Genre/Influences: Electro-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Four years after the debut album “Electrometric” (2018) we get the second album of Jörgen Erixon’s sonic alter ego Unisonlab. The work is again released by Russian label Razgrom Music.

Content: If you’re familiar with the sound of this Swedish project you immediately will recognize the connection with Kraftwerk music. Deep bass lines, space-like bleeps, typical Kraftwerk arrangements and robotic vocals moving from danceable songs towards more evasive, space-like, passages. You’ll also find 4 remixes including one by Maschine Brennt. 

+ + + : The main strength of the project also remains its weakness. The shadow of Kraftwerk is hanging over the production which is a good news if you like this ‘robotic-pop’ style. I must say Unisonlab stands for true sound intelligence. I highly recommend “Single Box Frame” for its danceable style, “Page In Page Out” for the outstanding, deep, resonating sound sculptures and “The Call” for being a bit harder. The “Modulation Remix” of “Page In Page Out” is another great piece of music.

– – – : I think this band definitely deserves a wider recognition. The main point that might hurt is the strong influence of Kraftwerk.

Conclusion: There’s nothing that new at all but this kind of music stands for the most achieved and intelligent Electro-Pop format.

Best songs: “Page In Page Out”, “Single Box Frame”, “The Call”, “Page In Page Out – Modulation Remix”.

Rate: 7½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/unisonlabsounds / www.facebook.com/unisonlabsounds

Label: www.razgrommusic.ru / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom-Music/218060094876247

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.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: The fifth studio album by Brazilian Amorphous was released in December 2021. The work is inspired by ‘the cognitive processes involved in Human Stigmergic Coordination as an artificial intelligence system’.

Content: Gil O. Santos has been always driven by good-old EBM vibes and “Stigmergy” doesn’t sound that different. It’s an intelligent sound format which takes off with minimal sound treatments and cold atmospheres. Menacing bass lines are emerging while the darkness of the work reminds me of Vomito Negro. The ghost-like vocals totally fit this music.

+ + + : Amorphous is a project I’ve always fully supported and I’m still thinking it never got a deserved recognition. The production is well-crafted and achieved with intelligent- and minimal sound treatments. The dark string parts have something overwhelming while the bass lines are hostile. Amorphous also stands for danceable music.

– – – : I only regret this work only features 8 songs. The artwork doesn’t look that professional, but the music does!

Conclusion: “Stigmergy” is a new and successful, intelligent EBM production by Amorphous.  

Best songs: “I’m Not Real”, “Precious Moment”, “Generation X”, “Blackhole”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/amorphous.sound

Label: www.razgrom.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom-Music/218060094876247

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-Pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Five years after their debut-album “Pop”, Swedish duo Mikael Larsson – Anders Wilhelm strikes back with their second work, which is entirely inspired by the magic of space. “Sterne ” was previously released as two separated EP’s. The album brings all the EP songs together while there are two bonus songs on it as well. The digital version features a few more bonus songs (remixes).

Content: “Sterne” holds on to the Kraftwerk influences revealed in the debut opus. Some arrangements, atmospheres, effects, bass lines, tunes and robotic vocals are immediately reminiscent of the legendary formation from Düsseldorf. Datapop has built a conceptual work driven by space, which totally matches with the Kraftwerk-ian Pop style. Both bonus songs are remixes; one by Anymachine and the other by Maschine Brennt.

+ + + : I can’t speak about any kind of originality when listening to Datapop, the influence of Kraftwerk being omnipresent. But you better get a great and intelligent copyist instead of an original formation without substance. That’s why I like Datapop! They in a way have the sonic legacy of Kraftwerk, which they transform into great music. The songs are well-crafted and sophisticated. The songs have been sung in German and English, but mainly produced with a robotic effect, which matches the concept. The songs have been accomplished with great sound treatments. There’re a few potential ‘hits’ featured at this work; “Space Invaders”, “Sterne” and “Schwarzes Loch” being the most noticeable cuts.

– – – : I’m less convinced by a few softer and especially slower cuts, but globally speaking this album will not disappoint you.

Conclusion: Datapop confirms their potential and writing skills revealed at “Pop”. This album sounds like great retro-Electro-Pop with a wink to Kraftwerk.

Best songs: “Space Invaders”, “Sterne”, “Schwarzes Loch”, “Travellers”, “Travellers – Maschine Brennt Remake”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.erwe.se/datapop / www.facebook.com/datapopmusic

Label: www.razgrom.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom-Music/218060094876247

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

A few weeks ago we informed you that a (former) member of Sweden’s Systema The Affliction and Cultivated Bimbo, Joacim Thenander, had revived his Behind Maschine Brennt project. Out now is a new single, “Europe “, the third one already taken from the album “Puls” which will be released on July 23.

Maschine Brennt started out as a project in 1991 on the side of Cultivated Bimbo and Systema The Affliction. Maschine Brennt did a few gigs and a handful of tracks were recorded during the ‘90s. After the turn of the millennium he concentrated more on his other more commercial projects including dance music, house, techno stuff, but also a few drum n bass tracks. Until 2014 that is when Maschine Brennt came back with new material, on the Swedish label Plonk. The first album was eventually released in 2017 both digitally (Plonk) and on CD (Razgrom Music). 7 years later (!) a second album, “Puls” (CD + digital), will see the light during Summer of 2021 via Plonk and Razgrom Music.

You can check out the video for “Europe” below. To know more about the project, do check this interview we had with Joacim in 2018.

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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We are in 1991 and the Swedish label Energy Rekords releases what becomes their biggest hit ever, the compilation “I Sometimes Wish I Was Famous – A Swedish Tribute To Depeche Mode”. On that compilation we also find a cover of “Shouldn’t Have Done That” by an obscure Swedish band, Systema The Affliction which would in the end only release on Strontium Records, the vinyl “Summoning For The Files…”. And of course also Cultivated Bimbo with “New Life”.

Systema The Affliction featured musicians who also popped up in such bands as Cultivated Bimbo to name the most famous one. More precisely Joacim Thenander was active in both bands and actually the driving force behind the thrash synth/hip hop crossover duo Cultivated Bimbo. He now revives his other 1991 project Behind Maschine Brennt.

Maschine Brennt started out as a project on the side of Cultivated Bimbo and Systema The Affliction. Maschine Brennt did a few gigs and a handful of tracks were recorded during the ‘90s. After the turn of the millennium he concentrated more on his other more commercial projects including dance music, house, techno stuff, but also a few drum n bass tracks.

Until 2014…

Until 2014 that is when Maschine Brennt came back with new material, on the Swedish label Plonk. Later he joined forces with Kretz and started releasing tracks on Encrypted Records. The first album was eventually released in 2017 both digitally (Plonk) and on CD (Razgrom Music). A few remixes followed including work for Metroland, Deutsche Bank, Datapop and so on.

7 years later (!) a second album, “Puls” (CD + digital), will see the light during Summer of 2021 via Plonk and Razgrom Music. The influences on the new album will be early 80’s electro, and of course that special german Düsseldorf sound.

The CD will feature a bonus track not available anywhere else. In total you can expect 12 tracks spinning from 100 to 143 BPM. Released digitally on July 2. The CD will be available on July 7.

Here’s a preview.

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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Gil O. Santos gained some recognition as member of the Brazilian EBM project MORGUE. He later on got involved with other projects and music styles, but came back to EBM with his solo-project AMORPHOUS. His newest album “Moth Metaphor” released on the Russian label Razgrom Music reveals a new sophisticated and intelligent writing mixing dark atmospheres and powerful EBM.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: How do you look back at the musician you were during the MORGUE period and the musician you became involved with AMORPHOUS?

Gil: MORGUE started as a duo, then it became a trio, and ended up as myself. MORGUE started before the internet explosion, before globalization, mobile phones, DAW, virtual synthesizers and plugins, so we had to do our best with the gears we could afford to buy, or borrowing from another musicians. During the MORGUE years, my music production and experience was just EBM and Dark-Electro.

From 2000 to 2010 I was fully involved with different music production as I was trying to have a career as sound designer and e-music producer, I took part to a movie soundtrack, I was making Psy-Trance, Tech-House, and Lounge music.

The urge for EBM and Dark-Wave production came back, then AMORPHOUS was born. As the name meaning, the main idea is to express electronic body music without a clearly defined shape or form, without a music cliché, an uncompromising electro-industrial music.

Q: Tell us a bit more about the new album “Moth Metaphor”? What is this album all about and what did you try to express by the title, which appears to me as a metaphor for the Western World, which is always driven towards more power and more welfare?

Gil: It’s all about criticism of power, religion, leaders, stupid society, and a strong wish for everyone to become aware of the matrix, a wish that people could appreciate a new way of understanding the universe that reconciles science & spirituality, eliminate religious fear & superstition that can lead to a new era of world peace and reconciliation.

Although moths are nocturnal animals, they are driven toward light for some unknown reason and represent wisdom of the other world, knowledge, clairvoyance and secrets.

The title expresses the phenomenon of the moth to a flame, which is a metaphor about emotional dependence. It is about how you sometimes feel attracted to the things that harm you. On the flip side, it may also lead you to fear the very thing that can free you.

Q: How do you perceive the evolution in sound and production of the AMORPHOUS releases? Do you handle specific criteria and/or references when it comes to the different aspects of composing and producing a song/album?

Gil :I believe it can be described as the most mature, inspired and technically polished release so far, it is a combination of pretty rough-sounding and noisy industrial dance tracks, atmospheric and cinematic soundscape.

The criteria were to create every song as a unique and remarkable experience. I tried to record all drum sessions using electronic percussion pads, playing live and recording instead of step sequencer or loops. I love to combine cinematic sounds and textures with contemporary electronic music.

Q: The most surprising –and I even dare to say totally unexpected song of the album is “Our Deepest Fear”, which is driven and inspired by the great Jacques Brel! How do you as Brazilian got in touch with the work of Brel and what did you try to achieve with this song?

Gil: Every album I tend to make a track where the lyrics and vocals (sampled) are taken from a poetry, short stories, novel or an audio book. I have used Edgar Allan Poe’s poem, “Brave New World” from an Aldous Huxley’s interview, Anne Rice’s novels “The Vampire Chronicles” (Lestat). This time whilst searching for some Gothic fiction, I came across with “Our Deepest Fear” poem by Jacques Brel, it fitted perfect to “Moth Metaphor” context, so I decided to use it.

Q: I know you’re interested by psychology so what does the Covid-19 pandemic evoke to you and its impact on people, artists, leaders etc..?

Gil: One mental health consequence of social distancing is the terrible loneliness that can prevail, as people are forced to remain inside their homes and away from gatherings and daily lives, which we may have taken for granted until now.

Luckily we are in the digital era and all virtually connected, but we all know that live streaming and zoom meetings will not fulfill the urge to shake our bodies and share music on a dance floor. As a therapeutic form of art, music offers that bonding power. Historically, music has been used by people to remain motivated, resilient, and united in the face of collective challenge, so I am crossing my fingers to get the old days of gathering at clubs and festivals as soon as possible.

Q: The CD edit of your album features three extra songs, which according to me still belong to the best tracks of the work. Does it mean you still believe in the CD format? How do you see things evolving and how do you see yourself evolving as artist?

Gil: Yes, I believe in all format of physical media and I feel something is missing when an album is just a digital release.

The 10 tracks album were ready to be pressed before end of March (CD & Digital) but due to lockdown restrictions it had a three months delay. As I had told to all fans and buyers that the CD would be available in March, there were many pre-orders so it was quite unfair to pay for a CD and receive it 4 months later. As a compensation for the delay, I decided to release the 10 announced tracks in March and compose 3 extra songs during the lockdown to add onto the CD, that was released end of July.

Every day I have new thoughts and a make new decisions about myself and my music. Reinventing yourself isn’t just a stunt, it’s required to survive. Because your personal brand can become a comfortable home where you know what to expect and others know what to expect of you. The only issue is that as a living creature, you grow.

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.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: I’ll always link Gil O. Santis with the great Morgue project, which was a true reference in the Brazilian EBM scene from the 90s. Later on the artist set up Amorphous as a solo-project and has released some great works. “Moth Metaphor” is Amorphous’ third full length studio album (there also is a remix- and live album) and the first one released on Razgrom Music. Notice by the way the CD edition features three extra songs.

Content: Amorphous is clearly driven by good-old EBM and Frontline Assembly might be seen as a potential source of inspiration, but globally speaking this project has something apart and very personal. The composition is accomplished with intelligence revealing elaborated song structures, minimalism and ghost-like atmospheres. The songs are dark, which is an aspect accentuated by the ghost-like vocals’ production. One of the most surprising cuts is “Our Deepest Fear” featuring a French poem by Belgian ‘chanson grand master’ Jacques Brel. 

+ + + : Amorphous simply confirms the potential exposed at previous albums. This is a styled and accomplished EBM, an intelligent format of body music resulting in a very personal approach. The songs are sophisticated, revealing an impressive number of layers with minimal-like sound arrangements on top. There’s a perfect twist between power and atmospheres, the last part of the work becoming darker. And I especially recommend the CD version for its bonus songs “Confinamiento” and “Kingdom Of Darkness (Empire Version)”. As a great admirator of Jacques Brel I’ve been particularly touched by the samplings referring to this great artist. 

– – – : I don’t have real minus points about this work, but it remains a pity Amorphous is still an underrated artist.

Conclusion: If you’re in search of intelligent and totally accomplished EBM, you better purchase this remarkable work by Amorphous.

Best songs: “Confinamiento”, “Kingdom Of Darkness (Empire Version)”, “Our Deepest Fear”, “Blackout”, “Unknown Things”, “Nonlinear Future”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.facebook.com/amorphous.sound

Label: www.razgrom.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom-Music/218060094876247

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

Before Finkseye, Henrik Fink Nilsson was involved with Struma. The common element between both bands is EBM! The name of this Swedish solo-project is taken from Henrik’s middle name ‘Fink’ while the ‘eye’ part stands for his artistic side and is a wink to his acrylic paintings and ink drawings, but still to his passion for photography and digital art. Henrik fink Nilsson got interested in electronic music since he was seven years old. He discovered the “Radio-Activity”-album from Kraftwerk, which he first liked for the artwork and the cool band name, but next he felt in love when hearing the music. He next discovered other electronic artists like Depeche Mode, Gary Numan ao.. Finkseye has already released a few number of albums. The third official work “Ecocide” has been already released on Razgrom Music and sounds as a further exploration to mix EBM and soundtrack music together. It’s an interesting challenge and clearly different from the typical EBM clichés.   

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Finkseye is already active for numerous years, but how did you get the idea to set up the project? What have been the original ideas and purposes and how you perceive Finkseye today?

Henrik: My mom played an old Farfisa organ back in the day and I used to fiddle around on that one a lot, when I moved out of the house I missed that element of being able to make some noise so I bought a keyboard and continued. I came up with the name and logo for Finkseye in 1995 and in 1996 I started to make music under that name.

The general idea has always been trying to be free in the music to be able to let it go in any direction. The early music is mostly made up of noises and samples with an odd synth here and there, but as I progressed there is a red line and that is my love for electronic cinematic tracks. I have released a lot of the older tracks under the name Ventilounge on Soundcloud.

Finkseye today is almost like going back to the roots, there is more room for melodies and I let the EBM influences flow into any song to spice things up. I don’t follow rules or genres.

Q: Can you analyze your own evolution as musician/producer from the early works till the newest album “Ecocide”?

Henrik: In the beginning I was always in the hunt for noises and sounds and could sit forever to find the right stuff. Today I look for a way to convey a feeling or a vision of some sorts. It still involves around getting the right noise/sound, but I don’t spend that much time on it anymore. I have always liked to write stories so writing lyrics comes somewhat easy, the singing bit has been a steep uphill from the start, but I feel that I have found a place and key for my voice to feel natural in the songs now.

Q: Let’s talk about “Ecocide”, which has something pretty conceptual right? What did you try to express by this work and how did the composition happened?

Henrik: “Ecocide” was a concept album from the start; all my inspiration and lyrics were inspired by reading the news about warfare/politics or seeing some documentary about how we pollute our oceans. It’s a constant barrage of bad news and to top it off we got Covid-19 which in some way gave our earth a way to breathe again.

Whenever I wrote something it was charged with the bad news, this was however a very tough album to pull through so I stopped three songs short. I just could not continue on that road so I stopped the project and decided trying to release it as it was. The three last songs were given away as rough demos on Bandcamp.  After the release I updated my whole studio with new synths and gear to exorcise the demon. The next album is in the works : )

Q: I noticed you recently also released an album based upon the Chernobyl disaster. The album was composed in between 2002 and 2010 so how comes it has been released only now and only as digital release? Tell us a bit more about this conceptual work?

Henrik: When I made those songs I felt like that they were too cold and Kraftwerk-ish so I wanted to release that album under a different name at first (The Liquidators). But the album just sat there and as time progressed I felt more at ease with the songs and now was the right time to release it. I thought about a limited CD-run, but ultimately felt that Bandcamp was the way to go.

The starting point for this album was when I came across a Russian news sample from the time when the disaster struck, I remembered when our news stations warned us for nuclear fallout and this together with my love for the band Kraftwerk kicked the project into action..

Q: “The Liquidators” sounds definitely soundtrack-like, which is an influence that often comes back in your work. What do you like in this cinematic style, which makes me think to cinematic-EBM? And are there concrete ideas/plans to release a real soundtrack? 

Henrik: I remembered vividly when I was 13 years old watching “Bladerunner” for the first time, this would have been in 1987. The movie brought a perfect marriage of electronic music and film. The end titles inspired me (and still do today) and I started painting/drawing a lot of fantasy/horror themed stuff.

The cinematic link has been with me in my music since the very start and if I ever get the chance to write a soundtrack for a movie I will. I have a rough outline for a fake “Mad Max”-movie type soundtrack that lingers in my head. Maybe that will be my first soundtrack : )

Q: I noticed there also is a kind of common thread running throughout the artwork of your releases. What’s the importance of the artwork and what do you try to express that way? And you next to artwork also pay attention to image?

Henrik: The album cover should in some way convey what there is to be heard on the album, you should perhaps to be able to get a feeling from it or maybe just the concept of it. Starting with the covers I did for my band Struma 2012-2014 I have tried to have a red line running through the artwork. My logo evolves a small bit for each album I release, on “Ecocide” it’s just the logo upfront without the name Finkseye. On “Deadweight” I used a lot of my digital art and I have progressed to use more of my photos with each album cover and insert. On “Ecocide” I knew what I was after so on a foggy day I took photos around the ocean shore for the cover and the video I did for “Unreality” followed in the same footsteps. I want my releases to have my personality, I want people to be able to recognize it and perhaps say ‘hey there is a new Finkseye album on the shelf’ : )

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.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Swedish Finkseye is the solo-project of Henrik Fink Nilsson. “Ecocide” is already the third album released by Razgrom featuring nine songs plus two bonus tracks (which aren’t featured on the digital edit).

Content: Finkseye has been always linked to the EBM scene, but is clearly not the most classic band from the scene. You for sure will discover a few, elaborated and rather typical driven EBM songs. But the main part of the work is more into dense atmospheric passages mixed with EBM elements. Several cuts remained instrumental edits, like a kind of intermezzos. Most of the songs are rather short. Some songs are also featuring guitar sounds, injecting some extra power to the work, but also some extra diversity. Among the bonus tracks you’ll find a remix by compatriots and electro-pop formation Erotic Elk.

+ + + : If you think that EBM is only meant to get people on the dancefloor, some bands like Finkseye might be an exception. Their best tracks are however danceable and driven by usual EBM ingredients. I especially like the solid bass lines, but there still is a kind of haunting atmosphere recovering these songs. “Unreality” is for sure one of the absolute highlights. The spooky vocals are also perfectly matching with the sound. But this work again reveals great atmospheric EBM pieces like “Playing God”, “The Day The World Went Away” and “Extinction Level event” (featuring Swedish vocals). I also have to mention the solid ‘intro’ “Entering A Storm”.

– – – : The album is maybe a little too short; 11 songs, but only 39 minutes of music! I also regret there are no more ‘harder’ cuts featured, but Finkseye first of all appears to be a band apart from the traditional EBM scene.

Conclusion: If an EBM soundtrack should be invented, “Ecocide” would be a judicious choice!

Best songs: “Unreality”, “Entering A Storm. Intro”, “Playing God”, “Extinction Level Event”, The Day The World Went Away”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/Finkseye

Label: www.razgrom.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom-Music/218060094876247

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Swedish duo Mikael Larsson – Anders Wilhelm have been active for a couple of years and don’t hide their devotion to Kraftwerk. “Pop” is their debut album, which was originally released on Plonk. The album has been re-released in 2017 (!) on Razgrom Music featuring an extra track. Notice by the way that just as other Plonk bands (cf. Maschine Brennt and Unisonlab) this work is also driven by the Kraftwerk inspiration.

Content: From the very first note you immediately recognize the Kraftwerk touch, which is clearly everywhere. The songs and influences avoid any kind of innovation, but the songs have been meticulously crafted. This work will bring you back to the golden years of Kraftwerk, but I for sure also can mention contemporary bands –and especially Metroland. Driven by dry bass lines and great melody lines plus robotic –mainly spoken, vocals this album has something magic.

+ + + : The vintage sound approach remains something apart from the other electro-pop bands. The link with Kraftwerk emerges on every song, but the composition however reflects a real maturity and artistic approach. I like the space-like sweeps and analogue effects while songs such as “Europa – Stern” and “Rhythmus” are driven by impressive bass lines. One of the best cuts probably also is the most personal one (cf. “Berlin“).

– – – : This album was originally released in 2016 and re-released in 2017 so it already is an ‘old’ item, but there are great releases I simply have to support –even a long time after their original release date. It speaks for itself that Datapop doesn’t bring anything new, but who cares when the sound is greatly produced.

Conclusion: Datapop is one of the contemporary Kraftwerk disciples with a real huge potential. I’m really looking forward to hear more music from Datapop!

Best songs: “Berlin”, “Human Music”, “Europa – Stern”, “Rhythmus”, “Electronic Music”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.erwe.se/datapop / www.facebook.com/datapopmusic

Label: www.razgrom.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom–Music/218060094876247

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

Behind Maschine Brennt is hiding Joacim Thenander. This Swedish musician has been involved with numerous bands and multiple music genres, but Cultivated Bimbo is without a shadow of a doubt the most famous name for all lovers of EBM and experimental electronics. Maschine Brennt has been set up around 1992 as a side-project to Cultivated Bimbo. And as Joacim explains ‘The main reason was to present music as if the machines had made it. In the beginning I used whole-tone scales and such, to remove the human feel and make it more mathematical. The rhythms were always hard-quantized and very seldom played on velocity sensitive keyboards or pads. The name Maschine Brennt is taken from a B-side of one of Falco’s singles’. Maschine Brennt released several singles during the past few years while the debut full length “The Hearing Aid” has been released during 2017. This is a great album appealing for all lovers of Kraftwerk-electronics’.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: You’re kind of ‘electro-veteran’ who has been involved with multiple bands and projects since the late 80s. What have been your greatest satisfactions as an artist since then?

Joacim: Mainly I make music for my own pleasure. It has been loads of different styles and genres spinning from synth/electro to heavy metal. For a long time I did a lot of house/techno songs, and also drum’n bass. I do it for myself. But I also publish tracks on different sites and labels and love to get reactions. The greatest satisfaction is if I find out that my music actually appeals to people more than to myself. That is the main fuel for me making music.

Q: I noticed you are already composing music under the Maschine Brennt moniker since the 90s. What makes this project different from the other ones you’ve been involved with and why did it take that long to release your debut album?

Joacim:: I used the name Maschine Brennt during a few (three, I think) shows 1992-1994. I made music for the specific shows, and didn’t release anything at the time. After that I made other styles of music, mainly dance/club using different aliases. I released a few singles, but mostly digital on different community web sites and so on.

In 2014 I met Jonas Lund (Kretz) who asked me to join Plonk. I started using the old name again because the style Plonk aimed for, was very close to what I’ve made with Maschine Brennt. For instance, when I make drum’n bass I use the name Killa Dawgs and when I make house I use the name Joey Lucas. When it is ‘computer music’ I use the name Maschine Brennt.

The reason I made an album was simply because a friend of mine asked me when the full-length will be released. If it wasn’t for him I still would be doing singles only.

Q: “The Hearing Aid” has been released in 2017. Tell us a bit more about the writing, recording, influences and sound plus how do you look back at the work right now?

Joacim: “The Hearing Aid” is a collection of old tracks (mostly), but reprogrammed and remixed. To make a full-length album from scratch is a massive load of work, and I didn’t have the time or patience to do it all from start. I am proud of the album and I like it a lot. Maybe I would have done a couple of things differently today, but I see the project as a timestamp, and like to focus on NOW.
Because the album was a Plonk release from the beginning, I wasn’t too afraid to show the Kraftwerk influences, and actually did so frequently throughout the album.

Q: The sound of Maschine Brennt indeed clearly reminds to Kraftwerk. What does Kraftwerk means to you in terms of sound creation, impact on your own work and artwork?

Joacim: Kraftwerk is very important for Maschine Brennt. But they have a soul, and I want my music to sound less soulful. Remember -music by machines. I absolutely love some songs by Kraftwerk! Sometimes only fragments. But there are also songs I really don’t like.

My strongest influences are by artists that have been influenced by Kraftwerk; 2nd generation, so to speak. Afrika Bambaataa, Arthur Baker, John Robie, Man Parrish, Atom™ (especially Lassigue Bendthaus), Anthony Rother and more. If I was to create a list of the best synthetic computer tracks ever made, I’m not so sure Kraftwerk would be on that list. But if it wasn’t for Kraftwerk that list wouldn’t exist. I hope that makes sense.

Regarding the artwork, it felt natural to dress up like the Germans to reflect the sound of the album.

Q: Can you tell us a bit more about your way of composing, eventually personal references and criteria you’re using when writing songs, favorite equipment and what do you consider as the main strengths of the album?

Joacim: I am very satisfied with how I tied the tracks together on “The Hearing Aid”. It should be listened to in one take -as all albums. That is the main strength, I think.

My biggest disadvantage is that I don’t know how to write lyrics. I absolutely love computerized voices and would love to do standard pop songs with verse, bridge, chorus and so on, but I really can’t write lyrics. “Backspace” in fact reflects on that.

My music is very rhythm-oriented. It is hard to do melodies without sounding cheesy, so I usually don’t. Drums, bass and more percussion. Hopefully a voice saying something smart (but usually stupid), and the inevitable breakdown (with Kraftwerk’s “Home Computer” as the template). I like my music to be danceable. At least you should be nodding your head. I always start with the drums. The rhythm is very often programmed like “Numbers” (or Afrika Bambaataa’s “Planet Rock” if you wish). I use a lot of samples -sometimes from my own machines – and Ableton Live is my DAW. For some edits I use Propellerhead Reason which I absolutely love.
But I also use some hardware. Mainly Roland Boutiques and a few KORG synths. I like to have control with other than the computer mouse, so I use Novation controllers and Native Instruments Maschine (mkII and Jam) and Komplete Kontrol.

Some of my favourite pieces when making Maschine Brennt songs are Ableton Live and Novation LaunchControl, Roland TR08, Native Instruments Maschine mkII, Sonic Charge BitSpeek, Waves Pumper, iZotope Ozone. I also use Ableton’s Reverb, Ping Pong Delay, Utility, Limiter and Compressor on each and every track I make.

Q: Your album has been released on Razgrom Music while you were (or still are) part of the so-called ‘Plonk Community’. What is it all about? Why is it that much more than simply a label releasing ‘computer/robotic’ music?    

Joacim: I was contacted by Alexey Ignatov of Razgrom Music. He wanted to release a full-length CD with a collection of my tracks. Maybe a single collection. I had just finalized the album for Plonk and was about to release it digitally. I suggested that we could release the very same album on Razgrom Music. To make it a little more special I added four more unreleased tracks, and the cover was made in color on the Razgrom Release. We postponed the digital release to be two weeks after the physical release.

So in short, the physical release is Razgrom Music. It contains four more (previously unreleased) tracks, and the cover is in color. The digital release is Plonk and the cover is made in black and white.

Plonk is a community with around ten members/artists. Every artist takes care of their own release. Plonk doesn’t have a leader or chairman. We have web meetings every now and then, to enlighten each and everyone what’s up and on. The aim for Plonk is to present music with a strong ‘Düsseldorf sound’ from one single place -Plonk. We support and help each other as much as needed. Every year we release a compilation with tracks from the current Plonk artists. We believe we are stronger as a whole and that if we help each other we can bring ‘Machine-Pop’ to the world!

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Metroland has their fourth album in the pipeline. So there’s no better teaser than releasing 2 digital singles to announce this full length. The Belgian electro-duo is already working around a concept, which is now dealing with pictures.

Content: The first single features the main title song and a B-side cut. “Men In A Frame” reveals Metroland at its best! The song is carried by a solid bass line, a dry, danceable kick and a somewhat haunting melody. Spoken computer vocals and zombie-like vocals are achieving the song. The link with Kraftwerk remains.

The other single featuring 2 remixes of the title song and 1 remix of the B-side cut brings an interesting alternative to the original versions. I noticed a somewhat new-beat driven “Re-framed” remix plus a cool remix of “F8” by Maschine Brennt (an artist you might have discovered by his album released on Razgrom Music).

+ + + : Metroland doesn’t surprising me. This new title song is for sure a new hit! The influences and sound ingredients aren’t changed while the efficiency remains exactly the same. This is a great piece of music mixing danceable vibes and vintage melody lines. I also fully enjoyed the first remix for its new-beat flavor.

– – – : The B-side cut “F8” is nothing less than a B-side and is a bit disappointing. From a very personal point of view I’m not into singles, but this retro-concept totally fits with the global sound approach of Metroland.

Conclusion: “Men In A Frame” is a solid teaser for the same-titled upcoming album. Metroland is definitely becoming the reincarnation of Kraftwerk or one of the electro-pop leaders of modern times.

Best songs: “Men In A Frame”, “Men In A frame – Re-framed”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.metrolandmusic.com / www.facebook.com/metrolandmusic

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.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Synth-pop, wave-pop.

Background/Info: Glass Apple Bonzai is a Canadian synth-pop project set up and driven by Daniel X. Belasco. I had the opportunity to discover the second full length (cf. “Night Maze”) released on Razgrom Music in 2015 and clearly inspired and devoted to good-old synth-pop music from the 80s. Belasco now joined hands with Artoffact Records for the third album of his band. This album is available in CD- and vinyl format.

Content: I have to say I wasn’t that impressed by the previous album so I wasn’t exactly looking forward to discover this new work. “In The Dark” however reveals an improvement in the global songwriting and production. The songs are still inspired by vintage electro-pop music. It sounds a bit space-like, but the numerous analogue sweeps, refined bleeping sequences and retro-kicks will quickly awake some good-old memories.

The pop style of Glass Apple Bonzai will make you feel happy and get you on the dancefloor. It’s an ode to the 80s and one of the bands that come regularly to mind is Duran Duran.

+ + + : The songwriting was seriously improved accentuating the magic of analogue synthesizer music. This rather ‘new’ project is an exciting emulation of the 80s. You directly can feel the real spirit of vintage electronics while there are a few brilliant songs featured on this album.

– – – : Glass Apple Bonzai remains one of the weirdest band names I’ve heard in quite a long time. It doesn’t sound really serious and I can’t get away from the fact that the music was composed just for fun. It sometimes becomes a bit too cliché-like.

Conclusion: If you’re fond of 80s synth-pop music with a feel-good sound, you definitely have to taste the sweetness of the Glass apple Bonzai! This is music to eliminate your daily stress and simply have fun!

Best songs: “Suicide, You And I”, “A New Day Begins”, “In The Dark”, “Light In The Darkness (Overture)”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: https://gabonzai.com / www.facebook.com/glassapplebonzai

Label: www.artoffact.com / www.facebook.com/artoffact

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Isak Rypdal is a name that will immediately ring a bell for numerous electro-pop lovers. Rypdal of course is one of the members of the famous Norwegian formation Electro Spectre. Model1 is a new side-project by this producer.

Content: The album takes off with an alluring space-pop cut, which reminds me to Mind.In.A.Box. The robotic vocals inject a good-old vintage touch to the work. This song however is not entirely representative for the rest of the work. Model1 deals with a rather soft, but fully evasive electro-pop format, which is carried by an outstanding production. The addiction of a few female vocals makes it even a bit transcendental. The clear and captivating male vocals totally fit the music.

Model1 brings pop music that will make you feel happy. Some hopping sequences and rhythms both inject some dynamics although the songs remain very sweet-like.

+ + + : “The Vocoders Strikes Back” is a beautiful piece of music carried by a real professional production. It sounds clean and accomplished revealing a few highlights on the second part of the album. The final (bonus) song featuring Kist (female singer singing on a few cuts) is the real apotheosis to this opus.

– – – : I honestly expected a bit more from this album. It for sure is an entertaining composition, but I’m missing elements like a carrying melody and other catchy ingredients. I sincerely get the impression there’s more potential inside this artist than what came out on this debut-album.

Conclusion: Isak Rypdal is an artist who no longer needs to prove anything, which doesn’t mean that all his work is successful. This is an entertaining album, but not exactly one that will enter into history.

Best songs: “River Of Men”, “I Need To be Found”, “Let Me Fly Away”, “If The Machines Comes Back”.

Rate: (6½).

Band: www.facebook.com/Model1Official

Label: www.razgrom.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom–Music/218060094876247

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, future-pop, body-pop.

Background/Info: The brothers Eduardo and Cesar Leiva are the instigators behind Arian1, which is one of the most renowned and oldest electronic formations from Latin America. Hailing from Lima (Peru) both brothers have already been active for quite a long time, but Arian1 for sure appears to be their most successful band giving them the opportunity to play in Europe. “Integration” is a real opportunity to get more familiar with their music as it’s a ‘best of’-release featuring 17 songs.

Content: The songs clearly reveal a solid future-pop inspiration, which is characterized by great leads and melodies. But there’s much more than simply future-pop music running through this band. They also experiment with elements of EBM and deep bass lines reminding to psy-trance music.

Arian1 also reveal to be great sound manipulators, which on a few cuts even remind me of Seb Komor. Last, but not least I also have to say a word about the vocal skills of Eduardo Leiva, who sometimes reminds me of Stefan Netschio (Beborn Beton).

The album features a few alternatives (re)mixes from songs that were originally released on the debut album “Immersion” or the “Cyro”-EP released earlier this year.

+ + + : You don’t exactly expect to hear electronic music made in Lima, but Arian1 is an alluring electro formation that has discovered the right sound formula to make you dance. The songs mix different electronic elements resulting in melodic and danceable songs. Next to some typical future-pop inspired song Arian1 also reveals great skills to compose raw body-pop tracks, which are my favorite cuts.

– – – : The future-pop influences maybe aren’t the most original ones, but you don’t hear me complain. The main point for this band probably must be the geographical one as it’s not easy for a Peruvian band to reach a wider audience!

Conclusion: If you like different electro-pop formats, just try Arian1 which is a less recognized, but sensational formation in the genre. This ‘best of’ is a brilliant piece of music.

Best songs: “Stompers – Undegr VI Remix”, “Nightmare – Video Mix”, “Espana”, “Pure Control”, “Detengan Las Maquinas”, “Cyro”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.arian1.com / www.facebook.com/ARIANUNO

Label: www.razgrom.com / www.facebook.com/pages/Razgrom–Music/218060094876247

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

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange) The new project led by producer Isak Rypdal will present raw electronic music in the same ways as Electro Spectre, although focus is set to make the music more punchy and melodic.

An important aspect is also the collaboration with different featuring artists such as the new collaboration with the Norwegian artist Kist – former known from Ugress and Jane Helen.

‘The Vocoders Strikes Back’ was produced in 2016 at Crab Key Studios, Oslo, with some of the most interesting vintage synth gear around and with electric keyboards for starting out. This included Korg MS20, Roland Jupiter 8 and Emulator EMAX II to give the sound a unique touch of the famous raw 80’s sound, combined with new state of the art studio production facilities.

Model1 will be a major focus point at Crab Key Records the coming years. The album was released August 2016 on Crab Key Records and on Razgrom Music in Russia.

There’s a pre-order for the Limited CD edition, and the digital versions are already available at iTunes and Spotify.

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… 😉

www.facebook.com/jrstange