We talked to Aleksi Martikainen, frontman of the Finnish dark elektro duo MISERIA ULTIMA who recently returned in full force with their 4th studio album, “Arctic Esotericism” (out now on Bandcamp and on CD via the Alfa Matrix webstore).  An aggrotech tour de force through which they also  expands their sonic palette with deeper, sorrowful atmospheres and fiery cold melodies.

SL. Your new album “Arctic Esotericism” seems to take listeners on an existential journey through the cold ethos of the North. Can you tell us more about the philosophical and emotional themes you wanted to convey with this album?

MU. We think the philosophy of the album has a tie to our roots in the northern Finland. Especially the landscapes, long winter times and suddenly changing sceneries and long dark seasonal times. In a way the ethos represents death and birth. The north is a metaphor for many of these natural events. There are emotions from highs to lows represented here.

SL. From the harsh aggrotech of “Displayed For Punishment” to the melancholic atmospheres of “The Cruel Beauty Of Reverence,” the album showcases a diverse sonic palette. How did you approach expanding your sound on this release while staying true to your signature style?

MU. It was a natural continuation for us. We think it felt right to keep to what we are, but also offer something new, we don’t want to make the same album twice, but this does not mean that we abandon what we are. 

SL. The track titles, like “Spiritual Nailbomb” and “Storms of Atonement,” suggest a strong narrative element. How do you develop the themes in your music—do they evolve naturally during the writing process, or do you start with a specific concept in mind?

MU. For us the lyrical themes come naturally. It is tied to something creative within. Usually these are some philosophical concepts (like lost control) which awake the spark, but of course like said before, nature is also a great inspiration for us. For example the “Storms of Atonement” is about losing your will and abandoning your reach for the “knowledge”, “wisdom” or “black/ inner flame”. 

SL. Vocally, this album appears to offer more diversity compared to your previous works, from aggressive harsh tones to more disillusioned and noir styles. What inspired this shift, and how do you see your vocal expression evolving in future projects?

MU. Yes! We are always processing our music and like said before, sometimes diversity comes naturally. We have a plan to continue this evolving path, but we also will keep of course our own sound and style within these changes. There will be more change of style for the vocals, but only if it suits the “song” — no reason to push something that does not suit the theme or song. We are although very happy with our progression in music.

SL. You’ve mentioned influences from bands like Suicide Commando and Skinny Puppy, yet MISERIA ULTIMA has its own distinct sound. How do you balance paying homage to the genre’s pioneers while carving out your own musical identity? 

MU.  We think our roots in doom-metal music back in the years still affect our sound quite heavily. We will keep our own Dark electro / electronic music as part of our music, which opens a way for us to keep loyalty to our genre. But, aside from that we always try to open doors for something new, which comes naturally and keep the doors open to our past style in music. We think this is the key to our musical identity.

SL. As you gear up for the release of “Arctic Esotericism,” can fans expect any special live performances or a tour? What can we anticipate from your upcoming shows in terms of atmosphere and setlists?

MU. There are upcoming shows announced (tour supporting our friends of King Satan) and some unannounced ones. We never take these kind of opportunities for granted and are always happy to play. For new shows, you can still expect the energy combined with coldness (and of course bad Finnish jokes), but in addition new songs will be pushed even more to setlist.

SL. Looking ahead, do you have plans for future collaborations or releases—such as an EP or remixes? Are there any particular artists or producers you’d love to work with to continue evolving the MISERIA ULTIMA sound?

MU.  Yes, we have some smaller plans for the upcoming EP, but let’s see how that works out. Alfa Matrix has done more than perfect job. We truly appreciate them and usually working with them includes some more releases too! We are always open for new suggestions of a collaboration, so if you have interested, don’t hesitate to take contact. (laugh)

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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For the occasion of the release of “Anti”, the 4th studio album already from the Italian dark industrial pop act Synapsyche, we talked with Marco and Stefano about this quite conceptual album announcing the arrival of a modern Messiah as anti-hero who will save our world… or exactly not!? 

The album is available via Bandcamp, and as a 2CD via the Alfa Matrix webstore plus of course on all other platforms.

SL: “Anti” is described as a conceptual album that explores the odyssey of a 21st-century-born Messiah. What inspired you to create this modern twist on the story of Jesus Christ, and what message do you hope to convey through this narrative?

Marco: Everything started from the title of a song that seemed cool to me, “God In Vitro”. I was thinking about socio-cultural implications if only we could artificially create an almighty entity. At this stage, I started to think about a concept that revolves around the existence of this new messiah, and as a good Italian I quickly felt a correlation with Christianity. The final passage was to retrace the main steps of the Gospels, reinterpreting them with a modern mentality and, so to speak, in opposition to the sacred texts. The coming of the feared antichrist will be wanted by us and then denied, the same way as 2000 years ago. What makes us human beings is not shaped by the divine, but instead by free will, religious or not religious. Our destiny (insignificant out of ourselves) is only in our hands anyway, let’s not give credits or blame elsewhere. Anyway, every song has a double meaning, so each one can stand on its own with a different intrinsic meaning besides the “anti-christian” one. 

SL: Each track on the album carries a double meaning, touching on themes like euthanasia, betrayal, and occultism. How did you approach writing lyrics that balance these complex and provocative themes?

Marco: The basic concept was already written in my head, track by track, but obviously I needed the songs! So, to every base that Stefano sent to me I associated a concept’s theme which I felt “related” to the song’s mood. At this point, from excerpts of phrases and abstract ideas I switched to the drafting of lyrics, rhymes and vocal melodies exactly the same way, suggested by the feeling of the music and rhythm. Once finished the song, I forwarded it to Stefano, we discussed democratically about it and in the end we carried on with the recording process.

SL: You once again blend various genres such as dark-electro, synthpop, industrial, and EBM in “Anti”. Can you discuss the process of integrating these different musical styles to create a cohesive sound for the album?

Stefano: I’ll be honest, it’s not a programmed process from the beginning but the result of many factors that sum up during the making of the track. For sure my personal tastes play a key role, since I like all those genres. Usually, when I write the songs, I also imagine fictional situations and I try to write their soundtrack (it’s difficult to explain), so to musically describe that, maybe even complex and dynamic, I have to range a bit between genres, from the most aggressive to the softest. Obviously, last but not least, vocal lines and lyrics of Marco drive my taste to a more accurate direction, it’s important that music has the sound of what lyrics want to communicate.

SL: The album features vocal guest appearances by Aesthetic Perfection and Lord Of The Lost. How did these collaborations come about, and what was it like working with these artists on “Silvertongue” and “The Last Dying Flame”?

Marco: I state that I’m a fan of both bands, so to me it’s an honour to have Daniel and Chris in this album, I’d say it’s a dream come true. I wanted Daniel for “Silvertongue” from the beginning of the writing process of the songs, ‘cause it sounded very “industrial pop” and the references to his style are evident. In the midst of Covid period I took advantage of the world block to write him and he accepted immediately, he loved the song and sent his vocals very fast, he also helped us “spamming” a bit in his social media pages when the single was released. With Chris was different: a couple of years ago he set up a contest: after having collected hundreds of songs he would have picked some of them to record featuring vocals… We were chosen with “The Last Dying Flame”! After the Eurovision he sent us very detailed vocals and reworked the song in such a brilliant way. Both were really available, helpful and professional, the best possible choice to play the Devil (Daniel) and the Lord (Chris) in our concept!

SL: The concept of the “Anti-hero” is central to this album. How does this character’s journey reflect or contrast with contemporary societal issues or personal experiences?

Marco: The artificial messiah is engineered to bring back in line a world in decay and with no principles and morale anymore. Despite good resolutions and an alternative way focused on respect, satisfaction and self-worship, the people, which first acclaimed him as enlightened, will then see him as a deceiving guru and sentence him to death, befooled by cheap entertainment over and over and forgetting soon the history. Moral teachings and scientific progress won’t help to make us better because the human dark side evolves, despite realizations we always find new ways to hurt ourselves, the others and what surrounds us.

SL: Your sound is known for its ability to blend distorted darkness with catchy melodies and ecstatic grooves. How do you strike a balance between these contrasting elements to maintain both intensity and accessibility in your music?

Stefano: Easy! As a song may be distorted, aggressive and fierce, I like when the listener has a melody or a riff to sing along throughout the day, something to remember. Even if we make music for dancefloor mainly, it would be a failure if we have not a good melodic line. And it’s not just for a purely aesthetic taste, pay attention; music is made of notes and rules that govern them. We love when inside all that noise there are parts that I could easily play on a piano, alone, without disfigure. Moreover, despite some of our songs could seem “nasty”, very often the lyrics hide complex feelings… What better way to highlight them than by an energetic but maybe melancholic riff with synths and pad?

SL: The statement “God is dead, long live Synapsyche!” is quite provocative. Can you elaborate on what this phrase means to you and how it encapsulates the essence of “Anti”?

Marco: That sentence was written by our label to sponsor the album, so you should ask them! (laugh) No seriously, I’d say it’s a beautiful sentence which summarize the mood of this work. The album starts precisely with that “God is dead!” yelled to the world, opening the doors to the lyrical concept of the band. We put our souls into this album, trying the best way to insert memorable melodies and vocals, which could draw from the most various range of styles and sounds. We wanted it to enclose our tastes and our art in their entirety. We believe we succeeded and we’re very proud of it, this album will be the one to beat in our discography for the next years, but the final verdict is up to you all. Anyway, it’s seems that people enjoyed “Anti” a lot and we can’t be anything but pleased of this! To those who have not listened to “Anti” yet, please do it without prejudices and with open mind. You won’t regret it!

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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In a remarkable celebration of its 100th release, Distortion Productions has unveiled a unique homage to the 1987 cult classic film, “The Lost Boys”. The project, inspired by the film’s soundtrack, is a tribute by label owner Jim Semonik, who harbors a deep appreciation for the movie’s musical landscape.

Titled “Be One of Us: 1987 Revisited”, the album is a compilation of covers from various artists, each adding their unique spin to the iconic tracks. The album opens with a rendition of INXS’s “Good Times” by Chicago-based band Go Fight. The tribute includes other notable covers such as God Module’s “Lost in the Shadows”, Eva X’s take on Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me”, and The Battlefront’s version of INXS’s “Laying Down the Law”. Additionally, Adoration Destroyed X NØIR has revisited a The Doors classic, while Sapphira Vee has put a new spin on the Eddie & the Tide track “Power Play”.

The album also features Ashbury Heights’ cover of “Cry Little Sister”, Glass Apple Bonzai’s “I Still Believe”, Null Device’s interpretation of “Beauty Has Her Way”, and Red Lokust’s rendition of “To the Shock of Ms Louise”.

“Be One of Us: 1987 Revisited” is available on CD and across all digital streaming platforms including Bandcamp.

About ‘The Lost Boys’

Directed by Joel Schumacher, ‘The Lost Boys’ is a 1987 American film that blends supernatural elements with comedy and horror. The film, which was produced by Harvey Bernhard, features a screenplay penned by Jeffrey Boam, Janice Fischer, and James Jeremias, based on a story by Fischer and Jeremias. Its ensemble cast boasts notable names such as Corey Feldman, Jami Gertz, Corey Haim, Edward Herrmann, Barnard Hughes, Jason Patric, Kiefer Sutherland, and Dianne Wiest.

Set in the fictional Californian town of Santa Carla, the plot centers around two teenage brothers who, along with their divorced mother, relocate to the town. They soon uncover a startling truth – Santa Carla is overrun by vampires. The film’s title draws inspiration from J.M. Barrie’s iconic characters in his Peter Pan and Neverland tales – the Lost Boys, who are eternally youthful, much like the vampires in the movie. The majority of ‘The Lost Boys’ was filmed in Santa Cruz, California.

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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(Photo by Travis Shinn, interview by our correspondent János Janurik) You might think that appearing as a warm-up act in front of a cult band that is popular all over the world is one of the best things in life, and that you have a bit of a stake in the success of the concert evening. But in reality, Depeche Mode‘s support acts don’t always have it easy, although the band has actually always had a good hand for its support acts. Some of them managed to endear themselves to Depeche Mode fans and even won fans for their own music projects. Others, however, had a hard time getting away from possibly being pelted with bottles on stage by the exuberant and impatient fans.

This spring, at the tour opener of the current “Memento Mori World Tour” in North America, the stage belonged to the females. At the first 9 concerts in the USA and Canada, Welsh musician and producer Kelly Lee Owens performed for American audiences as the support act for Depeche Mode on their first concert tour without Andy Fletcher. On the last night of the first leg of the world tour, fans were able to see singer Dave Gahan’s daughter live for the first time at the legendary Madison Square Garden. The proud dad watched Stella-Rose’s performance secretly in the company of his bandmate, Martin Gore.

Fans in Europe are still considered fanatics, which means that Depeche Mode’s supporting bands have to pull their socks up if they want to get the desired appreciation, i.e. a friendly applause, up on stage.

💡 TIP: And for those that want to go a step further, every concert not only allows them to experience the magic of music but also creates unique memories to cherish. If you are also a fan of their music, you can design Custom Keychains Canada with band elements, which can be the best carrier to connect memories and daily life. You can incorporate performance theme elements or images of your favorite musicians into your keychain. Especially with the convenient express customization service, you can keep your love alive without waiting.

The concert series opens in Amsterdam with a performance by Cold Cave, a dark wave project led by Wesley Eisold, who has already been a guest in Germany. This time he and his companions will play only one Germany concert in Leipzig, the remaining shows will take place in the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden and Slovakia. Our editor, Janos Janurik will see him live in Bratislava and contacted him to give an interview for us.

SL: You have just completed live performances in Whitby (TOMORROW’S GHOSTS FESTIVAL) and in London (O2 Academy Islington). How did these concerts go?

CC: That’s right. London was the last show we played and both in the UK were lovely for us. Great connection.

SL: The great artists of the Dark Wave movement, which have also inspired you, also came mainly from England, just think of bands like Joy Division, The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cult or The Sisters of Mercy, who have founded their own music genres. Was this noticeable in the reaction of the British audience? What kind of feedback did you get on those two nights?

CC: That’s a part of our appeal but another part of it is the lyrical and sentimental aspects of this. Sometimes it feels like genre is irrelevant. I’m a child of the 80’s so that’s what I love… which all works in LA too.

SL: Depeche Mode, whose dark songs from the 80s, such as “Blasphemous Rumours” or the whole “Black Celebration” LP also found favour in the dark wave environment, have had to struggle for years with the problem that they have not achieved the recognition they deserve in their own country. People in the UK still don’t seem to forgive them for not being the charming synth-pop boy band they once were at the beginning of their career. In America, on the other hand, where rock music – such as Bruce Springsteen’s live performances – still moves the biggest crowds, Depeche Mode have enjoyed cult status practically since their legendary Rose Bowl – “101” – concert. How do you see it as a musician? You come from the USA, but your music has more of a European character. Are there big differences in terms of the fanbase on the two sides of the Atlantic?

CC: If music is meant to transcend then it usually does. I find the people at our shows similar around the world. It’s really very international to me. DM’s reign around most of the world makes sense to me. They’re the best at what they do. I can’t complain. I put out my own music. No management or label help. Not much press. Don’t follow the rules. And still going.

SL: Wesley, you’re from Los Angeles. Many people first think of the endless coastline and surfing when they think of this city. Of course, there’s also Jim Morrison, who had a big influence on dark wave artists with the psychedelic rock band, The Doors. How did you discover this style of music? Who are your big favourites? How did you get involved in the LA music scene?

CC: I’m from nowhere. I grew up moving every year and have only been in LA for a decade which is five times longer than I lived anywhere else. That said The Doors were a first love of mine even though I was on the opposite side of the country. When you grow up trying to patch an endless void you just find this music or it finds you. I’m not involved in the LA scene. I don’t think that way. I grew up in punk & hardcore and stopped being concerned with scenes in my early twenties. I like my own scene. It’s an island I built for me and anyone who wants to come visit.

SL: Speaking of Jim Morrison, you’re also into poetry. How do you decide whether the lines you put together in your head become a poem or a song lyric?

CC: Good question. It’s really just where my interest is at when it appears. Sometimes they get used for both.

SL: A mutual friend of ours who also lives in Los Angeles is an active participant and supporter of the dark culture scene there, along with his wife. How did you meet Douglas McCarthy? Have you worked together on any projects?

CC: Amy, my partner, knows Douglas from Detroit. We then toured together ten years ago around the county for a month. I don’t think we’ve made music together but I care about him deeply and he’s always been there for us.

SL: Douglas has opened for Depeche Mode several times with his bands Nitzer Ebb and Black Line, as well as solo, and is also close friends with the band members. Has he recommended you as a possible support band for Depeche Mode’s current tour?

CC: I don’t think so.

SL: A musical collaborator of yours, Bryan Black aka Black Asteroid has also done remixes for Depeche Mode and with another project called Motor he has even released a joint single with Martin Gore called “Man Made Machine”. Please tell us a bit about your joint project!

CC: I met him in Paris 2013 at a Rick Owens runway show. We hit it off and I ended up singing on a few of his tracks. Even did it live a few times. Love his work.

SL: Are you a fan of Depeche Mode yourself? If so, when did you hear them for the first time? Do you have a favourite song or album by them? Have you seen them live? When and where?

CC: Of course! Hard to pick but maybe “It’s No Good”. Amy has seen them I think almost twenty times starting in mid 80’s.

SL: You are going to perform with Cold Cave on five nights (actually six, because in Amsterdam there is also a second show) before Depeche Mode as a support act at big outdoor / stadium concerts. You are also going to do a Germany gig in Leipzig at the legendary Festwiese. When was the last time you were on tour in Germany? What memories do you have of those concerts?

CC: It’s been a few years since a tour. I went to high school in Stuttgart and always love being there. One of the greatest countries. Definitely looking forward to Leipzig. We were there last in 2019 and the year before that with the Jesus and Mary Chain.

SL: I’m going to see your live performance in Bratislava. My 13-year-old daughter is also going to be there, she is also a big fan of synth pop and really likes her dad’s favourite bands. You also have an 8-year-old son. Has he already shown an interest in music? What does he think of your musical works?

CC: He lives and breathes it so far. Often joining us live for a song too. We are both lucky they are down for our music! He’s a great focus group for of a song is good or not.

SL: Your partner, Amy Lee, plays synthesizer alongside you. Which musicians are going to accompany you at the concerts with Depeche Mode?

CC: Amy Lee, Ryan McMahon and Anthony Anzaldo.

SL: Which song or album of Cold Cave would you recommend to those who don’t know your work yet? By the way, are you working on anything new right now?

CC: Always working! Hard to choose. My music really follows my immediate mood so would depend upon that. Maybe “Glory”.

SL: Thanks for the answers and hopefully you will gain many new fans for Cold Cave thanks to the shows together with Depeche Mode!

CC: Thank you! It’s a dream to support Depeche.

Cold Cave “Memento Mori” shows with Depeche Mode:

• Amsterdam (16./18.5.)
• Antwerpen (20.5.)
• Stockholm (23.5.)
• Leipzig (26.5.)
• Bratislava (28.5.)

Cold Cave Discography

For more on Depeche Mode, see Mediamass website pronounces Depeche Mode’s Dave Gahan dead, then… on Side-Line.

János Janurik

I began my career in online music journalism in 2001, writing about artists I had followed since the late ’80s and early ’90s, including Depeche Mode, Erasure and The Cure. I later edited the Hungarian Mute microsite for EMI Music Hungary. This led to interviews with Erasure, Nitzer Ebb and Alan Wilder, and some of those collaborations developed into lasting friendships. Since 2014, I have been part of the editorial team of depechemode.de. I also contribute interviews to Reflections of Darkness, Peek-A-Boo Magazine and Kaput Mag. I maintain a close connection to Mute Records artists and have also supported releases on Very Records. I am proud to collaborate with Side-Line Magazine, where I regularly publish interviews and features.

Denuit is a French male-female duo which last year released their second album “Inferno” on different formats (digital, CD, vinyl and cassette) by Manic Depression Records and No Need Name. The year before they released their debut album “Black Sun”. They’re actually busy working at the next album planned for Autumn 2023. The duo clearly is a prolific band finding their main sources of inspiration in the 80s Cold-Wave and Post-Punk scene. Time to discover a promising formation so I got in touch with both members: ‘Ivi Topp’ and ‘Liss Araignée’.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Tell us a bit more about the origins and set up of Denuit? What have been potential sources of inspiration and influences? 

IVI: DENUIT started on a cold night, surrounded by synthesizers and the warm voice of Lis. My influences range from Minimal-Techno to Arcade Fire, from Prodigy to Nirvana, from The Doors to Pink Floyd. 

LIS: I’m a big fan of The Cramps and The Doors. They were the first bands that made me want to perform on stage. At the moment I’m listening to a lot of Cyber-Punk/Dark-Techno, especially Sierra and Swarm. It’s really my favorite style of music. I’m a big fan of Rebeka Warrior and all her projects, Mansfield.Tya, Kompromat, Sexy Sushi.  I am also very much influenced by literature, as a lyricist. I read a lot of poetry and fantasy. I love Edgar Allan Poe and Vladimir Maïakovski.

Q: What means music to you and what does Denuit stand for? 

IVI: Music for me is a way to express and communicate raw emotions. To connect and share with everyone around me. Denuit is my life, it’s an energy that has always been inside me. Denuit is ‘de nuit’, which literally means ‘by night’.

LIS: Denuit is my reason for being, it’s the breath that makes my lungs rise, it’s the blood that runs through my veins, it’s the cry of my soul. We want to bring poetry into this harsh world, to find the beauty of life.

Q: Every single aspect -like bandname, album- and song titles but also the music, sounds pretty dark and tormented. What did you try to express by darkness and in which way do the dark times we’re going through have an impact on the global production? 

IVI: We always express with our music what we experience around us, in this sense Denuit is like our personal diary. If our music is dark, we always put hope and light in it. We are very optimistic in our everyday life 🙂 

LIS: I think when I see the darkness, I feel at home in a way. I’m not afraid because I know I have the light inside me to light my way. 

Q: You’ve been very prolific; releasing a first album “Black Sun” in 2021 and next “Inferno” in 2022. How did the switch from one album towards the other happened? Were there significant aspects of the production you wanted to improve and/or change? 

LIS: It’s funny you say that because we’re recording our third album right now. In fact I can let you in on a secret, it will be out in October and the first single will be out in June. The transition from one album to another is natural, we follow our cycles, our phases. We always want to progress and to do that we always push our limits, in terms of production and work. As beings, we learn and evolve all our lives. 

IVI: We are constantly writing and working on new material. We have a need to express the important moments in our lives. With each album we try to push our limits and explore new territories musically. Colour is also important to us, as well as the visual aspect. “Black Sun” is = black, “Inferno” is = red, our next album is = purple.  

Q: And how do you look back at your latest album “Inferno”? What did you keep in mind from the writing process and the way it all took shape? 

LIS: “Inferno” contains a lot of anger, it’s born from a constant frustration, from the oppression of the society at that time. Now we see the world differently, there is so much beauty around us and in the end the most important thing is love. Love for yourself and for others. With “Inferno” we were able to overcome this anger and be reborn in a very positive way. We have hope for the future. 

IVI: “Inferno” is an important step. We had to go into this red, dry land to come out the other side.

Q: It all looks like the video clips clearly are a very important part of Denuit. What did you try to express by the clips and this other creative side of the band? Do you think clips still make sense in a world where streaming became the standard? 

LIS: Video is a complete art because it includes music, photography, acting and writing. For us it is a way to illustrate our music, to show it to people the way we want them to see it. 

IVI: I love films! I think the relationship and the fusion between moving images and music elevates the music and the films at the same time. For us, it is very important to extend our artistic expression to clips. 

Q: Another important part of the band seems to be the stage. How do you transpose the songs from studio towards the stage? And how do you see yourself as a live band? 

LIS: The stage is the performance of our music. When we are with our audience, we feel free and at the right place. We prepare our shows in residences with our technicians and before we play a new set, we check all our scenography and sound to give our audience the best possible experience. 

IVI: The stage is our home. When we play, everything else disappears. There is no past, there is no future, only the present counts. That is why we make music, to play it live! Read the review of ‘Inferno’.

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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Crime & the City Solution, who recently returned to the studio to record a cover of The Doors’ classic 1967 ode to alienation, “People Are Strange”, have just announced details of a series that will see their long out of print catalogue reissued on vinyl for the first time in decades via Mute Records.

The series begins in January 2023 with the reissue of the three albums that founder Simon Bonney considers the origin of his true voice and the definitive sound he sought for Crime & the City Solution: “Shine” (1988, set for release on limited gold vinyl), “The Bride Ship” (1989, available on limited white vinyl) and “Paradise Discotheque” (1990, out on limited orange vinyl).

Crime & the City Solution’s second album, “Shine”, heralds the arrival of the first Berlin incarnation, and sees Simon Bonney, Mick Harvey and Bronwyn Adams decamp from London to Berlin. With a more experimental sound, which drew less on Melbourne post punk scene roots and took a more explorative musical approach, this lineup featured Einstürzende Neubauten’s Alexander Hacke on guitar, ex-DAF/Liaisons Dangereuses electronicus Chrislo Haas on vintage Korg patchbay synth, and free jazz bassist Thomas Stern.

“The Bride Ship” soon followed and saw the Berlin line up return to Hansa Tonstudio in West Berlin, this time with Gareth Jones lending a hand with production. In 1990, following a move by Simon Bonney and Bronwyn Adams to Vienna, the now classic line up travelled to Conny Plank’s legendary studio to record “Paradise Discotheque”.

About Crime and the City Solution

Formed in Sydney by Simon Bonney at the age of 16, Crime & the City Solution’s early performances from 1977-1979 had a big impact on key figures of the early Melbourne art-punk/post punk scene. In 1984, Bad Seed Mick Harvey shipped Bonney to England to form the London based Crime with their friend ex-Birthday Party guitarist Rowland S Howard, with his brother Harry Howard on bass and Epic Soundtracks on drums. Two years on, having toured Europe, the UK and US and released several EPs and an album, this lineup reached its zenith at its finale in a historic swansong performance in Wim Wenders’ cinematic masterpiece “Wings of Desire”.

Following the Berlin incarnation, encapsulated in these three reissues and the live album, “The Adversary”, it would be 20 years before the band, then based in Detroit, would return with their fifth studio album, “American Twilight”.

Back now after a 10-year hiatus, Simon Bonney and Bronwyn Adams have been touring through Europe with a new Berlin based incarnation, their final date of the year will be at La Maroquinerie in Paris on 27 November.

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

Crime & The City Solution returned to the studio for the first time in nearly 10 years to record a special cover of The Doors’ classic 1967 “People Are Strange”. This new recording is the first with a Berlin line up.

Simon Bonney and Bronwyn Adams now continue their Europe tour dates with three newly announced shows in November 2022, with the new Berlin based incarnation of Crime & The City Solution.

Here are the new dates.

1. 5 Nov – Lodz PL, Soundedit Festival
2. 12 Nov – Athens GR, Fuzz Club
3. 27 Nov – Paris FR, La Maroquinerie

Here’s the video of “People Are Strange”.

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

Back in the good old days, there was BONG, the official Depeche Mode fan club magazine which ran from 1988 until the closure of the club in 2002. Not that there was nothing before that as the magazine was previously distributed as a newsletter format publication known as the Depeche Mode Information Service, which ran from 1981 through early 1988. Anyhow, that all lays now in the past. Many friendships were built via the magazine, many relations as well and many readers were introduced to other bands such as Nitzer Ebb, Front 242, Pouppée Fabrikk, Cat Rapes Dog via the magazine’s penpal section. The last editor was Michaela Olexova (1994 – 2002) who also closed the doors of the magazine in 2002 with BONG 52, in beauty we must say and with a special attached CD holding 3 rare promo only remixes. Over the years we all also got to see her photographic skills as she became the in-house photographer for the magazine.

20 years later, Michaela revisited her photo archives and compiled the best pictures she took of the band during her reign in BONGland to publish them as “Dream”, a curated collection of Depeche Mode photographs from the period 1994 – 2002. You can order your copy right here: www.michaelaolexova.com.

We hailed Michaela who lives in London with her husband, daughter and cat.

Professionally you work as a website designer, photographer, digital creator, educator, and founder & creative director of Feel Good Websites these days. I see you deliver website templates, is that for WordPress only or for several different CMS types?

Michaela Olexova: My expertise is a brand and website design using the Squarespace platform which is a modern, clean and user friendly strategic tool to help you launch and grow your online business. I’m also about to introduce a new online course to help people create an authentic brand from the scratch that ignites their creativity, inspires them to dream big and believe that anything really is possible.

Let’s dive into the past. Being the former editor of the official Depeche Mode official fan club magazine Bong in 1994 – 2002, you have had some really direct access to the band. Is that still so now, I guess not, do you miss it?

Michaela Olexova: It’s been 20 years since the Bong magazine finished and we’ve all moved on, both professionally and personally. So although I’m still in touch with a few people I used to work with and may catch up with the Band members when they tour, we don’t have any more direct contact. It was a really exciting period in my life and I do miss it occasionally but it gave me so many wonderful memories which I wanted to bring back to life in this book.

Is the Depeche Mode era for you closed with this book now?

Michaela Olexova: I’m still a big fan of Depeche Mode and their solo projects so it can never really be closed… However, this book is one of my dreams come true, as the book title suggests, so I’m super happy and grateful that I can share this personal tribute with the world after all those years as a celebration of Depeche Mode, their music and their fans.

One thing I have realized when going through the book is that those past 20 years have flown away as if it all happened just yesterday. I guess it was also a trip down memory lane for you? How do you look back at that period?

Michaela Olexova: Yes, you’re absolutely right, it doesn’t feel like 20 years ago at all! The Bong magazine gave me a creative platform to explore my many passions and skills, whether it was design, photography, writing, music or production, and I was really lucky that I had the freedom to develop lots of my ideas and the Band trusted I was doing a good job. I guess this experience significantly influenced not only my life but also my career as it lead me to where I am today, running a creative design business and empowering women to dare to live their dreams.

How did you pick the pictures for this book and what order did you go for to present them in the book? I guess you ‘sit’ on a lot more material? What material did not make it and why?

Michaela Olexova: When I started organising my photo archive during the Covid lockdown, I realised I’ve got over 1,000 Depeche Mode photos. There are lots of photos from various tours, studio, behind the scenes and private photo sessions, so I decided to organise them in two chapters – Live and Life. I also had a good idea of the book format and knew I wanted to include about 70-80 photos in the final book so I made several shortlists. First, I went from 1,000 to about 300 photos based on my personal preferences, but also the quality of negatives, and then from 300 to the final 73 photos based on my intuition which then had to be scanned and digitally restored.

Your main focus is on Martin Gore and David Gahan, am I wrong these are also your favourite band members? By the way, where were those Martin Gore pictures taken, was/is that his own house’s garden?

Michaela Olexova: It’s funny you say that but it never really was my intention! The reason you see so many photos of Martin and Dave is simply because they’re both centre of the stage during the live shows and that’s all to it. There are also some great photos of Andy Fletcher on and off the stage – I especially like the ones from his visit to Prague – or Alan Wilder who left the Band soon after I started working with them. As for the photos of Martin Gore, they were taken at his country house in May 1995 when I was preparing my photo exhibition of portraits in Prague at the time and he kindly agreed to do a quick photo session to support my project.

I especially like that you also included non live pics in “Dream”, including studio sessions pictures made in a more relaxed atmosphere, or was that just the surface?

Michaela Olexova: The studio photos were taken over two days I spent with them at Rak Studios in London during the recording session of their album ‘Ultra’. I was there to do interviews with all the Band members for the Bong magazine and everyone was really relaxed and happy for me taking photos of the creative process. My favourite pictures are of Dave rehearsing for the song ‘The Love Thieves’, it was just him on the mic and me taking the photos inside the vocal studio which was a really special moment and I’m glad the relaxed atmosphere shows through these candid pictures.

I don’t know if you have a preferred era of the band visually? I personally was always quite attracted by the 1987 and 1989/1990 visual era of the band, I guess because that’s also when they released my preferred Depeche Mode albums. What about you and why?

Michaela Olexova: I guess the time around ‘Music For The Masses’ is really close to my heart as it’s when I discovered Depeche Mode and got attracted to their music. Growing up in the communist Czechoslovakia with hardly any access to the music or culture from the western part of the world, I was fascinated by their music, fashion, style and visuals. With Anton Corbijn’s moody black & white photos and videos, they managed to create a unique brand that was so different to anything or anyone else out there.

Doing promo for this book from the UK has been a postal nightmare, I see it happen with lots of products being shipped to the EU from outside the EU which don’t get delivered or in the best case get returned. Having your own company Feel Good Websites in the UK as well, do you see more of this Brexit ‘fun’ happening?

Michaela Olexova: Yes, I do but it’s not fun at all! To be honest, I was shocked how difficult it is to deliver a book from the UK to Europe. It’s still a mystery to me that the fans in USA, Brazil or Japan can receive their book within a few days while some of the fans in Europe have to wait for weeks or months because their delivery is stuck at the customs. Luckily, I run a digital business so I don’t have to deal with things like that on daily basis but there’s other post-Brexit issues which make things complicated for both, business owners and customers, and that’s a real shame.

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

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

(Photo by Clemens Habicht) While Liars’ latest album, “The Apple Drop”, is out today, the band has also now released the video of a secret show in Sydney, Australia: “Liars: Live at Phoenix”.

“Liars: Live at Phoenix” was directed by Clemens Habicht – who recently created a trilogy of films for “The Apple Drop” – and sees Angus Andrew, Laurence Pike, and Cameron Deyell perform “Murdrum” (from “Titles with the Word Fountain”), “Sekwar” and “Big Appetite” (both from “The Apple Drop”). The setting was the futuristic wood and concrete surrounds of Phoenix Central Park.

Angus Andrew: “It felt essential for the work to be performed in the nest at Phoenix Central Park. The hyper modern architecture intensified the drama and framed the whole evening in a spectacular sci-fi universe. I can’t express enough thanks and gratitude to Phoenix Central Park for the opportunity to debut The Apple Drop in such an awe-inspiring space.”

Here’s the live set.

About Liars

Liars is an Australian-American experimental noise band formed in Brooklyn, New York in 2000. Angus Andrew is the founding and only constant member of Liars, currently joined by multi-instrumentalist Cameron Deyell and drummer Laurence Pike.

Aaron Hemphill played with the band from its inception until his amicable departure from the project in 2017. Julian Gross joined the band for their second album “They Were Wrong, So We Drowned” in 2004, and played with the band until his departure in 2014.

Liars are signed to Mute Records and combine elements of punk-rock with electronica, with Andrew being inspired by artists such as Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), The Cure, PJ Harvey, Underworld, The Doors and Michael Franks.

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

(Photo by McLean Stephenson) Liars have launched their new track, “From What The Never Was”, the latest single from their forthcoming album, “The Apple Drop”, ahead of its release August 6 on Mute.

“From What the Never Was” is accompanied by the last in a trilogy of films directed by Clemens Habicht. This interstellar horror prequel covers the time leading up to “Sekwar” and “Big Appetite”. In it, we find Angus Andrew, Laurence Pike, and Cameron Deyell traversing deep space when the mission goes terribly wrong. This chapter takes place in the futuristic interiors of Phoenix Central Park in Sydney, Australia, who commissioned the film.

Watch the film below.

Watch the previous videos here.

“The Apple Drop” follows 2017’s “TFCF” and 2018’s “Titles with the Word Fountain”. The new album finds Angus working with avant-garde jazz drummer Laurence Pike, multi-instrumentalist Cameron Deyell, and lyricist Mary Pearson Andrew.

Liars is an Australian-American project which was formed in Brooklyn, New York in 2000 by Angus Andrew who is also the only constant member of Liars. Liars have released nine studio albums and are signed to Mute Records. Musically the band is inspired by artists such as Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), The Cure, PJ Harvey, Underworld, The Doors and Michael Franks.

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

Back in 1991 I started writing my first reviews for Side-Line magazine. I would have never thought to go on writing reviews and making interviews non-stop for 30 years. So 2021 is a special year to me, a kind of ‘celebration year’. I got the idea to celebrate this special event by interviewing people from the scene who all have a special meaning to me. ‘Journalists’ have to remain neutral, but it doesn’t take a way we all have our own favorite artists. Juno Reactor is one of my all-time favorites. Instigator Ben Watkins is an artist who each time again takes me by surprise. His work is mixing influences like Psy-Trance, Tribal and Cinematographic music. The Juno Reactor sound has something special featuring elements you directly recognize; a true sound-DNA. I already got the opportunity to interview Ben Watkins before, but I’ve been deeply touched he accepted to answer questions for this special interview. Great artists aren’t only composing great music; they’re still accessible and humble persons. I’d an endless number of questions to ask. Ben took his time to answer and it finally resulted in one of the most informative and complete Juno Reactor interviews ever. Thanks Ben and respect!

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

‘I Was Smitten By Girls And Rock’

Q: What have been your first experiments as a musician? What have been the triggers and, which were your favorite bands as a teenager? 

Ben: I was born into a family of five kids, I was the second, my parents had both been actor’s. When I was between 5 and 6 years old I would wait for my brother in my classroom to finish his school -I would have about an hour, so about 10 of us kids and a teacher would do drawing, games etc. One day I suggested we do a “Top Of The Pops” (a popular TV show); I formed a band with air-minus-everything, sat my mate Jason down on drums as he had the biggest nose like Ringo Star, can’t remember the others; we would make what surely was a cacophony of made-up words and stamping to the beat. “She Loves You Yeah Yeah Yeah” must have rung out beyond the classroom as the headmaster, a demonstrative man, with a liking for beating kids with his sports shoe would appear at the window looking very irritated. As it was not the first time I had had the unwarranted shoe across my backside, a shiver would go down my back as his eyes and Hitler moustache bobbed above the door partition. 

These pleasant heady afternoons were soon banned due to the repetition of “She Loves You Yeah Yeah Yeah”. I noticed the rather large female teacher was pretty good at the piano, So I asked if I could have lessons, even her non-stop smoking didn’t not put me off. 

The headmaster had too much of a liking for giving me a sore ass, so I asked my parents if I could move school. I had joined the parish choir, the choirmaster was a man named Roy Massey. Roy Massey was cool and pushed me as he liked my voice. He suggested I go to a Cathedral Choir school and apply for a scholarship. 

First I went to audition at St Pauls Cathedral in London. It was a bleak audition, I didn’t prepare enough, and glad I escaped what reminded me of a Charles Dickens movie. Next was Chichester. I could breathe in this atmosphere, I passed the audition of 200 kids for one place and felt very puffed up with myself, knowing my parents didn’t have to pay for my education. 

Violin followed, along with daily practise -7 am wake up, 30 minutes piano or violin practise. 8 am breakfast, 8:30 practise piano violin, 9 am going to the classroom, 12:00 choir practise, lunch then school, sports, choir practise, choir service, dinner, do homework, play free games, practise then bed. This went on for 4 years along with a new disciplinary teacher who equally enjoyed punishment -this time a cane, up the wide massive stairs of the bishops palace, down a long dark corridor, knock, explain my crime, ‘Ben-d over Watkins’, a leather chair which when bent over lifted my behind into the perfect position. 6 whacks later, my hands firmly on my butt, dark bruises would appear later in the night. I had been born again to the boy I should have been in the first place. 

Music school and punishment always seemed interlinked. Even now it annoys me that the first headmaster refused to put my name on the scholarship board, what a cunt. His name was Mr. Sandford.

 I survived Chichester, I became the head of House, by this time I was no longer beaten, and had a champion in Mr. Ross, the disciplinary teacher, sports freak alto in the choir with a certain eye for pubescent males. I was good at winning in Rugby, as we had the biggest 13-year-old god or whoever made him, like a superhero he would destroy other schools and me riding on his coattails basked in his glory. Mr. Ross showed me how to take down a man, so we did with as much aggression as possible when he joined in. 

I left Chichester, a remnant from the stone age of how not to teach a dyslexic kid like me through corporal punishment on how to learn -I didn’t. My choirmaster at Chichester I must say was equally odd, looking like Eric Malcombe (a British comedian). He again had a draconian delight in making sure the boys of the choir feared him, his eyes would hover over you like the follow spots of a prison camp from high above us in the organ loft. He had two mirrors focused on us, and if you looked up, the Vampire of Bela Lugosi would be there. I can’t say I cried when he died a few years ago, as I still hold a dagger that was thrown too many times my way. 

So Wells Cathedral school was next, my introduction to the female sex… well, bye bye learning, OK practise the violin, do all the rest, then focus on bands, Led Zep, David Bowie, Marc Bolan, Alice Cooper, Queen, glam rock. I was smitten by girls and rock. My mate Simon Baggs was older and had a car, we would venture out of the school across to Glastonbury plateaus, a labyrinthian set of roads through old mash lands, country pubs to drink cider, smoke John Players Special fags, and listen to his 8 tracks (?) as the beams of his car entered the mists of the backcountry lanes. Alice Cooper’s “Love It To Death” album never sounded so sweet. I continued exploring musical possibilities by experimenting with my first band Spiritual Sky, influenced by David Bowie, whose concerts was the first I went to, the Aladdin Sane tour at the Earls Court Stadium.

‘I Was Listening To D.A.F. And I Realised This Is The Future’

Q: Hailing from London (UK) I can imagine the late 70s and 80s have been fascinating years when it comes to music and the (r)evolution of Electronic music. What did these years mean to you and do you still feel an impact today? 

Ben: I left school when I was 16/17 with the intent of going to a music college. At that time I played classical guitar, and would practise 8 hours a day, and got quite OK on it. I flunked the first audition as I didn’t present a second instrument. This depressing point changed the course of my life, I was so annoyed by myself, I stopped playing classical guitar and got more into songs of Dylan and people like John Martin. Smoked a ton of dope, started busking, went off to Paris with a semi pyscho guy called Lynn, a man with an addiction to Valium and a crushing right hand as a rhythm guitarist, and spent the summer playing on the streets of Saint Michelle and the Champs Elysée. After months of being arrested (and sometimes put into prison -the police were quite nice and would give me beers to play) I had had enough. I wanted to form a band! Due to my parents lengthily separation and all the conflicts attached to it, starting since I was 9, and final divorce shortly after my return home from Paris, life diverted and I ended up establishing a rehearsal room in the now deserted parental house, where I and my older brother would continue living alone, experiencing the newly found peace and evolving musical projects while rehearsing with my first band Panther. I started gigging, Punk-Rock was kicking off! I was playing, now with my band Rainstorm, the same pubs as the Sex Pistols, Japan, The Stranglers amongst others, we did a tour withThe Frankie Miller Band. A Glasgow singer that should have been born in Memphis -a great singer, wild and very much a Glaswegian. Back then I was booking shows from a red phone box -coins every 30 seconds. Rainstorm turning into I.O.U., we played pretty much every music pub in the country. I really wish I’d kept my bass player from I.O.U. for my next musical project, a guy named Ian Taylor, who I had a natural affinity with.

I was bored of being skint and driving up and down the country for 2 years in our Box Transit with 6 aircraft seats, a PA we had on HP (higher purchase/credit) and going nowhere, fun but nowhere. One time we had to be rescued by the police near Shropshire in Winter, heavy snow blocked the roads at midnight, and the Transit was stranded and being snowed in, the guitarist, also called Ben, had icicles forming on his moustache. I remember crossing fields alone to find a house, first one wouldn’t help us, onto another who did ring the rescue, six of us stuff into a police car -never felt so good.

I partnered up with some musicians an A&R man from CBS suggested. The A&R man was a guy called Chas de Whalley, the brother of a friend of mine from back in the days of the headmaster with a penchant for corporal punishment. We, The Hitmen, went on to be signed to CBS after a year of rehearsals and songs that sounded like a primitive AI had made for a pop audience. Much to the chagrin of CBS, the management and the band, we were incredibly unsuccessful despite all the money and machinery CBS provide. I hated it, the mentality of playing the same notes, in-jokes and seriously underwhelming emotions. I had to leave as I couldn’t stomach The Hitmen any more, the characters in the band were the antithesis of my mental state or desire. Luckily the second album decided to shoot itself in the head, due to too much fighting, no focus and CBS’s realisation The Hitmen were doomed.  

Phil Manzanero’s studio (the guitarist of Roxy Music) was a white circular house -I had never seen anything like it! The engineer was a guy called Ian Little. We had made the last Hitmen record there, and I got on with him well. We talked nearly the same language, as opposed to the disconnect with the band. He wanted to make an avant-garde album, free of doctrine -just do what you want. So for a few tracks I threw away all concern and I was to be David Bowie, imagining myself on an alternative “Lodger”-album. Nothing was written, all just improvised. The band was called New Asia… This set my brain off into new ways of writing, like Brian Eno, as studios were expensive and this gave me a chance to experiment. 

So in the ’70s and ’80s it felt like I was always playing catch up with what other people were doing. I had had the band signed to CBS – it sounded like another band (Elvis Costello mix), or my previous bands -we didn’t sound particularly individual. It was only when I was sick enough of all the ego’s, bullshit or the hatred that you got from possibly jealous band members, that when I got introduced to a drum machine and a sequencer I realised I could get rid of half the band. I was listening to D.A.F. -it was a two-piece and I realised this is the future.

I met Youth (the bass player of Killing Joke) in ’82, around the time when he had just left Killing Joke and was looking to start a new band, which became Brilliant. I was the only guy he knew with a sequencer so for a short time I joined. Toured UK and Spain. We went on to record under the Name The Youth & Ben Watkins on the “The Empty Quarter”-album and “The Empty Quarter” on the “Delirium” album. Both albums were extremely quick in making;  first album -the official soundtrack to Jonathan Moore’s stage play “Street Captives” -2 days. Written, recorded and mixed with predominantly pulsating bass lines, drums, early Greengate samplers and synthesizers. Second album -5 days. We recorded “Delirium”, focusing more on rhythms and Electronic elements with still some instrumental aspect, ranging from Tribal to Industrial to Gothic-Funk. So many funny stories with Youth -the time in Spain on the evacuation of the tour, as it all fell apart after Barcelona; we took all our equipment back on the train, decided to eat all of our dope before the French border. By the time we arrived at midnight, the French border police wanted to play games with this group of English stoners. ‘Who is this woman’ they said, referring to a passport. We all looked and couldn’t identify her? ‘Go find her…’ so we all went looking on the train platform, bewildered and laughing, about an hour later we returned to their pigeon hole and asked to look again, as no way was she still on the platform. Upon second look we realised it was me they were referring to… Ha. Ha.

I heard DAF and Suicide around this time, I was saved! This music spoke to me. My grandmother died and left me 200£ which I immediately spent on a Roland MC 202, a sequencer with one monophonic synth. On HP I bought a cheap drum machine and a Moog Rogue. I formed The Flowerpot Men with Adam Peters, a classical cellist, who later became Echo And The Bunnymen’s orchestrator. 

 Our first single sold well for an underground track. We toured with Dead Or Alive and Siouxsie And The Banshees. Steven Severin of the Banshee’s produced the first “Single Joe’s So Mean to Josephine”, a dark murderous story I had read in the papers. The police knew who had killed the woman in bed, but couldn’t work out how Joe had managed to tie himself up. For the track I expanded on the story a bit. The 202 was driving this with the added influences of T.Rex, sort of a suicide inspired track. It charted in the indie charts and you could hear it being played by John Peel on BBC Radio 1 and loads of underground Gothic Dj’s. “Jo’s So Mean (to Josephine)” was also on our own independent record label, Compost Records.

In 1985 we recorded a cover of Dr Johns “Walk On Gilded Splinters” with Dr John on guest vocals, at Run DMC’s Studio In Nostrand Ave, Brooklyn NY. The B side featured a track called “Melting Down On Motor Angel” which was an elongation of the new drug MDMA, which we sampled on a roof garden on 8th Street watching a shoot-out down below. “Melting Down On Motor Angel” was also the album title to Sunsonic’s only album.

Around this time also, Sigue Sigue Sputnik started turning up to our gigs in full dress, noting down all we were doing, later to make their own version of our madness. A single a year, then along came Ferris Bueller’s Day Off in 1986 completely out of the blue.

Another EP “Alligator Bait”, four songs inspired again by the time in New York… what wasn’t great about New York at that time? So much vibe, parties, gigs, the Danceteria, hanging out with artists, musicians, actors, painters, just walking down the street was like being in a Kojak episode, I loved it!

We were building a nice audience when Adam decided to go produce a Punk band in Denmark instead of headlining the Temple of Gothic achievement -the Camden Palace. The Flowerpot Men were no more.

 Yello had come into my life with the “80 – 85”-remix album, it never left the record player, Sonic Youth, Front 242, most of the Mute Records catalogue, Beggars Banquet label, ZTT were making records I could only dream of creating…

So rethink time, 9 months of thinking, writing; rave music came in 86/87, early parties hanging out with KLF in their squat. Sometimes engineering their remixes, or going on the highland adventures with the KLF, making a copy of “The Wicker Man” for all KLF’s licencees, flown onto a small island on the Western Isles (the same place they burnt a million pounds in the name of art and cocaine), so like a twat, as again I was skint I did the opposite of good, and tried and succeed in going and signing with another major label, this time Polydor Records and with my Flowerpot partner, I started Sunsonic. Part of the deal was they build us a studio to save on costs, so what seemed a cool idea -and was in some ways -was us investing into learning how (and not) to become an engineer, an album that should have taken a few months turned into two years and sounded like it: over thought under inspired.

I worked with Alex Paterson (The Orb) again and formed a short-lived band called Peace In The Middle East, same name as the track we created, a sort of goodwill floppy dance sounding workout, nothing special.

 When there was so much great quick music being made we were in creative limbo. So the impact changed. Find a new way to present a band, no longer did I want the ego of one partner, I wanted a collective or collaborators and keep the vibe and atmosphere good and exciting. 

Adam left for the USA, I stayed and started Juno Reactor.

‘Juno Reactor Was Set Up As An Art Collective’

Q: I think Juno Reactor was originally set up as an art collective/gallery, right? Who was involved? What was it all about and how did it finally become a music collective centred around you? 

Ben:  Juno Reactor was set up as an art collective, with writers, installation artists, filmmakers, etc. Norma Fetcher, my girlfriend, took a surface to air missile and we drove it around London down past Parliament Square, Big Ben, Whitehall on a flatbed truck, with armoured personal carriers front and back whilst dressed as Arabs -an anti Gulf War protest, and installed it into an art Gallery, the Diorama, that was owned by the Queen and had a perfect silo shape in the middle where the rocket was newly erected. For this, I wrote “Luciana” -really Juno Reactor’s first album, which was also a suggestion of Jimmy Cauty (KLF) that I should do an hour mix as he had just done, as an experiment. The trouble with art was funding and much easier for me to get musical backing so it folded as soon as it began. Although R&S Records did sponsor that show as I had released a track called “I Love You” under the name of Electrotete with future JR musician Stephan Holweck (who later became Total Eclipse), a crazy French guy and brilliant bass player who also lived in the Benio squat with Jimmy.

The main people in the first two Juno Reactor albums were: Mike Maquire, a great guy I met at the distribution company Greyhound, when releasing a self-released title “Pycho SlapHead”, a brutal rave track with a sense of murderous humour. Mike was great, he had been in India many times and loved the early scene where DJ’s were already playing my tracks. I had to find out more, so we went into my studio in Bowl Court and Mike turned me on to the current sound of India. As it was so close to my Electronic sound it was an easy hop onto a train – Sci-Fi Landscapes, my 202 still purring like a train, we made the track “High Energy Protons”. Mike took it to India and immediately it became a big track there and abroad: Japan, Greece, France, Germany and UK. Tracks kept on hoping out in two or three days, with Stephan Holweck and Mike and soon we had about nine or ten tracks, so I took them up to Mute Records, intending to only perhaps sell one track. They loved it and wanted the album!

No one knew what this music was, so they called it intelligent Techno, albums were selling, gigs were happening, I was feeling more comfortable about the debts of Sunsonic being paid off. 

‘For Me It Was A Sci-Fi Scene For Acid Party People’

Q: The singles “Laughing Gas” and “High Energy Protons” plus the debut album “Transmissions” (1993) were into Goa-Trance. Back in time this genre was something totally new and often introduced as ‘Electronics for hippies’. What did you keep in mind from this album and how did you see the Goa-Trance movement evolving? 

Ben: Well, I never saw it as music for hippies -for me it was a Sci-fi scene for acid party people, hippies were still listening to Dylan in my mind. I had come from the Industrial-Rock routes, with heavy sense or brutal Electronica, which was also being played out in India, so for me, it was not much of a diversion, more like an extension of what I had already been doing. So I hooked up with Mike and Johann Bley, a great writer and drummer, who lived in Goa for 6 months of the year whilst I stayed in the UK and carried on writing tracks. Youth by this time was also indulging in holidays out there. It was a great way to write with no commercial interest, and just get what was great feedback from India and the parties. Essentially it was a very positive way of producing after what was a rather grim time whilst with Sunsonic. 

“Transmissions” was the first real beginning of something special, Mike Maguire – Stephan Holweck – Johann Bley even Turnip the Swede Jens Walderbeck, had an important part to play in the new playground. Mike and Johann would go to Goa and live there for 6 months of the year, send feedback on tracks, that even in these days of fire hilltop communication, managed to pass on the vibe of the parties, as I worked on new tracks to send out, or wait for their return. I had no idea of the lazy days on the beaches, rented houses year round, with cleaners and cooks, small or large jungle parties where monkeys would be interactive with the monkeys our tracks (“Jungle High”) -I have sampled a lot of monkey sounds.

These new Cyber-Punks would network in the blessed out Goa sun, to return to their homelands, far away from paradise and the free love of this un-celebrated underground unknown music, their generation accepting of all ages, colours race. Would telegraph their passion, create parties in on hidden mountains in Japan, sex clubs in L.A, warehouse London, gymnasiums in Paris, disused airports in Germany, Outback volcanos in Australia. We were invisible to the industry of wannabe stars and bankrupt music.

This kinetic energy of knowing you were onto something new was the drug, like a secret society that anyone could join, if you had digested the shared psychedelic values.

Our new world was fresh, driven, invited around the world, “Transmissions” was transmitting on a global level, that music magazines and house DJs couldn’t fathom.

 The studio building was from the time of Jack the Ripper, a 3 story warehouse used for  god knows what, the atmosphere had not left it, along with some of the rather back street people you might expect in that area of London. Prostitutes would use the car park at the back, working their trade. Sometime city guys in suits would be aggressive and attack the women, so we kept a baseball bat by the door and if we heard their screams we would run out in the name of protection.

Q: Your next album “Luciana” (1994) was something totally different and not exactly the most familiar album from your discography. But I think there’re a few interesting things to say about this work; it revealed your interest in Soundtracks while it got released on Alex Paterson’s (The Orb) own label Inter-Modo. What brought you to write this album and how did you get in touch with Alex Paterson? 

Ben: This goes back to the Missile Project and the involvement in installation art. Alex (THE ORB) heard the album and loved it, he said ‘Can I release it?’, why not I thought, so I spent an afternoon with Alex in the studio, he added some elements over the stereo track and that became the album. I met Alex in 1986, as he is Youth oldest and best friend, an ex roadie of Killing Joke with an amazing record collection, a massive ability to smoke more than London can produce and speak in a way you need a hearing aid to listen. 

Q: I’ve always linked Juno Reactor with solid bass lines and transcendental drums. “Beyond The Infinite” (1995) perfectly symbolizes these elements, but also your interest to explore new ideas like Tribal drums. What did this work say about your perception of ‘sound’ and eventually your passion for drums? 

Ben: “Beyond The Infinite”, by this time Mute and cool London were not fans of Goa or Trance anymore, and decided to call it ‘Tarquin Techno’ in the media, because of the image that rich kids were behind the scene, which -looking at myself, was obviously bollocks, but in Goa there certainly were a few, and maybe the other scenes sensing danger, ridiculed it. They were about to steal the name of trance. Paul Oakenfold(like ‘Sique Sique Sputnick’) was hanging out at parties, listening, collecting ideas and tracks, the house was moving to Trance. Clever, to take this and add all the crap vocals and sell it off to the sheep… Their power and media savvy then became ‘Trance’. Not sure what our scene was, Psychedelic-Trance? Along come all these pigeon holes. Name it, sell it. We didn’t give a shit and stayed as far away from the cliché as possible. Mike was so great at this time, he had the best tunes of anyone, and was in great demand as an international DJ, from the USA to Japan and sometimes we would join him as a live three-piece. Brilliant days, we were a family. 

Q: I think you’re an artist with a very unique sound DNA! What I’m trying to say is that I instantly can recognize your work by the bass lines, the orchestral arrangements, the hypnotic drum sections… What makes this DNA and where does it come from? 

Ben: I have no idea. Like all musicians, I have collected and been inspired by what I needed and wanted. I love all types of music, still do, these DNA strands are unique, the hard part is how to lay them out for others to share and enjoy. I wanted to be a photographer when very young, my dad said it was too expensive, so film, TV, pictures, music all collided and formed whatever I am in my tastes for music.

‘I Decided To Become More Grounded In Earthly Sounds From The Percussion’

Q: It’s impossible not evoking “Bible Of Dreams” (1997), which revealed new ideas and collaborations. I consider this work as your magnum opus, which even today hasn’t lost its original magic. How do you look back at this work 24 years later and are there some aspects of the production you would do differently? 

Ben:  So the time of “Bible Of Dreams” came along. Robert Trunz, CEO of MELT2000 -the umbrella company which ran Blue Room, and Simon Ghahary, the managing director of Blue Room -a sub-label based in the UK specialising in Electronic music, had signed Juno Reactor to Blue Room/Melt 2000 for “Beyond The Infinite”, as Mute didn’t want it. Robert was a jazz freak, and he got me involved in his great love for African music. Robert and Simon were different, business was easy, as Robert was pretty loaded and loved to invest in his artists. He took over my shabby warehouse studio, put in a massive Raindurk Symphony Desk, massive monitors that would be anyone’s wet dream, 9 bass drivers aside, they blew the roof off. He took over landlord costs, God I was free of all these costs, and could make music without the fear of losing it all.  

I had been introduced to the African musicians on Melt 2000. All the scene was doing was still making chemical noises, and stick in an alien landscape for the acid heads. Although this is enjoyable, it became very repetitive. So I decided to become more grounded in earthly sounds from the percussion. The only percussionists I had been introduced to before Amampondo were generally white guys, flipping away on drums in a sloppy-sloppy fashion, or German-style timpani military way which I had found pretty useless and saw no advantage in it on a track. So my mind was blown away by Mabi -power, rhythmic complexity, fun, tradition, amazing rhythms that propelled the track! My eyes were opened and I felt stupid I had not seen what so many others had -say for example my favourite drummer Ginger Baker -why hadn’t I noticed African drumming that years before? Anyway, I was now awake to its potential in my world of cross over, not interested in world music in its pure form and wanted to create a fusion with electronic music and see what comes out. 

Working with Mabi was so instinctive, we both saw tracks in the same way as pictures and thoughts, I literally fell over him in a music studio corridor where he was asleep on the floor when I was producing a Zulu Band for Melt 2000 in South Africa. We got talking and I invited him and Amampondo to play all the percussion, so in a way, our future was laid out there.

I felt I knew what I was doing, none of my UK band wanted to tour the USA with Moby for just 30 minutes a night, so I called Mabi and Amampondo , did a few rehearsals and off on tour! This moment diverted the future of the project for the next 12 years where I would tour with Amampondo.

 “God Is God” could finally be added to a Juno Reactor album, as now JUNO RREACTOR was more interested in the earth sounds, leaving sci-fi behind. “God Is God” was written around the end of “Transmissions”, needed a better mix, but was ready. The album fell into place so easily. 

I wouldn’t touch “Bible Of Dreams” as it is a record of where I was musically at the time. I firmly believe people walk on our path for a reason, be it for a short or long period. How we interact with them is up to us. Some people unexpectedly turn out to be far more important than you could ever have imagined. Some you will love until you die, while other return to the mist of being.

Q: I read somewhere that after “Bible Of Dreams” you got the feeling to be done with Electronic music. What was it all about? Was it a kind of exhaustion or blank page syndrome?

Ben: It happens a lot to me, especially with Electronic music. Far too many people seem to be happy to create a platform. Be it Trance, Techno, Ambient, Drum’n’Bass, Bass music, whatever. It gets like an L.A motorway full of polluting gases all sounding the same. So I go left, maybe my mistake there, but as I am totally useless at being commercial, I prefer my way. And hope others enjoy it.

‘The Track Was Built Around My Love For Tarantino And Westerns, Clint Eastwood And “Once Upon A Time In The West”’

Q: The opening song “Pistolero” from the “Shango”-album (2000) probably became your biggest hit ever. It sounds differently because of this guitar play and yet it remains 100% Juno Reactor! I remember my reaction when I heard it for the very first time: ‘this guy is crazy’! Was this song a kind of antithesis to all what you’ve done before? And how did you imagine the future of the project right at the new millennium? 

Ben: On tour I met up with Steve Stevens. After speaking with him on the phone about the recent Traci Lords album that I produced, I invited him to play on a show in L.A, a great venue, like an old-fashioned sports hall with a running track above. Now, I think how freaked out he must have been, as I patched him into my desk, he would play, and I would cut him off at random, he kept on looking over as if to say ‘WHAT THE FUCK?!’, he must have thought I was crazy, he didn’t complain but you don’t do this to a Rock Legend. Anyway, we got on, he asked me to produce a track for his album – yep, “Pistolero”.

Steve wasn’t used to my regime of endless hours in the studio and I think after six days his eyes were somewhere down near his guitar swaying hips, exhausted he returned to the USA. He wasn’t that impressed, so I agreed to pay his costs, and I would release it. I worked on it a ton more, and out popped the track we know.

The track was built around my love for Tarantino and Westerns, Clint Eastwood and “Once Upon A Time In The West”. When it was released I named it the “Tarantino Radio Edit”. Quentin loved it and Robert Rodriguez and Tarantino then wrote “Once Upon A Time In Mexico” after being inspired by my “Pistolero” track, which they credited in the CD booklet.

Currently, I’m working on the new album, Steve Stevens, Sugizo and Amir Haddad will hopefully all on the same track.

Working with Amampondo was a dream, we never argued, just laughed a lot, after having lived in each other’s pockets on tour we got on well. I learnt more from them than they did of me. Their sense of rhythm, spontaneity, improvisation, the humour of dance, the humour of anything. We would do shows, stop the machines and go into full-on Tribal rhythms, songs of the Pondo’s. Every night was different. Mandla and Simpewe would perform acrobatics when we played “Feel The Universe”, crowds loved this, even though injuries happened, the next night they would do it again. I carried on working with them for 12 years until it became impossible to bring them from South Africa due to rising costs and falling promoters budgets. 

I should add that Traci Lords was also very cool to work with, and had several enjoyable sessions with her, which led to a top 5 USA billboard track titled “Control” and a number of movie syncs from these sessions.

‘“Matrix” Was Like Being Shot And Landing In Heaven With A Ticket Back To Earth’

Q: Your songs got more and more featured in movies and you wrote different songs for Soundtracks. I can imagine the “Matrix”-experiences must have been a kind of ultimate dream and accomplishment? But what has been the impact of all these experiences –and more especially “The Matrix”, on your career?

Ben: I love films, first of all, so for it to combine with my music is a dream job no matter what the film is. I will score a bug on a wall, and still enjoy it. “Matrix” was like being shot and landing in heaven with a ticket back to earth. After the initial meeting with the Wachowski’s I had to smash nails into my boots to keep me from flying off to the stars. Reality hit in a good way and was the toughest discipline mixed with the excitement of being able to please the directors and myself. What do I take away from it? A sense of achievement that I did something very special. I still get composers coming up to me and saying it is a landmark film for integration of Electronics and orchestra which is what the Wachowski’s wanted. It helped me believe in my writing al lot more, although confidence is like the wind, some days you have it others not.

The daily routine of waking up in heaven is not always as easy as it sounds, as even in my camp I would experience jealousy, I had brought with me a programmer (Stephan Holweck) an engineer (Greg Hunter) Singer (Taz) Stephan more turned into a cook and this frustrated his, as he wanted to be more involved, but the way out worked out there was no real room for him. Greg brought in his friend, which added to the annoyance of Greg; Greg would come in and say as I was working on “The Burly Brawl”, ‘that is a load of crap’ in-front of his friend as a light heated joke, which they all found very funny, I took Greg outside and suggested he return back to London as he wasn’t on my team, either buck up or go home. I should have sacked Greg as he would do things like after a mix was finished, he wanted to polish it more, so first time I agreed and I went back to the Paramore to sleep. I got a call from the dub stage early in the morning saying ‘what is this mix, it is horrible!!!’ I asked what time it was made they said 8 am, I replied please listen to mix from 1:00 am . They did and said thank you this is great.

Greg Hunter had in the hours between, added noises, effects I knew would be unwanted, and a rebalance uncalled for. He had become a liability to me, as now Warner were clocking his over times. I could not get rid of him as I didn’t know another great engineer in L.A. I would never use him again. These unexpected invasions add a colour I would have preferred had not happened, as these were not the only times he tried to unravel the job.

 Zig Gron (my Music Editor)  on the other hand, a man I did not know previously was my guardian angel. He walked me through all of the landmines, I asked him to teach me all he could, and I was in a 100 milesper hour world on information upload. Zig was funny, informative and such a bloody relief to have near me. God save Zig Gron and all who sail around him.

Q: The Soundtrack you composed for the “Brave Story”-animation film (2006) must have been something really special. For the very first time you composed the entire Soundtrack and here again I discovered some new aspects like the song “Juno Waltz”. How did you prepare and finally composed this work? 

Ben: This was composed under my name Ben Watkins rather than Juno Reactor. I had done another one, like “Beowulf”. I asked them why they wanted me to write for mainly orchestra, and they said we would like to hear how it sounds. So I sort of did my impression of ‘a man who knew what he was doing and what they were talking about’. There were a few production problems re-budget, as it wasn’t cheap for an Anime film. Once that was over, it was surprisingly easy, maybe a lot easier than writing for pure Electronics as the orchestra tone is defined by what you want, and once set, you have your pallet of sounds more or less. “Juno Waltz”, funny you mention that one, as it was the one I most feared to write, as again it has been so defined by other writers. I wrote it last, and it just popped out, it was also the one I felt the orchestra liked the most as they would tap their music stands like clapping. 

We recorded the Orchestra and choir in Bratislava, The Bratislavian Symphony Orchestra and a Vienna choir. I remember on the way to the massive radio sound stage all the older ladies at the bus stops had bright blue/purple hair. A hangover from communist times maybe, thought it looked great and definitely a way I wouldn’t mind my hair, like Quintan Crisp on acid.

Q: You also composed music for animation games. Does it need a different approach than for soundtracks? Any preference and/or favorite? 

Ben: “The Mark Of Kri” was a sort of nightmare, in as far as I had to create on each level two hours of non repeating music, on 0.5 MB, which now sounds insane huh. So you have an excitement engine, 0 – 100, fight mode is 50 plus. I had to build the macros to enable this. So deep learning curve, endless nights on the phone to Scott in San Francisco. This is a bit like the early beginning maybe of programs like WWise.com -which is a sampler on Crack, and hold so many possibilities for AI and VR, which makes me really excited for the future of music and sonic displacement for composers. My preference for games is really to write and hand over in stereo or 5.1. 

“PS4 Gran Turismo” -I made special mixes of tracks from the not so soon to be released album “The Mutant Theatre”, I didn’t have much involvement on this as they loved the tracks I presented and it was done.

Thanks of the Galaxy was a scored mobile game. Despite it being for mobile-only, I really enjoyed working with the team in Finland, in which I presented a Sci-fi industrial orchestral score made from orchestra libraries by George Strezov well worth checking out.

www.strezov.net  www.strezov-sampling.com

‘“Navras” Is The Biggest Track I Have Written’

Q: “Labyrinth” (2004), “Gods & Monsters” (2008), “Inside The Reactor” (2011), “The Golden Sun Of The Great East” (2013) and “The Mutant Theatre” (2018) are the studio-albums released after 2000. How would you analyze the evolution of these productions considering items like influences, technology vs. production and new collaborations? 

Ben: “Labyrinth” is “The Matrix”-album, and after the experience of the last track for “The Matrix Revolutions”, “Navras”, I couldn’t write a thing. “Navras” is the biggest track I have written, or been involved in with 120-piece orchestra, 80-piece choir, soloists, percussionists… So for three months after that I was bashing my head against a wall back in the UK. I think mainly as I was still missing the vibe of L.A, the people always around, the buzz. Until “Conquistador” Parts 1 & 2 came to save me along with guitarist Eduardo Niebla. I was mainly working very analogue, real drums, humans playing, and I still do, but now I am 75% out of the box and 25% in the box. Loads of new software have enabled me to make it more expansive. 

“Gods & Monsters”-I wanted it less epic than “Labyrinth”, write some songs that spoke to me at the time, and try a sort of Jazzy feel to some of it. Not very popular with the Juno Reactor dance crowd at the time, I still love certain tracks. A lot of artists musicians feel constrained by the genre they are in, main thing to me is to stand by what you write, and try it, it ain’t going to kill you. 

One track for example, “Tanta Pena” from “Gods & Monsters” -I was driving to the studio at Ridge Farm when a voice came on the BBC world music show, I had to stop and listen. A cross between a butterfly and a thunderstorm, it took the wind out of my lungs. As soon as the song was over I rang the station and asked who it was. Yasmin Levy! I contacted her husband who was also her agent/manager and asked if she would be interested in recording with me. 

Yasmin and the manager arrived on a beautiful Summer’s day. Ridge Farm is in the Surrey countryside, an Elizabethan Estate with grounds, a swimming pool, beautifully landscaped gardens, all made possible by Frank Andrews never-ending building work on his estate. 

I had moved into Ridge Farm after “The Matrix” films when I heard the studio on the estate was laying bare. I was able to bring my equipment and use one of Englands classic studio’s. Muse, Queen, Ozzie Osbourne and so many more had recorded here… 

Yasmin was shy, and maybe only 20yrs old when she visited the farm. I played her my idea’s, talked a little, not much really and went into record! With one take it was done on both tracks, no need to do any more, she had nailed it! It is quite amazing when this happens, like Lakshmi Shankar on “Navras”. 

I carried on working the track to bring it to her level, with an amazing Zook player from Arminia, Tigran Aleksanyan with the merciless drumming of Greg Ellis, who, when I started working with him in the studio, sounded a bit like a session player. His appearance was that of a typical tattoed L.A drummer, calm, spiritually balanced in appearance -and a very amiable personality.

I asked Greg to let his rage out for this track, really hit those fuckers! I unleashed a beast, a monster, his whole countenance changed, Fire and brimstone drumming, an apocalypse of anger and frustration came out! Drum skins didn’t last long, an inverted blister would appear on the snare within one take! Greg loved this approach, which you can also hear on “The Immaculate Crucifixion”. After this, “Tanta Pena” was complete. 

The original song dates back to the time when the Spanish ejected the Jewish population or made them convert to Christianity around 1492. It is sung in Ladino by Yasmin Levy whose father was a famous archivist of Ladino music, “No More Blood” –“Tanta Pena”.

 “Golden Sun Of The Great East” -I went to India to record a lot of the soloists, and this opened up my world to new horizons, as I found Bombay very “Blade Runner”-ish, ancient and modern all running parallel, crazy, mad, tragic and beautiful. 

Magical things happen, even when you are not looking, I was on a day trip around the studio’s of Mumbai with a potential agent for me in India. We entered a black and gold studio, very camp, I would expect Freddie Mercury of Queen to pop out and say ‘Hello darlings, welcome to my fuck fest!’ instead it was a wonderful Panjabi singer being recorded for a film. Our next appointment was with the Mozart of Indian film music, A R Rahmen. Excited I jumped in the taxi, horns blaring, rain falling, a bright night journey. Next to me in the taxi was the Panjabi singer, ‘Hey can you sing me a song into my zoom recorder, as we wait for my agent to say his goodbyes’. 4 minutes later, a song that never varied off its pitch, was in my data control. Leaving out the A R Rahmen meeting as it was nice, but nothing special, I returned to the hotel where eagles would fly high above in the morning light, I listened back, to the Mumbai traffic and the voice of a celestial being. I started writing “Invisible”, the second track on the album.

“The Mutant Theatre” was written for the show -a Sci-Fi extravaganza where choreographed performance really took over the direction. 

For me, the last two albums speak to me how I want to hear them, and possibly my favourite albums.

“The Mutant Theatre” was designed as a show album. In 2015 I was asked by the Ozora Festival to come back the next year with a new show, I had thought of a show to be called “The Mutant Theatre” 5 years before when in Russia and working with two amazing Performance groups, Agnivo, from Moscow, and Stigma Show from St.Petersburg. I presented this idea in pictures to Ozora, which they loved. It was expensive as it involved around 18 people.

Eyal Yankovich had been my agent for 5 years or so, also the head of Hommega Records. He was an OK agent, getting me the occasional gig or tour, what he was really good at was igniting my imagination with tunes, and suggest I listen to many great tracks, ‘How about a new “Pistolero” Ben?’

Eyal Hung himself before he could listen to the final “Return Of The Pistolero”-version or the album, which still a saddens me.

 Sanja Music, our tour manager, started to really help me, not only from a business perspective, but also from a listening view point. Despite being unable to discuss in a musical language, she would always hit it on the head, find a way to describe the best versions, enthusiasm, insights, referenced insights how fans can view it, how it might work on stage. Spend hours discussing and evolving ideas. I met Sanja many years before in Slovenia when we were playing with Laibach. A tall shiny girl in Japanese fashion appeared solo waiting for the doors to open, a Sugizo fan I believed. We stayed in contact through Myspace and later meeting up in Japan when I was having tours there. She came to the 2015 Ozora Festival and I’ve asked her to photograph Juno Reactor. After we went to Budapest to sight see the city, when I realised what a great addition she would me to Juno Reactor, little did I know how central to my thinking and the project she would become.

‘I Want To Give Something To The Audience That They Might Not Have Seen Before’

Q: You’ve always worked and composed your albums with guest musicians and –singers while going on tour with dance companies, drummers ao. It all feels a bit like the initial goal of creating a ‘collective’ has never changed. What did you learn from all these meetings, collaborations and exchanges? 

Ben: I want to give something to the audience that they might not have seen before. Maybe this goes back to my days of loving David Bowie, and his great performances, always looking for a new way. I feel a sense of family when we are on the road, not always possible with some people, but when it is good it is great. I am still learning how best to be, and how to navigate the waters of human interaction. I feel most comfortable in my studio along with all the other me’s talking.

Q: Your brother Simon Watkins has been often involved in the artwork of Juno Reactor. It all looks like arts is a family thing. Where does it come from and is there a next Watkins generation to hold on this artistic fire? 

Ben: Simon, my brother, helped me focus on art and how to look at it. He always had an unusual taste, a black comedy in his work that I loved. My parents were actors, and despite we were a family of 5 kids, and totally squint, I have no clue why our blood directs us to the arts, as it would be much simpler if we had just wanted a normal life. My parents gave up on their careers too early I always felt, and so I have to live with the musical sword in my hand.

Django, my younger son, is at film university learning the art of script writing and direction, Tim, my older son, is a great musician and records tracks I love. Scarlet and her friend wrote a track for a Japanese singer that was pretty successful. Scarlet at one time wanted to take over Juno Reactor, maybe she still does who knows, but she has chose marine photography for now.

‘AI, VR & AR Have So Much Potential For Young Musicians To Escape The Old Models Of Creation And Start A New Chapter In Music’

Q: A lot of things have changed/evolved since the early Juno Reactor years; think about technology, new equipment & music programs, streaming, social media etc… What have been the pros and cons? 

Ben: I started out on an MC 202 and now I have a museum, a laboratory, loads of instruments that I play. I miss the hangouts in the studio, as everyone has a studio, so we became moles. I love the independence of starting a Juno Reactor label, which I and Sanja Karin Music, who is my manager and for a number of years has also collaborated on artwork, future NFTs on knownorigin.io and other platforms, and a variety of creative projects and activities, which we will be rolling out in the coming year.

The new possibilities of NFT’s and blockchain, which might well help the independent musician into a new economic model. AI, VR & AR have so much potential for young musicians to escape the old models of creation and start a new chapter in music, independent from middlemen and greedy manipulators from the dark alleys of the old music industry. A new world awaits in the decade to come, and I am excited by it, and what it will become. This doesn’t in any way exclude the old ways, or purity of the orchestra, classical musicians, just a new voice in the galaxy.

Q: Covid-19 has seriously affected artistic activities all over the world. How did you keep yourself busy and what are you actually working on? 

Ben: I am learning the Viola, this has kept me in focus at times, writing new tracks with this has been very enjoyable, as well as testing, as I am still learning, and it will take me a long time to play the way I would like. I swim in the sea, this I love when I can afford the time -a sea swim now takes me about 2:30 hours compared to the pool of 1 hour. It blows all the cobwebs and bad thoughts away -of which there have been many through the past year, no question. I think a lot of artists had a very hard time, a lot of artists might have been forced to stop doing what they love, which is very sad. Like many others as well, I have been forced to look into the paperwork side of the project and face all the different misdemeanours and manipulations from a number of people I preferred not to face while gigs were still bringing in enough money to keep going.

‘Sooner Or Later An Autobiography Could Certainly Happen’

Q: I read in a post you got the idea to write an autobiography, which I think is a real interesting idea. Is it something concrete and are there some next ‘big’ dreams you want to accomplish?  

Ben: Well, it is odd, as I have lived long enough to tell stories other people find interesting, or so they say. Sometimes I get caught up in them, and it reminds me of talking to family members before they died. As you can ask them a historic question of how life was, and you can see their eyes glaze over as they reminisce as if they are walking the streets and cafes they used to. It is beautiful to see and hear. I don’t want to become a broken record and recite story after story, so maybe one time if I can write it OK, it might be interesting. My manager Sanja has been pushing me to write down or talk about times in my life and slowly collect all these to be turned into an entity at some point, so sooner or later an autobiography could certainly happen. It might have been silly of me to suggest I’m writing it on a simple social media travel picture that looked to me like a book cover, but perhaps having the public know and expect it will give me an extra boost to keep working on it, with my managers help, as an dyslexic person I was surprised to find that I’m really enjoying this process.

‘The Older I Get The More I Want To Do Music, Scuba, Swim, And Exploring New Horizons’

Q: An interesting item for the autobiography could be to know what you would have done in life without music? And do you have specific hobbies/passions next to music? 

Ben: I remember one day my father said ‘If you pass this exam, I will buy you a pony’. I tried my best, but still failed, and thus had to grow up pony-less. I wonder what would have happened had I passed the exam. Would I really have gotten a pony? Would I perhaps be in a completely different profession today? I should ring up my dad and ask if he actually planned to get that pony …

A lot of people through-out my life have mistook my dreamy exterior to think I am lazy, when in fact my brain has never stopped talking, the conversations I have in my mind seem to me to be more interesting than the ones outside, so I can be non responsive, come over as aloof. The reality is I have drifted off into my own world again. Where I might think I have answered a question asked by someone, just to realise it was only answered in my head. Dyslexia has strange traits, and for me it is this, I am word blinded sometimes that also raises my pulse to a train, panic. I envy people who can be logical, and competent in social exchanges. Stage is my way out, a sort of nether world between reality and dreams where I feel confident of its power.

Without music, I would be a shadow, maybe worked in a stable or farm all my life, something that didn’t need a searching brain. The older I get the more I want to do music, scuba, swim, and exploring new horizons.

Q: “Pistolero” is the Juno Reactor-song I make people listen to, who aren’t familiar with your work. Which one would you choose? 

Ben: At the moment, Ummm my latest one: “Coyote You Me And The Stars”. As it was written for a very special moment and one I will forever remember. I bought an amazing keyboard at the beginning of the crisis, which has been my main frame and primary sound source, the Quantum keyboard by Waldorf, it is such an unusual instrument. It is possible to create sonic textures I haven’t heard before, a 3D motion I have been looking for, this along with the viola.

I am more interested in how I can hold the sound in the stereo field to give depth and spatial pleasures. Political events don’t usually invade my thoughts yet this has been unavoidable.

Witten by: Ben Watkins

Co-editor: Sanja Karin Music (management & shrink services)

Side-Line also covered Juno Reactor’s ‘Let The Flowers Grow’.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-Rock, Cinematographic, Experimental.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: “StRaNgE” is the second collaboration between Belgian Dirk Da Davo (Neon Judgement, Neon Electronics) and Mexican bass player Sanchez (El Caballo). After a first EP entitled “Z” they now strike back with a kind of mini-album featuring eight songs. It seems that the restrictions in the artistic life due to Covid-19 incited both protagonists –who recorded the album in Mexico, to meet again.

Content: “StRaNgE” sounds like the meeting between different influences and different worlds. It’s fully represented in the duality between electronic arrangements carried by typical rhythms reminding me of the trademark of Dirk Da Davo at one side and the particular, somewhat Country/Funky guitar playing at the other side. On top of it all you get a deep, vibrating bass play. Two worlds are joining hands to create an entertaining and evasive music style, which even revisited “People Are Strange” from The Doors in a totally new style.

+ + + : Sometimes Experimental, but always accessible, this duo is really surprising. Since the end of The Neon Judgement, Dirk Da Davo seems to be composing very different kinds of music. You can feel that he’s enjoying his work, exploring new paths and sometimes having fun with a good friend –referring to the EP together with Jean-Marie Aerts. DD Sanchez brings music to dance and to dream; music that creates to me the sensation of watching a road movie. It sounds like freedom… artistic freedom, but in the end I simply enjoy the ride! Songs like “When Strangers Pass By” and “Shine The Light” both reveal the true potential of this project.

– – – : Some of the songs are pretty similar, but globally speaking you don’t hear me complaining.

Conclusion: Dirk Da Davo is clearly taking some distance with his past although you will easily recognize some sounds and arrangements that will remind you of The Neon Judgement. This is the kind of work getting people happy.

Best songs: “Shine The Light”, “When Strangers Pass By”, “How Strange Can You Get”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/dirk.dadavo

Label: www.dancedelicd.com / www.facebook.com/ddd.neon.electronics Read the news on ‘StRaNgE’.

About DD Sanchez

DD Sanchez pairs Belgian musician Dirk Da Davo with Mexican bass and slide guitarist Sanchez. Da Davo was a driving force in the Belgian electronic scene from the early 1980s with The Neon Judgement, before diversifying from the late 1980s onward with the solo EP “Where Even Angels Fall”, the Neon Electronics alias, and his own label, Dancedelic-D.

Now based in Spain, Da Davo also records with Jean-Marie Aerts under the DDDJMX alias. DD Sanchez released its debut EP, “Z”, before following it with the mini-album “StRaNgE” in 2021, recorded with Sanchez in Mexico and released via Dancedelic-D.

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-Wave, Goth-Pop.

Format: Digital.

Background/Info: “Erode” is meant as an appetizer to Frame Of Mind’s new full length “Return From The World’s End”.

Content: “Erode” features 4 songs taking off with the title-song, which is a surprising kind of Goth-Pop cut. This song has been composed with guitar and electronics. There also is something evasive running through “Erode”, which you’ll find on the remaining cuts. The most surprising song is the cover version of The Doors’ “Riders On The Storm”. It still has this original psychedelic touch, which the band however transposed into something intimate and personal.

+ + + : “Erode” is a surprising release for Infacted Recordings. It also reveals a band, which sounds miles away from what they did in the early years. It however has something original and that’s why I especially like the cover version of “Riders On The Storm”. The song stands for the delicacy of this production.

– – – : I didn’t experience this work as a song that will conquer the DJ’s, but just as an appetizer for the new album. I like the band’s approach, but I think it also is a challenge to bring this kind of music.

Conclusion: I don’t know what to think about this EP; it brings different influences together and is therefore unique.

Best songs: “Riders On The Storm”, “Erode”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/frameofmindband

Label: www.infacted-recordings.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Infacted-Recordings/124099254321690

About Frame Of Mind

Frame Of Mind is a German EBM/industrial/dark electro band. Early self-released material included “Murderous Thoughts”, “Resurrected” and “We’re Not Alone”, all issued in 2017. The band signed to Infacted Recordings for “Nothing Else To Do” (2018) and “Devil In Disguise” (2019), and continued with the “Erode” EP in 2020, released as a lead-in to the full-length “Return From The World’s End” the same year.

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

Out on December 7th is the DD Sanchez mini album “StRaNge”, a side-project by Dirk Da Davo (The Neon Judgement) and Mexican born bassplayer Sanchez.

The release comes after the previous recordings of the “Z” EP and was recorded in Punta Mita (Mexico) at their beach house studio during the COVID 19 crisis. Note that this 8-track mini album also holds a cover of The Doors’ “People Are Strange”.

Out now is the track “When Strangers Pass By”.

A video is also available here. Read the review of ‘StRaNgE’.

“StRanGe” EP tracklist:

1. When Strangers Pass by
2. People Are Strange
3. Grow Strange
4. How Strange Can you Get (instrumental)
5. When Strangers Pass by (extended instrumental version)
6. Rainbow (bonus track)
7. Shine The Light (bonus track)
8. When Strangers Pass By (radio edit)

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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(Photo by Stranglers French forum) Again bad news from the music world. This time we learned that The Stranglers’ keyboard player Dave Greenfield has died at the age of 71 and this after contracting the coronavirus. Greenfield died on Sunday evening, May 3. The musician contracted the virus in a hospital where he was treated for heart problems.

Greenfield has left a legendary legacy that includes the music for for instance the classic “Golden Brown”.

Greenfield, the Ray Manzarek of The Stranglers

The sound of the UK-born musician has frequently (and correctly) been compared to that of Ray Manzarek of the Doors, most of you will without any doubt remember the distinctive sound on the early The Stranglers recordings including the use of Hohner Cembalet (model N), Hammond L-100 electric organ, a Minimoog synthesizer, and later an Oberheim FVS-4 polyphonic synthesizer. On the albums “The Raven”, “Gospel According to the Meninblack” and “Aural Sculpture”, Greenfield used a Korg VC-10 vocoder.

Little known is that he frequently contributed harmony backing vocals to the band’s songs, and sang the lead vocals on a few of their early tracks including “Dead Ringer”, “Peasant in the Big Shitty”, “Do You Wanna?”, “Genetix” and “Four Horsemen”.

Apart from The Strangles he also produced a single in 1981, namely “Back to France” by the band Boys in Darkness. Greenfield and fellow-Strangler Jean-Jacques Burnel also released a joint album in 1983, “Fire and Water” which was used as the OST for the film, “Ecoutez vos murs” (directed by Vincent Coudanne).

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

Genre/Influences: Breakbeats, industrial-rock.

Background/Info: Set up in 2003 Norwegian formation Spookshow Inc. released the debut album “Visions Of The Blinded World Pt. I” in 2013. They are now back on track bringing this debut album alive with 2 extra songs and featuring a new work at the second disc.

Content: The sound of Spookshow Inc. remains a powerful and dynamic exposure. It’s pure crossover mixing breakbeats, electronics and guitar. It often reminds me to an imaginary hybrid between The Prodigy, Cubanate and Body Count. The new work remains driven by similar influences and reveals 13 new songs.

+ + + : I can’t say that Spookshow Inc. is dealing with pure breakbeats, but there are clearly several songs driven by this dynamic percussion layers. Well, not enough bands are dealing with this influence and I think that’s because it’s not easy dealing with this music style. Spookshow Inc. knows how to deal with it and accomplished a successful opus. The guitar playing remains another essential aspect of the composition; it’s not only about injecting power, but still a truly spirit to the work. I’ve a preference for the first album, but the new one also reveals several cool songs. “Midnight Tango” is probably one of the most unusual cuts –and still a great one, reminding me a bit of The Doors for a psychedelic aspect. Last, but not least I also have to say a word about the great artistic digipak; f*** steaming, physical material is so much more personal and artistic!

– – – : I sometimes would have liked to hear more rage in the vocal parts. I get the feeling that Spookshow Inc. can still do better, just improving a few elements in the production to reach an even more powerful sound.

Conclusion: Spookshow Inc. is a band that might catch the attention of a wider –and especially diversified audience. They bring us power and energy!

Best songs: “Game Of Delusions”, “My Secret Plan feat. Matangi Shakti”, “Falling Down Pt.II”, “Map Of The World” + “Midnight Tango”, “Underworld feat. Kissing In graveyards”, “Little Phill feat. Subliminal Mentality”, “Virtual Insanity”. “

Rate: (8).

Artist: www.spookshowinc.com / www.facebook.com/spookshowinc

About Spookshow Inc.

Spookshow Inc. is a Norwegian formation set up in 2003. The band released its debut album, “Visions Of The Blinded World Pt. I”, in 2013, later expanding it into the “Pt. I & II” edition reviewed here. Spookshow Inc. has continued releasing music since, including the 2024 compilation “Petroglyph Music Is Back”.

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: Rock-folk, psychedelic, chanson.

Background/Info: Jérôme Reuter aka Rome can look back at a successful career which took off in 2005 and an impressive discography releasing productions first on Cold Meat Industry and next on Trisol. The artist from Luxembourg became one of the Trisol flag holders. “Hall Of Thatch” has been introduced as an album inspired by the Apocalypse and a trip to Vietnam the artist made a few years ago now.

Content: “Hall Of Thatch” has been introduced as one of the most intimate releases from Rome. It’s not easy to affirm when discovering the music, but the lyrical content clearly reflects deeper thoughts from the artist’s inner life.

Sound-wise, Rome moves on there where he stopped with his artistic and sensitive ‘chanson’ style featured on previous albums. There’s more passion and even rage emerging from the songs and especially his way of singing. Field recordings and sacred chants from his trip to Vietnam inject an extra mysterious and somewhat ritual aspect to the work. Rome is covering different influences, but in the end and for one more time he reminds me to Nick Cave. One of the ‘hardest’ and most enraged cuts entitled “Martyr” even reminds me of The Birthday Party.

But Rome also experiments with more psychedelic passages, sometimes mixed with folk elements and sometimes reminding me The Doors for a background organ sound.

+ + + : Rome is not exactly the kind of artist repeating himself. He rather appears to be a musician going through different periods and “Hall Of Thatch” might be the beginning of a new era. I like this approach of an artist in constant evolution leading him reconsidering and sometimes reinventing his own sound. I like the passion running through the cuts resulting in a few enraged passages and truly climaxes. The experiment with sacred chants from Buddhist temples totally matches with the delicacy of the composition. Rome again has accomplished a beautiful opus featuring multiple outstanding songs. Last, but not least I once again have to say a word about the great artistic digipak and booklet of this ‘standard’ edition, which remains a trademark of Trisol.

– – – : I sometimes gets the feeling that the link with Nick Cave becomes too explicit, but at the other side it also is because of a similar timbre of voice.

Conclusion: If this work has been announced as one of the most personal and intimate releases from Rome, I think it first of all is one of his most passionate releases where you literally can feel the songs floating through his blood.

Best songs: “Hawker”, “Slaver”, “Martyr”, “Hunter”, “Keeper”.

Rate: (8½).

Band: www.rome.lu / www.facebook.com/romeproject

Label: www.trisol.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Trisol–Music–Group/104166526285471

Read the news on ‘Hall Of Thatch’.

About Rome

Jérôme Reuter, born on August 2, 1981, in Luxembourg, is the creative force behind the neofolk project Rome, formed in November 2005. Before founding Rome, Reuter performed under the moniker Reggie Fain, influenced by Tom Waits, and played in the Oi! band the Skinflicks and the post-punk outfit Mack Murphy and the Inmates.

Rome’s music fuses military drumming, atmospheric electronic textures and ethereal acoustic guitars with samples and poetic lyrics exploring war, love, pain and death, drawing on literary figures such as Jacques Brel, Léo Ferré, Albert Camus, Ernst Jünger and Jean Genet.

“Hall Of Thatch”, reviewed here, followed on Trisol in 2018, ahead of “Le Ceneri Di Heliodoro” the following year.

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, psychedelic.

Background/Info: German formation Sweet William released this album for their 30^th anniversary. The band was set up in 1986 by Oliver Heuer and has released an impressive number of productions. “Time” was released at the end of 2016, but we only got the album a few weeks ago. It’s a collection of previously unreleased songs plus new tracks composed in between 2014 and 2016.

Content: “Time” is an eclectic work, which features the familiar goth-rock sound of Sweet William, but also opens a door to some experiments with psychedelic passages and other influences. The guitar playing is quite impressive on the darkest, gothic songs, and it also excels in the psychedelic. I sometimes get the impression of hearing an imaginary jam session between Joy Division and The Doors.

+ + + : “Time” is one of the most diversified releases by Sweet William I’ve heard. From pure and well-crafted dark guitar-gothic songs to psychedelic guitar play to more heavenly parts reminding me of The Cure to more evasive songs, this album has a lot to offer. Sweet William feels comfortable dealing with all different kind of influences, but the main strength is the guitar play. From typical dark and anguishing new-wave to psychedelic to fuzzy parts, Oliver Heuer is a talented musician. This is a mature production accomplished with delicate treatments like piano arrangements and electronic treatments. I also have to mention the great vocals’ production, which here again features a great diversity.

– – – : I don’t see real minus points to mention. From a very personal point of view I’m less excited by the softer and into melancholia sounding tracks.

Conclusion: I’m still convinced Sweet William is one of those bands that should have deserved more (international) recognition during their entire career. “Time” is a great goth-rock production featuring multiple cool songs.

Best songs: “Room”, “Say Good Bye”, “Out Of Here”’, “Slow Down”, “Slow”, “Funny”.

Rate: (8).

Band: www.sweetwilliam.de / www.facebook.com/sweet.william.dianthus.barbatus

Label: www.d–monic.net / www.myspace.com/dmoniclabel / www.facebook.com/dmoniclabel

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

Out this Summer (incl. in a limited vinyl quantity which is available here) is “Under the covers”, an 11 track strong cover album by Lydia Lunch and Cypress Grove. This album also marks the third collaborative effort by Lydia Lunch with British guitarist Cypress Grove after “A Fistful of Desert Blues” and “Twin Horses” (with Spiritual Front).

Included are the following tracks covered by the duo: “Ode to Billie Joe” (Bobbie Gentry), “Breakdown” (Tom Petty), “A Thousand Miles of Bad Road” (Aaron Lee Tasjan), “Blaze of Glory” (John Bon Jovi), “Red, White and Pink Slip Blues” (Mark Stephen Jones/Bud Tower), “Midnight Rider” (Gregg Allman/Robert Payne), “The Spy” (Jim Morrison), “I want You” (Elvis Costello), “Won’t leave You alone” (Lydia Lunch/James Johnston), “Do it again” (Walter Becker/Donald Fagen) and finally the 11th track, “Low” (David Lowery/Johnny Hickman/Davey Faragher).

You can already pre-order this fine album on CD and vinyl.

Side-Line also covered Lydia Lunch’s ‘13.13’.

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

We have again found some real gems in the list of releases especially produced for the upcoming Record Store Day on April 22. We put them in a list below.

For those unfamiliar with the phenomena, Record Store Day (aka RSD) was conceived in 2007 at a gathering of independent record store owners and employees as a way to celebrate and spread the word about the unique culture surrounding nearly 1400 independently owned record stores in the US and thousands of similar stores internationally. The first Record Store Day took place on April 19, 2008. A Record Store Day participating store is defined as a stand alone brick and mortar retailer whose main primary business focuses on a physical store location, whose product line consists of at least 50% music retail, whose company is not publicly traded and whose ownership is at least 70% located in the state of operation. In other words, we’re dealing with real, live, physical, indie record stores—not online retailers or corporate behemoths.

So what items did we find in the list of planned releases?

PANKOW – “TIMES”
Format: Grey Color 10″ / Quantity: 175

The two earliest Pankow recordings to see a release were “We Are the Joy” on one of the first Italian new wave compilations (Gathered), and following that “Wither” on a split 7” which was enclosed in the “Free8212” fanzine from Florence. Two other tracks that have never before been released appear together on Times, a gorgeous 10″ vinyl coming courtesy Toronto-based Artoffact Records. This 10″ features spectacular new artwork created by Pankow’s own fm, and is fully authorized by the band. An essential document of one of Italy’s most important electronic artists. The black vinyl version can be bought right here already.

ALICE IN CHAINS – “Get Born”
Format: 2 x 7″ / Quantity: 4000

This special Alice in Chains 45 RPM double 7” single collects four hard-hitting tracks remastered and available on vinyl for the first time. “What the Hell Have I” and “A Little Bitter,” released on the soundtrack to the Arnold Schwarzenegger film Last Action Hero in 1993, were the first to feature new bassist Mike Inez, who’d played with Ozzy Osbourne for five years. “Get Born Again” and “Died,” released on the box set Music Bank in 1999, were the band’s final recordings with original vocalist Layne Staley.

THE CURE – “Greatest Hits”
Format: 2 x LP Picture Disc / Quantity: 3250

Limited edition double picture discs of The Cure’s Greatest Hits. Featuring their best known tracks, including “Love Song”, “Friday I’m In Love” “Never Enough”, “Mint Car” and many more. Curated and remastered by Robert Smith. On vinyl for the very first time for Record Store Day 2017.

THE CURE – “Greatest Hits Acoustic”
Format: 2 x LP Picture Disc / Quantity: 3250

Limited edition double picture discs of The Cure’s Greatest Hits performed acoustically. Featuring their best known tracks, including “Love Song”, “Friday I’m In Love” “Never Enough”, “Mint Car” and many more. Curated and remastered by Robert Smith. On vinyl for the very first time for Record Store Day 2017.

JANE’S ADDICTION – “Been Caught Stealing”
Format: 12″ / Quantity: 3500

Originally released in 1990 in conjunction with the Ritual De Lo Habitual album, “Been Caught Stealing” was a massive hit for Jane’s Addiction. This 4 track replicates the original European 12″ release and contains the album version and a remix of “Been Caught Stealing” plus “L.A. Medley” which includes Woman” (The Doors), “Nausea” (X) and “Lexicon Devil” (The Germs).

MOTORHEAD – “Clean Your Clock”
Format: 2 x LP Picture Disc / Quantity: 1500

Motorhead are immortalized one more time in “Clean Your Clock”, the superb live album recorded at the Zenith in Munich, Germany during the Winter 2015 Bad Magic Tour. The indomitable cocktail of power, purpose and head-crunching volume that Lemmy Kilmister, Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee always succeeded in producing is captured superbly by long-time producer Cameron Webb’s mix,giving this landmark Motorhead release the warmth, curve and punch which helped the band achieve international acclaim during a career which saw the Grammy-winning icons sell over 15 million albums and play to millions worldwide.

PINK FLOYD – “Interstellar Overdrive”
Format: 12″ Vinyl / Quantity: 4000

A previously unreleased 14:57 minute recording from 1966, released in mono at 33 1/3 for Record Store Day.

RAMONES – “76-’79 Singles Box”
Format: 7″ boxset / Quantity: 3500

A box of pre-1980 US 7″ singles by the Ramones, authentically reproduced with Sire labels, picture covers where applicable and a selection of great punk rock tracks that changed the course of rock ‘n’ roll. All packaged in a unique cigarette-style outer box, with an insert and individually foil-stamped numbered global edition of 6500. Wall-to-wall Ramones classics including “Blitzkrieg Bop”, “Sheena Is A Punk Rocker”, “Swallow My Pride”, “Rock ‘N’ Roll High School” and a special mono/stereo promo edition of “I Wanna Be Sedated”, all presented the way punk rock should be–as 45 RPM slabs of wax.

THE SMITHS – “The Boy With The Thorn In His Side”
Format: 7″ Vinyl / Quantity: 5000

A 7″ single featuring previously unreleased versions of “The Boy With The Thorn In His Side” and “Rubber Ring”. Includes new artwork featuring Salford actor Albert Finney.

U2 – “Red Hill Mining Town”
Format: 12″ Picture Disc / Quantity: 7000

To coincide with the 30th anniversary of U2’s iconic album “The Joshua Tree”, Island Records will release a 2017 mix of ‘Red Hill Mining Town’ on limited edition 12” picture disc, featuring the classic photography of Anton Corbijn in colour. The previously unreleased mix is by Steve Lillywhite, who produced the band’s critically acclaimed debut, ‘Boy’. ‘Red Hill Mining Town’ is famously “the single that never was”, originally discussed as the second single from The Joshua Tree but then put to one side at the last minute in favour of ‘I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For’.

VANGELIS – “Blade Runner” Original Soundtrack
Format: LP Picture Disc / Quantity: 3500

2017 sees the 35th anniversary of the original release of Ridley Scott’s 1982 cult film Blade Runner. The original soundtrack, composed by Vangelis will be released on picture disc for the first time, housed within a die-cut single sleeve jacket. (Limited worldwide release of 7500.)

CONJURE ONE – “Conjure One”
Format: 2 x LP / Quantity: 900

Originally released on CD in 2002, Conjure One was the brainchild of Front Line Assembly and Delerium co-founder Rhys Fulber. The debut set a new standard in world electronica and went on to sell over 50,000 CDs globally. The album features guest vocals by Sinead O’Connor, Poe, Marie-Claire D’Ubaldo and Chemda as well as mixes by electronica pioneers Junkie XL and Carmen Rizzo. It’s being released on double 45 RPM 180g colored vinyl for the first time, and includes a download card with three new bonus tracks.

PINK FLOYD – “London 1966 – 1967”
Format: 12″ Picture Disc / Quantity: 650

The first studio recordings from the classic ’60s Pink Floyd line up released for Record Store Day on limited edition 12″ picture disc vinyl.

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

Genre/Influences: Psychedelic-rock, experimental-rock.

Background/Info: Albin Julius and his gang are back on track. The new album rather looks like an EP or mini-album only featuring 3 songs. 

Content: they define their sound as ‘neu kraut musik’ (new ‘kraut’ music), but mainly deals with a psychedelic-rock composition. The songs also reveal a surprising, but exciting hypnotic feeling. I’m not saying that “Sucht & Ordnung” will lead you into a trance, but there’s a similar flavor hanging over the songs.

You’ll notice there’s only one song with vocals, which are pretty bewitching accentuating the hypnotic sensation.

+ + + : I like the psychedelic effect running through this composition. It’s not only about great guitar playing, but I also enjoy the kind of organ parts on the final track. It reminds me a bit of The Doors mixed with a darker approach. This work also has a strong visual appeal, which is created by the psychedelic atmosphere making the particularity of the work.

– – – : All titles are untitled so we don’t really get any indication about a deeper meaning. It’s not necessarily a bad thing as this way the listeners can create their own story. My main and only regret is that this work only features 3 songs.

Conclusion: Der Blutharsch And The Infinite Church Of The Leading Hand remains an enigmatic formation composing exciting songs although hard to grasp.

Best songs: “Untitled 2”, “Untitled 3”.

Rate: (7).

Band & Label: www.derblutharsch.com /  www.facebook.com/Der–Blutharsch–and–the–infinite–church–of–the–leading–hand-112227928849449

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Set up in 2007 by Paul Nielsen, the Chicago-based label Tympanik Audio rapidly became one of the most visionary underground labels dealing with electronic- and industrial music. I felt deeply sad when Paul Nielsen earlier this year announced to close the doors of the label. He has no further plans to continue in the music business. Paul has been involved in this field for over 20 years, from Dj-ing, to music journalism, hosting radio programs, organizing events, to eventually running Tympanik. I can only speak for myself but Tympanik Audio is a label I’ll seriously miss for its innovation and creative spirit. This interview is meant as a homage to this great label and his instigator. Respect Mr. Nielsen!

(by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: A few months ago now you made this terrible announcement about the end of Tympanik Audio. I guess it must have been one of the hardest decisions in life so how did you come to close the doors of the label?

Paul: Indeed it was a very difficult decision to close Tympanik – it affected me quite deeply on a personal level – like the end of a long relationship. I had been struggling to keep the label going for the last few years, but the financial burden finally took its toll on me and it reach a point where I really had no other choice but to shut down the label. I’m just glad I was able to get Tympanik this far.

Q: During the last year I noticed you started to release digital productions. Was it an option to keep the label running by releasing only digital work?

Paul: Yes, I began focusing on digital releases the last year in an effort to not only keep our costs down, but to cater to digital-only listeners. The interest in physical media such as CDs and vinyl have dropped significantly over the past few years so releases that I would have normally produced on CD had to be released digitally.

The important thing was to still have an outlet for the artist’s music under our banner. My main goal has always been to get the music out to our audience, so even thought the release format changed, I still felt the quality was there and the music was still accessible to our listeners, even more so since some of the digital releases were offered as ‘pay-what-you-want’ via Bandcamp.

Q: All labels are complaining about streaming and digital downloads getting CD sales downwards. What’s your point of view about it and is it indeed the main point that hurts?

Paul: I certainly understand the frustration of digital pushing CD releases into the background. This use to bother me quite a bit, as I had always intended Tympanik to be a CD-based label only. Eventually I realized that I couldn’t fight the digital music aspect of the business any longer and in order to perpetuate the label’s existence as well as meet the needs of our audience, I needed to adapt to the changes. Bandcamp was a great way for Tympanik to offer both CD and digital options to our listeners.

I’m still disappointed that CDs do not play such a significant role in music these days. I’ve always enjoyed holding music in my hands and exploring the visual aspect of it (artwork, booklets, tracklistings, credits, etc.). To me, digital music is a much colder medium; it’s a file on your device – very impersonal and in my opinion doesn’t allow that personal connection to the listener that physical formats do. Digital music is here to stay and label owners just need to accept that and meet the demand. There will always be collectors out there like myself who want to own CDs, tapes, vinyl of the music they love – I have no doubt that the demand for physical media will never go away, I just don’t think it will ever be as prevalent as it once was.

Q: What has been the feedback from ‘your’ bands so far and do you see new opportunities for some of them?

Paul: Honestly I think a lot of our artists saw this coming – I don’t imagine it was a big surprise for many of them when I made the announcement, but most have expressed gratitude for being a part of the Tympanik family. I think this closure has offered a lot of our artists new opportunities to project their music to even larger audiences by moving on to other labels and getting more involved in the promotion of their works. It’s good to see some of our artists like ESA, Autoclav1.1, Tangent, Subheim, Totakeke, Displacer, and others find new homes for their music, and I’m confident that many others will move on successfully as well.

Q: Tympanik Audio will be reminded as a label with a visionary taste so what was the original concept all about and did you notice an evolution throughout the years?

Paul: The original concept was to promote music that I felt deserved more attention – unknown and up-and-coming artists who were self-promoting and had no label to help them reach a wider audience. I was hosting a radio program in Chicago for many years in an effort to achieve this, but eventually I felt that starting a label and releasing music on CD would significantly expand the audience for these artists’ work. In the early days of the label, my music tastes were quite eclectic, ranging from industrial, ambient, IDM, rhythmic-noise, etc., so I was initially attracted to artists that not only fell into these broad genres, but were able to combine these styles successfully. I think in the first few years there was a larger focus on industrial-style music, but eventually I began choosing albums to release that weren’t so easily labeled; a hybrid of music styles set on a foundation of originality and accessibility. Artists like Zinovia, Tangent, Idlefon, Tineidae, and MultiColor, are a few that come to mind. Prior to my decision to close the label, I felt like I had found our niche style-wise and I was looking forward to progressing that in the future.

Q: What did you keep in mind from your activities as label owner and I’m especially thinking about some positive experiences?

Paul: I thoroughly enjoyed running Tympanik Audio. There was a lot of stress, financial investment, time, and hard-work involved, but it was a dream for me to work with so many talented and wonderful people over the years. It’s an experience that I feel very fortunate to have had. Everyone involved were so supportive and generous – Tympanik Audio would not have been what it was if it were not for the dedication of everyone involved. I will cherish it always, that’s for sure.

Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries

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: New-wave, gothic, psychedelic, soundtrack.

Background/Info: Doors In The Labyrinth is a solo-project driven by Josh Loughrey. He gained some experience and name as a film-composer and multi-instrumentalist. Loughrey is inspired by muany bands and genres. He already released a few previous releases under the Doors In The Labyrinth moniker.

This EP looks more like a mini-album featuring 5 songs.

Content: The opening cut is a rather mysterious and somewhat Dead Can Dance influenced piece of music featuring male vocals. The next tracks move in new-wave inspired music and are carried by 80s like, mewing guitar parts, which will for sure remind me of some famous new-wave formations.

The sound is more a kind of music to listen to, which must be for sure inspired by the film-composer career of the artist. It’s a doomy new-wave format with evasive passages. Some of the arrangements are a little bit bombast while the work also reveals some psychedelic passages.

The vocals move in between spooky, somewhat whispering passages and more passionate parts.

+ + + : Doors In The Labyrinth might be inspired by famous new-wave bands, but doesn’t sound at all like a copyist. I like the personal approach and gothic interpretation, which is carried by soundtrack inspiration. It’s not exactly the kind of music leading me into ecstasy, but there are some really beautiful songs featured.

– – – : I get the impression that this is not the kind of music that has been composed for ‘wider masses’. It sounds more intimate and therefore maybe not accessible for a wider audience. The EP features cool songs, but unfortunately no real climax.

Conclusion: “The Sound Of Her Wings” stands for a moody and melancholic voyage made of new-wave/gothic inspired elements on one side and wafting, soundtrack passages on the other. This is dark music to relax to.

Best songs: “The Sound Of Her Wings”, “The Garden In Vastarien”.

Rate: (6½).

Band: www.doorsinthelabyrinth.com / www.facebook.com/doorsinthelabyrinthmusic

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Dark-rock, new-wave, ballad-rock.

Background/Info: Honeymoon Cowboys is a five-headed Belgian formation featuring ex-Siglo XX members Antonio Palermo (guitar) and Klaas Hoogerwaard (drums). Another familiar member is singer Tom Van Troyen who was previously involved in Spiral Of Silence. The band has been completed by two more members featuring Kris Dries who’s the brother of the Siglo XX singer.

Last year Honeymoon Cowboys released the live-album “Liberating The West – Live At Eurorock 2015”. This album revealed several Siglo XX cover versions.  “Still!” is their first studio album although it features a few more live songs.

Content: Siglo XX was one of the darkest cold-wave bands from Belgium, but except a few new-wave reminiscences Honeymoon Cowboys sounds more into a rock’n’roll spirit. It’s a kind of dark-rock music with some extra cold-wave elements on top while driven by an impressive vocalist.

“Still!” is a refreshing composition, a bit ‘chanson’-like and reminds me of Nick Cave. But here again the bewitching timbre of voice of Tom Van Troyen excels like a hybrid of Tom Smith (Editors) and Nick Cave. He sings in a passionate way like injecting a real spirit to the music.

The sound reveals a real maturity and you can hear a real passion coming through. I even get the impression that Honeymoon Cowboys are revisiting some parts of The Doors (cf. “Everything Is On Fire”) while it’s a song originally written by Siglo XX. There also is an intimate and brilliant reworked version of “Waiting For A Friend” originally written by… Siglo XX.

+ + + : The shadow of Siglo XX clearly hangs over this album, but it doesn’t sound at all like an emulation. It rather sounds like they took the best from the past mixed with a more contemporary approach while carried by a genius vocalist. The debut songs are impressive; they’re well-crafted and revealing a delicious harmony between all of the aspects.

– – – : I regret the live songs featuring cuts that have been already released on their previous live album. Let’s hope that the band will move on and will bring back a complete studio album.

Conclusion: Siglo XX has been resurrected revealing a funny rock approach and a great singer with a sexy voice. This is maybe a new beginning for a great formation.

Best songs: “Sea Without Mercy”, “Everything Is On Fire”, “Time Is Not Our Friend”, “Closed Souls”, “Waiting For A Friend”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.facebook.com/honeymooncowboys

Label: www.starmanrecords.com / www.facebook.com/StarmanRecords / www.tracksandtraces.se / www.facebook.com/Tracksandtraces

Inferno Sound Diaries

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

www.side-line.com

The fine label Artoffact Records has announced the authorised reissues of the three 1980s albums that introduced the Canadian electropop act Psyche to the world on CD and on vinyl. To get an overview of all available releases (including a huge fan pack), check this link. EU orders for the vinyls can be placed right here.

Psyche was formed by brothers Darrin and Stephen Huss in Edmonton, Alberta, named after the B-Side of Killing Joke’s Wardance single as well as being chosen for the meaning of the word. The band’s debut performance was on December 13, 1982 with the late Dwayne Goettel (Skinny Puppy) on additional keyboards. Although Psyche is now based in Germany, during the 80s the band was located in Canada from where singer Darrin Huss and his brother/musician Stephen Huss (who unfortunately died last Summer) would conquer the electropop world in no time.

Available now are the CD versions and vinyl versions.

We decided to talk with Darrin Huss about each of these 3 amazing albums which finally see a well deserved reissue and which have been part of the upbringing of almost the complete Side-Line staff.

“Insomnia Theatre” – Deluxe (available here / EU vinyl orders can be placed here)

During 1983-85 Stephen and Darrin Huss would record what would become their debut album “Insomnia Theatre”. They self-released the LP in 1985. The album’s style mixed dark electronics, new wave, industrial, and horror in ways that were quite shocking to its first Canadian audience, and which today are seen by synth music aficionados as a master work. The album held such classic cuts as “The Brain Collapses”, “Maggots”, “Eating Violins” and “Children Carry Knives”. The album also made its way to Europe where it was licensed by the pioneering French New Rose label.

The Artoffact Records reissue is completely remastered and includes several bonus tracks which have never before been released. The base of the recording is the original Canadian LP Mix, with the addition of several tracks from the New Rose 1985 edition, plus bonus tracks from the “Contorting the Image” EP (1986) and the very rare “Unleashed” cassette (1988). Singer Darrin Huss personally selected all the bonus material, including the never-before-heard “Ice” and “Mind Over Matter”.

Darrin: “Psyche’s debut has now been released several times, the biggest edition being the “Insomnia Theatre” Box on VOD Records in 2011. This time however, I have attempted to make a definitive release containing only the recordings from 1983-1985, and the album cover is now in fact the actual photo of my brother and I that I found in his collection in Canada after his passing away last year.

I spent a lot of time deciding what to put on here, so it reflects the Canadian release with one additional related track on Side A and B. “Lies” was only recording once directly to cassette, and performed briefly at the beginning of our live concerts between 1982-83. It shows the influence of DAF, mixed with more punk attitude lyrics inspired by Dead Kennedys
as also heard in “Children Carry Knives”. Side B adds “Wrench” as it was recorded even before the debut album, and later included on the New Rose release of “Insomnia Theatre”.

New discoveries are collected on Side D, as well as the previously unreleased instrumental “Ice” that I always liked, but we never pursued it further afterwards. “Night Watcher” on Side D is my personal highlight discovered on our early demo cassettes, and would make a great debut for today’s Cold Wave / Minimal scene. The album is rounded out with never before published press photos that my brother took at the time, and a lyric sheet adding the newly discovered songs.”

This reissue can now be ordered right here.

“Unveiling The Secret” – 30th anniversary (available here / EU vinyl orders can be placed here)

Released 30 years ago on the New Rose label, Psyche’s “Unveiling the Secret” was lauded by fans and praised by generations of musicians including Sven Vath, Joris Voorn, and Eskil Simonsson (Covenant). The leading tracks included “The Saint Became A Lush” (which appeared on Trevor Jackson’s famous “Metal Dance” series), “Prisoner to Desire” (remixed by the famous Joseph Watt of Razormaid fame), “Prisoner to Desire”, “Lord Unleashed”, and several more.

The Artoffact Records reissue is completely remastered and includes several bonus tracks which have never before been released. Darrin Huss again personally selected all the bonus material, including a rare Razormaid mix and the never-before-heard track “Lock The Door”.

Darrin: “A re-release of this album took place on CD in 1999, but it has never really been put together remastered and with all the single mixes together until now.

This latest release on CD and Vinyl also contains a rare black and white press photo taken by Alain Duplantier in Paris for New Rose. We decided to make all 3 albums black and white, and since this was the only album with a color photo at the time, I replaced it with this official press photo for consistency. It was a scandal at the time to have us on the cover, as indie bands usually have obscure graphics, and people were surprised that a “Horror Synth-Pop” act would suddenly advertise themselves rather than an image to represent the music. However, we did this consciously. As Skinny Puppy became popular with a similar sound and image, we moved on to a more Electro-Pop approach, and broke out of the Goth/EBM mold with “Unveiling The Secret” and “Prisoner To Desire”.

“The Saint Became A Lush” is of course a definitive Psyche sounding track that I feel represents what we do rather completely. I decided to add the Razormaid Mixes, and all the 12” single B-Sides to this release. Also new are two demos, one the previously unreleased “Lock The Door” another great instrumental by Stephen that was recorded in several versions, but for whatever reason we never finished it for an album. “Words Cannot Express” is an unreleased unfinished song that I practiced around the time of recording. The singing is fairly raw, but I think it makes a nice epilogue to the sleek Unveiling The Secret production.”

This reissue can now be ordered right here.

“Mystery Hotel” – Definitive Edition (available here / EU vinyl orders can be placed here)

In 1987/88 Stephen and Darrin Huss recorded what would become “Mystery Hotel”. The final album would be mixed, and produced at Synsound Studios in Belgium by Dan Lacksman (Telex) with additional mixing and engineering assistance by Stephan Krämer and Cookie. Following the success of “Insomnia Theatre” and “Unveiling the Secret”, Psyche turned to a classic wave sound on their third and most polished album. The album is in many ways the darkest Psyche album, just listen to tracks such as “Wake the Flood Unconscious”, “Nocturnal Passenger” and “The Outsider”.

The Artoffact Records reissue is completely remastered and includes several bonus tracks which have never before been released or never released before on CD.

Darrin: “The third in Psyche’s somehow unplanned “trilogy”. I call the albums the Holy Trinity of Dark Synth-Pop. All 3 have certain songs that stand the test of time, and awaken strong emotions in listeners just discovering our sound.

I have to say, this was the hardest to work on as “Dreamstreet” brought me to tears every time I tried to perfect this already beautiful sounding instrumental. We played this at my brother’s memorial, and it reminds me most of him, and our time together recording, and mixing at Dan Lacksman’s studio in Belgium. The album was original recorded at Garage studios in Paris where we had done “Unveiling The Secret” previously, but we somehow wanted to sound even more “glossy” at the time as most 80s bands were going from their rough beginnings to a more “radio friendly” sound.

We spent ages on “Uncivilized” and I rewrote the lyrics several times, but finally it became the debut single, and seemed to be getting us further towards the dream of bringing Psyche’s alternative Synth-Pop to a wider audience.

The reaction to this album at the time was fairly mixed. For me the 2 highlights are “The Outsider” and “Eternal”. Those have become the defining sound for what Psyche does when we go Pop, but keep our style. “Uncivilized” is equally popular, and at the time “Nocturnal Passenger” was the most requested song live. I think we advanced a little quicker than most of our fans were ready at the time, and whatever wasn’t Dark EBM was too soft for them.

“Eternal” managed to get radio play, and we made our most expensive video with a production team in Toronto for that one. Somehow the song is magical, and the appreciation grows with every new listener. For this re-release I have included again the Razormaid mixes, B-Sides, and the Live EP that originally came with the limited New Rose release. The demos of Stephen and I practicing some of the songs from this album will be added as a bonus download.

“Wake The Flood Unconscious” is also one of the most original things for a synth-pop band to do. Psychedelic rock on Synth. We were inspired by Soft Cell’s Hendrix Medley, and listening to The Doors, so we thought, why not make our own song in that style? With all three albums, it’s this breaking down barriers between various genres that makes Psyche stand out from the average. We had idols, and favorites, but we always wanted to do things our own way, and I am proud to have created a small piece of musical art in my lifetime, that still carries on to this day.

How appropriate then, that our Canadian partners, and label ArtofFact Records should have the definitive releases of these 3 groundbreaking albums.”

This reissue can now be ordered right here.

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

Tower Records was once a retail powerhouse with 200 stores, in 30 countries, on 5 continents. You’ll soon be able to see how Tower Records became the heart and soul of the music world, and how it all crumbled away when “All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records” hits the theatres on October 16.

The documentary, which was partially crowdfunded (collecting $92,025 from 1,686 backers on a pledged goal of $50,000), focuses around Tower Records founder Russ Solomon. And that’s not a coincidence, because when you went to Tower Records you were served by people who knew something about music. And that’s because from the opening of the first Tower Records in 1960, Solomon empowered employees at each store to make the decisions necessary to help foster the local music taste. In 2004 the company filed for bankruptcy and by the end of 2006, Russ Solomon’s Tower Records had shut the doors to nearly every one of its worldwide outlets.

The documentary premiered at the SXSW film festival last March and got a pretty good feedback from the assembled press.

Here’s what you can expect:

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