Genre/Influences: Electro-Pop, EBM, Cinematic, Tribal.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Denis Tverdokhleb this released the third full length album of his Stairway Maze sonic brainchild. After two albums released by Aliens Production, the new opus has been released in his homeland, Russia, by ScentAir Records.

Content: After the great “Kelevra”-album Stairway Maze released a surprising work on which he collaborated with multiple guest artists. The main evolution is the addition of vocals, although some songs are still instrumental edits. It creates a diversified work which moves from Dark-Electro-Pop to EBM but also from Industrial/Tribal to the familiar Cinematic style. Human Vault, Martin Rudefelt (Cryo), Ryby (Disharmony), Bettina Bormann (Oberer Totpunkt), Peter Vercauteren (Pro Patria), Michael Roeder (A Spell Inside) and Emma Barson (Promenade Cinéma) contributed by vocals to this work. 

+ + + : This new opus stands for a major evolution in this project’s history. I regretted there were no vocals featured on the previous album and “DecisionFatigue” brings a nice -and sometimes surprising selection of vocalists. It creates a varied work mixing different styles together. I’m totally convinced by the Dark-Pop approach on “The Final stand” featuring Martin Rudefelt which sounds a bit like Skinny Puppy going Electro-Pop like. I also recommend “Invisible Threat” featuring Peter V. and “Flames” featuring Ryby, both cuts sounding as harsh EBM. There also is “Conspiracy” featuring Michael Roeder which is a refined Electro-Pop song. But the absolute masterpiece is “Gaia’s Mantra” featuring Bettina Bormann on a Tribal-Industrial song with a true uplifting effect.

– – – : I can’t say there are songs to throw away but the final track “Neon Eyes” featuring Emma Barson sounds totally different from the rest and is a a bit like an antithesis to the rest of the work.

Conclusion: Stairway Maze remains a great and intelligent Electro format. It’s also surprising to see this kind of artist being released on ScentAir Records which definitely enlarges the sonic horizon of the label.

Best songs: “Gaia’s Mantra”, “The Final Stand”, “Flames”, “Invisible Threat”, “Conspiracy”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/iamstairwaymaze

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

About Stairway Maze

Stairway Maze is the solo project of Denis Tverdokhleb, a musician from Petrozavodsk in the Russian region of Karelia. He mixes IDM, ambient, EBM and cinematic music.

Aliens Production released the first two Stairway Maze albums, among them “Kelevra” in 2019. Tverdokhleb discussed that record with Side-Line in “‘Click Interview’ with Stairway Maze: ‘What Is A Tower Block If Not A Stairway Maze?’”.

“Decision Fatigue”, the third album and the record reviewed here, was released on 18 February 2022 on the Russian label ScentAir Records and holds ten tracks. The Bandcamp track titles credit Bettina Bormann of Oberer Totpunkt on “Gaia’s Mantra” and Martin Rudefelt of Cryo on “The Final Stand”.

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: IDM, EBM, Electro-Ambient, Experimental, Industrial, Minimal-Electronics.

Format: Digital, 2CD.

Background/Info: Slovakian label Aliens Production is already active for numerous years now and became one of the labels dealing with ‘intelligent electronic music’ I deeply respect. This compilation features twenty six bands perfectly illustrating the sonic approach of the record company.

Artists: =mp45=, Stairway Maze, Alienated Entity, Jihad, Human Vault, Media Data, Disharmony, Mortal Constraint, Mortaja, mulpHia, Amnistia, Spherical Disrupted, ISH, INABLVCKDOG & Jash Teua, Noire Antidote, Sunao Inami, Holon, Samhain, Headdreamer, Na-Hag, Huron, KeyHead, Nadragea, Cyclotimia, Oxyd.

Content: The compilation features a number of familiar artists from the label’s roster plus a selection of ‘guests’. The compilation perfectly stands for the IDM and Minimal-Electro style of Aliens Production, which has been masterly exposed by Alienated Entity, Jihad, Disharmony, Mortal Constraint, Holon and Nadragea. But there also is a solid EBM school represented by Mortaja, mulpHia and Amnistia. Na-Hag brings a hard Industrial-Tribal touch to the work while other artists are more into the Ambient/Cinematic style.

+ + + : This is the kind of compilation, which will give an opportunity to music lovers to discover this great label. The tracklist brings a fine selection of ‘intelligent’ Electronic craftsmen who aren’t always the most famous names although dealing with sophisticated and original music. The album brings a nice selection of visionary artists. Mortal Constraint is a rather surprising and unexpected feature although you’ll discover an old song from 1999. Canadian project Holon probably deserves a nomination for the award of most subtle song from the album while Na-Hag will be the uncontested winner of power and Industrial-Tribal creativity. I also have to mention =mp45”, which is the single artist featuring 2 tracks. I especially enjoyed the pure IDM-opener.

– – – : I maybe expected a bit more from tracks by artists like Disharmony, ISH, Spherical Disrupted and Oxyd, but you don’t hear me to complaining. 

Conclusion: Aliens Production is a label that will always get my full support! It remains a total guarantee for high-qualitative Electronic music.

Best bands: Holon, Na-Hag, Mortaja, Amnistia, =mp45=, Human Vault, Samhain, Headdreamer.

Rate: (8).

Label: www.label.aliens.sk / www.facebook.com/pages/Aliens-production-label/200028820052578

About Aliens Production

Aliens Production is a Slovak label whose catalog dates back to 1997, when it issued the various-artists compilation “Collection Of Biologic Waste /Be Infected…/”, the first entry in an ongoing “Be Infected” compilation series that continued through further volumes into the 2000s. Its roster has included Disharmony and Oxyd, both featured on “Document Edition II”, alongside acts such as Human Vault, Headdreamer and Stairway Maze.

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

Russian solo-artist, Denis Tverdokhleb, last year released his second full length album “Kelevra”. The work has been released by Aliens Production, which remains a home for intelligent electronics. Stairway Maze mixes IDM, ambient, EBM and cinematic music. Bombast and refinement have been merged together resulting in multiple great songs. I hope this interview will incite you to discover a hidden talent from Russia.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Can you first of all introduce yourself and briefly tell us the way you got in touch with electronic music to finally set up Stairway Maze? 

Denis: My name is Denis. I am from Petrozavodsk, a small nice town in Karelia, a region in Russia that is famous for its fantastic Northern nature and landscapes. The surroundings are very inspiring here and I want to believe that the music of Stairway Maze somehow reflects the atmosphere of the North, the place where it was born. And I think it won’t be an exaggeration to say that my music is mainly influenced by the place I grew up and live in, than by other music, bands and projects. But at the same time I can’t deny the fact that many musical genres and styles are also a source of inspiration to me.   

Q: Stairway Maze in an interesting and somewhat enigmatic name for a project so what inspired you and is there any further link between the name of the project and the music you compose? 

Denis: I think the name of the project came from our contemporary way of living itself. I mean, just look around! When I look out the window I can see nothing, but tower blocks! And what is a tower block if not a stairway maze? So I guess on the one hand Stairway Maze is about city life rhythm, but on the other it’s about serenity, beauty and the opportunity to take a breath.

Q: You last year released your second full length album “Kelevra”. What kind of album is it and how did the writing and production process happened? 

Denis: The process turned out to be quite complicated actually. First of all it took me much time to pull wits together and to understand  which direction I want to choose in writing the album. I had a few ideas at the moment which I tried to implement, but all of them didn’t work. But then life itself gave me a clue. In September 2018 my father died from cancer, so it obviously made an impact on the mood of the album and the way it sounds. And this album is a dedication to him. But at the same time I didn’t want “Kelevra” to be completely dark. If you listen to the album you can hear that there is also a light within some tracks. It was important for me. I wanted the album to be diverse. 

Q: That’s maybe why your album sounds eclectic and I should even say it’s a real maze… a kind of sonic labyrinth filled with different influences and music styles; IDM, EBM, ambient and cinematic.. What do all these music genres mean- and evoke to you and what explains your eclecticism? 

Denis: Thank you. I do really love cinematic electronics. And if I’ve managed to make it noticeable, that’s the greatest praise for me. As a listener I’ve always loved the music that make your imagination draw some pictures in your mind, that mesmerizes you and puts you into a trance, music that helps you escape from reality. Yet I love grooves, beats and music that pumps ears as well. So all of this of course affects my own music. At the end of the day, as I’ve said already, I prefer diversity. 

Q: How do you look back at your debut album “Hollow Spaces” and what have been the main changes compared with “Kelevra”? 

Denis: I truly love “Hollow Spaces” although it seems quite raw to me technically (now I see that clearly) and there are things I would like to change if I’d a chance to. Anyway there definitely are some good tracks on it, which I really like. And I don’t think that there’re fundamental differences between the first album and “Kelevra”. I suppose that the main and the only aim of the latter is just to reveal the nature of Stairway Maze a bit further. And that’s it. No undertones.

Q: What are the pros and cons living in Russia and dealing with this kind of music, which is often liked by a restricted number of listeners? How do you see Stairway Maze evolving towards further releases? 

Denis: Honestly I don’t want to expatiate much upon that. I would just say that the situation leaves much to be desired, at least concerning small towns like the one I live in. 

And as for Stairway Maze future releases… I don’t know. There is no point of thinking far too ahead. Time will tell, what it would be like. But what really matters for me is that I’m totally sure that there WILL DEFINITELY BE future releases) But no hurry!

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: IDM, rhythmic-ambient & cinematographic electro. 

Background/Info: Two years after the debut album “Hollow Spaces” (2017) Russian artist, 
Denis Tverdokhleb, strikes back with the second full length of his Stairway Maze project. 

Content: “Kelevra” sounds like a true electronic assemblage. It’s not an easy thing defining the work of this artist, but the songs clearly resulted from a truly sonic symbiosis. You’ll rapidly notice bombastic drum patterns, aggressive bass lines, refined sound arrangements and dreamy sound waves. It makes me think of a fusion between IDM, ambient, EBM and cinematic music. The songs are instrumental edits although you’ll perceive a few ethereal chants running through “Hail To Barbarians”. 

+ + + : Aliens Productions remains to me a warrant for high-qualitative and intelligent electronic music. Stairway Maze is one more project belonging to this sonic intelligentsia. The album is a perfect mix between different styles; it sometimes feels a bit contradictory, but in the end it all marvelously comes together. The bombast and refinement are leading towards brilliant songs. The work is characterized by an impressive sonic welfare featuring vintage electronic treatments next to subtle filtered sequences. The low, vibrating bass lines can’t leave you unaffected while the evasive passages have something hypnotic.   

– – – : Even if this composition is extremely elaborated I sometimes get the feeling it could be ever more worked out and I especially refer to “Subsurface”. It could be also interesting to hear this album with a few vocal parts. 

Conclusion: Stairway Maze remains a rather unknown project, but if you’re in search of a great electronic experience, “Kelevra” will give you total satisfaction!

Best songs: “Anomaly”, “Hail To Barbarians”, “X”, “Kelevra”, “The Chase”, “Phantoms Of Tiergarten”. 

Rate: (8½). 

Artist: www.facebook.com/iamstairwaymaze 

Label: www.label.aliens.sk / www.facebook.com/pages/Aliens-production-label/200028820052578 

About Stairway Maze

Stairway Maze is the solo project of Russian musician Denis Tverdokhleb, based in Petrozavodsk, Karelia. The project mixes IDM, ambient, EBM and cinematic elements, released through Aliens Production. Tverdokhleb’s debut album, “Hollow Spaces,” arrived in 2017, followed by “Kelevra” in 2020.

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