Coming in hot after a stacked weekend here in Vancouver, starting last Thursday with a show from Spike Hellis, Kontravoid and Buzz Kull on Thursday, Sacred Skin and Actors on Friday, and some DJing at our home promotion Coffin Club at the fabulous Waldorf on Saturday. We’ll of course be discussin this on the podcast this week, but it’s worth noting that these kinds of mega weekends, exhausting as they are, weren’t always a thing we got to enjoy in years past. We’re still in the midst of a nice surge in all types of music in Our Thing, and its always worth putting in the effort to support it however we can. On to Tracks!
That good ennui with bodyimage
XTR Human, “Fake”
Heads know one of the best modern EBM producers is Johannes Stabel, aka XTR Human, whose releases on his own Wie Ein Gott label have handily bridged classic EBM and modern techno-influenced sensibilities. His new single “Fake” was recorded with producer Matia Simovich (who Stabbel has been working with as a vocalist for Inhalt), and slows down the tempo but amps up the classic body music muscle. And like many of XTR Human’s songs, there’s a wry but direct message, in this case about the artifice of social media for artists and fans alike. Sing it brother.
D.P.O “Demon”
Here’s some pitch-black TBM out of Indonesia which breaks from a lot of the rhythmic and production cliches of the style. We can hear threads of recent lo-fi stuff from both South America and eastern Europe, but there’s also clearly a love for early roots EBM at the base of this. Each of the three tracks on the Kontra EP have their own rhythmic swing and feel while holding to a unified mood; worth checking the whole thing, really.
Dismantled, “Wired for War”
The second single from Dismantled’s forthcoming Endless is a pretty classic expression of Gary Zon’s vision for electro-industrial. Arranged around an insistent mid-tempo beat, the vocal processing and sound design really convey the dangerous future vibe that has always been the project’s aesthetic, albeit in this case with an almost hopeful melody floating above. For a surprise comeback, this one is stirring up a lot of interest, we’ll be here to give our take when it drops in November.
Bris, “Distirak”
Basque trio Bris are plying a very traditional and brightly melodic style of coldwave on their new Distirak EP. They move from forlorn melancholy to more upbeat but nostalgic tracks like this one fairly easily, and the decidedly lo-fi approach to production makes up for what it loses in clarity by adding a hazy and organic feel that suits the wistful mood quite nicely.
C Z A R I N A, “Holy Water (Majestic Remix)”
Staying in Span, C Z A R I N A released one of the most singular and charming darkwave tracks of the year back in April with “Holy Water”, and we’re happy to hear a different read on it which retains its core appeal. Majestic Phoenix have beefed things up with some chuggy but not overbearing industrial metal guitar which oddly further deepens the medieval/fantasy vibes of the original. If you’ll excuse us, we suddenly feel the urge to put a bunch of Heimatærde on…
bodyimage, “Leeches”
Yo, where did this come from? A straight up algorithmic recommendation that got us good, bodyimage is an act previously unknown to us, but is doing a sort of early 2010’s electro by way of industrial techno thing on “Leeches”. It’s a sound that fits nicely into uptempo hard industrial dance DJ sets, but could just as easily could be played at your local underground techno spot. Good and nervy, play it loud.
