and Alex Guerra. Both artists injected a true minimal style to the remixes and both remixes are carried by dark and mysterious vibes and intelligent sound minimalism.

+ + + : Intelligent and minimal sounding title song.

– – – : The B-side song is nothing special and rather different from the title track.

Conclusion: “Rebellion” is an interesting and minimal-driven electronic release featuring an unexpected side of Stefan Olsdal.

Best songs: “Rebellion”, “Rebellion – Alex Guerra Remix”.

Rate: (DP:7½)DP.

Band: www.digital21andstefanolsdal.com / www.facebook.com/DIGITAL21andSTEFANOLSDAL