The Belgian technopop act Metroland has been active for over a decade now. The duo have now started working on a new concept for a new album. The theme that they started off with the previous EP (and limited vinyl) “4” this year will only be fully revealed when the upcoming album is released.

Unlike the other single, in this second wave of singles, called “3” and split up between “3​.​0” (available right here on Bandcamp) and “3​.​1” (available right here on Bandcamp) , the title track has an actual name: “Modularity”.

Good to know, during the studio sessions for this album’s singles, both members (Passenger A and Passenger S) have each separately recreated each single into a vision of their own and edited it for each digital release. On top of that in the remix section we have for you a version by none other than ASPRA, also known as Sophia from Marsheaux, turning the song into a dreamy synthpop tune. Also find on remix duties is the techno act Q’PNZ.

The two 4-track singles each hold exclusive edits and remixes by both members, ASTRA and Q’PNZ. Soundwise the new tracks combine the typical Metroland darker bass sounds with their trademark bleeps and analogue sequences.

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Genre/Influences: Industrial-Pop, Electro, Experimental.

Format: Digital, 2CD.

Background/Info: Belgian Implant duo is back on track, unleashing their eleventh album in history. Len Lemaire and Jan D’Hooghe have been inspired by the ongoing pandemic and the impact on humans. It resulted in a double disc featuring numerous remixes on the second disc. Noemi Aurora (Helalyn Flowers) contributed to some songs of the album.

Content: Implant already revealed a different approach in sound on the previous –and great, album “Oxynoxe-X” while the last year released EP “Phantom Pain” confirmed this evolution although getting more into Electro-Pop fields. It’s quite significant for this new opus, which is bringing elements such as Minimal-Electro and a kind of Industrial-Pop together. The ‘Trance’ roots of the band are far away, but still present on a few cuts. The main evolution of the sound is due to the use of analogue gear, which becomes pretty explicit at a few shorter, instrumental pieces. Noemi Aurora is singing on 3 songs, creating a weird, but cool match with the growls of Len Lemaire.

The work features remixes by Suicide Commando, Signal Aout 42, Aiboforcen, Q’Pnz, 808 Dot.Pop, Növö, Armageddon Dildos, AD:Key, Neuroactive and Helalyn Flowers. The second disc also features a few extra songs by Implant. Last, but not least The Breath Of Life simply covered one of the songs instead of making a remix.

+ + + : I truly respect the global evolution in sound Implant has made during the past years. It still sounds Implant-like, but the Belgians seem to have found new sonic paths to explore. The analogue sound treatments create this minimalism, but also very original sequences emerging at the shorter ‘intermezzo’ cuts. Noemi Aurora remains to me one of the most talented singers in this scene and she adds a graceful-, sensual- and artistic touch on top of the songs. “Phantom Pain” remains a cool track, but she also sings on “The Last Record”, which clearly appears to be a potential hit –and has been remixed by several artists. One of my favorite songs however is “The Room” for its extra robotic dimension plus deep, resonating bass line and “Nutshell” for its minimalism. The opening song “I Don’t Trust The Machine” is another attention grabber with a strong dance/club appeal and driven by an amazing lead.

The list of remixers is also a noticeable aspect of the album. I here want to mention the work by Suicide Commando and Trance-driven remix by the Belgian producer Q’Pnz. The Breath Of Life did a great job covering “The Last Record”; this is a beautiful and sensitive version. Last, but not least Implant put 2 more great pieces on this disc (cf. “Censorship Through Noise Part III” and “Lied 13”.

– – – : I regret some short, instrumental cuts from the main disc haven’t been more worked out; “Nutshell” is not only one of the best tracks, but unfortunately it’s just a kind of break. Despite the impressive list of remixers, I definitely expected a bit more.

Conclusion: Implant is now active for nearly 30 years and has already found new new horizons to explore.

Best songs: “The Room”, “I Don’t Trust The Machine”, “Nutshell”, “The Devil Made Me Do It”, “The Last Record”, + “The Last Record – Cover by The Breath Of Life”, “Run To The Lights – One Messed Up Mix by Suicide Commando”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.implant-music.be / www.facebook.com/Implantmusic

Label: www.alfa-matrix.com / www.facebook.com/Alfa.Matrix

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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Implant’s 11th album is a fact and officially out since this morning! The Belgian electronic act recently released the “Phantom Pain” EP and video clip as a teaser for what was to come, and now the band has finally released the full length “Cognitive Dissonance” in 2 physical versions: CD and a very limited 2CD.

You can expect an array of sounds on the new album, from industrial dance over dark elektro and melancholic chanson (“The Last Record”) to upbeat future pop and techno pop. For the album Implant could count on vocal contributions by Helalyn Flowers’ front woman Noemi Aurora on several songs.

The limited deluxe double-CD digipak edition of the album (available here) holds the “When Prophecy Fails” bonus disc featuring 2 exclusive tracks and an eclectic selection of remix collaborations with such artists and bands like Breath Of Life, Suicide Commando, Armageddon Dildos, 808 Dot Pop, Signal Aout 42, Aiboforcen, Helalyn Flowers, Neuroactive, AD:keY, Q’pnz and Növö.

You can check the tracks from the album below on Bandcamp (where you can also pre-order the release).

About Implant

Implant was formed in 1992 when Geert Machtelinck and Len Lemeire attended the same university. It took them till 1996 to release the first CD album (“Soft flesh / Hard steel”) which was followed by 2 MCD’s (“Fun” and “Brain FX”). The band then took a swing in unexplored territory of psy-trance, becoming one of the first psy-electro bands. They later on returned to a more eclectic electro approach incorporating various electronic influences in their work.

Since 2004 Implant is signed to Alfa Matrix for which Len Lemeire has also been mastering quite a lot of releases.

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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