Out now is Ulver’s “Liminal Animals” album as download, LP and CD. “Liminal Animals” is the 13th studio album to date by Ulver and is their first in almost five years. Songs from the album have been released digitally as singles over the past 12 months, with no promotion outside their own channels. “Quite liberating in these twilight years”, the band said.

“Liminal Animals” was written and arranged by Ole Alexander Halstensgård, Kristoffer Rygg, and Jørn H. Sværen, mixed by Anders Møller at Subsonic Society, mastered by Vegard Sleipnes, and performed by Halstensgård, Rygg and Sværen with Stian Westerhus (guitar, bass, strings and backing vocals), Ivar Thormodsæter (drums), Anders Møller (percussion and choir), and with special guests Nils Petter Molvær (trumpet), Sara Khorami (choir), Astra Eida Rygh (choir), Sisi Sumbundu (choir) and Torgeir Waldemar Engen (choir).

The album was recorded and produced at Lupercal in the Old Town, Oslo. Additional recordings were done in Pitch Black Star Spangled Studio, same city, different location. The cover art features “The Senseless Seven”, a 1911 drawing by Austin Osman Spare.

About Ulver

Ulver is a Norwegian experimental music collective formed in 1993 in Oslo. The name, meaning “wolves” in Norwegian, reflects the dark, enigmatic nature of their art. Initially rooted in black metal, Ulver also incorporated folk, avant-garde, electronica, and ambient soundscapes.

They first gained recognition with their “Black Metal Trilogie” which includes “Bergtatt” (1995), “Kveldssanger” (1996), and “Nattens Madrigal” (1997) which offer a mix of folkloric themes, acoustic compositions, and raw black metal. From 1998 onward, Ulver abandoned metal and embraced electronic and cinematic elements, starting with “Themes from William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell”. Subsequent albums like “Perdition City” (2000) and “Blood Inside” (2005) explored ambient, jazz, and experimental genres.

Ulver continued to evolve with works like “Shadows of the Sun” (2007) and “Wars of the Roses” (2011) and also collaborated on “Terrestrials” (2014) with Sunn O))).

2017’s “The Assassination of Julius Caesar” marked a shift towards synth-pop and electronic influences.

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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By the end of 2021 Mexican formation Sodomy Down The Cross unleashed the gfull length album “Sodomy Down The Cross”. The album was released by Insane Records revealing a powerful and enraged Dark-Electro format. The band introduced their work as ‘Reborn from the ruins of a country consumed by violence where every day crime steals the front pages of the main national newspapers, where people live in fear of being riddled with bullets, where the sound of bullets becomes in the usual aural landscape inside and outside the big cities Sodomy Down The Cross explores through a new sound the reverberation of constant fury and aggression in a corrupt society.’ This is a production I highly recommend to all lovers of great Dark-Electro music. I asked a few questions to ‘BlackNeyton’ and ‘Ivanov Scylla’.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: Can you tell us a bit more about the origins of Sodomy Down The Cross? How did the band saw the daylight and what have been the main sources of inspiration?

BlackNeyton: The origins of Sodomy Down The Cross are going back to 2001 at the border between Mexico and the United States, Texas and Tamaulipas to be more exact.

My personal influences that in turn gave life to the project initially were bands like Mysticum, Samael, Limbonic Art, Ulver, Burzum, Arcturus, Satyricon, Marduk, Deicide, Aura Noir, Nocturnal Breed, Morbid Angel, Mayhem etc and of course bands like Wumpscut, Skinny Puppy that allowed me to merge styles. I was looking for a new sound that combined the brutal atmospheres and riffs of Metal with Industrial and rhythmic sounds, with a heartbreaking voice, a theme of incitement to violence, the macabre, obscurantism, evil and thus influence the music to the listener.

Ivanov Scylla: Sodomy Down The Cross serves as an opportunity for me to share that dark vision of the world through music, to generate a catharsis and allow a bit of liberation for the alter ego that we all have inside.

The inspiration comes from my observation of the world and reality that often surpasses fiction and invites us to reflect, to annoy each other and shout at the world with the things that we do not agree with, the things that we continue to allow to happen thanks to the selfishness that becomes like the hydra in our consumerist society. My influences are bands like Tactical Sekt, Aslan Faction, Hocico , Suicide Commando , Skinny Puppy , Ministry etc…

Q: The name of the band definitely has something aggressive and provocative, which also comes back in the lyrical themes of the album “The Dead Live The Living Kill”. What do you try to express and what’s the importance to externalize aggressive topics throughout your music?

BlackNeyton: The name itself is a metaphor that can have the meaning each person wants to give it, the image that each one forms in its mind, perhaps something religious, satanic, worldly, sexual or perverse.

For me personally it reminds me of the story of Genesis 18.20.21 of Sodom and Gomorrah, everything that these cities represent in other cultures, starting from there I imagine music taking that place as a reference but besieging it in the present and future.

Ivanov Scylla: The lyrics are a reflection and a projection of human wickedness, that which causes us to continually stay at war, that which allows us as humans to remain stoic in the face of human pain, all that anger that remains imprisoned every time we see the news and we realize the decadence in which we live, it is a scream of fury!

The aggression in our lyrics is an invitation! To know and investigate what each of the stories we want to tell with our music is about.

Q: What kind of album did you’d in mind when starting the writing of “The Dead Live The Living Kill”? What’s your way of working and what’s the input of each member?

BlackNeyton: From the beginning we thought of making an album with Industrial rhythms and EBM overtones, more urban sounds and gloomy atmospheres, focused on the dancefloor as an experiment to give way to a new sound and new releases to come.

My way of working could be said to be that of any composer, on a day-to-day basis I begin to create sounds and melodies in my mind, which later accompany me, I put together like a puzzle and you focus on them in the studio until you create and polish what you imagine. There are sessions of 6 hours per day, non-connective, but most of the composition is mental, I travel a lot and my team always accompanies me, that is my case. I’m in charge of music production.

Ivanov Scylla: Definitely something Industrial!! There is no aspect that represents technological evolution and social involution as much as Industrial music, the automatism of the roar and the creak of the machines, mixed with harmonies, melodies and dark atmospheres, the human part of the band.

I try to contribute in the vocals, lyrics and visuals, everything that the musical part of Sodomy Down The Cross projects to me. It is an intense conversation between the rhythmic and melodic sequences, with the lyrics in each of the songs, my job is to achieve that our visions merge to make the message of the band unify, to enter the same journey.

Q: What elements of the album make you proud and what are the elements you would like to improve?

BlackNeyton: The songs give me a good feeling which makes the music more expressive. It creates emotion and allows you to escape from reality. We try to do something different than the standards so we experiment with other styles. The response of the people has been surprising in such a short lapse of time.

Artem from Sleetgrout mastered the album and did a great job. He managed to give quality and strength to the sounds. His work was very professional and got my my respect.

The improvements like new rhythms and more elaborated atmosphere will be heard at the next album which we are working on.

Ivanovscylla: I love listening to the album over and over again and never got a bored feeling. It makes me think that there is something special and addictive coming through the music.  I can’t help it but I move, dunk, sing… so every time I can it feels exciting to rediscover the album again.

If there was something that I wanted to improve, maybe it would be personal. Sometimes it is difficult to deal with that alter ego that we constantly talk about in our songs and let him allow us to work in peace haha it is a constant internal struggle, the point will be to agree more with us ourselves to be able to express everything we still can, through music.

Q: I noticed there’s a lyrical clip for the song “Die Fünfte Sonne”, which I think is not exactly the most representative song for this aggressive album, but it also is the opening track. Why did you make a clip of this song and what’s the importance of a debut track?

Blackneyton: “Die Fünfte Sonne” is a song that tells a story about our culture. We are part of that ‘Preshispanica Aztec, Mayan, Olmec’ culture. We see it everywhere, we live it, eat it and breathe it, it flows in  our blood and spirit. We wanted to tell the story of the fifth sun, the story of a new beginning. People who know that story will understand the clip as it is a journey, which we were looking for to share.

Ivanov Scylla: “Die Fünfte Sonne” is the door that allows us to enter our musical journey, we try to tell a story about our traditions, our past, one that is often unknown even to our own society that allows us to illustrate how life acts in a cyclical way; create and destroy , remember and forget. It is our metaphorical way of creating a bridge between albums (a new beginning).

Q: The album has been released during the ongoing pandemic so I can imagine it’s not an easy thing considering aspects as promotion and live shows. How do you manage this situation and what are the further plans about shows, remixes, releases etc?

BlackNeyton: The theme of the show, which is something that interests us in the future, as soon as conditions allow us. Without a doubt, we will enjoy that energy that is felt in the live shows, but at this moment our priority is to compose music.

It was because of the pandemic that Sodomy Down The Cross began to work on new music and become interested in new projects. This was possible thanks to meeting interesting and talented people like Vladimir Mironov, who introduced us to Evgeniy Fesslav Vorozheykin from Insane Records, who is a very  professional and good friend.

Insane Records is a very good label doing a professional job. We we are already working on remixes and very soon on the next album.

Ivanov Scylla: The pandemic has reduced on a large scale the way in which society relates and we are not the exception, but in pandemic times we have found new ways of working, of conversing and of meeting again musically, it has not been easy by any means, but we will focus our batteries on new releases, on the visual accompaniment of our music, and continue doing what we like. Sodomy Down The Cross is our revulsive, our way of liberating, our way of putting society in front of a mirror to realize how terrific it can be.

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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(By our Norwegian correspondent Jan Ronald Stange / Kampenkontor press release) EL/NeUe from Norway released their album ‘KRANK’ June 1^st on CD and digital platforms – their first physical release in 34 years! 11 songs in various styles, yet all still typically EL/NeUe: A powerful sound of picturesque, magical guitars (often performed with bow), swirling synths, deep, laid-back vocals and an old, battered Roland SH 2000, and a very liberal use of upper- and lowercase letters in their song titles.

EL/NeUe are Askild Hagen (vocals, synth, bass) og Håkon Johnson (guitars, bass, synth), with invaluable help from ELLADY (Liv Anna Hagen), contributing vocals on two songs – the dreamy ‘Prosopagnosia’ and the darkly beautiful ‘Når er det på tide’. The guys also both work as writers for the Norwegian comedy show ‘Nytt På Nytt’ (Norwegian version of ‘Have I got news for you’), and have created many musical comedy projects, notably the legendary Oslo International Playback Free Jazz Festival.

‘KRANK’, the CD, is the first physical release by EL/NeUe in 34 years, but they have contributed on several releases through the years. It all started with the classic ‘Et hvilested’ 7″ EP in 1987 (while the band were just called EL …). EL contributed to several cassette compilations in the Eighties, and performed a few, memorable concerts before disbanding in 1988.

2009 saw the release of the compilation CD ‘MASKINDANS’, with Norwegian electronic music of the 80’s, where EL’s ‘Visshet’ was included. Five years later, in 2014 Spain’s Domestica Records put out their «Domestic Landscape» compilation, featuring a track from EL’s ‘Demo 85’ cassette; the darkly poetic ‘Og Tilslutt’.
In 2020, EL returned as EL/NeUe, releasing the EP ‘LYKKeØNSKNINGeR 2020’ and several singles via streaming services (see their Spotify artist page).

‘KRANK’ contains 11 songs, somewhere between 80’s new wave/cold wave and modern electronic alternative music. At times, it may sound like Rammstein meets Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft, elsewhere it may envoke the feeling of Ulver growing up in 1987.

Listen to the album at Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, deezer or Tidal! Read the review of ‘Krank’.

Jan Ronald Stange

Sometimes – when I’m not cooking, biking, listening to music or attending concerts, I write stuff for Side-Line.com. Mostly about Norwegian bands, but it’s been some Swedish, English, American, Danish, German and others too… 😉

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Iconic UK post-punk/alt act The Membranes release an EP featuring two remixes of their song “Nocturnal” by goth rock/darkwave Goth DJ Kitty Lectro.

“Nocturnal” was originally released on The Membranes new album “What Natures Gives… Nature Takes Away” on June 7th this year. Having remixed artists such as Kommunity FK, Andi Sex Gang, Beauty In Chaos (Wayne Hussey, Simon Gallup and Michael Ciravolo) and more, Kitty Lectro adds a dance floor spin to “Nocturnal”.

Frontman and The Membranes founder John Robb explains why they chose to remix the song: “‘Nocturnal’ is our death disco dance with Pan, or our dark Dionysian dislocation of the senses that has been remixed to shadowy dance floor brilliance by Kitty Lectro. It is from our new double album “What Nature Gives… Nature Takes Away” and examines the beauty and violence of nature, in which we took our bass-driven post-punk and added choirs to it to create an epic brooding soundtrack to the theme of nature itself and its desperate struggle to survive the human race’s hell bent determination to destroy it.”

The Nocturnal EP will be available for streaming on all major platforms. You can here it right below.

Tracklist of the EP:

• Nocturnal (KITTY LECTRO Remix)
• Nocturnal (KITTY LECTRO Meow Meow Money Mix)
• Nocturnal (Album Version)

The Membranes will be on tour in Europe with Mark Lanegan Band in November/December.

About The Membranes

Formed in 1978 in Blackpool, England, The Membranes played classic bass-driven northern post-punk and were part of the same world as bands like Joy Division, Bauhaus, The Fall, Sisters Of Mercy, and Cabaret Voltaire, all inspired by the punk explosion of 1977 to launch their own idiosyncratic journeys. The band released a remarkable series of records throughout the ‘80s that combined their small town frustration with a love of heavy bass and distortion. This ultimately became a prime influence on such American noiseniks as Steve Albini, Swans and Sonic Youth.

The group reformed in 2010 at the request of My Bloody Valentine to play the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival, and have since made two albums, inspired by newer bands like Godspeed You Black Emperor, Mogwai, Ulver and Wardruna.

Membranes frontman/bassist John Robb is an acclaimed British musician/author/publisher and TV/radio commentator. He is the editor-in-chief of British music monthly Louder Than War and the author of the celebrated non-fiction work “Punk Rock: An Oral History”.

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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Ulver (Norwegian for wolves), the Norwegian experimental musical collective founded in 1993 by vocalist Kristoffer Rygg, are back with a brand new album: “Drone Activity”.

A first teaser for the new full-length CD / vinyl has now been released (see below) and it captures the special live set the band played at the Drone Activity festival in Oslo (Norway) last Summer. Pre-orders are accepted now, the CD can be ordered here, the double vinyl can be ordered here.

For those unfamiliar with the band, their early works, such as the debut “album Bergtatt”, were categorised as folklore-influenced black metal, but the band has since evolved a fluid and increasingly eclectic musical style, blending genres such as rock, electronica, symphonic and chamber traditions, noise, progressive and experimental music into their oeuvre. Ulver have sold in excess of half a million records, have been nominated twice for the Norwegian Grammy Awards, Spellemannsprisen, in different categories, won Album of the Year at the Oslo Awards for Shadows of the Sun in 2008, and also won the NATT&DAG award for Best Live Act in 2011.

Here’s a first excerpt from the new album.

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

Out in February is the newest Ulver album “ATGCLVLSSCAP” which, besides a CD release (available here), also gets the double vinyl treatment (available right here). The double vinyl comes in limited edition gate-fold sleeve including and outer protection sleeve and on 180g black vinyl.

This new Ulver album consists of multitracked and studio-enhanced live, mostly improvisational, rock and electronic soundscapes. 2/3 of the material has never been heard before. The basis for “ATGCLVLSSCAP” consists of recordings made at 12 different live shows that Ulver performed in February 2014 with an improvisatory approach.

Ulver are a Norwegian experimental musical collective founded in 1993, by vocalist Kristoffer Rygg. Their early works were categorised as folklore-influenced black metal, but they have since then evolved into a more eclectic musical style, blending genres such as rock, electronica, symphonic and chamber traditions, noise and experimental music into their work.

Ulver is not exactly a peanut band in this scene, although you might not know them. They have sold over half a million of records and have been nominated twice for the Norwegian Grammy Awards, Spellemannsprisen. In short, another Norwegian pearl.

Below is a track from the album:

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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