Stephan Groth – SIDE-LINE

25th anniversary for Apoptygma Berzerk’s hit ‘Kathy’s Song’: ‘I drove to Holland to make sure Ferry Corsten did the remix!’

Jan Ronald Stange — Mon, 22 Dec 2025 19:34:28 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange. Coverart by Halvor Bodin) It’s been 25 years since Apoptygma Berzerk‘s hit single “Kathy’s Song” was released, so now it’s time to look back and celebrate the anniversary with new remixes, involving original and new remixers. It’s primarily a digital release, first on Bandcamp a week ago, and today out on other platforms.

We had some questions for all involved in this Apoptygma Berzerk release, having them go down memory lane and also looking at todays remixes, and also what’s lies ahead. Starting off with the man who kicked off the remixes, Ferry Corsten.

Ferry Corsten on Apoptygma Berzerk’s hit single “Kathy’s Song”

Ferry Corsten

S-L: What made you do the original remix 25 years ago?

Ferry Corsten: Back then, I was in Norway frequently for shows. The promoter I worked with became a close friend, and he was also very good friends with Stephan from Apoptygma Berzerk. Noticing a strong musical alignment between our sounds, he introduced us.

When Stephan played me the track, something he described as a duet with his computer, I was immediately intrigued by the concept alone. Once I heard it, I realized it contained so many elements that I could naturally translate into my own style without losing its original identity. That’s when I suggested doing a remix, which ultimately opened up a new audience for Apop in a different genre, as well as for me.

S-L: A part of the story behind this remix also involved a surprise visit from Apoptygma Berzerk’s Stephan…

FC: To be completely honest, it’s been such a long time that I can’t say I remember everything clearly anymore. What I described in my previous answer is what I recall now, and it’s possible that my first meeting with Stephan actually happened during that surprise visit. I’m not entirely sure.
(Editors notice: We’ll get the story from Stephan later!)

S-L: As it’s a song I still listen to when I’m in a 2000’s-vibe-mood, it’s hard to realize that 25 years has flown by. Looking back, how do you think it has stood the test of time?

FC: It’s funny how cyclical music can be. When I did the original remix in the early 2000s, that sound was booming in the trance scene, and club culture in general. As styles shifted, it eventually became something people associated with nostalgia.

Now, 25 years later, this “retro trance” sound is making a major comeback. With a fresh polish and a few modern tweaks to the original remix, it feels relevant again, standing shoulder to shoulder with today’s contemporary sounds. It really shows that the track had all the right ingredients to stand the test of time.

S-L: How did you approach the task of remixing a 25 year old Apoptygma Berzerk classic?

FC: Over the years, quite a few people have asked me to play the original remix in my sets. I always felt the track had great bones, but that its production and mix needed an update. So I essentially recreated the original remix to bring it up to today’s sonic standards, without changing too much about what made it special in the first place.

S-L: Do you have any other Apoptygma Berzerk favorites that you’d want to remix sometime?

FC: I definitely like ‘Until The End Of The World’ and ‘Starsign’. Both have great elements for a remix.

S-L: What’s up in the near future with releases and musical projects?

FC: I currently have a lot of new music lined up for the new year. I’m also working on a new album for my ambient project, FERR. So there’s plenty of exciting material in the pipeline.

Mental Overdrive (Per Martinsen) on Apoptygma Berzerk’s hit single “Kathy’s Song”

Next up is the man mostly known under the moniker Mental Overdrive, Per Martinsen, winner of Spelleman (Norwegian Grammys) in the electronica genre.

Mental Overdrive (Per Martinsen)

Side-Line: What’s your relation to the original track, and also the Ferry Corsten remix that took it to new heights?

Per Martinsen: I met Stephan back in the early nineties when we played the same event in Norway. We immediately bonded over the fact that the two main towns in Norway where synth-driven music had a stronghold up to that point was our two (fairly small) hometowns. I’ve been following his work since then and was aware of the Kathy’s Song. The remix had unfortunately slipped my attention until he got in touch with me for a Mental Overdrive mix.

S-L: How did you approach the task of remixing a 25 year old classic?

PM: I’ve been doing a few remixes lately of more melodic tracks, so the main thing was to keep the vocal sample and chord progression, but build the beats and bassline from scratch. It’s a very catchy hook, so the arrangement evolves around the core of the song, but will hopefully make a dancefloor bounce.

S-L: Do you have any other Apoptygma Berzerk favorites that you’d want to remix sometime?

PM: Oooh – I love classics like ‘Spiritual Reality’ and ‘Burnin’ Heretic’ from the early days! Would be fun to re-visit some of those.

S-L: What’s up in the near future – more Mental Overdrive, Naeon Teardrops or other projects?

PM: There’s a new Mental Overdrive album (2 actually) coming in January. Going through my archives I unveiled quite a few tunes that had slipped my attention. I’m also writing some new Naeon Teardrops material and will be composing music for a film next year under my WAVE∞FORM alias. The backstory of how I ended up with 3 artist aliases can be found here: https://books2read.com/u/3Jq2NK

Alyxx Digre on Apoptygma Berzerk’s hit single “Kathy’s Song”

Technomancer 2022. Photography by Tarjei Krogh (kroghx.com)

Final remixer is Alyxx Digre, a collaborator with Apoptygma Berzerk over many years through the Technomancer and Zone Tripper projects.

S-L: What’s your relation to the original track, and also the Ferry Corsten remix that took it to new heights?

Alyxx Digre: So, I grew up in Northern Norway, Mo I Rana to be specific. And something I liked doing while I was in junior high was borrowing music at the library. A lot of music that shaped my tastes and direction came from that library. One such CD was ‘Tranzania’ by Acid Queen, a project that combined Tanzanian music with techno. It was very infectious, very catchy and I definitely took notice of the name Stephan Groth from that album.

So later I found this weird CD in that library with a golden cropcircle on a white background. Above it was the name Apoptygma Berzerk and ‘Welcome to Earth’. I had absolutely no idea what it would be just from looking at it, thinking it perhaps was a metal album. I looked inside the booklet, and saw that Stephan had worked on it, so I thought… Okay, so it must be techno then. At that point I had absolutely no idea what EBM was, I just knew about techno like a lot of 90s kids who grew up with Sash! and Ayla.

I put it on, and immediately was hit with this… tense, highly energetic and just incredibly tightly programmed beat with the track ‘Starsign’. And lyrics that felt deep and resonating with something more than a lot of pop music did back then. It wasn’t just catchy, it was highly intelligent and making me think about things that I loved thinking about. It was basically a mix of techno and X-Files, and that was enough to really hook me.

But then I got to track 5, which started softer. And at one point I heard this Macintosh speech synth… and as the track was playing I knew I had found gold in that library. Kathy’s Song became and remains one of my absolute favourite Apoptygma Berzerk songs. It especially resonates with me as someone who grew up with a very strong connection to computers, something I still have today.

“Welcome To Earth” shaped my taste in music from that point on. I seeked out all the similar “futurepop” music I could find, including Icon of Coil, Code 64, Covenant and so forth. It was also a deeply formative album for me in terms of my own production. From that point on I knew I wanted to make synthpop and electronic music, and so the path forward was set for where I am today.

As for the Ferry Corsten Remix, I was exposed to that on the Singles Collection, a 2001 compilation that combined every Apoptygma Berzerk single up until that point, which of course included the Kathy’s Song single. It is the very first track that opens the collection, so I think on first listen I had no idea what to expect from it. It is an absolute trance assault with some epic synths, definitely very of that era, but still has a futuristic sheen to it. I came from a trance/techno background so you can only imagine how much I loved it. I think I snuck it into the junior high cafeteria where it got on heavy rotation on the HiFi we had there. Especially the girls loved it, I recall.

But yeah, definitely took it to new heights and still one of my favourite trance anthems from the early 2000s.

S-L: How did you approach the task of remixing a 25 year old classic?

AD: I took it as an opportunity to further refine my Zone Tripper sound a bit. As of late I’ve been listening to a lot of harder synthwave stuff, so I wanted to make a version with a very hard edged sound. At some point in the production I think I even just added a pure sub bass to it to make it just pump as hard as possible. I just knew I wanted to really push my own production abilities on it and find a new and harder sound.

I didn’t wanna mess with the structure too much, so I kept it more or less similar to the original track. I think it has a very nice buildup. Like there are two distinct parts in the original song, but something I’ve always loved about the live version is that there’s a third break that adds a lot to it. I knew I wanted to put that in there.

Of course, I am a huge fan of Commodore 64 chiptunes, and funny enough, the “Welcome to Earth” album was what got me into them in the first place. So I knew I had to put some SID sounds in there as an homage.

It all honestly came together really quickly and I think at one point I had to get up from my chair in the studio and just dance. I usually try to get that effect with all my tracks. I think my partner calls it a “red shoe” effect, like you’re suddenly cursed with having to dance until you drop. So I am really happy with the remix.

S-L: Do you have any other Apoptygma Berzerk favorites that you’d want to remix sometime?

AD: I’ve already done so much with Stephan honestly. I think my first remix was ‘Shadow’ from the ‘Rocket Science’ album, which ended up included on the 2011 ‘Major Tom’ EP. I also did a C64 chiptune version of ‘Atom & Eve’ on the ‘Nein Danke’ EP, did the ‘Sarpsborg Synth’ version of ‘Backdraft’ on the ‘Soli Deo Gloria’ remix album ‘SDGXXV’, so I feel like at this point I might need to step back a bit so I don’t oversaturate the discography too much!

I’ve even done a remix of ‘808bit’ by his side project ‘Fairlight Children’, so all in all, I am very happy with how much I’ve been allowed to put my own spin on Stephan’s works.

That being said, if the stars were to align again and I could have another song to remix, I definitely would want to do a take on ‘Spindizzy’ from the ‘Harmonizer’, which in my opinion ALWAYS deserved its own single. Hugely underrated track. I think even other remixes of that track would be amazing as well.

S-L: What’s up in the near future – more Zone Tripper, Technomancer or other projects?

AD: I had to take a break from a lot of my music projects to work on personal stuff. As I’ve been publicly open about, I am a trans female, and my focus has been getting very internal lately. Re-evaluating my own beliefs, values, and identity. I realized I had to change, and I had to change a lot. I spent a lot of time in 2024 and this year just entirely deconstructing myself and who I am. I was essentially left with a big puzzle, having to put the pieces back together in a new way.

There’s a lot of personal stuff I don’t wanna get into detail about, but I’ve managed to lose a LOT of weight, with some good help and diet advice from my friends. And I’ve gone through some therapy to work on myself. So my focus has been on just finding myself and defining who I wanna be as a woman.

As such I’ve had a lot of ideas laying around for the next Technomancer album. As always, I really enjoy making music that comes from my heart and is very honest. I think I managed that to a great extent with my previous album, ‘Hyperfuel’, coincidentally an album where I got to work with Stephan on a cover of ‘Puppets’, so definitely check that out. But yeah I wanna keep at it, making songs that can resonate with people, and that are very honest and based in my own experiences. And of course, focusing on just getting my emotions in there.

I think for a while I teased making some harder EBM stuff, but I’ve kinda decided to do that less, because I never truly know where I’ll end up musically. And I don’t wanna limit myself too hard on a certain style or idea. And a lot of that anger I harbored for a while just isn’t there anymore. And I don’t think I wanna add more anger or hate to the world either. I don’t think that’s what we need right now in the climate we live in. I just wanna make something that is real and human. In this day and age I’ve become extremely opposed to generative AI, and it is something I want no part in. I like art being made by humans and don’t ever wanna make any excuses to rely on it. So whatever I do forward is just gonna be that, 100% my own art, and I truly want to release something I can be proud of.

I am working on a Zone Tripper album, and I definitely think people are gonna like it. I am always trying to push myself to do better, so I hope people will enjoy it. And I also really hope I can get more Laboratory 5 stuff out, because I still very much love doing that project and we have a lot of demos laying around that sound awesome.

Stephan Groth on the Apoptygma Berzerk’s hit single “Kathy’s Song”

Apoptygma Berzerk (Photo: Halvor Bodin)

We also wanted to hear what the man behind the original track, Stephan Groth, had to say about the songs history, both past, present and future!

Side-Line: What’s your current relation to the original track, and also the Ferry Corsten remix that took it to new heights?

STP: Apoptygma Berzerk’s ‘Kathy’s Song’ is probably the most important song I have ever written. I remember working in the studio with Fredrik Darum and Vegard Blomberg 25 years ago. When I came up with the idea of having a computer/robot singing the chorus of the song, we all instantly knew that this was going to be something very special. In todays world when AI is singing half the songs that are being released on digital platforms, it might not be a big deal, but back then, in 2000, having a machine singing the chorus of a song had never been done before.

I was a big fan of Moonman! The single ‘Don’t Be Afraid‘ from 1996 is stil one of my all-time favourite club tracks. So when Inge Nilsen (aka DJ Lemon) introduced me to Ferry (aka Moonman) before his show in Oslo in the late 90’s, I was very excited. We got along very well and the talks about doing a remix soon came up.

Ferry Corsten was back then not yet the superstar DJ/producer that he is today, and as far as I know both Ferry and Tiesto both became famous in Norway first(!) before the rest of the world followed. So when Ferry blew up, so did the Kathy’s remix 🙂

Many a time have people written in the comment fields that they were introduced to Apoptygma Berzerk via Ferry’s Kathy’s remix, and this is also the case the other way around. Ferry’s remix became a hit in the trance scene all over the world 25 years ago, but we also had many other remixes of the song that became very successful, for example the Beborn Beton remix, but especially the amazing club classic Victoria Mix by VNV Nation.

S-L: As it’s a song I still listen to when I’m in a 2000’s-vibe-mood, it’s hard to realize that 25 years has flown by. Looking back, how do you think this Apoptygma Berzerk track has stood the test of time?

STP: Well, first of all it’s a great and catchy pop song, and as the Levi’s slogan goes: “Quality Never Goes Out of Style”. Kathy has definitely aged well, and in my opinion this song absolutely deserves an anniversary celebration.

S-L: A little bird whispered that a part of the remix-story 25 years ago was a car drive to Holland for a surprise visit to a certain producer – that we really want to hear more about!

STP: I was totally determined on making this remix happen! So determined that my manager at the time, Jon Sverre Høiden, and I drove all the way to Rotterdam to “talk him (Ferry) into doing the remix”! LOL, thank God it worked out 🙂

I saw a huge potential in this collaboration with Apoptygma Berzerk, a crossover between trance/club/EBM and synthpop. And as we all know, this sound became quite popular, especially after Ronan Harris coined the term Future Pop and hundreds of bands all over the world started to follow this “formula”.

S-L: How has it been organizing this project and listen to new remixes of your 25 year old Apoptygma Berzerk classic?

STP: Per Aksel Lundgreen and I did a lot of work on the SOLID DEO GLORIA 25 anniversary (SDGXXV) release together with our designer Halvor Bodin. We are now doing kinda the same thing, both sonically and with visuals. This is a celebration where a lot of time, effort and resources has gone into making this interesting and long lasting and hopefully something that the listeners will appreciate.

Where did those 25 years go? It’s insane how quick time flies by. All of us who experienced these magic 25 years have been extremely privileged! “Kathy’s Song” (in all her different remixes and versions) was a part of the soundtrack to the last 2 decades, this is what we are celebrating.

S-L: What’s up in the near future for Apoptygma Berzerk – more Kathy’s Song remixes and/or new music?

STP: The anniversary celebration will continue in 2026. There are more Apoptygma Berzerk EPs with new remixes to be released digitally, and there will also be CD and vinyl releases of these.

I am also working on a new Apoptygma Berzerk EP with new material… we can talk more about this when the anniversary is over 🙂

Stay Tuned! Happy Anniversary, and Happy New Year!
Lots of love!

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… 😉

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M4C releases Apoptygma Berzerk produced EP ‘Music For Cars’ – new Apop music also in the works!

Jan Ronald Stange — Tue, 20 May 2025 18:57:52 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange) A few weeks ago, several friends in the Apoptygma Berzerk circuit posted about an exciting new collaboration between Apop and M4C — an EP dubbed ‘Music For Cars’.
M4C, the project of hairdresser Owe Jenack from Ski, describes themselves as a Norwegian synthwave/electronica act, inspired by 80/90’s action and horror movie soundtracks. After giving the tracks a spin, I wanted to find out more, and in between all the Norwegian holidays in April and May, a coherent interview via email began to take shape — ending with some exciting Apop news!

Side-Line: How and when did this music project start up – from hairdressing to synthwave?

Owe Jenack: I’ve been working on this project for about 3–4 years, but I always felt something was missing. So I asked Stephan if he could listen and give me some feedback. He clearly liked what he heard, because I was lucky enough to be signed to his label, Pitch Black Drive. He’s reworked the songs in the studio — and I love what he’s done.

Stephan Groth: I’ve known Owe for many years. I knew he liked electronic music, but I never knew he was composing it himself.

When I heard his demo a while back, I instantly knew I wanted to produce the EP. I liked the songs and the vibe, but like Owe said, it was missing something. Since ‘Exit Popularity Contest’, I’ve been working a lot with instrumental music, so producing ‘Music For Cars’ was right up my alley.

S-L: How has the reaction been so far? (I, for one, loved the EP!)

OJ: Considering how little we’ve actually promoted the EP so far (but that’s coming), I think it’s gone really well. Lots of great feedback.

S-L: ‘Music For Cars’ – what’s the idea behind the name? Literally for driving, a homage to other similarly titled releases, or something else?

OJ: The tracks are sort of made as soundtracks for fictional action/horror films or series. But I also intended them to work as a soundtrack for driving. Every time I start on a new track, I test it while driving. If it works, I keep it and continue developing it.

S-L: More homage – did I detect a tiny Depeche Mode reference not very well hidden in Part II? 😉

OJ: Yes, there’s a small but clear reference to DM in there. Other heroes like Jean-Michel Jarre and John Carpenter are also deeply embedded in the soundscape.

STP: I can definitely hear many Depeche Mode inspired elements on the EP. There’s also inspiration drawn from other synth legends like Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk.

(Photo: Halvor Bodin)

S-L: Is it a one-off project, or something you’ll develop further?

OJ: No, I’ve got more tracks and concepts in the works!

STP: I’ve heard a few of those tracks… really good stuff, and I hope to produce and release them in the future as well.

S-L: Have you been involved in other music projects or bands before, Owe? I noticed that photo on Facebook of five guys in white coveralls… what was that?

OJ: I’ve been in quite a few bands and projects before, but none of them really went anywhere. So this is my first serious attempt. The photo with the white coveralls is from a concert with M4C — the others are professional dancers.

S-L: Any other new music or events/gigs coming up for either of you?

OJ: No planned concerts for me at the moment, but if any synth festivals out there are interested — I’m ready!

STP: I’m working on a new APOP EP, and this month I’ll also be releasing two digital compilations on streaming platforms: a new ‘B-sides and Rarities’ collection, and a label compilation called ‘An Introduction to Pitch Black Drive’ featuring all our artists.

Jan Ronald Stange

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Piston Damp returns with sophomore album ‘Mastermind Vol 1: No Points For Trying’ – Out now

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 29 Nov 2024 21:38:07 +0000

After teasing their audience with a remix EP and 5 singles since their debut album ‘Making The World Great Again’ in 2021, Piston Damp released their new album ‘Mastermind Vol 1: No Points For Trying’ today. We had some questions in store, and the band quickly answered them!

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange)

Side-Line: What’s the main difference between the previous album and this one?

Piston Damp: Well… Most the songs on MTWGA were old songs. Only ‘To My Knees’ and ‘The Day Of Departure’ are older than 3 years.

We’re a little older, and we’ve experienced some great stuff the last few years, playing gigs around Europe. We’ve grown more confident in the genre and we have a clearer message, and the vision of Piston Damp is clearer too.

S-L: The title hints for a series – will there be a ‘Mastermind Vol 2’, 3 etc?

PD: Sure. Hahaha. 🙂 Yes, you can expect at least one more volume.

S-L: A little side-track to the single ‘To my knees’; earlier Vince Clarke have been mentioned as an inspiration, but when listening to the “B-side” ‘Come to me’ it sounds like a track The Human League would envy. Who or what are your inspirations in general?

PD: Our inspirations are pretty main stream synth pop. Erasure, DM, The Human League, A-ha and so on.

Come To Me was written at a time when Construction Time Again was played a lot.

S-L: Any tracks you would like to highlight or elaborate on?

PD: The album has death, departure, separation and loss as a hovering theme. We’re in our 40’s, and we’ve experienced some losses the past decade that has been quite devastating – especially Jonas. And since he writes the lyrics, this is quite obvious.

The first and last song is about death in near family. While ‘Downfall’ and ‘Now You Know’ is about a childhood friend of Jonas who passed away last year.

S-L: Any upcoming plans or gigs?

PD: Yes! 2025 is looking really good for us. Come and see us at these dates:
01/03 – Gothenburg, Sweden
26/04 – Thallwis, Germany
03/05 – Glenghuset, Sarpsborg, Norway w/The Lund Commission
24/05 – Lucy-Fairs Garden, Ditmarchen, Germany
05/07 – Eastside Festival, Germany
16/08 – Manchester, UK

Album info

All songs by Jonas Groth
All song arranged, recorded and produced by Piston Damp
To My Knees – co-produced by Stephan L. Groth
All songs mixed by Magne Johansen, Piston Damp and Stephan L. Groth

Emilie Aurora Groth – additional vocal harmonies on ‘Downfall’
Stephan L. Groth – vocoder recording on ‘To My Knees’ and ‘Down, Pt. 3’
Truls Kristian Nygaard – additional lead vocal on ‘Sacrifice’
Kaja F. Pettersen – cello on ‘Blue Fields’
Ted Skogmann – additional percussion on ‘To My Knees’

Jan Ronald Stange

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Piston Damp is back with a second album: ‘Mastermind Vol 1 – No Points For Trying’ – Pre-order now

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Sun, 06 Oct 2024 15:39:53 +0000

Piston Damp is a Norwegian-Danish synthpop duo formed by Jonas Groth and Truls Sønsterud. Jonas Groth is the brother of Stephan Groth, the frontman of Apoptygma Berzerk, and has been heavily involved in the music scene for over two decades. Piston Damp started as a side project while Apoptygma Berzerk was on tour, but it remained largely dormant until 2020, when the duo decided to relaunch the project.

Their music blends elements of classic synthpop with strong melodies and emotionally charged lyrics. Their debut album, Making the World Great Again (2021), includes standout singles like “Runaway” and “Something In Me”. The duo is praised for its catchy hooks, reminiscent of bands like Mesh, and their modern take on electronic music.

Piston Damp has released several singles, including remixes by electronic artists such as Pegboard Nerds and Technomancer. Their music often incorporates media samples, giving it a unique tone that resonates with synthpop fans.

And now they are ready to present their second album “Mastermind Vol 1 – No Points For Trying” in 4 different versions via emmobiz Records.

The bonus CD holds the following tracks:

Something In Me – Single Version
Loose Ends – Single Version
Don’t – Single Version
Runaway – Single Version
Something In Me – Technomancer Remix
Testimony – Sebastian Komor Remix
Noget I Mig

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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Electro Night in Oslo: Piston Damp, Ray Noir, and an Analogue Set by Apoptygma Berzerk at Revolver

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 13 Sep 2024 15:30:00 +0000

Piston Damp and Ray Noir, two acts that hadn’t played in Oslo before, booked the final day of August for an evening of electro-metal/goth and synthpop tunes at the club Revolver. Then a surprise dropped the day before the show, announcing that Apop (Stephan Groth’s solo version of Apoptygma Berzerk) would kick off the evening with a set of analogue-modular music!

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange. Photos by Halvor Bodin, Tarjei Krogh and Jan Ronald Stange)

We had to get more info and reactions from all involved, so the week after was spent interviewing by Messenger and e-mail, starting with Apop.

Side-Line: Tell us how this gig came about, seemed a bit surprising for most since your participation was announced just the day before?

Stephan Groth: Ray Noir and Piston Damp were going to be playing a show in Oslo on August 30, so I asked if I could play support since I have not played live in Oslo for a long time. It was already a sold out show, so I just tagged along. We all had great fun, and it felt good to show the Oslo crowd a side of APOPTYGMA BERZERK that they have not experienced before.

This is the 3rd time I have played live under the name “APOP”. It’s been just me alone on stage, improvising and tweaking modular synths and FX in the style of “Exit Popularity Contest”.

S-L: Is there any improvisation live, or all planned beforehand?

STP: Oh yes, lots of improvisation. I have planned beforehand what songs to play, and for how long.

Then I have preprogrammed 3 sequencers who are controlling the modular rig, so I arrange and mix the first half of the show live.

The other half of the performance I play a few APOPTYGMA BERZERK songs with vocals. This last part is less improvised.

S-L: As mentioned you’ve done some of these sets before, will there be more in the future?

STP: I’m having a lot of fun doing this, and it seems people are enjoying it as well. It is also a great way to test out new material and new ideas. It is quite different from what I have done earlier in my career, and therefore also very refreshing and exciting for both the audience and myself. The first time I played this kind of concert was in Jönköping, supporting Swedish synth pop legends PAGE.
Will there be more of this in the future? I hope so 🙂

Apoptygma Berzerk (Photo: Halvor Bodin)

The prize for being most energetic went to the second act of the night, Ray Noir, who filled the club with beats as he used every inch of the stage – and some of the floor interacting with the audience too!

S-L: First time with a live show in Norway – what’s your impression?

Ray Noir: Heyy! Thank u so much for coming 🙏🏽 It was an awesome night. Playing a hometown show for the first time was nothing but amazing! Really cool to see so many beautiful faces there, and being supported by one of my all time favourite bands Apoptygma Berzerk was nothing but surreal. And doing this co-headline show with Piston Damp was a dream.

S-L: Anything else brewing with more releases or gigs?

RN: I’ve finished some new tracks, hopefully there will be one more release before the end of the year, there’s also some London shows planned before the year is over.

Piston Damp, the duo Jonas Groth and Truls Sønsterud, were the final act, making people dance and really enjoy their set. Top notch vocals and synth, and their surprising cover of The Cure’s “The Walk” was the show’s icing on the cake. Release that track ASAP!

S-L: First time in Oslo, how was the gig for you?

Piston Damp: Our first gig in Oslo was really cool. Super small – and sold out – venue, but awesome nonetheless. When we announced it from the stage, someone yelled out: “About time!!!”, which was hilarious although quite flattering.

Jonas has known Ray Noir since he was a very young guy behind the counter at Body Map in Arcaden, Oslo. Great guy, and so much fun to be with.

And for the third time, we’ve been able to bring along Stephan with his plip-plop-instrumentals, which we adore. Having him there adds a dimension to the evening.

S-L: More releases or gigs planned?

PD: We most definitely have releases coming in the near future. We’re working on the follow up album to Making The World Great Again, which is exciting since we are no longer inventing Piston Damp. We are now developing Piston Damp. It’s really amazing to discover how alike we are. We really don’t seem like we would be able to get along style-wise, but we really do. Every single time.

We have about twenty songs in the can now. Now we’re trying to figure out how to sort them. Which goes where?

We are old-timers who love a good album with strong songs, singles with unforgettable b-sides and extended remixes, and live versions of songs, which give the songs more feet to stand on.

Watch out for our upcoming album. It’s going to be a great volume. Hint hint…

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Piston Damp gears up for next album with ‘Hard To Love You’ single – Out now

Jan Ronald Stange — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 13:08:53 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange / Sub Culture press release) “Hard To Love You”, the fourth single from the upcoming Piston Damp album, is out today on streaming platforms. The sophomore album is due later this autumn.

“Hard To Love You” takes us back to the early 80’s with analogue synths, modular f/x and beautiful vocal harmonies, and Piston Damp’s love for Vince Clarke’s early songwriting really comes to fruition here.

With their own unmistakable touch and sound mixed in, this makes for a nostalgic summer outing fit for a day on the beach or late night radio listening.

Piston Damp have played an impressive amount of gigs in Germany, Sweden and Norway in the past 3 years, and their live escapade will continue in August with their first ever gig in Oslo on the 31^st at Revolver, sharing the stage with Ray Noir. More info and tickets here .

“Hard To Love You” is written by Jonas Groth who’s also providing the vocals, and the synthesizers and modulars are by Truls Sønsterud. On this single, Stephan Groth, the brother of Jonas and known from Apoptygma Berzerk, has stepped in as co-producer. The single was mixed by Magne Johansen, and mastered by Ole-Espen Kristiansen. In addition to the instrumental and extended versions of “Hard To Love You”, you’ll get a live version of “Something In Me” included on the single.

Check out their bio and photos at www.pistondamp.com while listening to the tracks here:

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Echo Image return with ‘Madsong’ on Pitch Black Drive Records – Out now

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Thu, 29 Feb 2024 09:25:24 +0000

(Photo by Martin Fageras) Echo Image (Pål-Magnus Rybom and Linda Eikemo) have released their 4th. single since their comeback, entitled “Madsong”. The song comes accompanied by a video.

The “Madsong” single is co-produced by Stephan Groth of Apoptygma Berzerk and mixed by Einar K. Five. It is released on Pitch Black Drive, the label of Stephan Groth.

Their 3 latest singles steered Echo Image away from synthpop towards synthwave but it’s still Echo Image songs as we know them.

A new Echo Image album is in the works, but a release-date is still to be announced, and might even flow into 2025.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

side-line.com

New single from Piston Damp: ‘I’m Losing You (A New Tale)’ out now!

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 17 Nov 2023 12:00:00 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange / Piston Damp press release) Out today is the brand new single from Piston Damp, a synthpop duo from Norway consisting of Jonas Groth (known as keyboarder in Apoptygma Berzerk and as being Stephan Groth’s little brother) and his friend since childhood, Truls Sønsterud.

Since their debut album, ‘Making The World Great Again’ in 2021, they have released a string of singles, with ‘Sacrifice’ and ‘All The Edges I Can Fall’, leading up to ‘I’m Losing You (A New Tale)’ released November 17th 2023.

The single contains three tracks; a single version and an Extended Remix of the song, and ‘The Day Of Departure (Black Sky Version)’ as a bonus track.

It is still catchy synthpop, this time more up-beat and chorus driven, and with a sound and a beat that is sure to be a winner in their booked and upcoming live gigs in Sweden and Germany, of which there are many!

Live dates Piston Damp

November 17, 2023: Helsingborg, Sweden
March 16, 2024: E-Only Festival, Germany
April 27, 2024: Jönköping, Sweden
May 4, 2024: Sarpsborg, Norway
July 19, 2024: Chemnitz, Germany

Listen to the tracks right here!

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Stephan Groth on Apoptygma Berzerk’s ‘You and Me against the World’ re-issue – and other upcoming releases

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 09 Jul 2021 14:47:02 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange) Lot’s of Apoptygma Berzerk fans are rejoicing today – it’s the release day of the ‘You and Me against the World’ re-issue. The 2005 album had the band introducing a more indie-rock style of music and broke the band to new audiences, especially in Germany with four hit singles and the album climbing to #18 on the official charts.

Now it’s re-issued in two vinyl versions and on CD, and of course we had to know what Stephan Groth had to say about this and what else he’s up to these days!

S-L: How has the sale been so far of the various versions?

STP: I am not that much into the details regarding sales, but from what I hear things are going great. I`m told that the red limited edition vinyl is almost sold out… not that surprising since so many people are collecting rare vinyl these days.

Personally, I prefer classic black and clear/transparent vinyls, but from a collectors point of view the red limited edition is a better investment, and of course, it also looks extremely nice. Sound quality wise transparent and black is supposed to be the best.

S-L: What’s the response from the fans on this re-issue?

STP: Well, I only just got the vinyls myself two days ago, and most people have not seen or listened to the record yet, so it is a bit early for any feedback. But I heard from a few record stores that people are excited and that many have pre-ordered the album and are looking forward to release day.

So it seems many people including myself are excited to finally get ‘You And Me Against The World’ on vinyl, it is long overdue. The CD has been out of print for a while, so I am happy to have it back in stock. We remastered all the tracks, and they sound really good. We also added as many bonus tracks as the CD can hold.

Both the new CD and the vinyl versions of Y.A.M.A.T.W. got a nice upgrade sonically, but also visually. Halvor Bodin re-designed the cover, and gave it a new updated look that fit today`s APOP-vibe and it is a perfect match. In the booklet we used photos by Sebastian Ludvigsen that were not in the original cover, but from the same photo sessions that we did back in 2005. So the cover looks and feels very much the same as the original, but with a modern and updated touch to it.

S-L: More re-issues planned? Or new music first?

STP: We are almost done with a 3rd ‘B-Sides & Rarities’ compilation. This will be released on digital platforms only, just like the previous two, ‘Faceless Fear’ and ‘Disarm’.

I am also working on stuff in the studio, and as it looks right now there will be a new EP, a follow-up to ‘Nein Danke!’ but that could change, it might turn into a whole album, not sure yet…

Also, if you’re interested in APOP-related re-issues, the debut-album from Cronos Titan, ‘Brides Of Christ’, is also being released on vinyl for the very first time now with a beautifully redesigned sleeve, also by Halvor Bodin. My brother Jonas, who plays synth in APOP, just released the debut album with his project, Piston Damp, which is a superb synthpop album.

We’re also planning to get ‘Harmonizer’, ‘Welcome To Earth’ and ‘7’ out on vinyl again as they’ve been out of print for a long time now. But the pressing plants are jammed up at the moment, and with a six month waiting period to have an album out on vinyl things will take time. Still, we’re continually working on both reissues and new material simultaneously.

S-L: Other things on the calendar now that the corona restrictions are being lifted?

STP: Hopefully things will get back to normal soon, so we can go play live again. We have three shows planned for next year, shows that have been postponed several times already due to the corona situation.
Those are: Subkultfestivalen, Sweden. Månefestivalen, Fredrikstad, Norway and VNV NATION 30, Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
The 2022 dates for Subkultfestivalen and VNV 30 are already posted, but we’re still waiting for Månefestivalen to confirm their date(s) for 2022. Other than that, we won’t be booking any new gigs until we know 100% for sure that the gigs are doable, so we’re basically just “waiting things out” until things are more stable.

The album can be ordered in various markets

Europe > Lo-Fi Merchandise or POPoNAUT
USA/Canada/South-America > The Electric Fox
Norway > Retro Vinyl

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Piston Damp prepare debut album, ‘Making The World Great Again’, for release on June 10th

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Thu, 03 Jun 2021 11:40:48 +0000

Piston Damp, the project of Jonas Groth (Apoptygma Berzerk) and Truls Sønsterud (Tröll) is ready to release a debut album after their 3 singles “Something In Me”, “Loose Ends” and “Runaway” which were released the last 8 months. Their debut album “Making The World Great Again” will be out via Sub Culture Records on June 10th.

The album has been produced by the Danish/Norwegian duo themselves and mixed with their good friend Magne Johansen. It was mastered for digital platforms by Ole-Espen Kristiansen, and for CD and vinyl by Morten Lund. Stephan Groth (Apoptygma Berzerk) contributes on vocoder on one of the songs.

Piston Damp was formed in 2000, but remained a hobby project for 20 years until Jonas wrote the song “Something In Me” in 2020. This became their first single and was remixed by acts like The Anix, Pegboards and Technomancer.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

side-line.com

Apoptygma Berzerk sees most successful album ‘You and Me against the World’ re-released in 3 augmented versions with bonus tracks

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Fri, 21 May 2021 14:16:32 +0000

Out on July 9th via Tatra Records is the re-release of Apoptygma Berzerk’s 2006 album “You and Me against the World” in no less than 3 versions with extra tracks.

“You and Me Against the World” is the fifth studio album from the Norwegian electronic rock music act Apoptygma Berzerk and gave way to a very different sound in the band. Whereas previous records had a more traditional electric synthpop/EBM sound, “You and Me Against the World” features a more mainstream, rock-oriented sound. It’s the band’s most successful album to date.

Released on 3 continents, “You and Me against the World” had a tracklisting which varied on all original CD releases, from territory to territory and contained from 11 (Germany) to 15 (Australia) tracks. On the new 2021 CD edition, for the first time all the hits from this era have been included on one album, including the singles “Cambodia”, “Love to blame”, “Shine on” and “In this Together”. This new remastered CD version comes in all new artwork and contains a number of bonus-tracks, including rare and nowadays impossible to find remixes from long deleted singles.

Next to the CD version there will also be a limited edition of 700 copies on classic black vinyl (2xLP) containing the 15 ‘main’ tracks of the album, divided onto 4 sides. A limited red vinyl will also be available and is strictly limited to 400 copies.

CD Tracks:

Tuning in Again (Intro)
In this Together
Love to blame
Black Pawn
You keep Me from breaking apart
Cambodia
Back on Track
Tuning in to the Frequency of your Soul
Mercy Kill
Lost in Translation
Into the Unknown
Maze
Faceless Fear
Shine on
Is Electronic Love to blame?
Lost in Translation (Sweep Remix)
You keep Me from Breaking apart (…According to Phillip Remix)
Black Pawn (Elec This! Remix)
In this Together (Voltage Controlled Music Remix)

Check out “In this Together”.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

side-line.com

Piston Damp (Apoptygma Berzerk side-project) debuts with 9-track single ‘Something in me’

Jan Ronald Stange — Sun, 11 Oct 2020 18:55:24 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange / Sub Culture Records press release) The Danish/Norwegian duo Piston Damp, currently residing in Sarpsborg, Norway, are releasing their debut single on October 16^th. Have a listen at the first track available at Bandcamp at the bottom here!

The duo consists of Jonas Groth and Truls Sønsterud; Jonas being the singer/songwriter/producer, with more than 20 years’ experience from both stages and studios all over the world, mostly connected to his brother, Stephan’s band, Apoptygma Berzerk. He also has
connections to various other acts like Magenta and The Anix. His production partner is Truls; musical arranger/keyboardist/songwriter, connected to various bands since the late 90’s.

Their new track ‘Something In Me’ was written and recorded this summer, with Stephan Groth serving as pre-production supervisor. It is mixed by Ole-Espen Kristiansen (Elec This!) at STUDIO+/-, and mastered by Carlos Perón (ex-YELLO), at Liquid Gold Mastering.
Something In Me also has a version called Noget I Mig with Danish lyrics, and both versions have several remixes (‘Pegboard Nerds Remix’, ‘The Anix Remix’, ‘Technomancer Remix’, ‘Extended 12”
Remix’, and more…).

Tracklist:

Something In Me
Noget I Mig
Another Pain (Blue Hearts Version)
Something In Me (Pegboard Nerds Remix)
Noget I Mig (Pegboard Nerds Remix)
Something In Me (The Anix Remix)
Something In Me (Technomancer Remix)
Something In Me (Kleinmelker Remix)
9. Something In Me (Extended Remix)

All tracks written by Jonas Groth
Recorded, arranged, produced and programmed by Piston Damp at Brakka Studio, Tveter
All vocals arranged and recorded by Jonas Groth at Love Studio, Greåker
Snare drum on Another Pain by Truls Sønsterud
Tracks 1-3 and 6-9 mastered by Carlos Perón at Liquid Gold Mastering
Tracks 4 and 5 mixed and mastered by Alex “O” at PBN Headquarters, Hamar
Tracks 1-3, 7 & 9 mixed and engineered by Ole-Espen Kristiansen at STUDIO +/-
Track 6 recorded and mixed by The Anix
Track 7 recorded and mixed by Technomancer at The Technomantic Zone
Track 8 recorded and mixed by Kleinmelker
Track 9 remixed by Jonas Groth at Love Studio, Greåker
Final compiling and editing by Tomas Siqveland at Lydmuren. Greåker
Logo and design; Espenoo
Pre-production supervisor; Stephan L. Groth
Production office; Per Aksel Lundgreen
Worldwide digital distribution by Sub Culture Records – “Making everything great again”

UPDATED October 15th: Check their music video!

Something In Me by Piston Damp

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

‘Easy Way Out’ – new video from The Sky’s Gone Out

Jan Ronald Stange — Wed, 24 Jun 2020 18:58:23 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange)
The Sky’s Gone Out, the band from Fredrikstad, Norway, noise-rock w/electronica and goth influences, just released a video for their latest single ‘Easy Way Out’. The band originally started up as The Pussyclub in 2006, always with Jon M. Holm at the helms, and I had a few words with him about the band and this particular video.

Side-Line: Tell us about this release – the song is already a few years old?

Jon M Holm: The video is a last farewell to past times and previous members who have influenced the band, and a welcome to new members Lars Lilleng (bass) and Magnus Skovly (guitar) from the current members Simon H. Hansen and myself.

S-L: The song itself sounds like it continues the legacy of Pussyclub?

JMH: Yep, the noise and fuzz guitars blended with electronica, partly due to a memorable production collaboration with Stephan Groth (Apoptygma Berzerk). The arrival of modular synths will forever mark our musical expression on coming releases and concerts.

S-L: Any other releases, concerts or other plans ahead?

JMH: We consider this video as a warm-up for the release of our next single ‘She’s Dead’ in August, and we’re also planning doing some concerts in September.

Do also check out The Sky’s Gone Out on Spotify!

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

‘Disarm’: Apoptygma Berzerk releases 2nd B-sides and rarities collection

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 22 May 2020 16:30:34 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange. Cover art by Halvor Bodin)
Exactly a month after the previous release ‘Faceless fear‘, Apoptygma Berzerk and Pitch Black Drive Productions followed up on May 1st with another digital compilation, ‘Disarm – A collection of B-Sides & Rarities’. In a busy time working on several projects Stephan Groth found time to elaborate on this release and more, and there’s even releases from his side projects in the pipeline!

Side-Line: The ‘Disarm’ compilation – any major differences as a concept from ‘Faceless Fear’?

Stephan Groth: It is basically the same concept, and a follow up to “Faceless Fear”. We are making rare APOP tracks available on all digital platforms, including the Pitch Black Drive Bandcamp page. We have so many B-sides, rare remixes and even unreleased versions of APOP songs lying around. A while back Per Aksel and I started to compile them and put them together in an album format. Because of the corona virus situation, we finally found the time to realize the project, and we are already working on Vol. 3! 😉

S-L: ‘Kathy’s Song – Litteraturhuset versjon’ is one of the more unexpected tracks here, and as I was present myself the first time it was performed I found it very surprising and pleasing seeing it on the track list.

STP: Yes, the ‘Litteraturhuset versjon’ of ‘Kathy’s Song’ is extremely rare! The song was only performed live once at a very exclusive show in Fredrikstad called “Menneske/Maskin/Musikk”, a concert we did playing only Kraftwerk songs as well as APOP songs in Kraftwerk’ish versions. The ‘Litteraturhuset versjon’ is not a live recording from that show though, but a touched up version of the rehearsal track that Jonas and I would rehearse to before the show.

S-L: The track ‘Disarm’ – never released before, right? Ever played it live?

STP: Correct, it was never released and never played live before.
It was supposed to have been put out many years ago but for some reason it just never happened. So, now was a good time to let people hear it, and the feedback has been great. It seems like people are really appreciating us doing this.

S-L: It took literally just seconds before ‘Disarm’ trumped the original Smashing Pumpkins version IMO. It’s named ‘Alex O. Mix’ – does that imply there’s other versions too? I think the track deserves it’s own single release in multiple versions!

STP: Better than the original, well… I don’t think so, but thanks for the compliment 🙂
It is an amazing song by an amazing band, a song that was very important to me earlier in my life.
There are other versions of Disarm, yes, but I never got around to finish them. Alex Odden (Pegboard Nerds/Drugwar) made this mix years ago, and it only needed a little touch-up before it was ready to be released.

He is an extremely talented producer, someone I will be working more closely with in the future. We just revived our project DRUGWAR, something that you`ll hear more of on the ‘Nein Danke!’ EP, as we did a remix of the song ‘A Battle For The Crown’.

S-L: What’s up next? Lots of plans postponed due to the corona situation?

STP: I have quite a few projects in the works at the moment. I already mentioned Drugwar, and I am also working with Echo Image for some new releases as well as a very interesting project with Mortiis, who I am currently recording with. This project will definitely be on the more experimental side of the electronic music specter, and we will use elements of both bands broad palettes.

There will also be a follow-up EP to the recently digitally released ‘Before You Came Along’ CD-Maxi with Fairlight Children, consisting of previously unreleased mixes from back then, mixes that are way to good to be left on a shelf somewhere.

Now that ‘Rocket Science’ will be released on vinyl for the first time on the same date as the ‘Nein Danke!’ EP, we will also be working on getting ‘You And Me Against The World’ out on 2xLP, hopefully together with yet another brand new EP.
So, we’re not getting bored down here in FRXTA! 😉

Next out is the 12″ and CD of ‘Nein Danke!’ EP, preordering have started in Germany at Poponaut and Infrarot, in US/Canada at The Electric Fox, in Denmark at Braincorp, in Sweden at Hot Stuff, and finally: in Norway at Retro Vinyl in Sarpsborg (phone or e-mail only).
Meanwhile check out the teaser @ Bandcamp!

For more upcoming APOP action:
www.theapboffice.com
www.facebook.com/ApoptygmaBerzerk
www.pitchblackdrive.bandcamp.com

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Nope, this isn’t April fools! Apoptygma Berzerk releases ‘Faceless Fear’ B-sides and rarities collection

Jan Ronald Stange — Wed, 01 Apr 2020 19:47:18 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange. Cover art by Halvor Bodin)
Barely a week before April 1^st Apoptygma Berzerk and Pitch Black Drive Productions announced the digital release of ‘Faceless Fear – A collection of B-Sides & Rarities’, and today we can all get it on lots of platforms!

The name was indeed in touch with the current state of the world – coincidence or not?! I managed to get some background from the henchman of Stephan Groth, the x-member still pushing various buttons: Per Aksel Lundgreen.

Side-Line: This release, or rather the title, seems very current – something you decided recently due to the corona crisis, or had it been named earlier?

Per Aksel: It’s actually been planned for a long time. Before x-mas I put forward three suggestions for compilation albums to Stephan; the first called ‘Faceless Fear (B-Sides & Rarities)’. We also are more or less finished with the tracklisting for Vol 2: ‘Black Pawn (B-Sides & Rarities)’ and Vol 3: ‘Lidelsens Mening (B-Sides & Rarities)’

S-L: So the ‘Nein Danke EP’ has been postponed then?!

PA: Nope, we just squeezed ‘Faceless Fear’ in between other releases. We’re worked long and hard to FINALLY finish the ‘Nein Danke EP’, and also the remastering and cover for the ‘Rocket Science’ LP release. After that we considered the three compilations, and what better title to start off with than ‘Faceless Fear’ in these corona times when most of the world is in a quarantined standstill? At the same time it’s good to present something exciting for the Apop fans these days, trying to be a relief from news and social media packed with fear and sad stories about dead music colleagues.

Get the collection on Bandcamp, iTunes or Amazon, and it’s a also available on Spotify, TIDAL, Deezer, Simfy, Slacker, 7-Digital and other platforms.

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

A peek behind the scenes with Apoptygma Berzerk and collaborators about the making of ‘SDGXXV’

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 05 Apr 2019 17:10:20 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange. Interview photos by Sigrid E. Ø. Reinertsen)
Apoptygma Berzerk, the first leading exporter of electronic music in the synth/EBM genre from Norway, are still celebrating their 25th anniversary for their debut album ‘Soli Deo Gloria’.

This time by releasing a reworked edition named ‘SDGXXV’ – already out on CD and Bandcamp, and also released on several double vinyl versions and streaming platforms April 18th. We’ve gotten some hints about the process the last year, understanding it’s been a hectic year with a lot of collaborators involved, so an interview about this was overdue. As the Apop guys lives on the opposite side of the Oslo fjord than me, we decided to meet in the middle in the ferry town Horten, where we occupied my mothers dining room for a few hours (thanks Mum!).

The release comes out in various versions which can be ordered here: CD Digipak / Tape / Cassette / MC / Two different DOUBLE-VINYL editions.

Side-Line: Was there a plan behind this rework album, and how did you end up with all these tracks and collaborators?

Stephan Groth: The short version was that the 25th anniversary for the ‘Soli Deo Gloria’ (SDG) album last year triggered it. But there’s no short versions anyway for this story, so…. First we wanted to release a 12″ maxi single with two tracks from SDG involving new, relevant musicians we like, to mark the event. This caught momentum, the list of people we wanted to work with grew and now it would be a four track EP. Everyone we asked in this process said yes and was eagerly exited.

Per Aksel Lundgreen: And when we reached 7 or 8 positive answers we decided to do the whole album – all tracks from SDG! And we still had an abundance of collaborators!

Stp: Some tracks are repeated several times on the CD version, and this led to the somewhat thematically splitting of the album, Part I, II and III, in order to distribute the songs a bit and make each part a sub-album/EP that could be listened to by itself. We also ended up in a curious situation regarding our cover of ‘All Tomorrow’s Parties’ – how to make a remix or rework of someone else’s song…?

PA: The funny thing when that situation arose was that we asked Naked Lunch to work on this song – luckily this was a favourite of theirs and the exact song they would have asked for themselves!

Stp: … and it somehow seemed destined to happen. First, we found out a Naked Lunch producer and live member also had a past in the band Sudeten Crèche, which once supported Nico on tour, and she did the vocals in The Velvet Underground’s original version of ‘All Tomorrow’s Parties’. Then we found an old flyer stating Naked Lunch also played with Nico. So there’s a connection there, making this full circle for several involved.

Someone else we must mention is Erik Wøllo, who was a very important part of making SDG in 1992-93. He released several electronic albums in the 80s and 90s before we met him.

PA: The ones on Cicada Records triggered our interest as they were on a sub-label of what was to become Tatra Records, so when we found out he had a synth studio in Fredrikstad we were quick to get in contact with him via mutual connections.

Stp: We ended up in the studio, having him helping us with technical issues and teaching us a lot, also lending us synths, drum machines and other equipment. Having access to three times more synths than we started out with helped shape SDG towards the final result, so having Erik back doing a SDGXXV track was great – and he wasn’t hard to ask either!

Erik, like Beranek and Bal Pare, hadn’t done many (or any) remixes/reworks before, so part of the collaboration became sharing my knowledge of that part of making music with them, as I’ve been doing remixes half my life.
Basically, I told them to think about how you would do this track yourself, in your style or fashion, and still keep the gist of the original.

I’d met Beranek on a few occasions, that excellent Geek Night (#1: SYNTH) at Popsenteret and a NOTAM synth meet-up, and we started thinking about doing something together.

PA: As a lead up to Stephans first meeting with Beranek it’s also worth mentioning that when Beranek curated the Norwegian Spotify list ’20+5′, where artists picks 20 favourite Norwegian tracks and 5 of their own, Beranek chose TWO Apoptygma Berzerk tracks. So, we knew already then he was a fan, and he later confirmed that at a record signing session, stating “it was to emphasize the seriousness of the situation – this is some of the best music made in Norway!”.
[Check out the list here!]

Stp: I grew up in Denmark and never got the initial buzz of Beraneks breakthrough single ‘Dra til hælvete’, which cause a lot of fuss and were banished from Norwegian radio in the 80s. Hearing it years later, I was yearning to do a remix for it, but Todd Terje beat me to it. As I considered Beraneks debut album as the first Norwegian synth album, and I’m a fan, it made sense to invite him to collaborate on SDGXXV.
‘Arp’ was one of the tracks not picked yet when Beranek was to be invited, and after I’ve listened to Beraneks album ‘Sound of danger’ on vinyl I accidentally had the record player set to 45 RPM, not 33 RPM, when I wanted to hear ‘Can’t go to sleep’. That gave me some ideas which I pitched to Beranek, and a week later I got his beautiful version in return.

The whole album was made this way, not just as another remix album, but more like reworking the tracks with others, me contributing more than in usual remix settings, so we have deliberately avoided using the work “remix” at all for this project.

PA: And “rework” is definitely fitting, because about 50% of the old tapes and discs were unusable, some even found moldy after being stored in lofts and cellars for years, so a lot had to be re-created.

Stp: The earliest work was made on Atari floppies and cassette tapes, maybe a DAT for the final masters, media not so easy to access in this digital age. Combined with several relocations and storing this in various environments we found a lot had to be made from scratch again, borrowing samplers, trying to read old diskettes and so on. And even the vocals had to be redone, and as I wasn’t an English professor 25 years ago, I also had to recreate grammatical errors, making it as true to the original as possible.

PA: There was lots of feedback going back and forth to the collaborators, something that became a fun part of the project, seeing the music making evolve like this.

Stp: … and that’s also why it took so long to finish! Adding to the process itself, much of the people involved aren’t exactly your average people , so it was sometimes demanding to incorporate everyone’s working methods, available hours etc.

S-L: When and how did this project start?

Stp: I know exactly when: It started in January 2018, when Ole-Espen had booked Ancient Methods to play at The Villa in Oslo. I remembered seeing them streamed live from a Boiler Room event in Berlin, mixing hard techno with old EBM, something that made a lot of sense to me. I wanted to have an Ancient Methods remix, and during an Indian dinner I explained my ideas, something Michael Wollenhaupt really turned on to. That was the first confirmed collaborator for SDGXXV.

PA: Then we thought about asking The Invincible Spirit, I sent an e-mail to Thomas Lüdke, got a positive reply, and from that point on the ball really got rolling.

Stp: After that it’s been a lot of work – music, the cover, everything – more or less a year.

PA: Another special thing for us regarding the 25th anniversary is how some parts around us haven’t changed; Tatra Records are involved again, both with the SDG re-issue and SDGXXV, just as they were with the original 25 years ago. Halvor Bodin, the designer of the original cover, worked with us on the new cover too. Morten Lund from Masterhuset did the mastering yet again, Erik Wællo got involved again, and of course Stephan and I are still here. A reunion bringing us all together again!

Stp: Yes, that really brought forward a kind of trueness that made the whole project feel even more “right” for all of us. As SDG was the first Norwegian EBM record, which opened a lot of doors for other Norwegian bands, doing this now felt important. But it’s also been a tiresome process that I don’t see myself repeating anytime soon, so don’t expect a the same treatment for ‘7’ 😉

PA: We paved way for others with SDG, making Norwegian bands eligible for records companies, distributors, concert promotors and so on, in a time where electronic music wasn’t very appreciated. We had some backing from people in the Norwegian music industry. Worth mentioning among these are Helge Gaarder, a musician who also distributed money from Rikskonsertene, which made it possible for us to have our first concerts.

Stp: Someone else we hold in high regards is Arvid Skancke-Knutsen, a music journalist who’s been writing about us from the very start – and even had an extensive review of our first maxi single!

S-L: Any favorites among the tracks?

Stp: … that’s a hard one -– there are favorites all over the place! The Beranek version of ‘Arp’ is just so beautiful, Ancient Methods’ ‘Burning Heretic’ is outstanding, and Bal Pare’s ‘Ashes To Ashes’ is insane – so far from the original in the minimal wave soundscape. But really, I’m so happy with all the tracks, couldn’t ask for anything better.

PA: What I found exiting is that Alex Dahl from Atropine, when asked which track he’d like to work in, answered ‘Borrowed Time’, which isn’t even on the album, but as the B-side of the ‘Bitch’ single. His version really blew me away!

Stp: Alex is a genius – amazingly good at what he does, and I think he’s not getting the credit he deserves in Norway.

S-L: How has the interest for SDGXXV been so far?

PA: SDG have had several reissues, but always on CD, so having it on vinyl now is long overdue. Pre-sales have been OK, but can’t really tell before after the release April 18th. Check the links below to get your copy!

Stp: Next up is my very delayed “normal” studio album, which has been put on hold for years now. Partly due to personal reasons, but also some musical reasons, which led to the “Exit Popularity Contest” album, something I needed to do to get back to my roots. And finally, this project, which really grew beyond expectations – from a couple of tracks to an four track EP, and finally an extensive album. The songs for the next album are written, some new inputs need to be digested into what kind of music I want to play. Both of my latest releases give hints of my future direction, going back to the more analogue roots of the music I like, using many of the same instruments as my heroes from the 70s. I’m very thankful now that I’ve hoarded synths for the past 30 years!

After hearing Stephans and Per Aksels stories about the making of SDGXXV, inputs from some of the collaborators felt natural to include here.
Say what you want about Facebook, but undeniable a great place to get in touch with people. I sent some messages asking about their relationship or history with Apop, also about the process and collaboration with Stephan on this project, and got great responses in return!

Espen Beranek: ARP (No Sleep Mix by Beranek)

I’ve been a longtime fan of Apop, and was very flattered to be asked for a contribution on SGDXXV.

I got both audio and MIDI stems from Stephan, and he told me I was free to change both pitch and tempo if I wanted to. I (and Stephan too I think) wanted to tint this version with some tonal colours from my early works. I therefore started to experiment with the MIDI stems together with my old non-midi equipment like the Korg KR55 rhythm box and my old trusty PE-1000. It became obvious to me that I needed to slow down the pace in the song in order to make space for my tonal intentions. After hearing my first edit Stephan got inspired and he sent me some fresh vocal tracks with some spacey effects. They fitted in perfectly and from there on it was kind of a simple edit/mix job.

Tony Mayo, Naked Lunch: All Tomorrow`s Parties (Evolve Or Die Mix by Naked Lunch)

We have been FB friends with Stephan for several years and not only have we known Per, (an original Apop member) for years, we have met him in person, and he was our tour manager when we toured with Covenant in 2015. Per is a personal and professional friend.

Per got in touch and asked if we would do a remix for the album and gave us a choice of which track to do. We are massive Velvet Underground fans, loved the Apop cover, and reworking ‘All Tomorrows Parties’ was a work of love for us. Funnily enough, back in the 80’s, within a few days of Naked Lunch headlining the Venue in Victoria, both Nico and John Cale headlined on separate nights too.

Håvard Ellefsen, Mortiis: Walk With Me (FRXTA Skyline Mix by Mortiis)

I´ve had some collaborations with Stephan from time to time since 2003 or so, and it´s always been a pleasure. He´s got this high energy approach to music that I really like.
Of course, since we live on the same street, he knew I´d burn his house down if he didn´t include me on this album. Haha!

Jarle Hansen, Substaat: Bitch (Weil Mix by Substaat)

I didn’t discover Apop until I heard ‘Kathy’s Song’ on Norwegian radio, even though I lived only 30 km away or so. It was a great experience to discover that “this sound” had survived through the harsh conditions of the 90s, when a lot of my favorite bands turned industrial, rock or techno. Apop has been a great influence both for the sound and for the strong melodies since.

I was told that we were asked to do this collaboration with Apop because Stephan liked our version of ‘Circling Overland’. He liked that old school sound in a modern production. We had a close communication and ideas were sent back and forth. Besides vocal, Stephan contributed with the cold industrial choir and the vocoded voice rumbling in the background – and, of course, general “guidance”. Anyone knowing Stephan, knows that nothing is left to chance.

alx, Atropine: Borrowed Time (Sublime Mix by Atropine)

The story behind the remix of ‘Borrowed time’ goes back to 1991 when I was working on various projects and we listened to Stephan’s 1st release ‘Ashes to ashes’. We played that record to dust. Later came the single ‘Bitch’. ‘Borrowed Time’ was my favorite on that release, I was thrilled to be able to remix that particular song since I think it’s one of the best songs from that period, and it only exists on that single. Stephan was for a period having a studio next door in Oslo, and that’s how I got to know him.

When I received the file it was only as a mp3. I wasn’t able to work with that, so in order to make the remix I had to recreate the song again from scratch. I recorded the exact song, and Stephan had to sing on it again and record the vocals. Once the song was recreated in its original form I could finally start to take it apart again and add my personal musical view to it. While Stephan gave some musical input during the process I often decided to do the opposite – and he even liked it much better! We had good communication during the process, and I ended up sending 2 different versions.

Steven R. Sellick: Like Blood From The Beloved (Part 1) (Interpreted by Steven R. Sellick)

I moved to the synth capital of Norway, Fredrikstad, in ’92. Stephan worked at a record store 3 minutes from my flat, and we soon bonded over our mutual love for shoegaze and synth music.
We also shared a fondness for beer and dancing to 2 Unlimited in crappy discos. I remember him working on Soli Deo Gloria, I loved listening to the tracks as they evolved.

Stephan approached me and told about his idea for SDGXXV. I was honored to be asked, and I especially liked the fact that he wasn’t looking for a remix. He gave me a bunch of old midi files and I re-recorded and re-arranged the track using old synths and drum machines. He wanted a certain German vibe and I think we nailed it.

Ole-Espen Kristiansen: Stitch (Patched & Processed by O/E)

I met STP around 12 years ago, we have become very close friends and work partners. We have the exactly same taste and understanding of electronic music and music in general so we work very good together creatively. The story in a whole is way too long…

I chose ‘Stitch’ to remix since I love the bassline and vibe in the original track. I wanted to do a more modern club friendly version, but still keep some of the “old school” Apop vibe to it. A lot of the noisy atmos and effect loops in the track are heavy processed parts from an 128k MP3 file of the original track.
Besides that STP and I had close talks through the whole process with compiling the album, adjusting some mixes, some mastering details etc.

As music journalist Arvid Skancke-Knutsen also was mentioned as being there from the very start, his input would be a perfect closing to this story.

Arvid:

I was working at the Norwegian music monthly Puls Magazine at the time. I was probably the first mainstream writer to pay them any attention, in connection with the release of the ‘Ashes To Ashes’ twelve inch. I liked their attitude and their enthusiasm, and also truly enjoyed the music itself, which was very original and energetic compared to the music scene in Norway. Since then I have been following them pretty closely, enjoying many records and concerts along the way.

Apop is also very present on the net and digital platforms – choose your poison! 🙂

Homepage / Bandcamp#1 / Bandcamp#2 / European Webstore / US Webstore / Songkick (Tourdates) / Spotify / iTunes / Instagram / Twitter / YouTube

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Apoptygma Berzerk – Soli Deo Gloria / 25th Anniversary Edition (CD Album – Artoffact Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Thu, 31 Jan 2019 19:30:16 +0000

Genre/Influences: EBM, body-pop.

Background/Info: Apoptygma Berzerk was founded in 1989 by Stephan Groth and Jon Erik Martinsen. Stephan Groth remained the creative force behind the Norwegian band while Martinsen left the band and got involved in Sweep. The EP “The 2^nd Manifesto” (1992) was my personal introduction to Apoptygma Berzerk and I directly noticed this band had something ‘different’. The debut full length “Soli Deo Gloria” released in 1993 on Tatra only confirmed the strong potential, which never stopped to grow. We last year celebrated the 25^th anniversary of this phenomenal debut album. The album got remastered, bonus tracks were added and a new layout has been conceived.

Content: We have to go back in time and realize this work was originally released in 1993. The impact and influence of the 80s was still very present. Apoptygma Berzerk sounded like a project that came to break all codes and rules. The sound had something EBM-like, was pretty melodic, sometimes empowered by guitar parts and carried by the charismatic and naturally powerful vocals of Stephan Groth. The early hits “Bitch”, “Burnin’ Heretic”, “Stitch” and “Spiritual Reality” remain class tracks and are still 25 years later very efficient.

The bonus tracks mainly reveal alternative versions and two remixes.

+ + + : Apoptygma Berzerk created a very own style, which has always been different from other bands. It’s one of the very few early electro-underground formations, which you couldn’t compare to other formations, but Apoptygma Berzerk has been a great source of inspiration for copyists. This album hasn’t really lost its initial magic –especially the most famous cuts. It remains a powerful, well-crafted and danceable release. The passionate vocals of Stephan Groth did the rest!

– – – : The bonus disc is not exactly what I would call ‘successful’! I don’t know if that’s the reason why a new version of this ‘25^th anniversary’ is planned early 2019 with remixes made by other band?!

Conclusion: Apoptygma Berzerk put Norway on the map of the electro-underground scene and this album definitely was the main instigator.

Best songs: “Bitch”, “Burnin’ Heretic – Album Version”, “Stitch”, “Spiritual Reality”, “Skyscraping – Schizophreniac”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www .theapboffice .com / www .facebook .com /ApoptygmaBerzerk

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

Double interview: Alex Møklebust (Zeromancer/Seigmen) and Stephan Groth (Apoptygma Berzerk) about remixing

Jan Ronald Stange — Tue, 16 Oct 2018 19:38:32 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange) In the aftermath of the Electro Spectre remix contest, I had a chat with one of the remixers about… remixing! SnifferGod, aka Alex Møklebust from Zeromancer and Seigmen, produced one of the best remixes of the 20-something tracks that Electro Spectre received, and I thought it would be interesting to hear what he had to say about remixing in general, the creative process behind, his analogue gear, and other things related to remixing other peoples music.

As I was working on this interview, I was tipped that another fellow Norwegian musician, also probably most known abroad, had recently done a couple of remixes himself. Read what Stephan Groth, the main force behind Apoptygma Berzerk, had to say about remixing after Alex’ part.

Side-Line: What’s your incentive for remixing?

Alex: The main – and fun! – thing about remixing is the freedom to do what you want! And most times there’s no high pressure to deliver, but with everything else going on at the same time one usually ends up feeling there’s little time to do it anyway. On this particular occasion I did it all by myself, often I remix as Zeromancer and are joined by one or two of the other guys, adding a guitar, bass or something else to make a recognizable connection to the Zeromancer sound.

S-L: When starting a remix you are receiving the original version – do you often listen to it and immediately thinks “I would’ve done this and that different”?

A: No, not really, I don’t think as a producer when starting a remix, not thinking about arrangements. Its more about breaking all the rules, but if course there’s one exception to breaking the rules; if its destined for radio there’s considerations to be made. If I’d had more time on this particular remix I’d make it longer. I’m 47 years old, grew up when the 12” singles started arriving with those extended versions and long remixes of songs.

The first thing I do is to listen to the various part of the track, to hear if a verse, refrain, bridge or an interlude triggers something I want to work with and program my own version from. What I kept from the original (except the vocal) is their pad, but made it a bit thinner, and I used a melody line underneath my own too.
Then I started with the bass and drums, and work on a sequence until I need another part to build on. Usually I get an idea from a sound I get a kick off and build on that, sometimes I import all the stems (separate sound files of vocals, bass, drums, etc) and search for ideas there, but that often depends of what I actually receive. Some send all the files of the track, some just the vocal.

S-L: You asked for the vocal stems without any effects for your version of the Electro Spectre remix – why?

A: I wanted to make a hall reverb effect on the vocal myself and pitch it higher, so it was easier for me to that with the raw vocal, and added some vocoder too at the start. I also like it a bit dirty, so there several noisy elements added.
The arrangement comes later; first I have bits and pieces of ideas for verses and refrains, moving them back and forth until I find what’ll move the track forward.

I use a lot of modular synths, and also some soft synths – depending on what’ll fit the track. But of course, working with the modular synth are always more fun, even playful. Sometimes I wish I had an education within low current electricity, maybe still not to late? Then I could’ve fixed synths when they break, and thus be able to spend even more time nerding with them.

S-L: Are there any configurations or settings on your synths that you have kept, thinking “this is for Zeromancer” or something else?

A: No, I mostly use the modular synths for ideas and random stuff to add some mobility to other sounds using filters and so on. Fiddling about with my modular gear is often a big part of getting inspiration, both when doing remixes and getting ideas for new songs, even without a plan you get results.
The most important parts when remixing: don’t assume its to be played on the radio or try to make it that way, don’t lose that boy-in-the-bedroom feeling – and keep it fun!

S-L: You also been busy with producing and mixing Ljungblut recently?

A: Yes, I’ve been recording them during live sessions, did some overdub afterwards and then mixed the upcoming album this summer. Will also be doing some programming for other artists in the coming months. Not yet decided what to do with Zeromancer after Dan have left, started on some new songs, but put them on pause, the same with the announced new single that was supposed to be releases in 2018.

For those who still haven’t heard this gem of a remix – here it is with the rest of the EP:

Sniffergod/Zeromancer remixes available on Spotify right now:

Stephan Groth also had a lot of thoughts about remixing:

S-L: What’s your main driving force for doing remixes?

Stp: I always enjoyed remixing. It is a lot of fun, as well as a great promotion tool. I experiment a lot when remixing, testing out new hardware and software, new styles, grooves, sounds and techniques that I will later integrate in my own songs.

S-L: When starting a remix you are receiving the original version – do you often listen to it and immediately thinks “I would’ve done this and that different”? Or consider other options?

Stp: Yes, I instantly hear If I can make the song “better” or make a different and interesting version or not. If I don’t get ideas right away, after listening to the song once or twice, I rather not remix the track.
My approach to remixing was always trying to make the song “mine” in a way. I`ll try to rearrange the song so that it sounds like it’s an APOP song. I want to leave my vibe/feel all over it, and hopefully create something that is unique and interesting. When remixes are too close to the original it often gets boring, unless it adds something unique that the original version lacked.

S-L: You ever add own voices or other elements instead of or in addition to the original stems/raw material?

Stp: Yes! I try to add as many of my own elements as possible, and try to use as few of the original sounds as possible. Normally I only keep the vocals and other important lead elements. I record my own vocals quite often as well, but most of the time I “cover them up” or bury them in the mix so that no one can really tell. I do this only if
I want to add certain harmonies, or if I feel that the vocal arrangement is lacking something.

S-L: What gear do you use? PC, Mac, software, (modular) synths, other stuff?

Stp: I have always only used Mac, except for in the very beginning when I used Atari. I am using Cubase and a few soft-synths and samplers, but 90% of what you hear in an APOP remix is from my modular synths and from my analog hardware synths. I used to use soft-synths a lot back when they were new and exciting, but I have a very nice collection of vintage synths, so I rather use them.

S-L: Are there any configurations or settings on your gear/synths that you have kept, thinking “this is for an Apop remix”, “this is for an Apop track”, or something else?

Stp: I used to never save my presets, because I did not want to use the same sounds again and again. That has changed over the years, lol!
I guess I have gotten more lazy with age.

S-L: What’s your most recent remixes?

Stp: Mortiis – “Sins of Mine”, Page – “Krasch”, Machinista – “Dark Heart of Me” and Peter Heppner – “All Is Shadow” (all included in the playlist below).

S-L: And what’s your all time favorite remixes, both your own and others?

Stp: I think the remix I did for Tobias Bernstrup, “Moments Lost (Apoptygma Berzerk remix)” turned out really good, and then there is an old remix that I did on an Icon Of Coil song called “Repeat It” that I think really stood the test of time.

One of my all-time favorite remixes is Hardfloor’s remix of Mory Kante’s “Yeke Yeke” – the perfect remix!

While we are on the subject of remixes and collaborations… I would like to mention our upcoming 2xLP/CD/Cassette release “SDGXXV” that will be out spring 2019 via Tatra Records and Artoffact Records. The album is almost done, and it will feature remixes and collaborations with electronic acts and artists that I admire.
As soon as we have a release date planned, we’ll give you all the names of the bands involved, but for now, that’s all I can tell you 🙂

Listen to a lot Apop remixes here – thanx to Per Aksel Lundgreen for adding to my list!

For more on seigmen, see Seigmen crowdfunding exceeds all expectations – 102% funded in just 4… on Side-Line.

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Apoptygma Berzerk double release for the 25th anniversary of ‘Soli Deo Gloria’

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 10 Aug 2018 18:00:30 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange)

In 1993 Apoptygma Berzerk released the very first Norwegian EBM album, “Soli Deo Gloria”. It didn’t only spark an interest outside of Norway, this seminal classic inspired many Norwegian bands to start their own careers, and contributed in bringing Norwegian electronic music out beyond the borders of the country.

11/11/18, exactly 25 years after the original release, “Soli Deo Gloria” will be reissued on LP with the original 13 tracks, remastered for vinyl from the original tapes for the very first time (available here), giving the listener a more detailed, dynamic and true listening experience. The CD version will include seven bonus tracks, four of them previously unreleased – more details in the track list below.

The 25th. Anniversary Reissue was remastered for vinyl and CD by Morten Lund, the man behind the original CD mastering back in 1993. The LP and CD design are done by Halvor Bodin, who also did the original CD design back in 1993. In Europe the LP and CD will be released by Tatra Records, who released the original album back in 1993. And finally – at the heart of it all – you still have Stephan Groth and Per Aksel Lundgreen, the two guys who made it all happen back in 1993!

On top of this classic album reissue, Stephan wanted to celebrate the 25th anniversary with friends, bands that had inspired him, and both old and new musical heroes. First off a reworked 12” with four tracks from “Soli Deo Gloria” was planned, but in true APOP style where nothing is done half-way, this soon expanded to re-record/rework/remix the entire album with the help of other artists! The result is “SDGXXV”, a 2 x LP/CD/Cassette to be released early 2019 by Tatra Records/Rough Trade for Europe and Artoffact Records for Canada/USA. More info, track listing and details about bands involved coming soon!

The initial 300 albums from Tatra Records will be pressed in purple vinyl and include a poster from the release party held 11/11/93, while the following pressings will be on black vinyl. The Artoffact Records editions will come in two marbled vinyl versions: a black/transparent and a purple/transparent, the amount not yet decided.

LP track list, mastered for vinyl from the original tapes, July 2018:

A
Like Blood From The Beloved (Part 1)
Bitch
Burnin’ Heretic (Album Version)
Stitch
Walk With Me
Backdraft
ARP (808 Edit)

B
Spiritual Reality
Skyscraping (Schizophreniac)
All Tomorrows Parties
The Sentinel
Ashes To Ashes ’93
Like Blood From The Beloved (Part 2)

CD track list, remastered for vinyl from the original tapes, July 2018:

1. Like Blood From The Beloved (Part 1)
2. Bitch
3. Burnin’ Heretic (Album Version)
4. Stitch
5. Walk With Me
6. Backdraft
7. ARP (808 Edit)
8. Spiritual Reality
9. Skyscraping (Schizophreniac)
10. All Tomorrows Parties
11. The Sentinel
12. Ashes To Ashes ’93
13. Like Blood From The Beloved (Part 2)

Bonus tracks:

14 – Borrowed Time (Club Mix)
15 – Burning Heretic (Crisp Version)
16 – The Sentinel (Nun Of Your Business Version by Blackhouse)
17 – Ashes To Ashes (Guitar Version)
18 – ARP
19 – Ashes To Ashes (4-Track Version)
20 – Backdraft (Sarpsborg Synth Version)

Borrowed Time (Club Mix) and Burning Heretic (Crisp Version) have previously been released on the “Sex, Drugs & EBM” compilation (TATCD 007), but are remastered for the 2018 CD release. The same applies to ARP, previously published on “The Apopcalyptic Manifesto” (TATCD 039).

“Ashes To Ashes (Guitar Version)” was recorded at the same time as “Soli Deo Gloria”, but at that time it was decided to go for “Ashes To Ashes ’93” on the album, a version without guitar. The “Guitar Version” has never been published before. The same goes for to “Ashes To Ashes (4-Track Version)”, a demo version of “Ashes To Ashes” from the time between “Victims of Mutilation” and the original “Ashes To Ashes” 12 “version.

“The Sentinel” is remixed by Blackhouse in July 2018, and “Backdraft (Sarpsborg Synth Version)” is remixed by Technomancer feat. Angst Pop in July 2018.

The LP and CD reissues of “Soli Deo Gloria” will be available via Tatra Records/Rough Trade in Europe, and via Artoffact Records in USA/Canada. Pre-sales will start August 10th 2018 via Lo-Fi Merchandise for Europe (CD | LP) and Storming The Base for Canada/USA.

PS! It’s August 10th today – happy birthday, Stephan! 😀

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Technomancer releases ‘The Outsider’ EP with Apoptygma Berzerk and Angst Pop joining in Depeche Mode cover song

Jan Ronald Stange — Mon, 02 Jul 2018 16:01:36 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange)

The Norwegian futurepop and EBM act Technomancer, fronted and produced by Alyxx J. Digre, releases ‘The Outsider’ EP both on Bandcamp and Spotify, paying tribute to songs from Depeche Mode, Psyche, Ultravox and Rational Youth. Joining in on the Depeche Mode cover song ‘Puppets” are both Angst Pop (Per Aksel Lundgreen) and Stephan Groth (Apoptygma Berserk), making this collaboration one of the best Norwegian efforts to do a Depeche Mode cover… ever?

All songs produced by Technomancer and Per Aksel Lundgreen a.k.a. Angst Pop. ‘Puppets’ co-produced by Stephan Groth / Apoptygma Berzerk. Backing vocals and MS-20 synths on ‘Puppets’ by Stephan Groth. Backing vocals on ‘I’ve Got A Sister In The Navy’ by Per Aksel Lundgreen.

Buy and listen:

https://technomancer.bandcamp.com/album/the-outsider-ep

Side-Line also covered Depeche Mode’s ‘s ’.

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Page releases EP “Start”, includes Apoptygma Berzerk remix

Jan Ronald Stange — Fri, 15 Jun 2018 17:52:17 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange) Swedish electropop band Page releases their EP “Start” June 29th (July 6th in Sweden), consisting of three new songs and a remix of “Krasch” by Norwegian colleague Stephan Groth of Apoptygma Berzerk. The long-time Side-Line friend Per Aksel Lundgreen tipped me about this release, and after doing a parallel e-mail interview with both Eddie Bengtsson of Page and Stephan the result show a collaboration of mutual admiration and respect across the Norwegian-Swedish border, and maybe also something else down the road… Check out the teaser video of the EP after the interview. First Eddie starts with how this came about: Eddie: This summer Page is going to release a new EP, and on that release there is a very nice redux made by Stephen Groth. Its an redux of the Page song “Krasch”. Side-Line: What’s your relation to each other prior to this collaboration? Just heard the music, been at live shows, been touring/played together or something else? Eddie: I have always known what and who Apoptygma Berzerk was, but I was never interested in their music. The first time I heard them it sounded EBM to me, and that was it, I never listened again. I understand now that Apop has done many different things, ranging from EBM to electronic pop to indietronica, and some of that are really, really good. Last spring I got Apoptygma’s new album from Per Aksel Lundgreen. It was a gift and I said “thank you very much”, and at the same time I thought “I’m never going to listen to this”. This was during Electronic Summer in Gothenburg, and on the way home I thought “what the heck”, and put the CD in my car CD-player… The first seconds of the first song made me think “Ah, now they have gone Industrial Noise”. And then, “Oh My God!” Here came the most wonderful retro vintage electronica I have (almost) ever heard. Fantastic! It brought tears to my eyes, and I’m not kidding about that. That someone can make electronic music like that these days, I just didn’t believe. It was the best electronic (and any) album that I heard 2017. And one of the sweetest electronica album I have ever heard, and that says a lot. Just wonderful. It made me believe in modern electronic music again, in a time when most of it is junk. It also made me think that synthesizers still CAN be cool in a time when its mostly not. Stephan: I grew up in Denmark, and moved to Norway in 1987, so I never heard of PAGE living in DK. It was not until I heard their self-titled compilation “PAGE” that came out in 1992 on Energy Rekords that I really discovered them. I was working in a record shop at the time and immediately bought a copy of it on LP. I still have it in my collection and I also frequently give it a spin, as it’s classic synthpop at it’s best! S-L: Per Aksel mentioned something about «Swedisch Norwegische Freundschaft» – a label, project name or what?? Stp: This was just a joke, but it’s cool to cooperate with Swedish musicians, as they have a completely different approach and tradition when it comes to electronic music compared to Norway and Denmark. Also, there’s always been close connections between the synth scene in Sweden and the one in Østfold. We had Pouppee Fabrikk, Elegant Machinery, S.P.O.C.K, Inside Treatment, COMP C3 and Political Assasination over here in Fredrikstad already in the early 1990’s, and the 3 first Apoptygma Berzerk shows was together with Swedish bands. Eddie: I think that he said that as a joke. But at the same time, it could be something that could be reality in the future. S-L: Stephan, whats your role in this release? Stp: I was asked to do a remix for Page, and Eddie sent me the track “Krasch”. I’ve have added an APOP-touch to the track in the remix, as I felt there was no point in making an “early 80’s type mix”, because Eddie’s already the master of this. So I pushed it more in the direction of a sound that appeared later that decade. S-L: Plans for more? Releases of this kind, other collaborations etc.? Eddie: I’m open for that, yes. Stp: I would love to do more musical collaboration with Eddie, and hopefully even gigs together! We’ve been talking about doing a gig together in Norway, bringing Page over here for the first time, and we’d of course love to come and play with them in Sweden too! S-L: Other events/plans for Page and/or yourself this year? Eddie: No, not really. We are planning to go to London for a show, and it would be nice to play in Norway too – long time since last time! Maybe together with Apop? Stp: Currently I’m working on a new APOP studio-album that I hope to finish this year, where I go and explore my electronic pop roots. Also, a couple of gigs are booked for this summer in Poland (Castle Party) and in Germany (M’era Luna). There’s also a couple of other gigs currently in the making, but not 100% confirmed yet. When you’re reading this, we’re also launching an official APOP web-store in the US. On top of this, our debut album, “Soli Deo Gloria” has it’s 25th Anniversary this year, so we’ve got some ideas and thoughts on how to celebrate this, but maybe we can discuss this at a later stage? 😉 “Start” @ Spotify: Teaser video for “Start” EP:

Read the review of ‘Start’.

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

for all the emptiness launch video of ‘Hearts against minds’ + behind-the-scenes footage

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Mon, 18 Sep 2017 13:00:29 +0000

Toronto-based industrial/synthpop band for all the emptiness has been releasing one video each day on Facebook during the past week containing behind-the-scenes footage from their “Hearts against minds” video which you can watch below!

The video was shot on-site at multiple locations in Nevada during a fierce wind storm, making some of the shots difficult at first. But the band and production company used the wind to their advantage so it seems. Jonathan Kaplan of for all the emptiness: “We worked with a local production company, who assisted with the entire production. From concept to the final cut.” In short, the video follows the story of a world of people trapped within themselves, struggling, in pain, and wanting to break free.

In the video, the walls of the set are covered with newspapers with headlines and photos of war and horrible crimes, and mindless “drones” in military camouflage. The intent is to change hearts and minds to end such things, symbolized, as the song progresses, by the newspapers being taken down.

for all the emptiness is also preparing to release a remix version of their EP titled “mt repeat”. The album contains 5 remixes from well-known artists including Apoptygma Berzerk, Aesthetic Perfection, Neuroticfish, Laetherstrip, and Sebastian from Icon of Coil.

for all the emptiness originally started as an idea by vocalist/composer Jonathan Kaplan after viewing Apoptygma Berzerk’s live DVD “apbl98” and seeing frontman Stephan Groth go into the crowd after a performance. In 2011 they released their debut album “axioms”. It was produced by Yone Dudas of Decoded Feedback. In 2012, a remix version of “axioms” was released featuring remixes by Assemblage 23, Beborn Beton, Decoded Feedback and more. To help promote the release they went on a North American tour with artists Die Sektor, The Gothsicles, and Deviant UK.

For more information, please visit the band’s official website.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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Stephan Groth of Apoptygma Berzerk on Spotify vs. vinyl, his inspirations and the new alter ego ♠TP

Jan Ronald Stange — Tue, 01 Nov 2016 21:33:42 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange. Photos by Tarjei Krogh and Jan Ronald Stange)

An extensive interview with Stephan Groth of Apoptygma Berzerk, about the “Exit Popularity Contest” album release, that’s what we were after and that is what we got! We were accompanied by Per Aksel Lundgreen (ex-member of Apop, currently aiding with the marketing), at Per Aksel’s workplace, the amazingly stuffed Retro Vinyl og CD (recordstore) in Sarpsborg, Norway (September 29th 2016). Note that the album will only be available in physical formats, so get your copy of the very limited cassette, CD or vinyl right here!

SL: What is the background for issuing three 12’’ and finally an album instead of a more usual Apoptygma Berzerk studio album?

Stephan: At the time I started on “Stop feeding the beast” about three years ago, I was in a bubble listening to John Carpenter and similar music, and I wanted to make the same kind of music. I was also somewhat in limbo regarding a new Apop album. I had worked on it for many years already, but both a lack of motivation and a viable alternative from the record industry has made it hard to complete.

SL: You have been critical of Spotify and the use of new media by the music industry?

Yes and no. As an alternative to radio and mixtapes, or as a promotion tool, Spotify is ok. But when is replaces a physical release, that’s when I say “no, no, that does not work!” I find it horrific and sad that today’s kids can’t experience the joy and curiosity of physical releases; to enter a record shop, hold the release in their hands, see the artist photos, read the cover to see who has worked with the music. At the end of the 80s, there were six record shops in Fredrikstad; now there’s just one left in the next city, and that’s where we are now! That’s where we met and discussed music. The physical experience, finding and discovering new music is no longer possible.

And that was much of the idea behind “Stop feeding the beast”. The release should be just like when synth music was released on vinyl, and only available on a physical format, and in limited editions. I wanted to do something exclusive, and it worked well. It culminated with the twelve-inches “Videodrome” and “Xenogenesis”. Then everybody thought it was awesome, and wanted releases on CD, Spotify, etc. But I draw the line at Spotify. I dig vinyl the most, but am also fan of CDs, which is a fantastic format with great sound. My deliberate choice to listen to and buy vinyl again was also part of what started these EPs – to bring back that feeling of how it used to be, the ritual of dusting off the record, turn it half way through, move the needle, and all the other physical things you must do to listen to music.

I have been carried away, raiding second-hand markets, where I always make sure to get at least ONE record I haven’t heard of before. It is okay to discover new stuff on YouTube, but nothing beats the feeling of coming home and playing something you have found on a fleamarket in Sweden. My record collection has tripled in size the past years!

The thought behind limited edition vinyl records was for it to be a small piece of art, something to touch and feel, something that still has value. I too don’t believe that giving away an MP3 file in exchange for an email address is a good promo strategy. The relationship between the value of the music and the “payment” of an email address makes no sense. With a limited edition vinyl record, with extras, such as magnets, flexidiscs and more included, you are guaranteed that the value will not decrease, making it an investment for the buyer. You purchase something of value, to hang on the wall, and which can be resold without a loss. And something more “real” seems more fair to the hardcore fans than an MP3 file, which is worthless.

One thing followed the other during this process, and not until I was almost done with «Xenogenesis» did I realize that everything fit together. I had to sit down with Halvor Bodin (cover designer) to see how we could make it all work in a trilogy format.

With hindsight, I think we’ll find that releasing an album incrementally like this was smart. There was a certain crowdfunding-feel about it, without being crowdfunded. In a way, you are working with the inner core of fans, who get the music early, while the rest read about it and look forward to the CD release. And, nothing has been leaked!

SL: How has this been of inspriration to others?

I’ve had several inquiries from other bands about the equipment and instruments that I use, and how the process has been. It seems I have ignited inspiration in bands in several countries. I too have been inspired lately. I mentioned John Carpenter, and I was lucky to see him live a couple of months ago. And we had Kraftwerk visiting Den Norske Opera in August – 8 concerts in 4 days, more than they had previously played in Norway in the past 25 years.

There are also some old TV series that reuse old sounds, which inspire even further, such as “Stranger Things”. And “The Knick” has an 80s modular, futuristic soundscape. The recent popularity of these series could mean people are interested in the origins of this type of music, rather than that of today. And perhaps take a few steps back to the roots, and find something that has been lost along the way.

The electronic music of today has strayed too far for my taste. Much of it has no longer anything to do with my roots, and many people probably think I am too critical of this. When I have been hard pressed, and asked to clarify what electronic music is to me, I have answered that as long as it has a clear, red line back to Kraftwerk, it is music I can relate to. The further away from the Kraftwerk sound, vibes and vision, the less I understand of it. And Kraftwerk can be a lot – I also love their early prog-releases.

SL: Do fans think you have wandered too much between music genres? Has someone reacted to new directions, missing what used to be?

I have tried on quite a lot, and looking back it’s probably only parts of the future pop period that I am not completely satisfied about. There were too many elements of dance/trance mixed in, and it tainted the genre too much for my taste. The idea might have been good at the time, but now I see that some things were not all good. Some like evolution, others like being retrospective, and others again would rather have a “Welcome to Earth 2”.

“Welcome to Earth” was my “Violator” and the most important record I have released commercially, but I doubt it will ever happen again. You can’t please everyone, there will always be some complaining, but that is only natural and okay. I can feel the same way about bands I like. Even Kraftwerk have had their weak moments, but nothing I would denigrate. In summary it is the genre fans who are more likely to whine and jump ship, rather than the Apop fans. Real fans don’t complain.

SL: An instrumental album is quite different than a «regular» album. Any advantages, disadvantages? And was it to give yourself new challenges?

In a way, it is easier to make – doing only instrumental, rather that needing lyrics, which easily gets trite and mostly used as a filler. It is hardest to make music that has an influence and tells a story without words – you need to tell your story, but also make sure it doesn’t get boring. To get it to add up takes longer time, more build-up, until you get in a mood. Nothing is better when you get in a flow and can let yourself float away.

We had a very long and tiresome «Harmonizer»-tour in our future pop period, going back and forth across continents. When we returned, I realized that ‘I master this expression, and I can’t top it’. Mixed with a breakup and feeling burned out, I lost all interest and motivation, and wanted to do anything but music. I had just had it. What got me going again back then was going back to my roots. I dusted off some old synthesizers, and made the “Fairlight Children” album. Even though it is not an Apop album, it is probably the most important in my career because it gave me the desire to make music again.

That is also the same with the new album; when things become routine I have to make changes and have total freedom to do something new. If that means wearing an Ace Frehley mask and make long, droning synth songs, then that’s the reboot I need to do something exciting again and start a new phase.

SL: Leafing through the album cover reveals fragments of a background story – what is the message or the theme of the album?

♠TP, the dude that made this album, is mentioned in a report inside the cover, written by the psychologist from “Riget” by Lars von Trier. ♠TP has escaped from reality and reinvented himself somewhere else, in another reality, on the other side of the river. It is autobiographical in part, but made more cheerful and fun than my private story at times. ♠TP has moved to a new place, environmentally damaged after too much touring, and can’t wash off the makeup, so he has become his own persona for real. He has moved to a place where people accept him for who he is, and tries to get to know people through his music. By manipulating his own reality he also manages to alter the real reality, and some intelligence agencies become interested and see the potential to use this for military purposes. Then they make the report, that is also an “explanation” of what the songs are about. But not too apparent and detailed – I like that there is plenty room for interpretation and a bit mysterious, not so done served.

I often find that interpretations are both individual and important. I can get feedback that a song has had a special meaning to someone, or has helped someone in a difficult situation, where the listener’s interpretation wasn’t what I meant with that song. Now, I can’t say that is wrong and that I meant something else, but I believe this is part of the art in music; that when passing through the “filter” of the listener, the music can gain new meaning and fit in different situations for different people. Simply beautiful, really. If you google the titles and the content, you get an adventure and a study for almost every song. Many conspiracy theories and interesting topics to discover if you want to and have the time. I started to hint about this on the “Rocket Science” album, and now ♠TP has taken it to a whole new level. And to quote Aphex Twin: “…whether the theories fit or not, they are nonetheless much better entertainment than what comes out of Hollywood”.

You can also enjoy the album without diving into all these details – that’s up to the listener!

This album will only be available in physical formats, so get your copy of the very limited cassette, CD or vinyl!

… but something found its way to the net anyway – enjoy! 😉

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Apoptygma Berzerk: Exit Popularity Contest – reinvention by going back to the roots

Jan Ronald Stange — Thu, 20 Oct 2016 20:04:23 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange, w/inputs from John-Erik Bye Johansen. Photos by Tarjei Krogh and Jan Ronald Stange)
After releasing three 12” EPs of instrumental tracks the last couple of years, the new Apoptygma Berzerk album “Exit Popularity Contest” compile these alongside a couple of new versions of the Apop staple “Until The End Of The World”.
The idea for the album came together when working on the third EP “Xenogenesis”, as they realised these tracks somehow belonged together. Some minor changes later, it has come together as a wholeness, solid and thorough.

Stephan @ home turf

The press bio states: “Groth pays homage to his roots through emulating the analogue soundscapes of innovators like Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis and Klaus Schulze, and the driving motorik Krautrock rhythms of Neu!, Cluster and La Duesseldorf, all filtered through his own unique Scandinavian sensibility.” When listening to this album much of this rings true, as this concept draws heavily on the inspiration of Stephan Groth’s musical heroes. It is not far-fetched to claim there is also some early Recoil/Depeche Mode influence in “For Now We See Through A Glass, Darkly” along with John Carpenter, Jarre, Vangelis and – surprise: Apoptygma Berzerk anno 1993 with some “Burnin’ Hertic” samples.
For those who miss Stephan’s voice there’s also an extra gem on the album – “U.T.E.O.T.W. (Extended Version)” – a downtempo and stripped version of “Until The End Of The World” from 2002 (also featured as a shorter version on the flexi-disc accompanying the “Xenogenesis” 12”).

After a long career ranging from EBM via future-pop and trance to a more rock-influenced electronica, Groth has taken a long glance backwards to what really ignited his musical fire and done a reboot of the type of music he wants to make as well as how to make it. Like the music that inspired Apoptygma Berzerk, this album also passes inspiration on to another generation of artists, something that has been evident since other musicians have approached asking about hardware and methods.

Apoptygma Berzerk – finding more ♠TP inspiration?

For the rest of us, the listeners, many will be using this album as an inspirational guide to the electronic past, and also for the future.
Conclusion: Highly recommended – and let’s hope ♠TP continues the exploration of his synth origins!

As the album won’t be available via digital outlets, we suggest you get a copy of the very limited cassette, CD or vinyl!

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Apoptygma Berzerk drops video teaser ‘Exit popularity contest’ and it fucking sounds awesome! Order your copy on cassette, vinyl and CD right here.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Fri, 16 Sep 2016 13:49:02 +0000

As we reported a few weeks ago, Apoptygma Berzerk’s Stephan Groth is reinventing his sound on the new 10-track album “Exit Popularity Contest” (a fix-up of the 12″ EPs “Stop Feeding The Beast”, “Videodrome” and “Xenogenesis”) which brings instrumental music back into the spotlight.

On the album Groth pays homage to his roots through emulating the analogue soundscapes of innovators like Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis and Klaus Schulze plus adding some Krautrock rhythms of the likes of Neu!, Cluster and La Düsseldorf.

The release will be out as a very limited cassette release (which you can order now), on CD (available here) and on vinyl (available here)!

And right below is already a very sweet sounding video teaser !

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

side-line.com

‘Click Interview’ with Lights Of Euphoria: ‘We Are All ’Traumatized’ Somehow And So Is Our Earth’

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sun, 05 Jun 2016 20:29:44 +0000

It all started somewhere in the 90s. Torben Schmidt was running the fan club of Leæther Strip and decided to compose a song on his own. It was meant as a one-shot project featuring Claus Larsen on vocals. The song entitled “Subjection” was originally released at one of the famous Zoth Ommog compilations. Because of this successful song, Lights Of Euphoria went on and released numerous albums and EP’s. The band was later on joined by Jimmy Machon from Godheads. A lot of guest singers like Ronan Harris (VNV Nation), Stephan Groth (Apoptygma Berzerk), Vasi Vallis (Frozen Plasma/Reaper) Johan van Roy (Suicide Commando), Kay Härtle (Supreme Court) contributed to some songs. The band finally went through a long break and is actually fighting back with their first full length in twelve years! The duo got joined by Thomas Gaarn and became a real band. The new opus “Traumatized” released on Infacted Recordings is for sure an astonishing return of this band. I got in touch with Jimmy Machon. (by Inferno Sound Diaries) Q: Twelve years have passed since your previous full length album “Gegen Den Strom”. What have you been doing in the meantime and how did you finally come to reactivate Lights Of Euphoria? Jimmy: We both got a daughter, Torben has been busy with running Infacted Recordings and playing with Suicide Commando. So a lot of work and private matters. Q: What kind of album is “Traumatized” all about and what have been your main sources of inspiration? Jimmy: I Jimmy Machon write most of the lyrics usually, and on this album I wrote them all. I write from experience or about subjects that I somehow have an opinion about. There is everything from lyrics about sex, fetishes, anti-religious texts, about love, about hate, about loosing or about being isolated somehow. We are all ’Traumatized’ somehow and so is our earth. Q: I experienced “Traumatized” as your ‘hardest’ work today, but how do you analyze the evolution in sound from the early work till the new work? Jimmy: Lights Of Euphoria have always been this strange project, where a lot of guest musicians, and guest vocalists, have been involved. So we have made pretty much everything from harsh-noise, to pretty synth-pop. This is probably the first real album where there is a red thread connecting all the songs musically or lyrically. Q: What has been the input of each member on “Traumatized” and tell us a bit more about the production process? Jimmy: Well Torben has been very busy, so I, and our new full-blown member Thomas Gaarn, have made most of the album. I wrote the melodies and lyrics, and Thomas is a very skilled keyboard player and is very good adding interesting elements to the production or very good at coming up with great baselines or synth parts. I did the artwork as well. Q: Lights On Euphoria are now back on track, but what brings the future? Jimmy: More albums, more concerts and more songs. We have already started writing new material, and hopefully it wont take another 12 years to finish another studioalbum. Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

Read the review of ‘Traumatized’.

Inferno Sound Diaries

www.side-line.com

Rexx Arkana (Bruderschaft, FGFC820) diagnosed with cancer – let’s help him to battle it and pay the bills!

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Wed, 11 May 2016 09:07:37 +0000

Bruderschaft’s very own Rexx Arkana has now himself been diagnosed with cancer, the disease of which his father died of and which pushed him to launch the famous Bruderschaft project. The bad news came while preparing for unrelated surgeries approximately 2 months ago. Incidental testing confirmed that he had cancer.

Rex has recently undergone surgery, and is in the process of going through a substantial recovery program which of course has weakened him a lot. These treatments are on top very costly, which is why a fundraiser has been raised in order to help him while he gets back on his feet.

And we want to help him with that! Let us all help Rexx staying out of money worries while he works on his speedy recovery. And this fundraiser offers the best perk there is: Knowing that you have made life a lot less worrisome for one of the best and sweetest guys around in the electro / ebm scene (we still remember he couch-surfed in the Side-Line offices 10 years ago, and it was a true pleasure having Rexx ‘Nuke them all’ Arkana in the house for a couple of days).

The fundraiser can be found here, leave a message too if you want to send kudos to Rexx.

New York City-based DJ Rexx is worldwide known for backing the Bruderschaft project (besides his own aggro tech project FGFC820), an electronic music artist’s collective which was conceived as a charity project focused on cancer research and treatment in the wake of Arkana’s father’s death from the disease. Bruderschaft brought together a large number of artists from the underground electronic music scene for the production of the band’s first single, “Forever”. The collaboration included Rexx Arkana (lyrics), Ronan Harris (VNV Nation – vocals), Sebastian Komor (Icon of Coil – programming/production), Joakim Montelius (Covenant – samples/loops) and Stephan Groth (Apoptygma Berzerk – backing vocals). Released by RazorBurn Records, in European partnership with Alfa-Matrix in 2003, the “Forever” EP featured a large list of remixers, including Front 242, Camouflage, Feindflug, Melotron, The Retrosic, Negative Format, Angels & Agony, Colony 5, Lights of Euphoria, Davantage, Grendel, Punto Omega, [:SITD:]. In 2013, Bruderschaft returned with the single “Falling,” featuring Daniel Myer of Haujobb on vocals. The EP was released through the Alfa Matrix label later that year.

In short, this is THE man which has made a lot of things happening for a lot of people. Now let us all make it happen for him too!

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

side-line.com

MAN/MACHINE/MUSIC: an evening of Kraftwerk, including an Apoptygma Berzerk intimate concert

Jan Ronald Stange — Tue, 11 Aug 2015 18:16:28 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange)

Fans of Kraftwerk and fans of Apoptygma Berzerk – this is the night for you to unite! Although they probably have a lot of fans in common already, this evening will definitely have more fans bonding.

As stated on litthusfred.no: On October 17th, the prestigious Litteraturhuset Fredrikstad will host a special exploration and celebration of the pioneering German electronic band Kraftwerk with Torgrim Eggen, Apoptygma Berzerk and Halvor Bodin. Acclaimed author and music journalist Torgrim Eggen will present a lecture on Kraftwerk and their influence on music, art, and culture. Combining visuals, interviews, and stories, Eggen will guide the audience through the creation of the singular electronica powerhouse of Kraftwerk and the band’s impact on the past, present, and beyond.

After the lecture (in Norwegian), Stephan and Jonas Groth of current leading electronica act Apoptygma Berzerk will perform Kraftwerk covers as well as original music from their last two experimental instrumental releases «Videodrome» and «Stop Feeding The Beast». APOP’s performance will be accompanied by a mesmerizing visual presentation by innovative artist Halvor Bodin. Bodin has designed most of APOP’s artwork over the years including the covers for «Videodrome», «Stop Feeding The Beast», and the classic «Welcome To Earth».

APOP has been on a long and fascinating musical journey. Shifting through and melding genres such as Futurepop, Trance, EBM, Industrial and Synth-Pop, the band has traveled from the underground to the commercial charts and now the art gallery, weaving a history similar to that of Kraftwerk in many ways. The music of APOP perfectly conveys how the seeds planted by Kraftwerk have germinated into interconnected yet still distinctively individual branches in an ever-growing musical tree.

This exclusive, intimate concert will be a truly unique event and a chance to experience Apoptygma Berzerk in a vastly different way than ever seen before.

Only 300 seats will be available for this special presentation. Reserve your tickets now to add your presence to the continuing expansion of the Kraftwerk universe!

Tickets here!

And as most Apop fans already know, they have a knack for doing great covers of songs they like – maybe we’ll hear one of these too? 🙂

Jan Ronald Stange

www.facebook.com/jrstange

Apoptygma Berzerk – ‘Videodrome’ 12″ release and interview

Jan Ronald Stange — Sat, 04 Jul 2015 09:38:18 +0000

(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange) The Norwegian electro-rock band Apoptygma Berzerk released yet another instrumental 12’’ this spring named ‘Videodrome’. The three track vinyl (available here) comes in two versions; 400 copies in blue vinyl, and a more limited edition of 100 copies in black vinyl plus a slipmat for your record player. And hopefully the listeners will discover this little easter egg: the tracks on both sides play on different speeds.

As this was the second consecutive Apoptygma Berzerk release in this way, I just had to ask Stephan Groth about this concept.

SL: Tell us about the main idea and inspiration behind this release? Any relation to “Videodrome” as in the 1983 David Cronenberg movie?

STP: It began a while back when I was working in the studio testing out some of my old analog synths after they came back from the repair store. I love analog gear, but those things are very fragile, and by now most of my synths are quite old and unstable and therefore requires a lot of repair and maintenance. While checking out if everything was working correctly, I made up some very nice melodies and arrangements – two months later the songs were ready to be released.

After the success of the “Stop Feeding The Beast” EP I was really eager to create a follow-up. I find great pleasure in doing little art-projects like this even though it is not very compatible with what is going on in the world of music today. Actually… this is the main reasons why I find it so exciting. The sound, the vibe and the feel is definitely inspired by Cronenberg and Carpenter. I love Cronenberg’s “Videodrome”, but no, there is no direct relation to the movie. Conceptual both this and the previous EP are heavily inspired by 80’s horror movie soundtracks.

SL: Some elements in these tracks sound familiar, like a homage to your heroes. “The Cosmic Chess Match” reminds both of Jean Michel Jarre’s early days and John Carpenter’s soundtracks , mixed together in an updated APB soundscape.

STP: Absolutely. I’m a big fan of both Jean Michel Jarre and John Carpenter!

SL: “For Now We See Through A Glass, Darkly” sounds in the beginning like early Recoil and Jean Michel Jarre, leading up to a mash-up with your own 1993 classic “Burnin’ Heretic” – a great revitalization of all elements.

STP: Well, I’m a big fan of Alan Wilder as well, so I take that as a compliment :-). Adding a piece of “Burnin` Heretic” in there happened by accident. I was tuning the synths I was using for the track, and it just happened that I played the “Burnin` Heretic” main riff while tuning. I had the riff running in a loop for 15 minutes or so, just to check if the pitch of the synth was drifting over time. When I was done it just felt right to leave a part of it there in the final mix.

Art by accident I guess? It makes sense in a way – “Burnin` Heretic” is one of the first songs I ever wrote, so in a way it’s symbolizing “a new beginning” when used like this at the end of a song.

SL: “Hegelian Dialectic” made me google the term, thus learning something new: “Hegel’s primary object in his dialectic is to establish the existence of a logical connection between the various categories which are involved in the constitution of experience”. Is this philosophy related to your idea behind this track?

STP : AWESOME 🙂 I`m glad you looked into it! I believe that understanding the Hegelian Dialectic is essential if you wanna understand what’s going on in the world today. Problem-Reaction-Solution.

I wrote lyrics about this some years ago, in the song “Incompatible”: “Every time you create a problem You have the remedy The same old strategy I ate the red pill, no turning back The gloves are off now Where did we go wrong? Where did it all go wrong?”

I don’t believe in coincidences. I believe that most major things that happen in the world today in one way or another have been orchestrated by the government and others, who will create problems so that they can sell us their solutions.

SL: Are you implementing these new tracks into your live sets?

STP : Yes and No. At the moment I`m working on a brand new and quite different live concept where these more experimental tracks fit in, but I don’t think they will be integrated in a “regular” APB show anytime soon.

SL: Will there be more 12″ like this, or is an APB album the next release?

STP : YES, I’m working on the 3rd 12″ right now, while simultaneously working on new APOP songs . The next EP will be slightly more Kraftwerk’ish sounding. It looks like we’re going to compile all 3 12 inches and make a CD release of it later this year.

Yes, there will be a new APB album soon too 😉

Tracklist:

45 RPM A-side – The Cosmic Chess Match 7:54

33 RPM B-side – For Now We See Through A Glass, Darkly 8:36 – Hegelian Dialectic 4:19

Jan Ronald Stange