The Brussels-based Spleen+ label (a division of Alfa Matrix) has prepared a deluxe 7CD collector’s edition – “Resurgence” – which brings together 133 active bands from across the globe, spanning the diverse sub-genres born from post-punk’s iconic roots. You can order it now from the Alfa Matrix webstore and in digital download format from Bandcamp.

The release comes housed in a luxurious vinyl-sized box, and comes accompanied by a 28-page book. The book holds interviews from renowned producers like John Fryer and Jean-Marc Lederman, label managers, journalists, and iconic artists (including Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, William Faith, No More, Skeletal Family, Mona Mur, KaS Product, And Also The Trees, Clan Of Xymox, Attrition, Das Ich, Merciful Nuns, The Names, The Breath Of Life, etc).

Spanning 23 different nationalities, the music included is a genre-spanning mix of post-punk, cold wave, dark synth, ethereal, and minimal EBM with such bands like Boy Harsher, A Cloud Of Ravens, No More, Skeletal Family, Collection D’Arnell Andrea, Underviewer, Attrition, Merciful Nuns, Lederman/De Meyer, Local Suicide & Sekelesys, Star Industry, Ataraxia, Czarina, Helalyn Flowers, Ascii.Disko, Je T’Aime, The Ultimate Dreamers, Lycia, Opera Multi Steel, The Breath Of Life, Auger, The Names, Whispers In The Shadow, Lovelorn Dolls, Astari Nite, Chiasm, Saigon Blue Rain, Omnimar, Still Patient, Creux Lies, Golden Apes, and many more.

You can already check out a few tracks here.

Apart from the 7CD vinyl size deluxe carton box format, “Resurgence” will not be available on mainstream digital platforms, except exclusively via the label’s Bandcamp page.

There is also a special combi pack including the 7CD set plus Darkness On Demand’s “Panic In Reserve” CD and To Avoid’s “All Gods Are Gone” 2CD.

“Resurgence” Tracklist

Cd 1

1. Bestial Mouths . Hex (The Spell)
2. A Cloud Of Ravens . Parable
3. Boy Harsher . Give Me A Reason
4. Czarina . Wonderland
5. Collection D’arnell Andrea . Waiting For Meaulnes
6. Krystal System . La Lame Dans Ta Main
7. Je T’aime . Out Of Sight
8. Aeon Rings . Fully Operational
9. The Ultimate Dreamers . Polarized
10. Partikul . Nothing Good In Me
11. Cosmobrigade . Spacepit
12. Aeon Sable . From Witchcraft To Deviltry
13. Stereoskop . Deep Down
14. The Breath Of Life . Slowly Crushing
15. Faust Project . Rats Lullaby
16. Al . Mistake
17. N.E.L. & J.P . Desinteresse
18. Zeitgeist Zero . Scream
19. Voyna . Moulding Heart

Cd 2

1. Blackbook . You Are Strange
2. Auger . My Heart Is Glass
3. Dekad . A Deadly Show (Video Edit)
4. Love In Cage . A Logical Secret Collection
5. Helalyn Flowers . Halos
6. Soft Scent . No Wounds
7. Sweet Ermengarde . Sweet Sacrifice
8. Martin Dupont . Bent At The Window (2023)
9. The Names . Far From The Factories
10. Boxes Of Blow . Melting Faces
11. Mirror Of Haze Feat. Primitive Heart . Reckless
12. A Slice Of Life . Seven Days
13. Then Comes Silence . Pretty Creatures
14. Nite . Inside Of My Head
15. Astari Nite . Bowie In Daydreams
16. Korus . Złote Światło Pierwszego Zachodu
17. Lovelorn Dolls . A Heart Cries
18. Whispers In The Shadow . Revenants
19. Merciful Nuns . Oneironauts

Cd 3

1. Lederman – De Meyer . Heartbeat
2. Local Suicide & Skelesys . Surface Of The Sun (Radio Edit)
3. Punx Soundcheck Feat. Ascii.Disko & Princess Superstar . Gasoline
4. No More . Sleepers And Trains
5. Mitra Mitra . Memories For Company
6. A Copy For Collapse Feat. Simona Pietrucci . Faded
7. Alien Skin . Depress Me
8. White Mansion . Cancel The Sky
9. Apnoie . Splash Your Bile
10. Celluloide . Compte Les Ombres
11. Risk Risk . Streetwalk
12. Total Chroma . Northern Lights
13. Opera Multi Steel . À Nos Moments Perdus
14. Lycia . Simpler Times
15. Noemi Aurora . Blood As Lipstick
16. Novus . Ess
17. I Ya Toyah . Death’s Kiss
18. Katcross . Rest
19. Winter Severity Index . Speak To Me

Cd 4

1. Systeme Paradoxe . Comme Le Sable En Hiver
2. Aiboforcen . Break The Black Ice (Original Mix)
3. Chiasm . Cut Right Through (Emileigh Rohn Edit)
4. Saigon Blue Rain . Dolls Dresses
5. Her Own World . Mistrust
6. Still Patient Feat. Minu-Schirin Samimi . Blind Vision
7. Creux Lies . Playtime
8. Der Klinke . Curtains (Your Life On Hold Remix)
9. On The Floor . Crying On The Dancefloor
10. Numa Echos Feat. Red Zebra . Waisted Items
11. Factheory . The Day (Ok Lion! Mix – Short Version)
12. Antiflvx . Crystal
13. Flor Concreta . She’s Closer
14. Golden Apes . Ash Trees
15. Glis . Blue Sky Night
16. Ataraxia . The Source
17. Hanging Freud . Grooming
18. Ok Lion! . Get Away
19. Yuzna . Queen Of The Eels

Cd 5

1. The Breath Of Life Feat. Implant . The Last Record
2. The Halo Trees . Happy Man
3. Palm Ghosts . Tilt
4. Your Life On Hold . Imprisoned (Merciless Radio Edit)
5. Götterdämmerung . Common Existence
6. Jenni Sex . Sin Chimes
7. Denner . She Radiates Darkness
8. Imjudas . I Love You
9. Black Needle Noise . Dollhouse On Fire
10. Dead Souls Rising . Dysmorphobia
11. The Waning Moon . Annabel
12. Korinthians . Leader Of The Night
13. Elektrostaub Feat. Stefan Netschio . Mantis (Auger Remix)
14. Omnimar . The Matrix
15. Synapsyche Feat. Chris Harms (Lord Of The Lost) . The Last Dying Flame
16. Dance My Darling . Criminal
17. First Aid 4 Souls Feat. Emke Of Black Nail Cabaret . Das Messer
18. Supernova 1006 . Tell Your Name (Mix)
19. Suicidal Romance . Runaways

Cd 6

1. Ascii.Disko . Loslassen
2. Vioflesh . Emotions
3. Dina Summer . Who Am I (Club Version)
4. Pleasure Victim . Rascheln
5. Pink Opake . Pronta
6. Thewalkingicon . The Trail (Radio Edit)
7. Psy’aviah Feat. Sorrow Stories . Healing
8. Seasurfer . Collapsing
9. Lakeside X . Fire In The Sky (Radio Version)
10. Darkness On Demand . Hang On (Winterhart Remix)
11. Star Industry . Selling Icons (The Dreamside Remix)
12. Alphavox . Dark Satellite
13. Yama Uba . Shapes
14. Lifeless Past . Anxiety
15. Pink Turns Blue . Not Gonna Take It
16. Social Union . Waiting For Red
17. Sine . Until (Clan Of Xymox Remix)
18. Sorry, Heels . She Burns (We Burn) Version
19. Lights A.M . Clouds

Cd 7

1. Useless/You . Echo
2. Attrition . The Great Derailer
3. Children Of Zeal . Taking Over
4. Octolab . Friend Or Foe
5. Vague Phonique . The Last Man
6. Midnight Poetry . Black Hole
7. The Overlookers . Undercover (Edit)
8. La Machine . Vamos A La Playa (Radiomix)
9. Die Sexual . House Of God
10. Carrellee . Morning Sun
11. Underviewer . Was Soll Ich Tun (Aiboforcen Remix)
12. Night In Athens . Words Unspoken
13. Neila Invo . Alienation
14. Skeletal Family . My Own Redemption
15. The Murder Mystery . A Girl Named Red
16. Princess Ugly . For A Moment I Forgot The Desolation
17. Instant Lake . Ivory Dreams
18. Vision Video . Balaclava Kiss
19. La Scaltra . Dancing On Debris

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!

side-line.com

Still Patient? was originally set up in 1988 by Andy Koa. The German formation which went through different line-up changes released their official debut album “Salamand” in 1992 on the legendary and unfortunately defunct Hyperium Records. They moved on releasing new Goth-Rock/Dark-Wave inspired works on Hyperium and Alice In… till the band split up in 1999. But Still Patient? came back alive in 2012 and started writing new songs. New albums were released on Alice In… and Schwarzrock (both subdivisions from Dark Dimensions). “Love And Rites Of Rage” released in 2023 deals with love, pain and melancholy. Andy Koa (vocals & programming), Guido Holzmann (bass), Bec Kes (guitar), Pogue-O (guitar) and Wolfgang Tëffner (keyboards) achieved a great Dark-Wave-production which is maybe the band’s best work ever. I got in touch with core member and front man Andy Koa.   (Picture credits by Dan Rawkt / Interview courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: There’re two significant periods in the band’s history. You’ve been active in between 1988 and 1999 and after a break you reactivated Still Patient? in 2012. How do you perceive both periods in the band’s history considering aspects like line-up changes, influences, spirit, way of working etc?

Andy: When we split up in 1999, we were no longer able to work together musically. Many new influences and ideas had come in and we had moved too far away from our original roots. We could no longer see a future together. After 11 years of changing line-ups, we had achieved a lot and built up a certain fan base. But we were often too dogged and frustrated and weren’t satisfied with most of our productions, as we often had the misfortune to work with the wrong people who didn’t produce our music the way we wanted. We simply lacked the know-how and the possibilities. Working in the studio was often very exhausting and disappointing because we had always prepared our songs well at home. Of course, according to the possibilities at that time, which are much greater today.      

When I had the idea to revive the band in 2012, after some musical projects and excursions, I had already gained a lot more skills and was now able to produce music in a way that wasn’t possible for us back then. Originally, I just wanted to re-record a handful of songs that I thought could be done better. The re-recording of “Mascara Osiris” was the result. After this experience I felt that it would be sensible and right to get the band back together. We started working on new songs with some old and some new musicians. The new members added different influences to our previous ones and we didn’t necessarily want to continue where we left off in 1999.

When the request came from WGT to play a reunion show in 2013, the pace changed abruptly and we worked hard on both new and old material. It really helped us to find each other as a band and to this day we are a close-knit group who work well together. There’s also a certain calmness that wasn’t there in the 90s. The songwriting has become very efficient because of course we can’t spend as much time on it as we did in the 90s. We have released 2 EPs and 3 albums so far, which also reflects a certain development. With the last album “Love And Rites Of Rage” we went back to our roots and put a lot of heart and soul into it. I think you can hear that very clearly. It’s an album we would have liked to have made in the 90s.

Q: You last year released the EP “Leitbild Angst” featuring 4 exclusive, new, songs. Tell us a bit more about this work and the possible connection to the new album “Love And Rites Of Rage”?

Andy: After the release of the album “Zeiteist Weltschmerz” in 2018, we immediately started writing songs for the follow-up album. Initially we had the idea of writing a quieter and more atmospheric album. However, as we can rarely plan what will come out in the end, the new songs were very different. The first two songs were “Sacrfice In Paradise” and “Heart Shaped Box”. Then followed songs that were very similar to the style of the last album and at some point, also due to Corona, we had a lot of songs that wouldn’t have worked and fit on a more homogeneous album. For this reason we decided to release the songs digitally in advance as the “Leitbild Angst”-EP and stylistically assign the songs more to the “Zeitgeist Weltschmerz”-album. This gave us the opportunity to put together the album “Love And Rites Of Rages” in such a way that all the songs fit together.

Q: You already mentioned the new album is a kind of  ‘going back to the roots of the band’. What has been the  modus operandi to achieve the work? And does it really sound that different to you as previous albums “Shape Shifters” (2015) and “Zeitgeist Weltschmerz” (2018)?

Andy: “Love And Rites Of Rage” is very different from its predecessors in many ways. We worked a lot more on the songs and wanted to reflect a very specific atmosphere. We also took a lot more time and wanted to get everything right. We also channeled a lot more emotion from everyone involved and that really shaped the basic mood. Where “Shape Shifters” was more Electronic, “Zeitgeist Weltschmerz” was more Rock. But basically it’s not always the way you hear it as a musician. Often everybody hears it differently and that’s absolutely fine.

Q: Still Patient? remain connected to the dark sound of 80s Dark-Wave/Post-Punk music. What makes this period that special to you but also to most of the younger bands dealing with this kind of music?

Andy: 80s Dark-Wave/Post-Punk music was our gateway drug, like for a lot of people from our age. We will always listen to our gateway drugs, no matter how old we are. And I, in particular, realized at some point that it’s important to be true to yourself. It doesn’t mean that you have to keep repeating yourself. You have to stay true to your roots and above all stay authentic. The music back then was also something new and exciting. It shaped a massive subculture. And as with all subcultures, there are always revivals. Young people discover the music of the older generation and learn to love it. This also immortalizes the type of music and brings us new audiences.

Q: What did you keep in mind from the entire composing and production process of “Love And Rites Of Rage”? What have been the main points of satisfaction, challenges and eventually deceptions?

Andy: There were a lot of ideas and emotions we wanted to express. A lot had happened, there was a pandemic that forced us to slow down our songwriting for a few months, but also gave us time to reflect more on our writing. We wanted to sound more like the 90s again, but we didn’t want to compromise on today’s quality standards. We also changed our sound engineer because we felt that our new man had a better understanding of where we wanted to go musically and atmospherically. We had already worked with him for the “Leitbild Angst”-EP and were very satisfied with the result. We also worked with a lot more ambience and atmospheric sounds again, with lots of choirs and percussion elements. If you listen to the first track from the album, “The Beginning”, you’ll know exactly where the journey is going. The challenge was basically that we wanted to finish this album as best we could. We still see it as the most important album in our long band history.

Q: The album seems to reflects themes of ‘love, pain and melancholy’. What do these feelings evoke to you and why are they that inspiring?

Andy Koa: Love, pain and melancholy are the driving forces of our lives. Without love everything is dead and lifeless. Love is the most important thing a human being has to have. But it often brings pain and despair. But sometimes it dies in order to be reborn somewhere else and to give new strength. Sometimes something has to come to an end in order to start growing again. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes. This accompanies us throughout our lives. That was our main thematic inspiration, mixed with personal experiences of recent years and some losses.

Q: How important are live performances? How do you prepare live shows? And do you’ve a favorite live song? 

Andy: Live shows are really important to us. Unfortunately a lot has changed since Corona and people prefer to go to bigger festivals rather than the smaller ones where bands play that need the support so much more.

As always, we will prepare ourselves very well for the upcoming shows this year. Maybe we’ll include one or more songs from the current album in the set list. Be curious. We’ve often been told that you can tell we have fun while performing. Also, the direct contact with the fans is also very important and essential for us. Talking to the people after the show has become very important to us.

I think we have different favorite songs on stage within the band. Our closing song is usually “Anavryn”, I think we all really enjoy playing that one.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Gothic, Goth-Rock, Dark-Wave.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: Five years after their previous full length album and one year after the excellent “Leitbild Angst”-EP we finally get the new opus by German Goth veterans Still Patient? The album deals with love, pain and melancholy.

Content: Still Patient? brings an album without true surprises but totally in the vein of the band. The songs are holding on the heavy Goth-Rock influences carried by solid guitar play and catchy elements in the choruses. The softer cuts are totally expressing the theme of melancholy although evolving into an outburst chorus.

+ + + : Still Patient? no longer has anything to prove. This band is just playing the music they like mixing different elements together although based upon a solid Goth basis. They sometimes remind me of the uncompromised approach of London After Midnight. The songs have been meticulously built up but always carried by impressive guitar play and deep, resonating, vocal lines. Songs like “Looking Glass”, “Sacrifice In Paradise”, the very Sisters Of Mercy-like “All Dead” and the EP-song “Trees Falling II” are great exposures of the band’s genius. And I also have to mention the opening cut “The Beginning” which sounds a bit different although being a master piece for its mysterious sound atmosphere.

– – – : There’re less songs to throw away which says enough about the high qualitative level of the album.

Conclusion: Still Patient? bring us a new master piece and according to me one of their best albums ever.

Best songs: “Looking Glass”, “Sacrifice In Paradise”, “All Dead”, “Trees Falling II”, “The Beginning”, “Firefly”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.facebook.com/stillpatientt

Label: www.darkdimensions.de /  www.facebook.com/pages/Dark-Dimensions-Label-Group/486014725206

About Still Patient?

Still Patient? was set up in Germany in 1988 by Andy Koa. The band released its debut album “Salamand” in 1992 on Hyperium Records, followed by further Goth-Rock and Dark-Wave releases on Hyperium and Alice In… before splitting up in 1999. Andy Koa reactivated the project in 2012, first re-recording the song “Mascara Osiris”, and the band accepted an invitation to play a reunion show at Wave-Gotik-Treffen in 2013. Since the reactivation, Still Patient? has released the albums “Shape Shifters” (2015) and “Zeitgeist Weltschmerz” (2018), the EP “Leitbild Angst” (2022), and the album “Love And Rites Of Rage” (2023). The current line-up is Andy Koa (vocals, programming), Guido Holzmann (bass), Bec Kes (guitar), Pogue-O (guitar) and Wolfgang Teffner (keyboards).

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Gothic, Cold-Wave.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: Four years after their last album, German Goth formation Still Patient? Strikes back with four new songs as a prelude to their announced new album. “Leitbild Angst” is inspired by depression, which in a way is one of the main curses of Western world.

Content: The songs reveal a perfect balance between carrying guitar playing and electronic sound treatments creating an elevating effect. The production of the vocals might remind me of Andrew Eldritch. The song “Since When” features Felix Stass (Crematory).

+ + + : Still Patient? Strikes back with a bang! There’s no real title song as all the tracks are possible title songs. I however have a little preference for “Trees Falling”. The production stands for harmony between dark guitar playing in the purest Cold-Wave tradition and well-crafted, uplifting choruses.

– – – : I don’t have real minus points to mention, but let’s hope the album will reach a similar high qualitative level.

Conclusion: Still Patient? Has already been active for years and has possibly released one of their best productions to date.

Best songs: “Trees Falling”, “Since When”, “Soul Reaper”, “Downfall Prayer”.

Rate: 8½.

Artist: www.stillpatient.de / www.facebook.com/stillpatient

Label: www.darkdimensions.de /  www.facebook.com/pages/Dark-Dimensions-Label-Group/486014725206

About Still Patient?

Still Patient? was set up in Germany in 1988 by Andy Koa. The band released its debut album, “Salamand”, in 1992 on Hyperium Records, then continued on Hyperium and Alice In… until splitting up in 1999. Still Patient? reactivated in 2012 and released new albums on Alice In… and Schwarzrock, both subdivisions of Dark Dimensions. “Leitbild Angst” served as a prelude to the album “Love And Rites Of Rage”, released in 2023 with the lineup of Andy Koa (vocals, programming), Guido Holzmann (bass), Bec Kes (guitar), Pogue-O (guitar) and Wolfgang Teffner (keyboards).

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-Ambient, IDM, Industrial, Cinematographic, Minimal-Electro.

Format: Digital, 3CD Box.

Background/Info: Mirko Hentrich set up Spherical Disrupted in 1995. He later on became co-owner of Audiophob and moved on releasing new works as Spherical Disrupted, but also still with side-projects like Sick En For and Capsular. “25” is celebration record featuring a new album plus two more discs with remixes and songs that are now released on CD for the very first time.

Content: The first disc “25 (Future)” features 11 new songs, which clearly expose the project’s diversity. There’s a constant mix between genres; moving from freaky Ambient-Electronics to Klinik-al Electro sequences to cinematographic passages to pure Electro-Minimalism to some groovy parts. The major innovation consists of 2 songs featuring guest singers. Tino Claus (TC75, Amnistia, MRDTC) and Jana Komaritsa (Darkrad) have been invited to join in.

The two other discs are titled, “25 (The Past)” bring us back to 25 years of history although a few songs have been previously unreleased (mainly live versions). You’ll also (re)discover songs spherical disrupted has remixed for other artists such as Bloody Dead And Sexy, Experimnetum Crucis, Yipotash, The Trial, Kiew, Mimetic Dancing, The_Empath, Xabec, Mandelbrot and Still Patient?

+ + + : The new album, which stands for “Future” reveals Mirko Hentrich in a good light. The work is accomplished with an impressive arsenal of influences, which I think is pretty characteristic for this project. Spherical Disrupted is not easy to seize and often resulted from a true sonic symbiosis of multiple ideas. I like the haunting atmospheres and icy, ‘klinik-al’ sequences emerging at “Basalt” featuring Tino Claus. “Transneptunian Objects” featuring whispering vocals by Jana Komaritsa is another successful collaboration. I here especially like the atmospheric side of the song. The remixes by Disharmony and especially Wesenberg at the end of the first disc are worthy of examination.

The 2^nd disc features several attention grabbers, but here again I like the variety of influences. From the cold-like and Industrial sounding “Monasteria” to the metallic sound treatments of “Yderligere Oplysninger”, this disc brings some essential –although often forgotten and unknown, pieces back to life. I’m especially fascinated by the icy, analogue sound treatments supported with an anguished sphere.

The 3^rd disc is more diversified and that’s because of the many bands Spherical Disrupted has accomplished remixes for. If there’s one song I would recommend (re)discovering is the Cinematographic rework of Mimetic Dancing’s “Small Spherical”.

– – – : Referring to the new tracks from this album I have to admit I already heard more convincing works from Spherical Disrupted. But as a celebration release this album is a real must have as it’s not a ‘best of’, but a true gift for the fans.

Conclusion: Spherical Disrupted probably is the kind of project you can label as ‘difficult music’ and that’s maybe the reason why this German artist never got a wider recognition. I can only express my respect for 25 years of great music!

Best songs: “Basalt”, “25”, “Basalt – Wesenberg Rework” + “Monasteria”, “Yderligere Oplysninger”, “Cavity block (Not The :W: Master)”, “Solar Luminosity – Terminal Mix” + Mimetic Dancing: “Small Spherical – Extended Nova Stella Mix”, “Kiew: “Zentrifuge – Inertia Mix”.

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.disrupted.de / www.facebook.com/sphericaldisrupted

Label: www.audiophob.de / www.facebook.com/audiophob

About Spherical Disrupted

Spherical Disrupted is the electronic project of German musician Mirko Hentrich, set up in 1995. Hentrich later co-founded the label Audiophob with Carsten Stiller, and also records as Sick En For and Capsular. Spherical Disrupted gave its first live performance in 2000 and has built a catalog spanning Ambient, Industrial and Minimal-Electro influences. “25” marks the project’s 25th anniversary, combining a new album with two discs of remixes and previously unreleased tracks, released on Audiophob.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Gothic, goth-rock.

Background/Info: Three years after their last and successful album “Shape Shifters”, the German Still Patient? band is back on track unleashing a new album.

Content: Still Patient? moves on there where the previous work left off.  Don’t expect discovering new elements in their music; this band remains faithful to their roots and main sources of inspiration. We’re getting back to the darkest hours of the 80s cold-wave movement, which might evoke legendary formations such as The Sisters Of Mercy, The Cult and co, but there also is a more personal dark-rock touch present as well.

This work features a succession of great songs, which have been accomplished with passion and talent. The singer’s deep timbre of voice and magic guitar parts inject a truly spirit to this work. Notice by the way two songs feature female guest vocals by the X-O-Planet singer Manja Kaletka

+ + + : Artists don’t necessarily innovate to get my recognition and support. When I hear an album such as “Zeitgeist Weltschmerz”, which is fully accomplished from start till end, I simply am thankful for such a masterpiece. I wasn’t a huge fan of this band during their 90s period, but since they came back with a new line-up, I get the feeling they simply improved most elements of the production. Great songs carried by elevating choruses and a constant power are the keywords to understand the success of this album.

– – – : I don’t have real minus points here. This is a great work with no real uninteresting songs.

Conclusion: If you like the typical dark new-wave music getting you back to the 80s, Still Patient? has accomplished a real tour de force. This is without a shadow of a doubt their best work in history!

Best songs: “Zeitgeist Weltschmerz”, “The Man”, “Gimme Tears”, “Metropolis”, “The Ghosts Of Tides”, “Drag Me Down”, “In The Name”.

Rate: (8½).

Artist: www.stillpatient.de / www.facebook.com/stillpatient

Label: www.darkdimensions.de /  www.facebook.com/pages/Dark–Dimensions–Label–Group/486014725206

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Gothic, goth-rock.

Content: Still Patient? were one of the biggest promising bands from the German gothic scene during the 90s. They for sure got some recognition, but never gained a real international break through. The band finally split and the members got involved in different projects, which never reached a similar level of popularity than Still Patient?

That was maybe one of the reasons why they finally reactivated the band a few years ago now. The EP “Selective Perception” got released in 2014 while there also was this beautiful album “Retrospective 88•2•99”. But this is their first new studio album since “Demondive” (1999) and the least I can say is that Still Patient? strikes back with style and conviction. The band now consists of a mix of original- plus new members, but the least I can say is that Still Patient? is back on track!

The main influences clearly bring us back to the 80s new-wave movement reminding me of legendary bands like The Sisters Of Mercy and Fields Of The Nephilim. There’s no innovation, but just an outstanding emulation of guitar new-wave music. All the songs smell like pure new-wave music. The songs are carried by outstanding guitar playing expressing this typical 80s mewing and melancholic style. The deeply, cavernous timbre of voice of singer Andy Koa remains another main strength of the band. I can’t get away from making a link between The Sisters Of Mercy. The sound is dark and sometimes moving on the edge of dark-rock music, just like Andrew Eldritch and co did.

The opening part reveals a succession of great songs, which are powerful and totally accomplished. “We Come In Peace” has this little extra element you often recognize in a ‘hit’ song. The title of the song sounds a bit in contradiction with the power emerging from the writing. There are a few softer cuts like the well-crafted “Away From Me”, but I’m more into the harder work. Still Patient? are simply excelling in 80s new-wave nostalgia played in a powerful way. The final part features a few more noticeable cuts. You now and then can hear some refined piano-like arrangements, which are more into a typical post 80s gothic tradition. “Song Of Defeat” is a beautiful cut in the genre.

There also is a bonus song, which appears to be an adaptation of “Mascara Osiris”, which was originally released on their debut album “Salamand” (1992). This new version is called “Mascara Osiris II” which was written in 2012. It’s a great, fast and powerful cut, which brings this album to its final climax.

Conclusion: Still Patient? strikes back in an outstanding way. This is a real successful piece of music celebrating the 25th anniversary of the band!

Best songs: “We Come In Peace”, “Mascara Osiris II”, “The Devils Bride”, “After Sundown”, “Seconds Of Fame”.

Rate: (Elise Din:8½)Elise Din.

Band: www.stillpatient.de/index.php/en / www.facebook.com/stillpatient

Label: www.darkdimensions.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Dark-Dimensions-Label-Group/486014725206

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

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