Genre/Influences: EBM, Dark-Electro.

Format: Digital, EBM.

Background/Info: After having released five albums on Infacted Recordings and next three albums on Digital World Audio PreEmptive Strike 0.1 moves back to Infacted to unleash their ninth full length to date. The work comes four years after the amazing “Progeny Of The Technovore”-album. George Klontzas left the band and was replaced by Yiannis Chatzakis (Degenerated Sequences) who was a live member. Jim ‘The Blaster’ remains the band’s singer.

Content: The album sounds a bit like moving back to the ‘roots’ of the band; a perfect sonic match between elaborated EBM and Dark-Electronic atmospheres. You however will notice Technoid elements as well and even a few Cinematic parts plus a cover version of a Manowar-song. Kriistal Ann (Paradox Obscur) and Cleopatra Caido have been invited to sing each on one song. Last but not least there’s also a remix accomplished by Seven Trees.

+ + + : This album isn’t exactly a new beginning but there’s a different approach in the writing process and injected influences. I however think that there’s a chemistry between both members and the move back to the roots of the band will be noticed by fans. The songs are elaborate and I like the uplifting and somewhat Technoid sequences running through most of the songs -but especially during the second half of the album. “Pause In Chaos/Stop The Madness” is a true masterpiece but I also have to mention “State Of War – Defcon 1 Edit” and “Resurrective Hunger” featuring the emblematic vocals of Kriistal Ann. “Beyond Reality” featuring Cleopatra Caido sounds more Cinematic but is another attention grabber.

– – – : I still consider “Progeny Of The Technovore” as the band’s magnum opus so it’s not an easy thing moving on after such a blasting piece of music. Some tracks are a little less hesitant but I’m confident for the further evolution of the Greek duo.

Conclusion: PreEmptive Strike 0.1 is back and still stands for attractive EBM.

Best songs: “Pause In Chaos/Stop The Madness”, “Resurrective Hunger”, “State Of War – Defcon 1 Edit”,  “Beyond Reality”, “Lunacy Stimulator”, “Marauders From Earth”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.preemptivestrike01.com / www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100046294873850

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

About PreEmptive Strike 0.1

PreEmptive Strike 0.1 is a Greek duo fronted by vocalist Jim “The Blaster”. The band released five albums on Infacted Recordings before moving to Digital World Audio for three further albums, then returned to Infacted Recordings for “Defence Readiness: Condition 1”, the follow-up to “Progeny Of The Technovore”. Yiannis Chatzakis, also active with Degenerated Sequences, joined as a full member after previously performing live with the band, replacing George Klontzas. Kriistal Ann of Paradox Obscur and Seven Trees both contributed to “Defence Readiness: Condition 1”.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: EBM, Dark-Electro.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Yiannis Chatzakis who’s now also involved with PreEmptive Strike 0.1 strikes back with the second full length album of his solo-project Degenerated Sequences. The work has been released seven years after the self-titled debut album while the EP “Stranger To My Self” was released in 2019.

Content: The work has something retro-like, reminding me to 90s productions but is also a very personal interpretation of EBM and Dark-Electro. String parts and arrangements are omnipresent, injecting a wafting sensation to the production. This way the sound becomes a bit space or ambient like. The vocals are harsh but in perfect balance with the music.

+ + + : The debut album revealed a true potential while I was a bit disappointed by the EP “Stranger To My Self”. This work is an honest and personal production which reminds me a bit of Decoded Feedback. The songs are elaborated and have something dreamy. I however prefer the most danceable cuts like “City Of Decay” which is driven by an aggressive bass line and “Defective Circuit” which is an instrumental, beating cut with EBM sequences.

– – – : I’m missing vocals on “Defective Circuit” which remains however a great piece of music. This is a fully enjoyable production but it all sounds like there even is more potential in it.

Conclusion: Degenerated Sequences stands for a more space-like experience of EBM.

Best songs: “City Of Decay”, “Defective Circuit”, “Divine Redemption”, “Time”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/degeneratedsequences

Label: www.advoxya-records.com / www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063931008152

About Degenerated Sequences

Degenerated Sequences is the solo project of Yiannis “Dseq” Chatzakis, based in Sitia, Greece, who is also a keyboardist for PreEmptive Strike 0.1. He released the self-titled Degenerated Sequences debut album, followed by the EP “Stranger To My Self” in 2019, and “Schism” as his second full length album, released on Advoxya Records.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

George Klontzas got recognition being involved in the EBM/Dark-Electro project PreEmptive Strike 0.1. He got also involved with Croona and Cynical Existence. After the last PreEmptive Strike 0.1 album “Progeny Of The Technovore” (Infacted Recordings) he set up Teknovore. The sound reveals a hard mix of EBM, Trance and Industrial with guest singers. This is a modern piece of Electronic music with solid- and fully accomplished songs. I talked about this astonishing debut with George Klontzas.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: I can’t start this interview without asking you about a short look back to your involvement with PreEmptive Strike 0.1? What do you keep in mind and what has been the main goal when setting up Teknovore?

George: First of all, I’d like to thank you for reviewing my album and for this interview of course. Taking a look back, PES0.1 was a project that was born in a simpler time in my life. It was just a couple of friends having fun together, making the music we liked. Regrettably, along the way and over the years that slowly changed. I spent 16 years with PES0.1 and it gave me many wonderful experiences and the opportunity to meet so many amazing people. Leaving was definitely not a decision I made lightly, but simply put, it was time to step away and that chapter of my life is now closed and no longer has any bearing on me personally or musically with Teknovore.

As for the second part of your question, Teknovore as a wholly ‘me‘ project has given me the opportunities to make more of the music I want to make for myself, and the option to collaborate with a lot more artists for different types of vocal styles which has really let me be more creative in the sounds I make. Music is something I’ve always done for myself first and foremost because I enjoy the process so there was never any doubt that I would continue to make music. Primarily, it was just about making music as its own reward. For a while, I even toyed with the idea of releasing whatever music I made for free, but in the end I decided to put a label behind it just to give it the best possible chance of cutting through the noise and being heard.

Q: The name of your project is clearly connected with the last album of PreEmptive Strike 0.1 but what does it stand for? Tell us a bit more about the sound you’ve in mind for Teknovore and in which way is it a continuation of previous productions you composed?

George: Between 2016 and 2020 I really got back into Goa-Trance. There were some amazing new-school Goa albums that came out at that time which inspired me to start experimenting with that sound. I just love the pumping, spiraling energy and melodic peaks that Goa-Trance can achieve. At first, I thought I would start a Goa side-project with a dark or Industrial edge and that’s how “Progeny Of The Technovore” was born. Basically, the last PES0.1 album was initially supposed to be the first Technovore album. However, I generally dislike the idea of spreading my focus over different projects and abandoned that idea in favor of bringing those tracks into PES0.1.

Hence the name of the album, “Progeny Of The Technovore” -to signify that those tracks are literally ‘begotten of’ Technovore.  I switched the ‘ch’ to a ‘k’ for aesthetic reasons later on. There’s no deeper meaning to the name itself. Its definition would be ‘one who eats or is sustained by technology’ but I honestly just chose it because I thought it would be eye-catching and easy to remember.

There are clearly elements of what I did with PES0.1 in Teknovore, but I’m not trying to emulate what I have already done before. It’s a new project so, despite any expectations there might have been because of my past work, it was a chance to try new things, experiment with different genres. There are many other Electronic genres that I enjoy, Techno, Psy-Trance, mid-tempo Cyber-Punk-inspired stuff, so tried to bring all those influences into the Teknovore fold into one cohesive whole.

Q: How does the debut opus “The Theseus Paradox” saw the daylight and what did you want to reflect by the album title?

George: “The Theseus Paradox” is a reference to a well-known thought experiment known as “The Ship Of Theseus” which poses the question of whether an object that has had all of its components replaced remains fundamentally the same object or not. If the ship of Theseus were kept in a harbor and every part on the ship were replaced one at a time, would it then be a new ship? Cognitive science would view the Ship not as a thing, or even a collection of parts, but rather as an organizational structure that has perceptual continuity. What mainly interested me is how all this pertains to the Self. What is it that makes us the same person through time? Are we even the same person or are we continuously dying and being reborn through the process of cellular regeneration?

I saw this concept reflected not only in my own life, but also in how I approached making this album. I didn’t want it to be simply a collection of tracks. It had to be a singular, complete entity where each track worked as part of a greater whole in creating that continuity.

Q: You worked with guest singers so did you handle specific criteria to ask the artists you worked with? How did this collaboration happened and what has been the true input of each singer?

George: There are three guest vocalists on “The Theseus Paradox”: Jay Taylor of J:Dead, Jay Ruin of RNZR/Ruinizer and of course Fredrik Croona. I’ve worked with Fredrik on various projects over the last 10 years and we have a great friendship and understanding, so he was a natural choice.

Jay Taylor, in fact, I met in the process of making the last Croona album “Ascend”. We worked on a track for Croona that would however eventually evolve to become the J:Dead vs Teknovore-single “Tearing Me Apart” and I also contributed a remix for his single ‘I’ll Wait’. We really enjoyed working with each other and he is such an amazing vocalist I just had to ask him to take part on the album and thankfully he agreed to record two tracks. I’m sure we’ll work together again in the not too distant future.

Jay Ruin is someone whose work I’ve followed for many years and have wanted to work with for a long time. I was convinced he was a good choice because he often bends genres in his own music much in the same way I do. He also recorded some additional synths for our collaboration track. I think we were very successful in creating a track that is both instantly recognizable as being rooted in Harsh EBM but also sounds fresh. He is currently recording vocals for another track for me.

Finally, I mustn’t forget to mention Z from Siva Six who contributed vocals for a cover of Dark Soho’s “Save Me God”. It ended up being on the “Anachronist”-single, which preceded the album, but he did an awesome job too. I knew he loved Dark Soho as much as I do so there was no other option other than him.

Q: It’s quite fascinating to see the multiple influences running through your work while the songs are carried by impressive, hard kicks. It for sure says something about the music styles you already mentioned, but do you handle specific criteria and/or references when it comes to the production process?

George: Ha ha, yes, the kicks! They were a bit of a talking point in your review. So about those actually, one of the genres I enjoy listening to is Tech-Trance. I especially like the production, a defining characteristic of which is that the tracks are usually driven by a loud kick drum, while the synths and basslines are side-chained to emphasize the kicks even more. This is actually one of the first things I knew I wanted to be a part of the Teknovore sound.

I don’t have specific criteria about what my sources of inspiration will be. I listen to a lot of music for inspiration so if I hear something I like, I’ll experiment with it and see how it works and if I can consolidate it within the context of Teknovore.

Q: I noticed you already made a few noticeable remixes for other artists. How do you proceed when working on it? And what are the further plans about remixes, new Teknovore stuff, concerts ao?   

George: I was a bit surprised by the number of remixes I was asked to do especially when I hadn’t even released anything yet. Last year, I put a couple of tracks up on YouTube just to test the waters and see how they would be received –and almost immediately I got a couple of remix requests. It was quite flattering honestly and it solidified my conviction and belief in what I was doing with Teknovore. Since the release of “The Theseus Paradox” the remix requests haven’t stopped coming. In the past two months I’ve already delivered five remixes and committed to doing another three. Of course I’m also working on new tracks of my own at the same time. The tentative plan is to release another single and an EP by the end of the year hopefully, so, overall, there is a lot more Teknovore coming in the near future.

Finally, I’ll be making my live debut with Teknovore at a very special event later in the year. The announcement should come any day now, maybe even by the time this interview goes live.

Thank you again for this interview.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: EBM, Techno-Body, Industrial-Trance.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info:  George Klontzas -known from his involvement with PreEmptive Strike 0.1 but also with Croona and Cynical Existence, has now unleashed his first solo-work following the “Anachronist”-single. Neon Decay, RNZR and J:Dead (2 songs) contributed as guest singers.

Content: George Klontzas was the main sound architect of PreEmptive Strike 0.1 and you’ll rapidly recognize his sound DNA at “The Theseus Paradox”. The work is driven by ultra-violent boosting beats while different influences like EBM, Industrial, Techno/Trance are constantly joining in. Most of the songs are instrumental edits with spoken samplings but you’ll also discover 4 songs with guest singers.

+ + + : The last album of PreEmptive Strike 0.1 entitled “Progeny Of The Technovore” also was the last album by the Greek formation George Klontzas contributed to. So this project name is not a coincidence while the sound is also driven by this furious fusion between EBM and Techno-Trance. It’s an extremely violent piece of music however refined by melodic, elevating leads. The spoken samplings are cool but the tracks with real vocals are adding a bonus. But my favorite pieces “Olethros” and “Split The Sky” are without vocals and feature sampled chants creating an elevating sensation. Both cuts are pure dancefloor killers!

– – – : The kicks are extremely hard and violent which is a cool for a while but Klontzas is maybe a little bit abusing of it.

Conclusion: The debut album by Teknovore is an impressive and overwhelming piece of modern Electro underground music composed by experienced and talented artists from this scene.

Best songs: “Olethros”, “Split The Sky”, “Relinquish Your Flesh feat. Neon Decay”, “Every Beaten Bone feat. J;Dead”, “Apotheosis”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/TeknoVoreMusic

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

About Teknovore

Teknovore is the solo project of Greek producer George Klontzas, previously active in PreEmptive Strike 0.1, Croona and Cynical Existence. The project name refers back to Progeny Of The Technovore, the 2020 PreEmptive Strike 0.1 album that closed his run with that band.

The project opened with the single “Anachronist” in 2022, released through Infacted Recordings, which also issued the debut album “The Theseus Paradox” on 18 March 2022. The title refers to the Ship of Theseus thought experiment. The eleven-track album carries guest vocals from Jay Taylor of j:dead on “Take Me Away” and “Every Beaten Bone”, Fredrik Croona as Neon Decay on “Relinquish Your Flesh”, and Jay Ruin of RNZR on “Anachronist”. Dimitris Douvras mixed and mastered the record at Lunatech Sounds Studio, with cover artwork by Nikos Stavridakis at VisionBlack.

Klontzas discussed the project and its name in a ‘Click Interview’ with Teknovore published on Side-Line in July 2022, two months after this album review.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

(Picture by Jasyn Bangert – God Module) Out now via Bandcamp is Shane Aungst’s “The Zombietapes (Face The Beat 7 Megamix)”.

Seattle (United States) based DJ Shane Aungst produced this monster megamix featuring a total of 38 tracks from “Face The Beat: Session 7” during long evening sessions in February and March 2022. He soon talked about the zombietapes, hence the title of this megamix. The original compilation is available here. Expect an interview with Shane Aungst in the next days

The release holds 3 parts being just over 49 minutes each totaling just over 147 minutes and holds extensive remix and sampling work by Shane Aungst. The full remix is available for free with all donations going to charity like every release on our Bandcamp page. This is the 3rd time already that Shane Aungst has produced a remix for Side-Line’s infamous compilation series. The two previous megamixes were “Shane Aungst vs Face The Beat 5 – Megamix” and “Shane Aungst vs Face The Beat 6 – Megamix“.

Tracklist

SIDE A

1. Intro By Viscera Drip
2. Midian Dite – Hermosa Sumisa
3. Histeria – Proceso Inquisición
4. Suppressor – Schweigen
5. Sapphira Vee – What Is This
6. Dance My Darling – Love & Hate (Centhron Remix)
7. Preemptive Strike 0.1 – Preemptive Strike (2021 Version – Face The Beat Edit)
8. Khmar – Dampfkraft
9. Reality’s Despair – The Other Side
10. Empyres – The Sirens Call
11. Blut Reaktor – Beneath The Judas Tree
12. Chem – Cieni
13. Sodomy Down The Cross – Zurück In Den Wald

SIDE B

1. Helmynthe – Aromat Ammiaka
2. Ctrl+Cmd+Destroy_Alternis (Oot Mix)
3. Eric Dillon – Come Closer (Soulchasm Mix) Instrumental Master
4. Shadow System – Smile Before The Bullets (Sitd Remix)
5. Fatherless Child – Share If You Like Shave If You Lick
6. Psychosomatik – Damage Done (Original)
7. MATT HART – I Am Overlord
8. Imjudas – Ritual (Reichsfeind Rmx)
9. Sun’s Spectrum – Intrusion
10. Last Activity – Shadows
11. Doktor Foxx – Cold On
12. LCM – Bodies Collide
13. R.I.P. (Roppongi Inc. Project ) – Bazooka

SIDE C

1. Scars Are Soulless – Eyes Of The Deceiver
2. Distoxia – Legiones Invertidas
3. Unidad Obscura – Ni Un Minuto Atras
4. Deadjump – Save Me From My Fear (Burnout Mix)
5. Notstandskomitee_Bitcrash
6. Waijdan – Rotting Gardens
7. John Bérb-Eluha – Fantômas
8. Shinigami Ind – Quiero
9. Atonal – Crash Feat. Anna Soares
10. Escupemetralla – Maldacena Duality
11. Rabbits Wear Boots – We Will Not Become A Number
12. Against I – Scum

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark-Electro, EBM.

Format: Digital, Cassette.

Background/Info: PreEmptive Strike 0.1 saw the daylight in 2002. Nearly twenty years later the Crete formation can look back at a successful discography. The last year released EP “The Dread Files” revealed a new line-up; still driven by the band’s frontman Jim The Blaster and completed by Yiannis Chatzakis (Degenerated Sequences) –who was the only live member in the past. This EP features one new song plus reworked tracks –originally released in between 2006 and 2015.

Content: The opening song, which also is the new cut, reveals a dark, atmospheric sound featuring robotic vocals. This is the perfect intro to the harder and danceable reworked songs. All the songs have been reworked, but you still recognize the original power and mix of EBM and Dark-Electro. The carrying choruses have been always one of the band’s trademarks, which mixed with the danceable cadence stand for the success of this formation. On top of the songs you’ll hear the heavy, dark and distorted vocals of Jim The Blaster.

+ + + : The opening song “The base Was Overrun” is a somewhat surprising song for this formation, but it’s a pretty cool cut revealing a poignant atmospheric side. This is not just an intro, but a great song! Among the other songs, which have been reworked, I especially recommend the fully accomplished “Robotic Disintegrator” –originally released in 2010 at “The Kosmokrator”. This song perfectly symbolizes the power, energy and melodic side of PreEmptive Strike 0.1. Other noticeable cuts are the hard sounding “Lethal Defence Systems” –which was the title song of their debut album (2006) and the song “PreEmptive Strike”.

– – – : This release is something for the fans –and they for sure are going to like it! But I’m especially waiting for new stuff.

Conclusion: PreEmptive Strike 0.1 is revisiting some songs of the past and they masterly accomplished the challenge.

Best songs: “Robotic Disintegration – 2021 Version”, “The Base Was Overrun”, “Lethal Defence Systems – 2002 Version”, “Preemptive Strike – 2021 Version”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/Pre-Emptive-Strike-01-100462328053194 / www.facebook.com/Pre-Emptive-Strike-01-100462328053194

Label: www.facebook.com/FASMA.PRODUCTIONS

Read the news on PreEmptive Strike 0.1 issues a cassette with reworked hits and an unreleased track.

About PreEmptive Strike 0.1

PreEmptive Strike 0.1 was founded on the Greek island of Crete in 2002 with the stated purpose of making EBM. Discogs lists D. Argyrakis, George Klontzas and Yiannis Chatzakis among the people involved over the years, with frontman Jim The Blaster as the constant. The project opened with the “Enzymes” demo in 2003 and “The 0.1 Demo” in 2005.

The album chronology runs from “Lethal Defence Systems” in 2006 through “Extinction Reprogrammed” in 2008, “The Kosmokrator” in 2010, “T.A.L.O.S.” in 2012, “Pierce Their Husk” in 2014 and “Epos V” in 2015, much of it released through Infacted Recordings. Later titles include PreEmptive Strike 0.1 – Progeny Of The Technovore (Album – Digital World Audio) in 2019 and PreEmptive Strike 0.1 – The Dread Files (EP – Digital World Audio) in 2020, the EP that introduced the current line-up.

“Redeclaration Of War / 2006-2015” was released by Fasma Productions in 2021 as a cassette limited to 50 hand-numbered copies, the first 25 of which carried a Talos sticker, alongside the digital edition. Jim The Blaster recorded new vocals, while Yiannis Chatzakis added synths and reproduced all tracks. The unreleased opener “The Base Was Overrun” was recorded in 2014 and had been left off “Epos V”. The band later returned with PreEmptive Strike 0.1 – Defence Readiness: Condition 1 (Album – Infacted Recordings) in 2023, and had earlier discussed its two-sided approach in the 2017 ‘Click Interview’ with Preemptive Strike 0.1: ‘Preemptive Strike 0.1 Is A Band With A Split Personality’.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

The Greek harsh ebm band PreEmptive Strike 0.1 upcoming release comes in a cassette format and includes new unreleased versions of songs written during the period 2006-2015 and initially released by Infacted Recordings. With respect to the original versions, Jim the Blaster recorded new vocals and Yiannis Dseq added additional synths. All tracks have been reproduced by Yiannis Dseq.

It also holds a previously unreleased track found in the archives of Yiannis Dseq, “The base was overrun”, which was recorded in 2014. It should have been on “Epos V” but since the style was totally different it was omitted.

For the band, and possibly for many in the genre, this was an opportunity to release material for the very first time on cassette. The release is available in a limited edition of 50 hand numbered copies. The first 25 copies are a collector’s item as they come with a big Talos sticker.

Other songs include “Lethal defense systems” (based on a version that appeared in their demo from 2005 but never found the way to their debut album), “PreEmptive Strike”, “Declaration of war” (with English vocals, it was initially released with vocals in German), “Robotic disintegrator” (originally with vocals by Deranged Psyche from Nebula-H – yes Stephane, the main contributor for Side-Line reviews – and now with Jim the Blaster’s vocals) and finally “Epos of the argonauts” (in a dark mix).

PreEmptive Strike 0.1 was formed in Agios Nikolaos, Crete, Greece in 2002 by Jim The Blaster and Cryon. In 2015 Yiannis Dseq joined the band and since 2020 the band has become a duo with Jim The Blaster and Yiannis Dseq producing new material.

Here’s a medley for the release

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Torben Schmidt gained some experience about label activities working as A&R manager for the legendary Zoth Ommog and Bloodline. He set up Infacted Recordings in 2001 and signed bands like Orange Sector, Namnambulu, Frozen Plasma, Reaper, X Marks The Pedwalk, Prager Handgriff, Heimataerde, Grendel, ES23, Ruined Conflict, Xotox, NZ, Aircrash Bureau, PreEmptive Strike 0.1, Shiv-R, Torul, IC434, Vanguard… but still the own bands he’s involved with Lights Of Euphoria and Binary Park. Twenty years later Infacted Recordings became a reference when it comes to EBM, Electro-Pop and Dark-Electro artists.

(Stéphane Froidcoeur / Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Was there a kind of ‘philosophy’ when you set up your label and did it evolve over the years? How would you define your label activities today?

Torben: My main aim and intention when I started Infacted Recordings back in 2001 was to get independent and release/support the music I love, whenever possible detached from the economical side (which of course is not always possible). I was working for other people/companies before I started my own record company and experienced many good, but  also quite some things, which were to be improved. I  think the big advantage I had from the start was that I knew both sides, working in a record company and being an artist, producer myself.

Q: I can imagine you must have specific and explicit criteria to sign an artist/band. Can you give us more details about this aspect and how important is it for you to know the person(s) hiding behind the ‘artist(s)’?

Torben: Well, to be honest, for me it is basically a matter of personal taste. One rule I  had from the start was to get to know the human behind every band/artist whenever possible to make up my mind about the individuals. If there is a good chemistry in between label and band/artist, that’s the most solid base you can get for a strong work together.

Q: You are already active for numerous years now so you must have seen a lot of things changing and evolving; think about social media, streaming platforms, Youtube channels… but also economic crisis etc. What are the pros and cons of these changes/evolutions and in, which way did you had to adapt/change your strategy and activities?

Torben: I think you already hit the point with the question. Time changes and we, as the motors and creators of this scene had the task to step up with the changes. We are innovators to a certain point, always at the pulse with being DJs, musicians, producers, people who initiate ideas and start projects. For me personal it was always a moving experience to be part of creating something. I think you really have to be where the heart of the scene is, at clubs, at festivals at concerts, meeting fans and supporters and have a good communication.

Q: The ongoing pandemic has affected all artistic life and activities so what’s the true impact on your label activities and do you think it will also affect your long term objectives?

Torben: The main problem we all seek is that one big part of our scene is missing, that’s the live/club thing we have with our bands and our supporting DJs. Many plans we had with touring and release events for 2020 and 2021 had to be shifted. There are fresh ideas with streaming events, but this rarely compensates the feeling most  of  our scene loves and lives. So well, we honestly hope that there will be perspectives again soon. On the other side I am very happy to have so many supporters out there who continuously aid me/us as a label and the bands and DJs directly.

Q: Do you think media (magazines, online platforms etc…) still have an impact and a role to play today? What’s your relationship with ‘journalists’ and how important is their work?

Torben: I can only speak for me personally here, but  I think that print media is losing more and more of its impact due to various factors. Time is running fast and news are spread way more easily digital then in print media. It’s not really blaming, but print magazines concentrate too much on the same bands over and over again (of course often due to demand).

There are exceptions of course and I truly appreciate the support we get and a lot of still really enthusiastic journalists, but I experienced so many people stop buying magazines in the last years and change to digital media to get there information. For me as a label, social media and online media in general is an important key for my promotional work.

Q: What do you consider as your biggest accomplishment(s)? Do you have specific goals/dreams you want to achieve and how do you prepare and see the future of the label(s)? And what are your biggest regret(s)?

Torben: During the years I had the opportunity to work with so many talented artists, known/not so knows, small/big, which is/was truly an honor. So many relationships were started, collaborations occurred and friendships actually did result. My dream to live & work with music did already happen, so I am pretty thankful for this. I have to say that I do not really regret anything. Being in the music scene was great in almost  all time periods and every phase had it great moments. Even on bad experiences you grow and make internal progress.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark Electro-Pop, Cinematographic.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Fredrik Croona strikes back with the third full length album under the Croona moniker. He previously released three other albums as Fredrik Croona and got involved with different bands like Cynical Existence, Project Rotten ao. The Swedish artist realized this album together with George Klontzas (previously involved with PreEmptive Strike 0.1). “Ascend” has been introduced as an album with a different approach and resulted in twelve songs.

Content: The opening song takes off in a pretty cinematographic style, but progressively evolves into a heavy, pumping piece of music. Croona transposes classical Electro-Pop into a raw and powerful format. That’s definitely the main characteristic of the work. The songs are driven by danceable kicks, carrying melody lines, passionate vocals and this raw, cold production on top. One of the songs features guitar playing injecting an Industrial touch to the album. The album finally ends the way it started with a Cinematographic approach.

+ + + : It’s not easy defining the style of “Ascend”, but I experience it as a harsh, raw and icy Electro-Pop style mixed with Industrial elements. Above all it’s an atypical, powerful format. I also noticed a true progression in the song writing and global production, which is probably due to George Klontzas. But let’s not forget Fredrik Croona became an experienced artist who has released an impressive number of productions. They both together create a great match. Some raw sound treatments are sometimes reminding me of Seb Komor, the instrumental “Mindbender” being a true masterpiece, but I also have to mention “Automate” for its monstrous Techno lead and “Futurism” carried by a solid chorus.

– – – : I don’t see major minus points, but I got the feeling this project is even able to do better.

Conclusion: “Ascend” definitely appears to be the best Croona album so far. This is the sound of aggressive, raw Electro-Pop.

Best songs: “Mindbender”, “Automate”, “Futurism”, “The Search”, “The Dark Ones”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/croonaofficial

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

About Croona

Croona is the solo project of Swedish artist Fredrik Croona, who has also released music as Fredrik Croona and worked with acts including Cynical Existence and Project Rotten. His album “This Is Goodbye” came out on Advoxya in 2018, followed later that year by the Croona-branded releases “My Sweet Revenge” and “Memento Mori” on Infacted Recordings. “Ascend”, produced together with George Klontzas of PreEmptive Strike 0.1, followed on Infacted Recordings in 2021 as his third full-length album under the Croona name.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: EBM, Dark-Electro.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: Last year Crete formation PreEmptive Strike 0.1 released their seventh full length “Progeny Of The Technovore”, which in my opinion was the band’s most accomplished work to date, kind of opus magnum! A lot of things happened in the meantime, but especially the departure of core memberGeorge Klontzas has been a main fact. Jim The Blaster and Yiannis Chatzakis (also involved with Degenerated Sequences) moved on and now released their first work together. The EP is a kind of mini-album featuring four new songs plus four remixes.

Content: Both debut songs are quite representative for the sound of the band; a perfect mix between elements of EBM and dark-electronics. The stumping kicks, carrying melody lines and spoken samplings are once more joined by the harsh vocals of front man Jim The Blaster. We next get 2 softer songs, where the power has been replaced by dark atmospheres.

There are 4 remixes by Belgian artists. Llumen, Implant, The Juggernauts and IC 434 remixes each one from the 4 original songs.

+ + + : PreEmptive Strike 0.1 is back and that’s an important thing especially after the departure of their sound operator. It’s not an easy thing and even a challenge striking back after the great last album, but both debut songs reveal an interesting potential. The original sound and global approach of the band remain intact. The spirit of the band is still alive; it stands for danceable, melodic and powerful music with enraged vocals. Another interesting aspect is the Belgian connotation of this work! That’s maybe easy to explain as the last live performance of the band happened in Belgium and was organized by one of the band’s greatest fans. PreEmptive Strike 0.1 seems to have real good souvenirs from this show and that’s what probably explains the choice of the remixes. I heard a very good job done by Llumen remixing “Evolution/Retribution”. Implant and IC 434 both give a little boost to the least convincing songs from the EP. Last, but not least I also have to say a word about the great sci-fi artwork of the digipak, which fits with the concept of the work.

– – – : The opening song “Evolution/Retribution” sounds a bit compressed, creating a muffed effect. I think the new work can’t totally compete with the last album of the band, but if this is a kind of new beginning, I’m definitely faithful the best is yet to come!

Conclusion: PreEmptive Strike 0.1 gives us a solid exposure from the potential of the new line-up, kind of PreEmptive Strike 0.1 – V.2!

Best songs: “Wormfaced Cadavers”, “Evolution/Retribution”, “Evolution/Retribution – Llumen Remix”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.preemptivestrike01.com / www.facebook.com/Pre-Emptive-Strike-01-100462328053194

Label: www.digitalworld.audio /   www.facebook.com/DigitalWorldAudio

About PreEmptive Strike 0.1

PreEmptive Strike 0.1 was founded on the Greek island of Crete in 2002 with the purpose of making EBM music. Early releases include “Enzymes” (2003), “Lethal Defence Systems” (2006), “Extinction Reprogrammed” (2008), “The Kosmokrator” (2010), “T.A.L.O.S.” (2012) and “Pierce Their Husk” (2014), followed by “Epos V” (2015), “Through The Astral Cold” (2017), “Progeny Of The Technovore” (2019) and the “Harbinger” EP (2019).

The “The Dread Files” EP, released via Digital World Audio in 2020, followed the departure of longtime member George Klontzas, with Jim The Blaster and Yiannis Chatzakis carrying the project forward.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: EBM, dark-electro.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info:  Hailing from the beautiful island of Crete (Greece), PreEmptive Strike 0.1 is back on track. George Klontzas, Jim The Blaster and Yiannis Chatzakis unleashed their seventh official album to date, offering twelve new songs to their fans.

Content: I didn’t exactly know what to expect from this announced sonic symbiosis between body-music and goa-trance, but it rapidly appears PreEmptive Strike 0.1 has accomplished their most powerful album to date. It’s a rough and merciless production driven by astonishing rhythms, carrying melody lines and harsh vocals. There’s no trace of a break, all songs hold on to the devilish cadence. I also noticed a few cuts with some extra diversity like the injecting of filtered, acid like sequences.

+ + + : I’ve been never disappointed by PreEmptive Strike 0.1, but I never expected they would ever reach this level. This is without a shadow of a doubt their best album to date. They lost a bit of their traditional/folk input, which was characteristic for the early work, but they replaced it with such an overwhelming power. The tracks are also masterfully accomplished with heavy rhythms, carrying leads, elevating choruses and extra little sound treatments. The song “Tactical Nuke Incoming” is without a shadow of a doubt a dancefloor stomper! “Global Insurgency” is another great song.

– – – : I don’t see real minus points to mention; the production of the vocals could maybe a bit more diversified, but I’m not complaining.

Conclusion: This album makes me instantly think of ‘dark-electronics on acid’! This is without a shadow of a doubt the band’s opus magnum and still one of my favorite albums from 2019!

Best songs: “Tactical Nuke Incoming”, “Global Insurgency”, “Doppelgangers”, “Sunder Every Atom”, “Constriction Process”.

Rate: (9).

Artist: www.preemptivestrike01.com / www.facebook.com/TeknoVoreMusic

Label: www.digitalworldaudio.com /

www.facebook.com/DigitalWorldAudio   

About PreEmptive Strike 0.1

PreEmptive Strike 0.1 was founded on the Greek island of Crete in 2002 to make EBM music. The band’s studio albums include “Extinction Reprogrammed” (2008), “The Kosmokrator” (2010), “T.A.L.O.S.” (2012), “Pierce Their Husk” (2014), “Epos V” (2015) and “Through The Astral Cold” (2017), released through Infacted Recordings and Digital World Audio. “Progeny Of The Technovore” is the band’s seventh album, again released through Digital World Audio, with the current lineup of George Klontzas, Jim The Blaster and Yiannis Chatzakis.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: EBM, dark-electro.

Background/Info: “Harbinger” brings us back to PreEmptive Strike 0.1 latest album “Through The Astral Cold” (released in 2017). It’s the second EP bringing us back to this album while it also features three complete new songs.The EP is also available as a very limited CD and vinyl format.

Content: If you know the sound and influences of the Crete formation “Harbinger” will not really surprise you. The EP opens with the “Single Edit” from the title track, which stands as the perfect fusion between EBM and dark-electronics. The new songs are worthy of examination and especially “The Era Of Entomocracy”. PreEmptive Strike 0.1 has this talent to create a sonic bridge between EBM and dark-electro and that’s precisely what this work stands for.

+ + + : I like this kind of EP’s featuring 4 different cuts. The title track is a late return to the album “Through The Astral Cold” while the new songs feature an interesting interlude to the in the meantime new full length “Progeny Of The Technovore”. The power of the songs and their elaboration remain characteristic for this band, which still deserves more recognition.

– – – : Even if PreEmptive Strike 0.1 is not an emulation of other groups, the sound remains a bit cliché and sometimes predictable, but you don’t hear me complaining.

Conclusion: PreEmptive Strike 0.1 became a warrant for qualitative dark EBM. Up to their new album now!

Best songs: “The Era Of Entomocracy”, “Harbinger – Single Edit”, “Teratogenesis”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.preemptivestrike01.com / www.facebook.com/PreEmptiveStrike0.1

Label: www.digitalworldaudio.com /

www.facebook.com/DigitalWorldAudio  

About PreEmptive Strike 0.1

PreEmptive Strike 0.1 is an EBM and dark-electro act from Crete, Greece, led by George Klontzas with singer JIM. After several albums on Infacted Recordings, including “EPOS V” (2015), the band moved to Digital World Audio for “Through The Astral Cold” (2017). “Harbinger” revisits that album with new material, ahead of the full length “Progeny Of The Technovore”.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

When you think about Greece and the beautiful island of Crete, you immediately get images of holidays in mind. But Greece also is a real prolific country when it comes to gothic music and dark-electronics. PreEmptive Strike 0.1 for sure is one of their most talented and recognized electronic ambassadors. After several noticeable albums released on Infacted Recordings they now joined hands with Digital World Audio to unleash their new full length “Through The Astral Cold”.  I got in touch with George Klontzas and singer JIM.

Make sure to complete your collection of PreEmptive Strike 0.1 albums via this fine mail-order.

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Your sixth full length “Through The Astral Cold” has been released, but what is this new work all about and do you see main differences (technical- & sound wise) with your previous ‘electronic’ work?

George: First and foremost, we have, to a large degree, abandoned the traditional, folk instrumentation that was present on our previous 3 albums. I felt that after “EPOS V” (2015), I didn’t really want to continue in that direction. After doing that style for all those years I felt like using the traditional elements had become restrictive to me even though it was born out of a desire to ignore the conventions of the harsh EBM genre. It seemed I had built myself into a box that I had to ‘break’ in a sense. I don’t like to commit myself to making tracks that fit a certain mold. We have a number of influences on our music, from EBM to metal and trance, and making music with a specific recipe was not satisfying for me. That doesn’t mean that I wanted to completely abandon that aspect of our sound and if you listen to “Through The Astral Cold” you clearly see that it is still present there, just not on the driving force of each and every track.

“Through The Astral Cold” has been described as a ‘return to the roots’ but I’m not sure if that’s an accurate description. I would say that it is the accumulation of and combination of all our previous albums put together. “Through The Astral Cold” was actually the easiest of all our albums for me to write. I just wrote the songs naturally without much effort in a way that surprised even myself. In addition, because I have much less free time these days to devote to music I have become very efficient in making that time as productive as possible. In general, I feel much happier making music ‘unforced’.

Q: So what are the main themes of the new album and how do you try to transpose lyrical themes into music?

George: Well, continuing what I mentioned above, writing tracks in just one style restricts other aspects of the aesthetic of an album such as the artwork and lyrics. Especially when it’s such a specific concept as Greek mythology. So although Greek mythology is incredibly rich and we could find plenty of subject matter for lyrics again why be confined to making concept albums? Overall,  “Through The Astral Cold” definitely has a more cyber/sci-fi atmosphere in a style similar to our first albums.

JIM: To be honest, it is easier for me to write sci-fi lyrics especially what concerns outer space and alien invasions than themes about Greek mythology! The B-movies of the 50-60s are an endless inspiration from me!

Q: “Through The Astral Cold” is your first album released on Digital World Audio while all previous full lengths got released on Infacted Recordings. Was it time for a new partner and what makes you sign to DWA?  

George: In the process of making “Through The Astral Cold” and seeing the kind of music we were creating, especially the metal-tracks, we realized that it was just not a good fit for Infacted Recordings any more. Thus, although we were saddened since we had been there for about 10 years, we decided it was the best for both parties to seek out a different label. DWA was the perfect choice for us in that respect because they have a roster of both electronic and metal/rock bands. We have had a friendly relationship with Jamie, the DWA label boss, for 5-6 years now so we simply decided to join forces.

Jim: I would add that we always want to get ‘challenges’ from our label such as  vinyl releases, compilations, covers of known bands from other genres, special DCD releases, digibooks, etc. I don’t think that the only option is to release a CD every 2 years and next to gain publicity for 1 month and then… again to wait for 2 years to release the next CD. It is not interesting anymore for me. Jamie and DWA know the way to keep a band on their roster ‘hot’ all the time.

Q: Before the new album you released 2 EP’s, which clearly were an experiment with metal music influences featuring a rather unexpected and unknown side of PreEmptive Strike 01. Where does this metal influence comes from and what have been the reactions plus impact of both EP’s?

George: All the guys in PES0.1 – Jim, Yiannis and I have a metal background so it wasn’t strange that at some point it would emerge at the surface of our music. We had one or two tracks with metal influences on our albums so at one point we said ‘Let’s do a whole EP in this style’. This is how the “Pierce Their Husk”-EP was made. The reception of both “Pierce Their Husk” and the “Eternal Masters” EPs has been very good from reviewers and fans alike. Some prefer one style to the other, but we have made it clear that PES0.1 is a band with a ‘split personality’ and people can understand what I think. Besides I believe people are much more open to a variety of genres these days.

JIM: We gained new fans and we spread our name outside the scene. You know there is a 10% of the black/death/extreme metal fans that like a blend of guitars and electronics. Their number is much more than all the dark-electro/ EBM scene. If someone can ‘gain’ this audience I think that the sales will increase very much.

Q: Why didn’t you consider to set up a side-project dealing with metal-music and is it an option for the future?

George: Originally, we weren’t really thinking about it to tell you the truth. We were just making tracks of both styles however we felt. But when it came time to think about how to release them it was  a bit of  ‘headache’ trying to figure out how to market these vastly different tracks which seemed to have a much different audience. Some ideas were to make “Through The Astral Cold” a DCD-release with the electronic tracks on one disc and the metal tracks on another. At one point, we even toyed with the idea of releasing them under different band names too. Ultimately, we decided release them separately but under the same band name. Besides most people are aware of both ‘sides’ of PES0.1 and this way we avoided having a disjointed or uneven album with an unlikely mix of genres.

JIM: Notice that we don’t have a guitarist in the band. All our metal releases are ‘vs…’ or ‘feat…’ The members from the collaborating metal bands contribute with the guitar parts. So I don’t think that we will ever set up a project dealing with Metal exclusively. Personally, I have the project Punishment Systems² (www.facebook.com/punishmentsystems) with the guy from the cult black-metal band AD HOMINEM so I don’t need to set up a new one!

Q: Artwork seems to take an important part in the work of PreEmptive Strike 0.1. Is it like a mirror reflecting the soul of your band and what do we have to find in it?

George: I think we have been lucky in always getting artwork that really reflects the tone of each album accurately. The artwork for “Eternal Masters” was done by Nikos Stavridakis, an up-and-coming artist from our home island of Crete. He has been a close friend since the very beginning of PES0.1 and you can expect more of his artwork to start appearing soon, especially in the metal scene. The artwork for “Through The Astral Cold” and the follow-up single “More Than Flesh” was done by Vlad McNealy who is already well-know in the electro-industrial scene for his artwork. Both did an amazing job of creating artwork that depicts exactly what we were aiming for and we will gladly work with both again in the future.

JIM: One thing I have to say is the front cover of “Through The Astral Cold” was the cover that I was always dreaming of for PES0.1! The work Vlad did left me breathless!

Thanks for the interview and greetings from Greece!

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark-electro, EBM.

Background/Info: PreEmptive Strike 01 is back on track unleashing their sixth album to date. It’s an important work as it marks the band’s move from Infacted Recordings to Digital World Audio, but it also was their first new opus after the release of electro-metal minded EPs. Should the Greek formation go on exploring the wider fields of metal music instead of the dark-electro approach, which got them recognized in the scene?

Content: The answer to my question comes quite rapidly after the first notes and sequences. The band holds on to their familiar dark-electro and EBM influences leaving the metal experiments behind. The songs are made with fast sequences and melodic leads. The vocals remain harsh and somewhat spooky-like. The songs are once more moving in between EBM and dark-electronics.

But PreEmptive Strike 01 always likes to do something special. They this time joined hands together with Schwarzblut (signed to Alfa Matrix) for one song, which resulted in an epic sonic experience. The work reveals a few more epic elements and other mystic chants.

+ + + : PreEmptive Strike 01 confirms their great writing skills and it would have been a pity they should have taken some distance with the dark-electro work. This is what they’re doing the best and the growing maturity of the band is an easy noticeable aspect on each new work. That’s an important evolution you can hear in the balance between powerful sequences, dark bass lines and melodic leads. But the production of the vocals became more professional as well. They also like to work with other artists and the collaboration together with Schwarzblut on “Phantom” is a really a successful one. “Killing Protocols” sounds a bit similar and this epic touch is absolutely great. Last, but not least I also want to mention the artistic and limited digipak/digibook format of this release.

– – – : The main thing I maybe regret is the rather similar sound formula, which is running throughout all the tracks. That might explain the metal experiment on previous EPs. The album features only 9 songs and I regret there are not one or two more songs on it. But on the other side I prefer a short, but successful work instead of an endless tracklist with less substance!

Conclusion: “Through The Astral Cold” confirms the great composing skills of this Greek formation while at the same time it also reminds us of the importance and talent of the Greek electro-underground scene!

Best songs: “Phantom”, “More Than Flesh”, “Killing Protocols”, Harbinger”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.preemptivestrike01 / www.facebook.com/PreEmptiveStrike0.1

Label: www.digitalworld.audio /   www.facebook.com/DigitalWorldAudio

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

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

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

A preview can be listened to below:

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

Here’s the track list:

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

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

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark-electro, EBM, gothic, new-wave, punk-rock.

Bands: PreEmptive Strike 0.1, Roppongi Inc Project, Freaky Mind, Siva Six, Wynardtage, W.O.M.P., Oniric, Acylum, Von Thronstahl, The Pussibats ao.

Background/Info: The German label based in Duisburg was rather active during the 90s and early millennium years releasing albums of bands like Forthcoming Fire, Von Thronstahl and their label compilation series “VAWS”.

It’s a while ago now since I’ve heard something new from VAWS, but they here strike back with a beautiful and deeply artistic book & double disc featuring a total of 24 songs. The title and concept of the artwork will appeal for all Nachtmahr fans.

Content: The book is absolutely artistic and focuses on –like the title indicates, ‘girls in uniform’. We get beautiful and sexy pictures of young girls in uniform. Some of the pictures clearly remind me of the image of Nachtmahr. It definitely appears to be a concept that will please the audience.

Sound-wise the 1^st disc is totally devoted to dark-electronics and some dark EBM formats. There’s an interesting selection of established- and less familiar names. Globally speaking it’s a pumping and pretty cool disc with a great song by Freaky Mind and other noticeable cuts by R.I.P. and Mordacious.

The 2^nd disc is more diversified covering multiple genres and influences. It’s not exactly what I would call a gothic album but more like bands that are dealing with orchestral arrangements, cinematographic inspiration, minimal electro-wave music, ethereal electronics, body-pop, a kind of chanson and even a punk-rock apotheosis.

+ + + : The 1^st disc will definitely please the dark-electro heads and features a nice selection of cool songs. The 2^nd disc is quite different, revealing an exciting eclecticism of influences. But the main strength of this compilation for sure appears to be the great artwork and book-concept.

– – – : There’s a serious chasm in music genre between both discs.

Conclusion: If you’re a freak of artistic music design featuring cool music and a unique artwork, you definitely will like “Mädchen In Uniform”.

Best bands: Freaky Mind, Mordacious, Infernosounds, Lucifer Christ, Von Thronstahl, Deadly Injection.

Rate: (8).

Label: www.vaws.de / www.facebook.com/vaws–musicfactory-254972201199351

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Content:

Read the news on ‘Epos V’.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

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Read the review of ‘Epos V’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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

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