“Forms of Hands” is now in its 23rd edition, showcasing 14 tracks from some of the most esteemed names in modern Industrial music who have long been associated with the German label. This installment is notably intense, featuring a robust selection of Rhythmic-Noise that often blends with hard Techno elements and IDM. At times, Breakcore rhythms cut through the sonic landscape, creating a dynamic and powerful auditory experience. Among the merciless tracklist, S.I.N.A. offers a unique yet understated moment of rest. This edition features exclusive tracks from legendary artists such as Esplendor Geometrico, Sonar, and Greyhound, alongside prominent figures like ICD-10, MS Gentur + Sven Phalanx, Heimstatt Yipotash, 13TH Monkey, Saturmzlide and SKET. Additionally, emerging names like Anarchotech, Hysteresis, Strobo.Lolita, and Supersimmetria contribute to this extraordinary collection. “Forms of Hands” Volume 23 is truly a grand cru of the genre. (Rate:9).

Listen to “Urgencia” from Esplendor Geometrico:

About Hands

Hands Productions was founded in 1990 in Fürth, Germany, by Udo Wiessmann as a platform for his own projects Winterkälte, Atrum and Severance. Over the years the label’s catalog spanned minimalist ambient, breakbeat and rhythmic noise, with Winterkälte’s early vinyl releases helping define the drum’n’noise style associated with the label. Hands later moved its operations to Dortmund, Germany, and has released early work from acts including Orphx, Needle Sharing and Ah Cama-Sotz. “Forms of Hands” is the label’s recurring various-artists compilation series; this 23rd volume gathers current and past Hands artists.

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: Rhythmic-Noise, Industrial.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: Dirk Ivens (Klinik, Dive, Absolute Body Control, Mororik ao) and Eric Van Wonterghem (Monolith, Absolute Body Control, Klinik, Insekt ao) are back on track unleashing the ninth Sonar-album in history. “Future Cries” comes twenty seven years after the self-titled debut-album (when Patrick Stevens of Hypnoskull was involved and later on replaced by Eric Van Wonterghem) and nine years after their previous full length (cf. “Shadow Dancers”). It also is the first album released by Hands.

Content: It all feels like years have no impact on the sonic ogre called Sonar. The Belgian duo bring us back to the essence of heavy, merciless, Rhythmic-Noise. Hypnotic noise sequences and distorted rhythms are leading listeners into a frenetic dance although the work also features ‘softer’ and rather Minimal driven cuts. “Future Cries” features 12 short but raw, brutal, cuts.

+ + + : Definitely the most ‘extreme’ common project of Ivens – Van Wonterghem but also with a similar chemistry as for Absolute Body Control. This album will appeal to the early lovers of the project and also for a wider Industrial audience preferring a ‘softer’ and more minimalistic approach. I like the ‘no compromises’ attitude of Sonar; you’re either  going to like it or not. There’s no way in between but I experienced this album as more diversified. It’s not just brutal Noise power but still more ‘controlled’ tracks like the great “You Get Yours” and “Turn You On”. “Elevator” sounds more into the ‘early’ style and will just blow you away.

– – – : Sonar has always composed short cuts and that’s sometimes a pity when listening to a great track. It however remains a ‘heavy’ sound format reminding Industrial music from the 90s.

Conclusion: “Future Cries” stands for a heavy and murderous come-back of Sonar.

Best songs: “Turn You On”, “You Get Yours”, “Elevator”, “Modern Touch”, “Hold On”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/TheKlinikDiveSonarAbsoluteBodyControl

Label: www.handsproductions.com / www.facebook.com/hands.official

About Sonar

Sonar is a Belgian duo of Dirk Ivens and Eric Van Wonterghem, both also active in Absolute Body Control, with Ivens known for Klinik and Dive and Van Wonterghem for Monolith. Patrick Stevens of Hypnoskull was involved on Sonar’s self-titled debut album before Van Wonterghem took his place. “Future Cries” is the ninth Sonar album, arriving twenty seven years after that debut and nine years after “Shadow Dancers”, and is the project’s first release through Hands.

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: Industrial, Industrial-Techno, Electro.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Eric van Wonterghem (Absolute Body Control, Sonar, The Klinik, Insekt, Detune-X ao) doesn’t need any further introduction. The Belgian veteran strikes back with the twelfth full length album of his Monolith solo-project.

Content: The work takes off with a Cinematic-Industrial piece which sounds like an intro. We next embark on a dark sonic journey made of Industrial sound treatments, obscure and sometimes mystic atmospheres, menacing, low, bass lines and danceable rhythms.

+ + + : The album features 17 tracks so no need to say Monolith remains creative and prolific after more than 20 years of involvement. The tracks have been slowly built up and feature ‘Industrial intelligence’. “Concrete Playground” is a diversified opus like illustrated by the clubby track “Push”, the heavy “Gallium Element” which sounds like Thomas P. Heckmann on an Industrial journey, the mystic-like “Take Me High”, the haunting “The Hunter” and “The Sky Turns Red” for its irresistible, low, sound treatments. The album illustrates the endless creative mind of this Belgian sound guru but also his open-minded spirit to compose Industrial music.

– – – : I regret some of the tracks aren’t a bit more extended. I’m also missing the Tribal influences from earlier releases.

Conclusion: Monolith took out a patent on Industrial music like no other artist can make. “Concrete Playground” is a new must have!

Best songs: “Push”, “Gallium Element”, “Take Me High”, “The Hunter”, “The Sky Turns Red”, “Concrete Playground”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/monolithrecords

Label: www.handsproductions.com / www.facebook.com/hands.official

About Monolith

Monolith is the solo project of Belgian musician Eric Van Wonterghem, started in 1997. Van Wonterghem began his career in the early 1980s as composer for the minimal synth act Absolute Body Control alongside Dirk Ivens, later joining Ivens and Marc Verhaeghen in The Klinik, and continuing to collaborate with Ivens in Sonar. “Concrete Playground” is Monolith’s twelfth full-length album, released on Hands.

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

Matthew Creed aka Dmitry Darling (Freakangel, Suicidal Romance, Dxrlxng) has released the video for “Walking In Circles”. The track is taken from the recently released EP with the same name.

You might remember that this song is the very first song ever written for this project and on the EP it is revealed in its original version showing how the project’s sound evolved over 5 years. Also featured on the EP are remixes by Estonia techno acts CLY/SUVA and Sonar Pulsar.

But here’s the stunning video for the title track, “Walking In Circles”.

You can download the full EP below.

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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While the recently released album “The Chapel of Lines” is accessing both the dark techno and the industrial music crowd, Matthew Creed returns to the genesis of the project with the “Walking In Circles” 6-track single/EP.

“Walking In Circles” is the very first song ever written for the Matthew Creed project and is now released in its original version showing how the project’s sound evolved in the past 5 years. The track was furthermore remixed by the Estonian techno acts CLY/SUVA and Sonar Pulsar. On the EP you’ll also find the instrumental and the video edit.

Dmitry Darling (also known for his industrial project Freakangel and the electropop act Suicidal Romance): “I remember coming home from another sleepless night of raving. I literally walked in circles stomping to kick drum vibrations all night long… minimal techno and chemicals…. what can go wrong? Well… at least so I thought back in 2017. Back home I could not sleep as I was full of motivation to bring back that feeling of partying… and so I did… in my own way… and that is where it all started.”

Soon out, the video for the single! Get the download below, exclusively from Bandcamp for now.

Eldrina Mich

As Eldrina Mich I work as a go-between and a devil’s advocate when it comes to Side-Line. If our own staff needs to be interviewed then ask the questions no one else dares to ask.

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“Du Y Moroedd” (Welsh for ‘the black of the sea’) is an album of dark ambient by Llyn Y Cwn (aka Benjamin Ian Powell) and features field recordings made from submerged recording devices deep underwater from the coasts of North Wales to Greenland and the Arctic Ocean.

Benjamin Ian Powell explains: “The tracks were created onboard the RV Prince Madog whilst conducting research using multibeam sonar to locate, survey and identify shipwrecks from WW1. The multibeam sonar creates images of the seabed using acoustic reflections. Many of these sites aren’t just wrecks; they are mass war graves. The vital shipping channel to Liverpool passes the North Wales coast, the U boats would sit and wait; listening. When heard from under the water, each ship has its own unique acoustic signature based on the size of the engine, shape of the propeller, curve of the hull. These acoustic tell-tales were used by the U-boats to identify targets. The shipping lane became a shooting gallery of easy pickings and the submarines were able to slip away undetected into the black of the sea.”

The album features recordings from the hull of RRS James Clark Ross whilst ploughing through ice fields off Greenland, from a “sound trap” attached to an anchor as it descended through 80m of water to the seabed, and sounds from onboard the RV Prince Madog with its pitched engine drone. There is also a recording of the bell at Trwyn Du lighthouse, Anglesey, that was made in August 2020, days before the bell was removed to be replaced with a modern fog horn – prior to this, the bell had rung every 30 seconds since 1922.

The release comes presented in a 6-panel digipak and will be released on 25th February 2022 on the fine Cold Spring label.

Here are 2 excerpts from this 10-track strong 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!

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Genre/Influences: Dark-Techno.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: Auspex is a New York (USA) producer and DJ. He already released a few EP’s during the past few years and now strikes back with the EP “Bloodlines” featuring five tracks released on his own label.

Content: I wasn’t familiar at all with Auspex. The sound and influences are clearly driven by Dark-Techno fields with some Industrial- and EBM elements on top. The bouncing rhythm reminds me a bit of Neikka RPM, which is another New York formation, but involved with Industrial/EBM music. Next to the rhythm, the songs are driven by dark grooves and -atmospheres.

+ + + : Auspex stands for hard and merciless, pumping kicks. I especially like the atypical approach of the project, which is much more than simply Techno music. There’s an evil, Industrial dark side hanging over the production. There’s something to say about every single cut, but I’ve a preference for the harder “Mother May I” and “Never Is A Long Time” and “Seven Sisters” (inspired by the books of Lucinda Riley?), which are both featuring a raw, repetitive sonar bleep.

– – – : All songs are cool, but it’s just a pity the last track sounds a bit as an antithesis to the other ones.

Conclusion: If Auspex is Techno music, it clearly will appeal to a wider audience who are also familiar with darker music fields like Industrial and EBM.

Best songs: “Mother May I”, “Never Is A Long Time”,  “Seven Sisters”, “Bloodlines”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/djauspex

Label: https://oath-label.com / www.facebook.com/oathlabel

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

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

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl, Cassette.

Background/Info: Dirk Ivens (Dive, Klinik, Sonar, Motor!k ao) and Eric Van Wonterghem (Monolith, Sonar, Insekt ao) have known each other for quite a long time and began making music together in 1980 as Absolute Body Control. The Belgian band hasn’t released that much new stuff in quite a long time, but are now back on track unleashing six new tracks, which have been released in different formats by different labels.

Content: “Waving Goodbye” is the opening track, which reminds me of the early years and probably the biggest hit of the duo, “Is There An Exit?”. There’s a similar icy sphere and vintage sound treatments with Ivens’ very own timbre of voice on top. This is Electro-Wave from the good-old days and both artists perfectly know how to bring this unique atmosphere alive. The songs are short, dark and evasive, but sometimes also pretty Experimental. There also is a short instrumental cut.

+ + + : Absolute Body Control takes us back in time, like bringing the 80s back to life and no one else but Absolute Body Control knows how to emulate this unique sphere. The typical sound of the good-old rhythm box and cold strings are pure 80s like. The main strength of the production hides in its simplicity. “Waving Goodbye” is a really great song, but I also have to mention “Earth Takes A Break”.

– – – : Some of the tracks are more Experimental and aren’t exactly my favorites. If you buy the vinyl you’ll hear a great A side and 3 less convincing cuts on the B side.

Conclusion: It’s good to see Absolute Body Control striking back with their pure retro driven Minimal-Electro-Wave style.

Best songs: “Waving Goodbye”, “Earth Takes A Break”, “Empty Cities”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/AbsoluteBodyControl

Labels: www.facebook.com/Wool.E.Tapes / www.mecanica-records.com / www.facebook.com/mecanicarecords / www.noisedemocracyrecords.com / www.facebook.com/NoiseDemocracyRecords

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-Ambient, Cinematographic, Experimental.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Music For Installations is a band name, which reminds me of the legendary ambient artist Brian Eno, and is a Belgian solo-project driven by Pieter Gyselinck. After a few previous works, he joined hands together with Wool-E Discs releasing the thirtieth part of the Ambient-series “Belgian NeuMusik”.

Content: There’s an interesting evolution in the tracklist of this work. The album takes off in a pretty Ambient way and I even dare to say ‘classical Electro-Ambient’. Quite progressively you’ll notice Experimental sound arrangements and darker tones emerging at the surface. The more you enter the universe of the artist the darker it becomes. The second part is driven by icy, sonar-like noises, the hoot of an owl and mysterious, frightening sound atmospheres.

+ + + : Pieter Gyselinck is clearly mixing different although related influences together. It’s not pure Ambient and not entirely Experimental. Some passages are clearly into a Soundtrack approach while the second part of the work –which is definitely the best one, becomes extremely dark and mysterious. This artist conceives a sonic canvas with different atmospheres, but found his most creative side in the darker side of his brain. “Fractal 6” is worthy of examination, but I also have to mention “Fractal 7” and “Fractal 9”. There’s something David Lynch-like in the sound of this work…

– – – : I already mentioned the great second half of this opus, which unfortunately comes to end with a poorly inspired last track.

Conclusion: Ambient music is not only meant as a dreamy moment, but it can be also a way of self-reflection, which in a way is the feeling I got when listening to “Fractions Of Unity”.

Best songs: “Fractal 7”, “Fractal 9”, “Fractal 6”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.musicforinstallations.com / www.facebook.com/musicforinstallations

Label: www.wool-e-discs.be / www.belgianneumusik.be /

www.facebook.com/woolediscs

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: Industrial, Electro-Industrial, Industrial-Ambient.

Format: Digital, CD, Box (CD, Vinyl, Vinyl 7”)

Background/Info: Dirk Ivens (The Klinik, Absolute Body Control, Sonar, Motor!k) is back on track unleashing a new album of his sonic alter-ego Dive! Throughout the years he collaborated with soul mates Eric Van Wonterghem (The Klinik, Absolute Body Control, Sonar, Monolith, Detune-X) and Ivan Iusco (Nightmare Lodge). There also was an album in collaboration with Sigillum S while the previous full length (cf. “Underneath”) also featured Rafael M. Espinosa (Geistform). Dirk this time joined hands together with Jan Dewulf (Your Life On Hold, Diskonnekted, Mildreda). It’s not their first collaboration as Diskonnekted in 2006 released the “Frozen”-EP featuring Dirk Ivens.  

Content: It doesn’t really matter with who Dive collaborates with; Dive remains Dive! Driven by an Electro-Industrial sound and the spooky vocals of the artist, this new work is directly linked to the particular ‘dark’ and ‘industrial’ sound of the Belgian sound terrorist. I however have to say that this work is probably the darkest Dive-album ever; you simply can hear it the tormented atmospheres, which became pretty explicit at some more Ambient-driven songs in the midst of the work.

“Underneath” was the most sophisticated Dive work so far, but some tracks from this opus are even moving a step further. The drum patterns from some tracks have never been that complex; even featuring a kind of slow Industrial breakbeats at “Black Star”. This work is filled with anguishing spheres, little sonar bleeps and ‘Klinik’-al’ sequences. Notice by the way, the title song is also an early Suicide Commando track on, which Dirk sung while “Inside Your Head” is an original Monolith-song featuring Dirk as guest singer.

The EP featured at the ‘Box’-edition reveals “EP Versions” of the songs “Inside Your Head” and “Black Star” plus remixes by Numb and Suicide Commando.

+ + + : The “Frozen”-EP from Diskonnekted already was a song that could have been released as Dive, but “Where Do We Go From Here?” confirms there’s a real connection and chemistry between both artists. Jan Dewulf injected a refreshing –although tormented, touch to the Dive sound. It’s the darkest and most disturbing work to date, which is accentuated by 3 more ‘ambient’-driven pieces on, which some background drones are empowering the darkness mixed with Ivens’ spooky vocals. But the best passages clearly are the most danceable cuts like the brilliant opening song “Inside Your Head”, but also “Black Star” driven by an Industrial –although breakbeat inspired, cadence. The minimalism running through “Invisible” is another remarkable cut while the title-song –as the last track, reminds me of good-old Klinik. On top of the production you still will notice the charismatic vocal performance of Dirk Ivens. From the EP-tracks I especially recommend the elaborated remix of “Death Machine” (one of the so-called ‘Ambient’-cuts) by Don Gordon (Numb).

– – – : I’m not as convinced by the softer, Ambient-driven songs. The production of Ivens’ vocals remains absolutely great, but I now and then miss the more enraged, shouting way of singing from the early years. The Suicide Commando–remix from “Leave Me Be” couldn’t convince me; the tune being a bit simplistic and not adding a bonus to the song.

Conclusion: The first self-named Dive album was released in 1990 (!), but 30 years later the Belgian Industrial ‘dino’ is still kicking ass. The collaboration between Ivens and Dewulf opens perspectives for the future!

Best songs: “Inside Your Head”, “Black Star”, “Where Do We Go From Here”, “Invisible”, “Leave Me Be”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.dirkivens.com / www.facebook.com/TheKlinikDiveSonarAbsoluteBodyControl

Label: www.outofline.de  / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

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

Set up as a solo-project in 1997 by Eric Van Wonterghem MONOLITH became a true reference in the Industrial music genre. This dinosaur from the Belgian and international Electro-underground scene has been involved with numerous projects such as ABSOLUTE BODY CONTROL, THE KLINIK, INSEKT, SONAR, DETUNE-X while contributing to the writing of DIVE-albums. He this year strikes back with the eleventh (!) full length album of MONOLITH. “Unnatural Bodies” has been released on Hands and sounds like symbolizing the fusion between Techno- and Industrial music. I talked about it with Eric Van Wonterghem.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries) 

Q: “Unnatural Bodies” seems to be inspired by the work of Jim Whiting, which I remember from the great “Rockit”-clip by Herbie Hancock. What caught your attention by the work of Whiting and how do you transpose this inspiration into music?

Eric: Yes he did the “Rockit”-clip and the “Frankenstein”-movie effects I think. I liked his exhibition work in the 80s, the weirdness behind, and how he  created ‘human – machines’,

different from robots programmed  to do certain things. The “Unnatural Bodies” like Jim Whiting called it first were  combined mechanical elements with air-pressure  connected with  parts of ‘dummy’ bodies. His ‘moving art’ seemed  suddenly to be organic and alive.

I somehow liked to achieve something similar with my music, art without rules! When you follow the book how to make art or music, that will mostly never bring something interesting.

Q: What can you tell us about the different stages you’d to go through to release “Unnatural Bodies”? What have been the main difficulties and eventually challenges in the writing and production of the album? 

Eric: To produce a MONOLITH album, I know the creation of sounds is a progress that will take me the most of time. It also is the most difficult part for me, but also the most interesting one. There got always to be some excitement in hearing a melody or sound, if not I start the next day from scratch. After several albums, it can become sometimes more complex as the listeners often like to hear what they know you for, and as a artist I like to evolve,  I take my time until I’m satisfied with the creative part making sounds and feeling all fits into that album.

After that follows the editing, mixing and producing part, that goes fast. After all this year of studio work  for my projects and other bands it became something natural… almost immediately I create what I’ve in mind.

Q: I think it’s really interesting to see the evolution in sound and influences of early MONOLITH releases versus the productions from the past few years. Is that like you said because you like to evolve? And what has been the impact of the Berliner Techno scene on your music?

Eric: I was always interested in a wide spectrum of electronic sounds and music. I liked making the first albums with MONOLITH, back then I  searched  something new in sound, the ‘Tribal-Industrial’-sound was the result and it was not really fitting in any style, it got the attention by a certain audience, and that’s what you need as artist to keep on releasing albums. 

But after years of performing, underground parties and realizing by my own the evolution and concerts everywhere, Berlin was kind of heavier than most parts in the world, as the weekend counts 7 days there… There it was very nice to discover that the techno scene  start liking harder beats and harsher sounds, less melodic music was played, Ambient drone-sound mixed with loud reverbed kicks became a way to escape from reality  and in the Industrial scene there was also a search for a more open sound… less distorted! 

Both scenes crossed borders and started to experiment with their sound. Like many other Industrial artists I liked this evolution, it’s inspiring and so you can reach a new audience and more events. The music played in both scenes was pretty similar,  only the mixing was done a different way.

Q: It’s an evolution you can also hear on the HANDS productions, which became more Techno-driven. How do you explain this phenomenon and what’s the connection between both genres?

Eric: Like I said, both scenes are crossing their borders. Adam X’ label Sonic Groove created back then a good name for a party; it was called ”Crossing the Parallels”; different scenes that fit together, but have another audience. So that phenomenon was a normal thing to happen,  people  going out, meeting people and discovering that there’s more…

Q: You earlier this year also (self)released a digital productions entitled “The Disco Buddha Variations”, “Disco Buddha” being probably one of the biggest MONOLITH hits. What makes the magic of the original edit and tell us a bit more about the different variations/edits of the song?

Eric: The magic in that track was the never ending kick drum. The end of the sound was connected to the start, in that time a not so often heard, with a simple Noise hi-hat making the mechanical rhythm and when I created a singing Buddha on this beat, the track became very recognizable and hypnotic…

The “Disco Buddha”-variations were made 20 years later, although there were in already made some different versions in the years on request for compilations. I performed all these versions as a special on Udo Wiesmann’s birthday event from the famous industrial HANDS label. To keep this memory I released it also on my  SoundOfMonolith Label found on Bandcamp.

Q: The Covid-19 pandemic has seriously affected all artistic life –especially live performances for musicians, so what’s the impact on your own activities? How do you try to manage and face this fact and what are your plans for the coming months?

Eric: It’s heavy for all of us. I’m lucky to get my music, listening records, playing synths, creating sounds… The live action is gone for now and that’s very, very sad; unbelievable when thinking to all events and festivals that have been cancelled. I keep to be creative during- and after lockdown, but I’m patiently waiting with all of you together until this is over; till that moment that we can get back to concerts and festivals in the same way as in the past. We will enjoy that so much and even more than ever before!

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: Krautrock, Psychedelic Electro-Rock, Experimental.

Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.

Background/Info: One year after their self-titled debut release the Belgian Motor!k trio is back on track unleashing six new songs. Motor!k is the sonic brainchild of Joeri Dobbeleir  (guitar and synths), Dries D’Hollander (drums) and Dirk Ivens (guitar and effects). Especially the presence of Dirk Ivens (The Klinik, Dive, Absolute Body Control, Sonar ao) is quite surprising, but Motor!k definitely seems to be an extra project in his long career.

Content: I have to admit I wasn’t totally convinced after the debut work. The band defines their sound as Krautrock, which is probably the correct definition although it’s more accessible than numerous projects in this genre. The songs are once again instrumental edits revealing a perfect harmony between the guitar  –which clearly injects the style of Motor!k, the crescendo going drums and electronics. The tracks are progressively built up and are sometimes reaching a Trance-like sensation. I also noticed a more Ballad-like experiment (cf. “Memoria”) while the last song (cf. “Penta”) is more into Electro, the sequences adding an extra dimension to the song.

+ + + : The global approach and influences are exactly similar to the previous work, but this new album (which is more a kind of mini-album) is definitely more efficient. It all feels like there’s a better balance between the sound layers. The guitar playing is the most essential element of the work creating an elevating effect. The opening cut “Tyrants” is a cool song illustrating this hypnotic feeling, but “Ritual” even moves a step further leading the listener into trance. “Ritual” also has something pretty sensual, which is an aspect I especially like in music. But there’s also something to say about “Sundown”, which has a more dark Cinematic appeal. The already mentioned last song “Penta” reveals explicit Electronic sound treatments, which are in perfect balance with the guitar and drums.

– – – : The softer “Memoria” is the only song from this work that can’t convince me. It probably also is the most Experimental one.

Conclusion: “Motor!k 2” took me by surprise revealing a pretty accessible sound and the huge potential of Motor!k.

Best songs: “Ritual”, “Penta”, “Sundown”, “Tyrants”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/MOTORIKBELGIUM

Label: www.outofline.de / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel

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-Techno, Industrial-Techno.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Do I really have to introduce Eric Van Wonterghem? I just prefer to remind you that this Belgian veteran of Electronic music has been involved in some of the most successful and visionary bands from the Belgian- and international underground scene; The Klinik, Absolute Body Control, Insekt, Sonar, Detune-X… and of course Monolith. “Unnatural Bodies” is the eleventh full length since 1997!

Content: It’s fascinating to see how Monolith has evolved in style and influences since the earliest works. The sound has always been dominated and carried by as strong rhythmic, being mainly driven by tribal rhythms. But quite progressively and probably because Van Wonterghem relocated to Berlin (Germany) the music got contaminated by what I should call ‘the Berliner Techno School’. That’s precisely what this album stands for; a constant energetic fusion of Techno kicks and dark sound treatments. There are no real moments of relief or yet, maybe one (cf. “Already There”). I also noticed a more minimal-driven cut (cf. “Crawl Back”), which reminds us of the Klinik-al period of the artist; icy sequences and a tormented sphere.

+ + + : This album is a threshold to move from Industrial music towards Techno. But this is not simple and cheap Techno music; Monolith has been infected by a subtle ‘bacteria’ called Dark-Techno music! Music with bollocks to make you dance! Music for dark cellar clubs, techno that will give you an electroshock! The sound formula might sound easy, but has been carefully adapted to fill the hiatus between Industrial- and Techno music. “Melting Mountains” will bring you a total climax; being driven by great sound treatments and supported with a mysterious sphere. I also have to mention “Crawl Back” for its minimalism and tracks like “Unnatural Bodies” and “Stop The World”. One thing is for sure, I won’t stop Monolith from composing this kind of Dark-Techno food!

– – – : If there’s one single minus point I can imagine, it’s for sure the rather repetitive sound formula. There’s not enough diversity between the tracks and that’s what makes “Melting Mountains” that special!

Conclusion: This work sounds as a sonic rotor that has been engaged!

Best songs: “Melting Mountains”, “Unnatural Bodies”, “Crawl Back”, “Stop The World”, “God Is Your Shield”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/monolithrecords

Label: www.handsproductions.com / www.facebook.com/hands.official

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, body-pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: German duoMaikko Advance (Mind.Area, Human Decay ao) and ‘Flesh Wire’ have been active since 2014, which was the year they also released their debut album “Reality Design”. They released this EP as a teaser to their new full length “There Will Be Solutions” asking Uwe Kanka (Armageddon Dildos) to sing on the title song while he also did some additional production.

Content: “No Pain Forever” is an EBM-inspired song, which is mainly carried by a solid bass line. The vocals are featuring harsher passages and clear ones. The song has been remixed by Sceptica and TC75. About the other songs left you’ll get an exclusive cut (cf. “Obsolete Cyborgs”), which sounds soft and 2 more remixes from a song (cf. “Soon You’re Mine”) that will be featured on the new album as well. Remixes have been done by The Negativity Bias and Photic Sonar.

+ + + : There’s no better way for a rather ‘unknown’ formation than asking a famous guest to get featured on one of your songs and in this case, the title song! There also is some potential in this track and especially the EBM-driven bass line sounds cool. It also becomes pretty rare to see Armageddon Dildos collaborating or doing remixes.I also have to say a word about the rough and yet melodic remix of “Soon You’re Mine” by The Negativity Bias.

– – – : The title song reveals some good ideas, but globally speaking this song is under produced. The chorus is missing a true climax and even the remixes don’t bring any real improvement. The B-side (exclusive) song is poorly inspired and the remixes of “Soon You’re Mine” don’t bring any real bonus.

Conclusion: to feature a renowned artist is for sure a good strategy, but when the result is disappointing, it feels like a total failure!

 Best songs: “Soon you’re Mine – The Negativity Bias Remix”, “No Pain Forever feat. Armageddon Dildos”

Rate: (5).

Artist: www.ai–zero.de  / www.facebook.com/aizero.music

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

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 track is taken from the E.P. “No pain forever” which will be released (as a free download) on Jan. 25 via this link and an album named “There will be solutions” will be released in early 2019. The 6 track EP holds 2 remixes of the song next to the original and the extra tracks “Obsolete Cyborgs” and “Soon You’re Mine” which comes in 2 remixed versions.

Here’s the official video.

Here’s some info about the band’s endeavours so far. A.I. Zero was founded in 2014 and consists of Maikko Advance (Mind Area, Sceptica, ex Human Decay member) and Flesh Wire. The first digital EP was released via Hunter Records while the band’s first album was released on Scent Air Records (on CD and digital) in 2014. In 2015 the band also completed a remix for Tanya Tagaq, whom you will know from her work on the Björk album “Medulla”. A second A.I. Zero E.P. also launched in 2015 with remixes from Armageddon Dildos and Photic Sonar (among others).

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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Genre/Influences: Industrial, noise, electro-industrial.

Background/Info: It took 8 years for Manos Chrisovergis to kick back with the third full length of Last Days Of S.E.X. This Greek project definitely belongs to one of the ‘hardest’ exposures of Hands so I was really wondering what the ‘new’ sound would sound like.

Content: Last Days Of S.E.X. still sounds hard and merciless, but I experienced the new tracks as more diversified and ‘structured’. This album definitely stands for heavy industrial music, but mixed with refreshing ideas leading the listener into trance parts and even noisy techno-grooves.

Some tracks might remind you of Sonar while there also is an industrial ‘ode’ revealing a cover version of the famous Einstürzende Neubauten ‘hit’ “Tanz Debil”. The main characteristic of this work is the constant sonic patchwork of noise.

The work ends with an important chapter of remixes accomplished by Maschinenkrieger KR52 vs. Disraptor, Mono No Aware, Unhuman, Thorivos and hyDrone.

+ + + : I have to admit I wasn’t a huge fan of this band before, but “Sabotage Normality” sounds a like an artist who has seriously elaborated and enriched his work. There’s a great and harmonious mix of influences carried by a solid noise basis. The composition is extremely powerful and still driven by rough sophistication. I here refer to some pitched vocal effects, cold and freaky sequences and even some technoid aspects. The cover version of “Tanz Debil” is an interesting ode to one of the industrial pioneers. Among the remixes I especially recommend the bewitching remix by Unhuman.

– – – : Even if this album sounds more structured and controlled I can’t get away from some improvised passages, which aren’t necessarily a bad thing. It remains music for familiar and experienced industrial fans.

Conclusion: Last Days of S.E.X. strikes back with a terrific sonic intercourse. This album will definitely bring this formation back on the map of hardcore industrial craftsmen!

Best songs: “Bash The Fash”, “Privilege Check”, “Personal Is Political”, “Tanz Debil”, “Maschinen – Unhuman Remix”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.facebook.com/lastdaysofsex

Label: www.handsproductions.com / www.facebook.com/hands.official

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

Suicide Commando is a long-time leading formation from the dark-electronic scene. The band is an important source of inspiration for numerous new bands. So I got the idea asking a question to artists who are or have been related to Johan Van Roy. What do they think about his music, about the man hiding behind the artist…

I got in touch with Torben Schmidt, Dirk Ivens, Jean-Luc De Meyer, Jan L., Nero Bellum, Markko Barientos and Sakis (aka SynthetiC).

Speaking for myself I got the opportunity to work with Johan on a common project called Toxic Shock Syndrome. That was quite a long time ago now, but all over the years Johan remained the same kind and accessible guy for which I can only express my admiration for the talented artist he is and my respect for the great person hiding behind the artist. There where some artists are ‘struggling’ with their egos, he simply remains himself…

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Torben Schmidt is the owner of Infacted Recordings, member of Lights Of Euphoria and Binnary Park plus long-time live member of Suicide Commando.

Q: We all know Johan Van Roy as an ‘artist’ and ‘performer’, but what kind of man is he behind the scenes?

Torben: I know Johan since more then 20 years now and I have to say that he is one of the most loyal and kind guys I ever met. In fact he turned from an artist I respect into a real friend. We experienced so many cool things in the last 17 years being a part of his band which really made us friends. I’m really happy that I got to know him and that we had the chance to expand our friendship.

Dirk Ivens is a living legend of the electronic underground scene, front man of The Klinik, but still involved with Dive, Sonar, Absolute Body Control… he also was a source of inspiration for Suicide Commando.

Q: The Klinik definitely was one of the main sources of inspiration for Suicide Commando. How much of The Klinik do you recognize in Suicide Commando?

Dirk: It looks like more than 30 years after the release of the first album of The Klinik that these songs are still very much alive and were a big inspiration for a lot of bands during the years.. including Suicide Commando. Johan was one of them and especially his early work before he developed and finally found his own musical touch.

Jean-Luc De Meyer is the singer of the pioneers of EBM, the one and only Front 242! He’s also involved with 32 Crash, Underviewer and Modern Cubism. Jean-Luc De Meyer did some guest vocals on the song “The Pain That You Liked”, which was originally released as EP and featured on the newest Suicide Commando album as well.

Q: Jean-Luc, you already sung in multiple projects and did multiple guest vocals, but I never expected you singing on a song of Suicide Commando. What kind of experience was it for you and what’s your perception of the Suicide Commando sound?  

Jean-Luc: I’m not that sociable you know so I lately met Johan, maybe 3 or 4 years ago now. But I’d seen numerous concerts of Suicide Commando before. Singing on “The Pain That You Like” was a rather easy job because music and lyrics both were already written and I only had to interpret the song. It was quite simple and a bit of an evidence for me as I felt like a fish in the water singing on this kind of music…

Jan L is for sure another leading artist from the electronic underground scene. From Noisuf-X to X-Fusion to Stoppenberg he ever ever set up Kombat Unit together with Johan Van Roy.

Q: You ever set up Kombat Unit together with Johan Van Roy. What did you keep in mind from this experience and what’s your perception of Johan Van Roy as an artist/performer?

Jan L: Yes, we started Kombat Unit some time ago.. and we had a lot of fun making music together. We both have very different ways of working.. but it worked very well in the end, even if we only finished 2 songs. Our problem was only our lack of time. That´s why we stopped with Kombat Unit.

You maybe know that we both know each other since a very long time and we are close friends. I respect Johan as a very nice person and as a great artist. I also love to work with him, when it comes to mixing/mastering his Suicide Commando stuff. His music inspired countless bands since a very long time and he is a very important person in our scene. Without him our scene would be very different.

Nero Bellum is the front man of Psyclon Nine and get featured on the opening song of the new album.

Q: How did you get in touch with Johan Van Roy and what kind of experience was it for you contributing to the opening song (cf. “The Gates Of Oblivion”) of the new album?

Nero: I believe that my first correspondence with Johan took place just as “Mindstrip” was being released. I had just formed my band Psyclon Nine and had just begun work on our first album. Suicide Commando was one of my biggest influences at the time and Johan was happy to give me advice.

“The Gates Of Oblivion” gave us an opportunity to collaborate in a much deeper way. While Johan had most of the music written when he approached me, I was able to bring live, modular synthesis into the picture as well as my lyrical contributions. Performing the track at ‘Wave Gotik Treffen’ 10 minutes before my shuttle arrived was something that I won’t soon forget.

Markko Barientos is without a shadow of a doubt one of the leading artists from the Mexican dark-electro scene, but he in the meantime became a word-wide recognized artist involved with C-Lekktor, Circuito Cerrado and Kromak.

Q: Do you remember the first time you’ve heard Suicide Commando and what did you think? What means this band to you?

Markko: Yeah I still remember that day, the first time I heard Suicide Commando here in Mexico city we have a ‘Music Market’ named “El  Chopo” and I got the “Critical Stage” CD by luck. At that time there wasn’t internet and to find original CDs was something that became a real pain in the ass, but fortunately I found it and it was so blasting that it changed my own panorama from what I was listening to those days. ‘COLD-VIOLENT AND CATCHY’ are my favorite 3 words when it comes to dark electronic music. I just wanted to get more and more from Suicide Commando.

Suicide Commando had already released the “Stored Images”-album around that time I found the “Critical Stage”-album (so you can see how hard it was to find music in Mexico during that time?) From that day I always knew that I was so engaged with his sound and after all these years I still consider it as one of my biggest pleasures and influences in my music. For me “Construct-Destruct” is and will be always one of the best albums. To keep it short, ‘I’M A SUICIDE COMMANDO ADDICT, aren’t you?

Sakis aka SynthetiC from Nano Infect is a Greek artist who definitely found his inspiration in the cold electro sound of Suicide Commando. Johan Van Roy was guest singer on the Nano Infect’s song “Lifeless”.

Q: Suicide Commando clearly sounds like a source of inspiration for numerous dark-electronic bands. What makes the sound of Suicide Commando that special and what specific elements in this sound do you like?

Sakis: What makes Suicide Commando so special to a point that, at least to me, literally everybody is inspired, is the man behind the project; Johan Van Roy himself. He’s a loyal and simple guy while his sound features a straight forward structure plus a melody that gets stuck in your head from the very first moment. Needless to mention the groovy bass lines and that super fat sounding signature snare!
As for the lyrics, you get to see that Johan Van Roy is an everyday normal guy with thoughts like yours and mine… Songs about depression, death, the way the mind works… simple thoughts of a man who feels he has to express them…

It has been an honor to know him and I would like to thank him in public again for everything.

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

Side-Line also covered Suicide Commando’s ‘Hellraiser’.

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

Background/Info:

Read the news on ‘Underneath’.

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: Cinematographic, experimental.

Background/Info: French artist Jerome Lagueyte has already been in the music business for a couple of years now. He contributed to numerous projects and has now unleashed this Nhova-opus.

Content: the artist has been already involved in soundtrack-like projects and that’s precisely the main inspiration running through this work. The slow cadence and overwhelming electro-ambient atmosphere hanging over the work are clearly into cinematographic experimentation.

Some passages are pretty experimental while other parts  feature delicate bleeps and other crystal-clear sound treatments.

+ + + : “Eponymous” is the kind of music production you have to imagine accompanied by images or any other visual format. This music has the power to accentuate the emotions you get when watching a movie or documentary or just images. Nhova clearly sounds like an experienced artist in the genre and I like his rather accessible ambient format diversified with slow cadences and multiple judicious sound treatments.  

– – – : I like the soundtrack approach, but I’ll have to say the album is not exactly the easiest one to grasp. The experimental aspect makes it rather complex and sometimes giving me the impression of unfinished tracks. But the main point that hurts is that there’s no real apotheosis emerging from this work.

Conclusion: I get the impression that this artist can do better than what I’ve heard. There’re interesting ideas running through the work although nothing that can really get me wild.

Best songs: L’Eveil”, “Sonar”.

Rate: (6).

Band: www.facebook.com/NHOVA-306929796332334

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

Background/Info:

Read the news on ‘Time Running Out’.

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