This latest release on Projekt is probably the ‘sleepiest’ of all this year’s successful releases.  The label has slowly been expanding its styles to include more ‘rock’ oriented acts like Mira, Low Sunday, This Ascension and the like.  But this release from Alio Die might be more what many expected of Projekt back in the mid 90’s when artists like Love Spirals Downwards and Black Tape were at the forefront.

Though Alio Die is considerably more ambient and minimalist, there is a strong female voice at the heart of his music and the same romantic spirit encompasses the music.  Amelia Cuni, an Italian alto vocalist is equipped with a remarkably soothing and smooth voice, seasoned with an exotic flare and pervaded with a sweet sense of melancholy.

Alio Die’s music is comprised of low, quiet synths, warm textures and subtle organic samples.  He has been revered for several musical collaborations in his past, the most recent being VidnaObmana and Robert Rich (both artists are reviewed this issue – I can’t escape this stuff!)

As the title would suggest, the theme of this album revolves around Hindu myths concerning the ‘Apsaras,’ or water nymphs as we may commonly refer to them.  Suitably, the album exhibits both an authentic Eastern flavour and a fluid, briny sensibility that is quite effective in evoking the appropriate mental imagery to correspond with the mythical themes.

“Asparas” is much too quiet and relaxed for my tastes.  I never have the time to unwind and relax so the appropriate timing for this kind of music never arises for me.  But for those ‘meditative’ Goths and dark music fans out there, who are looking for something tranquil and lightly contemplative, this is for you.  I am tempted to describe this release as Dead Can Dance on quaaludes, as Amelia possesses the same kind of stark quality in her voice as Lisa Gerard.  I think the only subtle difference is that Lisa’s voice tends to be more mournful, while Ms. Cuni’s voice is lighter and has a slightly sweeter tone to it.  Nonetheless, Cuni is carrying on the same ‘dhrupad’ tradition of singing that DCD made so popular and turned so many people’s attention to.  Check this out if you are at peace with your inner self.  Or at the very least, have the time and wish to make the effort to work on establishing it ;)

Track List:
1.) AMBHAS
2.) Island Of The Rose Apple Tree
3.) AAPAHA
4.) Water Memories
5.) Churning Of The Ocean
6.) APSARAS

All music composed by Amelia Cuni and Stefano Musso/Alio Die

Projekt Records:
http://www.projekt.com

Anathema
A Fine Day To Exit
~reviewed by Matthew

I cannot resist the temptation to use the following and by now probably worn out pun: Now might be a fine time for Anathema to exit altogether.  As harsh and as rude as it may be to say this, I am more disappointed than anyone that it is necessary to say it in the first place. But I can’t help but feel betrayed by the band’s latest release.  Not because they changed their musical style.  They have been steadily moving away and eclipsing all of the elements their core death/doom metal fans have loved about the band since their fourth release in 1996.

Rather, the problem is that as they have continued to adopt a melodic and more alternative friendly/Pink Floyd drenched style, they have become less unique and less innovative.  With this latest release, Anathema has pushed the Floydian tendencies aside to present themselves more directly as a bunch of Radiohead and trite commercial alternative rock rip offs.  Quite frankly, there is not much different in the latest release from Anathema, despite a bit more emotion and honest musicianship than what is usually required to make it on rock radio, than bands like Oasis and Train.

Ok, now that I have ranted and blown off some steam, I am going to do my best to take a much more objective approach.  I personally do love a few tracks on the album, including the mopey “Barriers” with its smoky male and female vocal duets, the closing track “Temporary Peace” which it’s suitably depressive and thought provoking lyrics, and the tracks “Leave No Trace” and “Looking Outside Inside.”  The latter of which features a dreamy, beautiful acoustic intro with some awesome eboed guitar effects ghosting about the backdrop.  There is a great vocal performance on the behalf of Vincent Cavanagh, and a rather unique musical arrangement overall.  The chorus gives the song a less than stellar effect, as it seems a bit out of place when compared to the rest of the song, a little too ‘sudden’ perhaps.

God I feel horrid.  This is one of the hardest reviews I have ever written.  My intention is not to offend, but rather to vent my reactions of disappointment (which I have mulled over for almost two months since I received this disc to review).  I have been a hardcore fan of this band for years, and kept an open mind throughout all the releases that became less and less dark. But I am having a difficult time swallowing this album.

Objectively speaking, I can clearly see that the band is maturing.  It has been over ten years since they began and they were all extremely young when they released their “Crestfallen/Serenades” and “Pentecost III” albums.  They want to move on.  They are growing up and their tastes are changing.  I gave Paradise Lost the benefit of the doubt on the very same principles.  But the difference here is that the music is not as interesting as the band and the label might want you to believe.  I had a hard time making it through the entire disc as it stays exactly the same pace and it seems like it’s almost in the same musical key the entire album!  A very dry CD, with no twists, no turns, no unexpected bursts of emotion, just a rather soporific journey along a rather monochromatic canvas.  Of course there is the pseudo punk rock tangent “Panic” which I suppose is the album’s ‘energizer,’ but that song sounded forced and was less than impressive.

Anathema is still a quartet of glum, talented chaps.  But I don’t feel like the album taps into their hearts as much as on their previous two releases 1999’s “Judgment” and 1998’s “Alternative 4.”  I think they are capable of more.  I HOPE they are capable of more. I know this release is going to upset a lot of doom fans that live and die by this band's first few extremely dark and sorrowful albums.   I know I won’t be alone in my opinions of this album.

On the other side of the coin, I am willing to bet three times the amount of people in the world would respond more positively to this album rather than their earlier work.  It’s more in tune with the direction of today’s rock music.  And Christ knows we sure as hell could use some talent in the mainstream!  It would be absolutely fantastic if Anathema could break into the mainstream with this album.  But I doubt it is possible, for several reasons.  For one, they are a British band on an underground label.  They have a past firmly rooted in death metal.  It is not exactly going to be easy to market this band in the mainstream.  So I can’t help but wonder why they seem to be writing music to appeal to that crowd and in the process alienate those who helped them gain the status and reverence they have?  It is a question only the band could answer, and I can almost guarantee they would reply that they don’t care about whether or not their music is commercial, doom, or whatever.  That they are writing the kind of music they want to, and it is their freedom to do so.  But I also feel that people should be aware of the drastic change in the release.  And also that fans of the style of music that Anathema are currently gravitating toward should be aware that there isn’t some new impressive band to welcome into the annals of the genre. There is really nothing all that unique or impressive about this album, especially when you compare it to the output of bands like Radiohead, Low, Pink Floyd or the Beatles.  You would be better off listening to those bands, rather than imitations of it.

I still maintain it to be rather presumptuous of music fans (including myself) to attack bands for not putting out albums for their fans; that bands should be chided for expanding their own creative expression.  But what can you expect when a band has strayed so far from what the music buying public expects and hopes for from them? It’s a controversial argument.  All I can say is, if you are expecting an album that sounds like the bands previous work, you will be disappointed.  “A Fine Day To Exit” is a good album.  The more I listen to this CD, I begin to like bits of it.  But it is a confusing release that I really don’t know what to make of and it is extremely conditional.  If I am cranky, I will want to bust the CD and its bland case into a million tiny pieces.

It is without question the most depressing album Anathema has ever released – however in a wholly different sense of the word, and it is not a word of ‘Gothic’ veneration but rather dispirited disappointment.  Beg to differ, please.  So I can just feel dumb.  I would love to believe that Anathema is still one of the greatest bands on the planet.  I want to believe this more than it probably shows in this review, which I am reluctant to even publish in lieu of my respect to Koch, MFN, and the band.  Make your own decisions, but have no expectations.  That is the purest and only unbiased way to hear this CD.

Track List:
1.) Pressure
2.) Release
3.) Looking Outside Inside
4.) Leave No Trace
5.) Underworld
6.) Barriers
7.) Panic
8.) A Fine Day To Exit
9.) Temporary Peace

Anathema is:
Vincent Cavanagh – vocals, guitar
Danny Cavanagh – guitars
John Douglas – drums
Les Smith – keyboards
George Roberts – session bassist

Anathema – Official Page:
http://www.blackmetal.com/~mega/Anathema/

KOCH Records:
http://www.kochentertainment.com

Music For Nations:
http://www.music-for-nations.co.uk

Peaceville Records:
http://www.peaceville.com
 

Amber Spyglass
Amber Spyglass
~reviewed by Matthew

Boston’s Amber Spyglass takes an interesting approach to alternative/gothic music.  They succeed in keeping the listener on their toes and blend genre specific elements found in post rock and college alternative, not to mention a brief, tasteful, and controlled dabbling into progressive metal.  The band does a good job at sounding fresh and stands apart from other bands performing similar styles.

The band is a primarily a duo, the creative core of the band being vocalist Kelly Godshall and guitarist John DeGregorio. Her vocals are deeper, reminding me a bit of Anneke from The Gathering and other strong alto vocalists.  The guitar and bass work has a slightly bluesy approach at times, and other times the music meshes together beautifully to create an almost psychedelic hypnotism.  This is Goth with a decidedly different kind of groove, but perhaps only because I am probing so deep into the constructs of the music.  The overall result is extremely listenable and catchy.

The opening track “Higher” reminds me of the surreal exotica of Norwegian cult act 3rd & The Mortal, with a suspenseful build up to a climactic and the unexpected metallic aggression I mentioned earlier to draw the song to its close. The third track “Going Down” is a more down tempo and swirly track, with a nice variation to the vocals, expressing both the lower and higher abilities of Ms. Godshall’s range.  “Simple To Say” is carried by a strong bass line and some jazzy percussion, jangley guitars, and twinkling pianos.  This is a very nice, laid back and sophisticated song.  The closing track “Creep” is probably the song most firmly rooted in the classic rock/psychedelic tradition, with some interesting flute passages that I could not help but think of Jethro Tull.  But this is obviously much darker and more ‘Goth’ friendly.

Amber Spyglass is a tight and vastly talented band.  I imagine elder Goths, with a penchant toward more depressive plain-clothes college rock of the mid to late 80’s and early 90’s would be a good audience for this.  But then again, any lover of female vocals and good musicianship will consider this a treasure as well.

This debut EP is available through Projekt’s Darkwave store as well as Amazon.com.  This is definitely worth checking out.

Track List:
1.) Higher
2.) Burning At Sunset
3.) Going Down
4.) Simple To Say
5.) Creep

Amber Spyglass is:
Kelly Godshall – vocals, keyboards
John DeGregorio – guitars, samples
Ajda Snyder – keyboards, flute

Additional musicians:
Fernando Medina – drums
Jason Volpini – bass
Peter Johnson – keyboards on “simple to say”

Amber Spyglass – Official Site:
http://www.amberspyglass.net

Amber Spyglass – Mp3 Site:
http://www.mp3.com/amberspyglass

Charlottesville
The Shark Who Pulled A Mussel
~reviewed by Kevin Filan

Every morning I ride the subway past the open wound that used to be the World Trade Center; the stench from the ruins lingers high and acrid as an echoing scream.  Jetliners overhead make me cringe. I start crying at odd moments for no reason at all.  And over and over I've listened to Charlottesville's debut CD, The Shark Who Pulled a Mussel, and found some kind of consolation in Miles Fender and Iris Lapalme's melancholy ruminations on love, life, and loss.

Fender first achieved public notice as the leader of British goth band Earth Calling Angela.  With his relocation to San Francisco came a stylistic sea change. Charlottesville has been compared by some to bands like Low and Red House Painters.  I'm more reminded of the great AM pop of the 60s, with cheery optimism replaced by a wistful Remembrance of Things Past.  If Brian Wilson had picked up an acoustic guitar and recorded "Endless Autumn," it might have sounded something like this: at their best, Charlottesville's moody harmonies and penetrating lyrics wouldn't have been out of place on Simon & Garfunkel's "Wednesday Morning 3 a.m." or "The Sounds of Silence."

This could all become unlistenably dreary, Music to Slit Your Wrists To, were it not for Fender's ear for tuneful hooks.  "Chicken Coop for the Soul," the CD's opener, has a tasty synthesizer riff which echoes vintage Duran Duran, supported by a warm harmonica.  It's enough to make you tap your feet as Fender tells his lover "I'm going to open up this cage and get myself outside of you."  Every breakup should sound this good.

Charlottesville's music develops at a leisurely pace, and tends to be more minimalist than flashy.  Softly voiced piano chords and a high-hat rhythm form the underpinning of "Embarcedaro."  As a muffled bass drum kicks in, Fender's voice rises with a wispy song of unrequited love.  The piano chords rise with him as he gives us her final bit of advice ... "Next time don't take it further than the end" ... and then fade back into silence, the soundtrack to an unproduced film about a love that never was.

Being a good singer-songwriter demands skill in several disciplines... singing, performing, composing, and lyric writing.  "Lost All This Time," shows off Miles Fender's skills in all of the above.  In three verses he takes us from that rush of love with "a thousand dreams inside my self/all of them of you and no one else," into, "I never thought I'd see you lose your smile/It's not a state of mind it's just denial" into "And here's nothing I never said before/You're not my savior you never were" into "A thousand thoughts inside my mind/every single one is real unkind/and you can come here any time you want/just shut the door on your way out."

The wind has shifted as I'm writing this.  The air stinks faintly of powdered concrete and burning plastic.  Outside the leaves have started to turn; this morning it was very cold.  As I start playing Charlottesville again I realize it's going to be a long time until spring.

TRACKS:
1.  Chicken Coop for the Soul
2.  Lost All This Time
3.  Not That Far
4.  Embarcedaro
5.  Why Don't You?
6.  Into the Sea
7.  Anything Other Than You
8.  How To Survive
9.  Be Your Friend
10. Thrown a Curve

Charlottesville are Miles Fender and Iris Lapalme
Written and Produced by Miles Fender
c. 2001 Streetlight Farm Records

Charlottesville Website
http://www.streetlightfarm.com

Charlottesville MP3 Site
http://www.mp3.com/charlottesville

Dawn Desiree
(self-titled)
~reviewed by Matthew

Dawn Desiree first lifted up her head and cried out to the world through the progressive gothic metal band Rain Fell Within.  Her aching voice was the centerpiece of the band’s 1998 debut EP “Believe,” providing an emotional and soprano calm to the storms of synthesized pianos and rapid guitar riffing.

I suppose in between studio sessions with Rain Fell Within (the band is slated to release their first full length in early 2002), Dawn found the time to record her own musical project, just simply bearing her own name.  Stripping down to nothing more than piano and synth accompaniment, this is a more personal and tender side of the melancholic siren.  The five songs that make up this short EP are intimate, ethereal ballads, exploring themes of isolation, unrequited love, and the trials of romantic relationships gone awry.  However worn out these ideas and themes may be to some, they never are to those that endure them.  There is definitely sincerity in Dawn’s performances on this disc, and though her lyrics are rather plain and straightforward, they are thankfully free of vague or forced metaphors.  Dawn’s lyrics succeed because of their common and basic clarity.  As lyrics in the opening track say “I know just what you’re going through/I live it everyday/Everyday of my life I think of my dreams that never came true.”

Her vocals are emotionally rich and ripe with a chilling, vulnerable sadness.  Though some have criticized the lack of variation in Dawn’s vocal performance with Rain Fell Within, I find her voice to be captivating and extremely moving to listen to.  She is a soprano vocalist.  That is her range.  And though every 21st century metal band has their own token soprano female vocalist, the one thing that sets Dawn apart from other vocalists in the dark music genre is that her voice is constantly riddled with an intense amount of feeling, to the point that though her voice is quite strong and soars atop the music with a remarkable fluidity, her voice still shakes and quivers with the emotion she passionately expresses.

For me, the highpoints on this disc are the final two tracks where the piano is silenced to make room for a greater variety of instrumental accompaniment.  The neo-baroque synth harpsichords add a more refined touch to “My Eyes Are Closed” while a harp brings an archaic and mediaeval flavour to the final track “Thy Painted Garden.”  The vocals sound more ghostly and reverberated on both of these final tracks, therefore giving them an eerie, almost chapel-like ambience.

This is an enjoyable release.  Nothing at all new, nothing all that mind boggling or progressive, but this EP is a short journey into the heartache of one solitary yet talented musician.  As long as human beings continue to wound one another, there will always be an audience for this music, and there will always be someone hurt enough to be compelled to compose it.   The trick is getting the music to the right audience, and this EP will delight fans of Black Tape For A Blue Girl and fans of other neo-classical female fronted ethereal outfits.

This uniquely packaged EP is a limited edition release through a new independent label called The Fossil Dungeon.   Check out the websites below for more details on how to obtain a copy of your own while they last.

Track List:
1.) Dreams
2.) Where Are You Now?
3.) While I Lay Here
4.) My Eyes Are Closed
5.) Thy Painted Garden

All music and vocals performed and written by Dawn Desiree
DawnDesiree@aol.com

The Fossil Dungeon:
http://www.erols.com/tsbb/fdungeon

Distributed by Middle Pillar:
http://www.middlepillar.com

Rain Fell Within:
http://www.rainfellwithin.com

Darkness Enshroud
Totentanz
~reviewed by Matthew

One would be apt to think that a band bearing the moniker ‘Darkness Enshroud’ would be another predictable black metal outfit; however, that is hardly the case with this particular project.  Though primary musician Michael Ford has a history rooted in the aggressive black/death scene with his involvement with the project Black Funeral, Darkness Enshroud is instead a more organic and minimalist experimental/ambient project.  Coining the genre term ‘black ambient’ (here we go again!) this release weaves esoteric and sinister occult themes with eerie synths, vocal chants, whispers, and modest electronics.

As some regular readers may have noticed, I personally grapple with this style of music constantly.  It is a style I want to like, that I often give the benefit of the doubt, but more often than naught, it fails to truly affect me on any emotional or technical level.   Sometimes I really like this stuff, and other times I just outright hate it.  Darkness Enshroud succeed more so than others, in that they are capable of invoking a truly dark and authentically spooky atmosphere, as best heard in their track “Hymn To A Melancholy Angel” with its drones and static darkwave rhythms.

But I am not quite sure if this is a good example of what the project is capable of, as apparently these eight tracks were ‘unearthed’ with the master tapes for the prior album “Unveiled Ghostly Shadows.”  These left over tracks were sent to Barry Galvin (Mephisto Walz, ex-Christian Death) and were remastered by him.  These tracks make up a solid body of musty musical gloom, and serve as the perfect funereal background music.  If the album was a bit longer and more developed, it could be the ideal CD to accompany late night reading sessions of classic horror and Gothic literature.  However, I am not sure if the CD would be as interesting if the listener were to give it their full attention.

Darkness Enshroud definitely have a masterful skill at invoking atmosphere, and the atmosphere in question is genuinely dark, and not strained or at all cheesy.   I just would like to hear more done with it. I felt rather incomplete after the first few listens. Perhaps more structured classically inspired movements would improve this greatly, eliminating the sense of repetition and droning monotony.  I think the use of vocals is very well balanced, using them only occasionally and having them mixed further back than usual.  I just would like to hear more solid instrumental and melodic elements in this music.  It sounds as if these are the blueprints for a project that has yet to be completed.

Then again, this just may not be for me.  Fans of Cold Meat Industry artists, Mortiis, and other dark ambient projects of that nature will probably take a great liking to this.  But get to Middle Pillar quick, as this is a limited edition release through the Fossil Dungeon label.  Very nicely packaged but only 250 of them in existence.

Track List:
1.) Totentanz
2.) Immortal Manifestation (Finsternis II)
3.) A Hymn To A Melancholy Angel
4.) Mirror Of Nekalah
5.) The Stars Align To Dispel Equality
6.) Age Of Blood & Fire
7.) A Rose Upon A Coffin
8.) Transference Of Aeonic Energies

Darkness Enshroud is:
Michael Ford
Shanna LeJune

The Fossil Dungeon:
http://www.erols.com/tsbb/fdungeon

Middle Pillar Distribution:
http://www.middlepillar.com

Bill and John Storch
Discovering Zero
~reviewed by Mike Ventarola

Bill and John Storch, brothers and self taught musicians, have had an extensive background in the music world. Their father was a violinist for the New York Metropolitan Opera and their uncles were violinists for various orchestras around the country. Having grown in a household that encouraged multiple music styles, everything from classical to pop and rock, it isn’t a mystery where their talent was cultivated.

Initially, the brothers  leaned towards a soft pop style but then after sampling the underground music of legends such as Patti Smith and The Sex Pistols, they took their muse-like inspiration in the direction of composing punk/new wave style songs and created a number of band projects.

Some of the previous works with early bands made a modicum of  success on the East coast.  After the typical scenario where band mates change, leave or otherwise disrupt a group, the two composers tried their hand at experimental electronic music.  Since the two of them have always written the music for their bands and were in synch with each other most of the time, this was only a natural progression for the Storch’s  musical expression. Their style is often described as Muslimgauze or Shinjinku Thief where they combine noise elements with “lush symphonic sound.”

It wasn’t long before their avant garde style brought them to the attention of many prestigious dance troupes across America. Their work has been utilized by renowned choreographers Demetrius Klein and dancer/choreographer Cherie Carson. Klein is the winner of a number of awards and recipient of grants from The National Endowment of The Arts as well as from The Guggenheim Foundation. Carson has had work aired on PBS numerous times and in addition to being a part of this 3 day sold out performance of Discovering Zero, also has recently garnered much success with touring within the Pacific Northwest.

This particular CD, which was part of a collaborative stage work with The Demetrius Klein Dance Co. and Dow Raku Theatre Projects, incorporated life size puppets, avant-garde music, experimental dance as well as stage collages.

Despite its high brow intensity, Discovering Zero remains approachable, incorporating a lifetime of styles and sounds in an eclectic hybrid that is anything but standard. The artists are not afraid to experiment with sound samples of ordinary objects and scenarios and find ways of utilizing the tones and textures to color their musical palette with the ease of an expressionist painter’s  brushstroke.

Introduction colors in dark tones and anticipatory dread, bordering on symphonic goth. Crackling sounds underscore the sound, giving rise to the visual concept of total destruction, brought from the elemental sound changes and sharp angles with which the music is delivered. Higher notes spring forth, culminating in a light space feeling that issues some form of hope.

Seperation (sic) collides like a vortex of electronic space age energy. A rising chasm of coalescing universes that “seep” the hidden “beat” into the electricity while rising horn-like tones give a sense of expansion and cauterization. It develops into an osmotic flow of growth from a sloughing process, yielding extensions of stronger aspects but remain mindful of the dark oppressiveness from whence it came.

Blindness delivers a myriad of undertones of dark confusion with reminiscences to “spy theme” soundtracks. The noise elements are woven in a tonal fabric which illuminates some sense of uncertainty, obstacles, acquisition and ultimately a form of enlightenment with a reminder of risk.

Finale seems to take us full circle. The dark tones are transmuted into macabre-like whispers of a psyche in torment. This opens to lush symphonics underscored with steam like sounds that punctuate the progressive awareness, hope and bittersweet longings. Full symphony and Middle Eastern style percussion along with jazz elements emanate with cascading notes, creating images of a cooling water of cleansing and rebirth.

Closing is a somber and introspective piece whose depth of finality seems locked in an all consuming circle that reflects changes of attention without changing the substance.

Soundscape # 3  has a science fiction impression to the opening, transmuted by rising tides of electronic notes splaying sound as color in multifaceted shapes and intensities. Despite the living energy, there seems to be a soulless machination involved, programmed to elicit changes without concern for repercussion. There is a calculated coldness which gives rise to a futuristic world of disembodied characters who merely interact but seemingly never interrelate beyond a mere functionality of exchange.  Deeper tones are later incorporated to bring in an element of life, thereby illustrating that without the trauma of darkness in some sense, all would be sanitized and less than whole or complete. The poetry reading that is later introduced brings this all to fruition, questing for the interaction between God and humankind.

Soundscape # 4 reflects a sense of fear and solitude actively seeking for niches beyond any form of imposed entrapments. It brings about the need for repetition and active pursuance. This ultimately brings about learning, thereby eliciting change.

Discovering Zero is an avant-garde musical collage of noise, space effects, lush symphonies and personal discoveries to the dark center of ones soul. It is not an easy piece to cogitate and requires some semblance of desired experimentation on the part of the listener.

Since the work is extremely complex and without genre specification, the choreography to this had to have been tantamount to a revolutionary transition within the confines of structured dance and movement. Bill and John Storch set out to create a composite piece that brings us to the “ground zero” of our lives, rooting out the fears, longings and expectations thereby creating a willingness and desire for self-actualization and personal transmutation. Many of the sounds are intentionally uncomfortable, giving rise to the reality that life is not always a comfort zone in which one can stagnate indefinitely. This work is highly cerebral and will appeal to those in the underground who are seeking something completely left of the center of anything they have experienced previously.  For those with ears to hear, they will marvel at the intensity of sound being utilized to create movement which resonates internally as well as externally. Discovering Zero is not a club friendly type of work and is recommended to those whose inner worlds are pensive and highly reflective during their time alone.

Credits:
Dow Raku Projects: Mark and Dan Leahy in association with Consider The Lillies, Demetrius Klein Dance Co., and Bill and John Storch.

A Dance/Theatre Performance Collage
Choreography:     Demetrius Klein
Music:        Bill and John Storch
Concept, Design, and Staging: Mark and Dan Leahy
Text:     Gail Shepard
Featuring:    Demetrius Klein and Gina Buntz

Released by:
Lantern Records www.lanternrecords.com
Email: Storchbros@aol.com

Tracks:
Discovering Zero
1. Introduction
2. Seperation
3. Blindness
4. Finale
5. Closing (written and performed: Lucia Hare Leahy) Zeroscapes
6. Soundscape #3
    “Ich bin derselbe nech, der kniete.”
    Text: Rainer Marie Rilke, translated by Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy
     Reading: Patricia Stroch Goodrich
7. Soundscape # 4

EXPERIMENTAL BLUE
Aggression Depression Addiction
~reviewed by Sonya

Feeling depressed? Well then, you might want to avoid Aggression Depression Addiction by Experimental Blue.  For those with suicidal tendencies, hearing words like "I just want to go away" might just put them over the edge. If you think you can handle it... then step inside the demented and twisted mind of this performance artist from Boston Massachusetts named Experimental Blue.

You can definitely hear the Nine Inch Nails influence within this music. Track 6 has a sound to it much like NIN's, "Closer".  Experimental Blue cites NIN as his "industrial roots", as well as bands like Ministry and Skinny Puppy.

Experimental Blue has a synthesized story to tell, broken down into three emotions: Aggression, Depression, and Addiction... each emotion has 2 tracks; with the final track, Lies, summing up the albums entirety.

While  listening to Experimental Blue, The "Depression" portion of this cd felt as if I were watching a movie akin to 2001: A Space Oddity. "Evil" feels like a disabled  spaceship, floating in space. Engines keep humming with the interpretation that they drone on  for an eternity - long after the lone human voice has been silenced by death or madness.

Still feeling depressed? Well, according to the bio that came with this cd, Experimental Blue has theatrics planned for his future live shows... he plans to "blow his brains out on stage".   Consider yourselves warned.

Track List:
Track 1.  We Sacrifice Our Innocence
Track 2.   Fight Back
Track 3.  Evil
Track 4.  I just want To Go Away
Track 5.  Nothing Is a Real Thrill Anymore
Track 6.  Addiction
Track 7.  Lies

experimentalblue@yahoo.com
http://www.experimentalblue.com

Immaculate Black
Songs Of Lust, Tragedy, And Despair
~reviewed by Matthew

Despite silently chuckling at the album’s subtle title, the first thing I thought of when I first heard this CD is that it reminds me of an entire disc comprised of the ambient and spooky interludes on the first few Cradle Of Filth releases.  I use this as a point of reference only, as Immaculate Black are in no way, shape, or form a dark metal band.  But the wintry synths, mischievous pianos, tolling church bells, and the layers of sepulchral male vocals instantly recalled the eerie Gothic elements that COF uses to contrast with their usual black metal bombast.

The band formed in 1996 and has toured with the likes of Front 242, Theatre Of Tragedy, Christian Death, and Das Ich to name just a few.  Originally, this debut album was to be produced by London After Midnight pretty boy Sean Brennan.  Sadly, when the word leaked that Brennan was only producing the record and that the label couldn’t capitalize on his involvement, their deal was dropped, leaving the band in limbo.  Thankfully however, the band was not deterred, and took matters in their own hands and released the album on their own with the aid of Hollowpoint Management.

With that said, this is an unquestionably solid release, very dark (but sometimes on the verge of being a bit repetitive and a bit ‘too’ dramatic) and true to form, featuring ten tracks of dramatic, orchestral Gothic splendour.   The vocals are extremely deep and throaty, and they work quite well actually, not at all coming across as basic Andrew Eldritch, Carl McCoy, or Peter Steele rip offs.  They are actually deeper than that, and as I mentioned earlier, if any comparison is warranted, they can be likened to the deepest of Dani Filth’s various clean vocal styles.

I don’t know how much processing was done to achieve this vocal effect, but its quite cool.   Though an uncountable number of bands attempt to perform deep vampyric vocals, this is actually very effective and well done.  There is even a fair amount of darkly erotic sensuality in the way the vocals are expressed, as the husky rumblings are often broken by chilling whispers. Doesn’t really do much for my libido, but I just know way too many gals that melt anytime Peter Steele opens his mouth.

The drums sounds great, having a very punchy clarity and the synths are extremely cinematic and symphonic in their scope.  A live bassist adds a dense and mischievous backbone, characterized by the essential lulling strum that has come to define Gothic Rock.

The miniscule problems I have with the disc is that the band does not deviate much in mood at all, which by the end of the CD sort of nullifies the impact of the music’s ‘creepiness’ and will wear thin on the more skeptical and demanding listener.  I think the band could stand to stir things up a bit, especially in the vocals, which seem rather detached and cold compared to the musical content.  They indeed sound cool; but they are lacking in emotional expression.

I also think the addition of a talented guitarist could benefit the band immensely.  I praise the band for its masterful use of symphonic atmosphere. It’s truly remarkable.  However, I still think there is something missing.  A truly innovative and mood conscious guitarist, a player that is not just going to crunch along with simple power chords but instead a guitarist capable of contributing some dark watery arpeggio passages, reverb and delay drenched leads and other 4AD type theatrics.  I think that such an addition would provide this band with the edge they need.

With Immaculate Black’s fidelity to Gothic mood and atmosphere, I think by stirring up what already makes them unique and harnessing a few more elements to flesh out their sound could make them one of the best new darkwave/Gothic rock acts around.  This band’s aim is not to sound like everything else that is popular right now, they certainly have no ambition for churning out the next dance floor hit, and for that, I praise them.   My hope is that they bring a bit more of an old school edge to their music, vary the vocals a bit (maybe some anguished wails here and there), and remain faithful to their gloomy symphonics.  Then, I believe their music would be utterly impossible to ignore.

Track List:
1.) Why Now
2.) One Last Chance
3.) Seasons Change
4.) Let It Rain
5.) So This Is Love
6.) Desire
7.) Always
8.) Undone
9.) Tonight
10.) Fly Away

Michael Maclane - Vocals
Angelika - Bass
Alano Capelo - Keyboards
Tyson Gwinn - Drums
 

Hollow Point Management:
http://www.hpmgmt.com/

Immaculate Black Info:
http://www.hpmgmt.com/black.htm

The Mansions
Charms for Love and Revenge
~reviewed by Blu

There are goth bands, and there are bands that goths like. A large sect of the goth population seems to have a thing for the Brit-pop sound - bands like Oasis, Suede and Placebo have crept their way into dark hearts. In that vein, The Mansions may find a place among the goth crowd. I do however, caution the band in this regard when doing promotions. Their promo packet came to me with quotes like "A Gothic Rolling Stone" and inferences that they sound like Peter Murphy. Hold that ego in check boys... just because you wear black finger nail polish doesnt make you the second coming of Bauhaus. The subject matter and tone of this CD is hardly dark. Secondly, their manager told me to check out specific tracks on the CD (instead of all of them?) I suspect because he thought those were the most "goth sounding" and most likely to appeal to a goth magazine. That's selling a band short in my opinion. If you put out a 10 track CD - all 10 tracks should be worthy of a listen. Telling an editor to check out specific songs is a bit dismissive of the editor's ability to listen with an open ear and of the band's talent.

Having gotten that criticism out of the way, this 10 track CD is pretty good. I don't suspect it'll be a hit in the real goth clubs any time soon, but again, if people reading this have a thing for Brit-pop bands, they'll definitely like The Mansions. Track 4, "Z-28" is upbeat enough that it could blend in nicely at a 80's/new wave night. My favorite tracks on this CD are "Love and Other Human Rituals" (one that wasn't recommend by their manager - ha) which sounds more like older Gene Loves Jezebel than anything else if a comparison has to be made for familiarity's sake and track 10 - "Little Atomic Bomb" - a slower song more in the vibe of Oasis. Keyboards create smooth soaring soundscapes providing a back drop to guitars and a driving beat.

More likely to appeal to the mainstream and Indie crowds who for some-reason-or-other, think The Mansions are gothic (????), they're worth investigating if Brit pop floats your boat.

Track Listing
1. Brave New World
2. Rock and Roll
3. Under the Sky
4. Z-28
5. Love and Other Human Rituals
6. Sirens
7. The Drive
8. Beyond the Satellites
9. Oblivious
10. Little Atomic Bomb

www.themansions.tv

Maudlin Of The Well
Bath / Leaving Your Body Map
~reviewed by Matthew

To put it bluntly, this band may represent heavy metal’s intellectual Anti-Christ.  Never before has there been a ‘metal’ band as engrossing, mysterious, ambitious, or as gifted as New England’s Maudlin Of The Well, and all competition, if there even is a single band in the same class or dimension as these guys, they best beware.

I have been wrestling with these CDs for over two months, trying to decipher them, trying to absorb every minute detail and become familiar enough with this music to relate it to our readers.  This music is nearly impossible to explain verbally, it relentlessly demands to be heard, and it is surely the intent of the near dozen musicians responsible for this to leave their fans and critics in a state of mind-boggling fascination.

Where to begin?  Well, Maudlin Of The Well first appeared on the scene in 1998 with their debut “My Fruit Psychobells…A Seed Combustible” for Dark Symphonies records.  A manic, schizophrenic release that provided a veritable orgy of various atmospheres and stylistic juxtapositions.  From doom metal to psychedelia, from jazz to thrash, to prog rock to the undefined, the album left me speechless and an immediate fan.  Never could I have imagined how they could possibly top it, but trust me, they have and they have done it in a way that is nearly impossible to even fathom.

Three years have gone by, and the band has returned to send your brain and heart into overdrive.  Two releases of brand new material, perhaps linked conceptually, or perhaps not?  This band has a sense of mischievous and black wit, as well as the desire to challenge the mental capacity of their listeners.  They purposely have given no insight into their cryptic lyrics, and though the album entitled “Bath” features a sketch of a map on the cover and the cover of  “Leaving Your Body Map” has an illustration of a bath tub, they claim the albums are two separate conceptual entities?!

That is only the beginning.

I could spend three days here and attempt to explain my ideas of what these albums are to represent, but I will leave it up to you.  All I can say is that if you think dark metal music is a close minded, predictable genre that is for burn outs, dead beats, and death obsessed adolescents and testosterone driven maniacs, there are scores upon scores of bands that will prove you wrong.  These guys will render your theory to ashes instantaneously.  These guys transcend all labels, all boundaries, all formulas and all expectations.

The music is superbly well orchestrated, epic and giant in scope.  The album goes from one style of music to the next, causing the listener to blink in disbelief and ask, “what the bloody hell are they doing?” but the brilliance of it all is that it all fits, merging together to create a vast dynamic examination of the human experience, both physically and spiritually.   The first disc, “Bath” opens with a lush and soothing jazz influenced instrumental, building around spacey guitars, acoustics, brass instruments, and light drumming.  And then track two, the aptly titled “They Aren’t All Beautiful” responds to the tranquility with a punishing death metal attack, only to merge into the third track that sounds like what would happen if Amorphis and Pink Floyd met for an impromptu jam session at a beatnik café.   Sojourning along next with “The Ferryman,” with its dense dreary doom metal sensibility, spirits you into the very abyss of the Underworld. And you ask yourself, “Where the hell are these guys taking me?” but there is no choice but to surrender.  And that is only the first half of the first CD!

Astral metal.  That is what some people are calling it.  I just try to call them Maudlin, because there is no genre that this band can comfortably fit under, no umbrella term that we journalist’s can use without defying the intent of this band.  These guys are a well-rounded group of dark artists.  You hear virtually every kind of ‘cool’ kind of dark music; everything from doom, death metal, Goth, prog rock, jazz, classical, even emo for Christ’s sake! They just do it all, utilizing all the instrumentation and vocal styles that characterize these varying genres.  And as you can expect, there are moments of creepy doom metal with soft emo vocals, atop jazz percussion.  And moments of terrifying hardcore metal screams only moments after tender acoustic passages that recall Sunny Day Real Estate.  I think you get the point. Maudlin make it all work in unison and harmony to provide the score for the surrealist imagery provided by the esoteric lyrics.  It is the perfect marriage of literature and music, with the muse of philosophy lingering close at hand.  Quotes and references as diverse as Blake, Shelley, Coleridge, Virgil, Aleister Crowley, Nikolai Gogol, and William Peter Blatty appear, but nonetheless, in context, one can see the relation and the music does seem to be the soundtrack to the opium drenched dreams or nightmares of some of these individuals.

This is truly art.  So what do you do about it?  Buy them.  Now.  As soon as humanly possible.  I cannot stress this enough, these releases elevate dark metal and hell, even music in general to a degree that as admirable and awe inspiring as it will be to some, it will also be intimidating, excessive, and probably even pretentious for others.  Make no mistake, these are not lightweight albums and if you like your music trite, simplistic, and predictable, you may need to hear this more than those who would be open to it.  It may provide the shock of a lifetime for you.

But I am sure a lot of people just won’t get it.  “What the hell is he singing about a girl with a watering can for? What are those symbols mean that represent the instrumental tracks?  Who the hell is Qlippoth?  Why is He Numberless and who stole it from him?”  Never you mind.  Though I don't at all claim to know the secrets behind this band's imagery, but I still maintain it to be impossible that any music lover, literary romantic, or inquisitive artist would not find something of interest or remotely fascinating about these releases.

The albums are not sold as a set, but I cannot imagine one without the other.  If you have to make a choice, “Bath” is perhaps the more challenging album, with a greater diversity of mood while “Leaving Your Body Map” is darker, definitely the more depressive and eerie of the two in my opinion, but still completely mind blowing in its range of expression.  There is absolutely NO filler on these albums, every track is excellent and it is truly rare to claim that about one album, let alone two.  Even if this is a marketing ploy like the “Use Your Illusion” albums by Guns N’ Roses for instance, Maudlin has the talent to make it worth every penny.  My recommendation is that you buy them both and prepare to be overwhelmed.

What else can I say?  Probably a great deal, but as I said before, this is an album that needs to experienced on an individual level, and there is enough here to be completely and entirely engrossed.   Keep an eye out here at Starvox, for you have not seen or heard the last of these guys, as we hope to go straight to the source with an in-depth interview with the band in the coming months.  Stay tuned!!

BATH:
1.) The Blue Ghost/Shedding Qliphoth
2.) They Aren’t All Beautiful
3.) Heaven And Weak
4.)
5.) The Ferryman
6.) Marid’s Gift Of Art
7.) Girl With A Watering Can
8.) Birth Pains Of Astral Projections
9.)
10.) Geography

LEAVING YOUR BODY MAP:
1.) Stones Of October’s Sobbing
2.) Gleam In Ranks
3.) Bizarre Flowers / A Violent Mist
4.)
5.) The Curve That To An Angle Turn’d
6.) Sleep Is A Curse
7.) Riseth He, The Numberless
8.)
9.) Monstrously Low Tide

Maudlin Of The Well is:
Jason Bittner: trumpet
Jason Byron: vocals, keyboards, percussion
Toby Driver: vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, cello, percussion
Maria-Stella Fountoulakis: vocals
Sam Gutterman: vocals, drums, percussion
Greg Massi: vocals, guitar
Nicholas Kyte: bass
Terran Olson: vocals, keyboards, clarinet, flute, percussion
Josh Seipp-Williams: guitar

Guests:
Sky Cooper: guitar on “Monstrously Low Tide”
Anna Wetherby: viola

Maudlin Of The Well – Official Site:
http://www.maudlinofthewell.com

Maudlin Of The Well - Mp3.com Site:
http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/153/maudlin_of_the_well.html

Dark Symphonies Records:
http://www.darksymphonies.com

A Midnite Choir
You Have Been Warned
~reviewed by Blu

No doubt this CD will go down at the end of the year in my Top Ten list. Its surprise finds like this CD that give me faith in the creative ability of today's musicians - all is not lost on mindless electronic push button bands. This band has no website yet, and as far as I know, nothing up on mp3 or anything like that. They do play a rare local show every now and then I hear - be watching our NEWS section for me foaming at the mouth when this occurs.  If, after reading this review, I've done my job and convinced you this is the Next Great Thing You Must Have (for surely it is), I do have email contacts for them listed at the end of this review for you to write to them and plead for your Very Own Copy.

This CD was handed to me by Austin Quist at a Halloween concert featuring The Spectres, his other band. I had known Austin to be their very talented upright bass player and was intrigued to find that he was involved in other projects.  I was DJing Halloweeny Things and he quite humbly plopped down this CD, said, "This is my other band, you might like it."  I asked him if any of the tracks would be appropriate to play that night, he kind of grinned and said, "well, all of them I suppose, they're all kind of morbid, but 'Amelia' is really good - rhymes with Necrophelia you know..." Yes... well. Hm. So I did play "Amelia" that night, as well as track one, "Physical Withdrawals" and was, on the spot, a fan.

What does A Midnite Choir sound like you ask? Hard to explain, but I am reminded of my first writing gig at Flipside Magazine where I was brought on to be the token "goth reviewer."  During the initial stages of my "interview," the editor asked in jest, "Do you know of any Goth Polka bands? I've always wanted to hear a Goth Polka Band."  I answered, "No, I'll let you know if I run across one though..." and well, I suppose I owe him a email now because A Midnight Choir, *could* be considered a Goth Polka Band with instrumentation that includes an accordion, a banjo, organ, piano, "Glockenspiel," upright bass, saw, clarinet, raw meat (don't ask) and I swear even a bassoon but they don't list it. There's also a mysterious bunch called the Midnight Boys Choir and the Midnight Choirgirls who added "Screams, Gaffaws and Arrgghs." Are you beginning to get the picture?

Like some twisted combination of Tom Waits, Nick Cave and Danny Elfman lost in a Tim Burton film (or perhaps Clive Barker), lead vocalist Greg Adair narrates, inspires and conjures a nightmarish cartoon world (think Jack from A Nightmare Before Christmas when you see the word "Greg" and you'll be close). Track one, "Physical Withdrawals" opens with minimal music set against a thunderstorm while Greg comes in with gritty vocals that somehow remind me of old Disney films... "...when the bad things find you, when you're spewing up your stew, by the light of a urinal moon, with your guts spread out before you, the bad things will come for you...."  And suddenly the song breaks into a fast polka rhythm, complete with Danny Elfman-esque "la la la la" vocals in the background and lots of maniacal laughter and cackling. Its quite a rush and sets the dramatic tone for the rest of the CD.

"Whiskey Eyes" could be considered the "ballad" on this CD, but of course, its no ordinary ballad. A sing songy accordion provides the main melody while Greg sounds more and more like the best qualities of Tom Waits. "Don't save me, I want to drown, drown inside your whiskey eyes."  Then you have "Happy Hour in Hell" -- which has quickly become one of my favorites off this CD.  Like a carnival barker complete with top hat, Greg announces, "Come one, come all...Hell has a happy hour, and it starts at noon! Well don't ya be the last to board our little vessel of doom! Suck in that gut there Sonny, there just might be room. "  And I, I end up smiling like an idiot every single time I hear it... the delivery is quite grand and dramatic. From there the song breaks into another accordion driven polka beat complete with a gallery choir of "Heave Ho!" in the background. He quip's, "And Oh, I forgot to tell you, the ship, it only sails one way...and now there is no turning back, the gallows are filled to the roof...and the oars they row in cadence, to the thundering of the cloven hoof... Heave Ho!" wherein the song breaks into a 3/4 rhythm chorus. No expense is spared in creating an "environment"  on this song, you even have the sounds of beer bottles clanking and drunken masses having quite a party.

Continuing on with the maritime theme, "Bourbon Tide" is a beautifully haunting song - minimalist instrumentation - sounds like just the accordion and that damn bassoon they don't list playing a very subdued bass line, while vocals lament a sad and yes, at times, morbid, sailing tale. The most remarkable thing about this song is the sound effects they add to it -- all through it there's the creaking sounds you hear on old vessels as it rocks gently on the ocean... there's a haunting wind breezing through the sails, and in the distance you hear the clanking of buoys. The atmosphere is completely convincing - I get chill bumps!

And next we have "Amelia" and yes, as Austin had alluded to, its about "...a girl named Amelia who suffered from an acute case of Necrophelia" much to the dismay of her boyfriend who, after finding her in a crematorium (her "day" job) cheating on him with a corpse, finds a um... creative way to resolve their problem. Quite a twisted delight, what I find most admirable about this song is the subtle attention to detail that makes it utterly hilarious. In addition to the absolutely creepy, cartoonish sounds of demented Amelia twirling around in the background giggling, there is a perfect comedic series when the vocalist says, "Well her damned infidelity, it make me quite furious, but something inside me was still... slightly curious... she said she could never love a man in good health...[and here he breaks down in sobs] ... but that gave me hope..." and HERE is what makes the song worthwhile -- there's a bright, chiming bell tone and you can just SEE this cartoon light bulb pop up above his head in a bubble before he announces his solution. I have never heard a CD so thorough in creating vivid, morbid, comedic imagery.

I'm only on track 5 you know, and there's 15 on here, so rather than frighten our dear readers away with a long drawn out, song by song review, I'm going to skip down a few but let me assure, they're ALL worthy of great praise. "The Drunken Elephant March" is notable for its upbeat tempo (quite danceable) and swell banjo strumming while "Midnight" is a haunting instrumental with a beautiful spanish-flavored acoustic guitar, lonely harmonica, mournful bass line and that same haunting wind you hear in "Bourbon Tide." And finally, in "Ode to My Employer," I do believe Greg speaks for anyone who's worked a shitty job when he says,  "I'll piss on your grave when you die, I'll drown your sweet mother in the pool, I'll gouge out your eyes with an old rusty spoon, you asshole, you slave-driving goon. And I will piss on your grave when you die, I'll smash in your face with a big heavy brick, I'll burn you alive like a swine on a spit, you asshole, you can't fire me, I resign."

So there you have it. Have I drooled enough? As the title of this CD states, You Have Been Warned. If dark, twisted comedy with a dose of ingenious drama and quite excellent musicianship is something that sparks your fancy, have at it. I do believe, these boys would give even Voltaire, the master of underworldly comedy, a run for his money.

Tracks
1 Physical Withdrawals
2 Whiskey Eyes
3 Happy Hour in Hell
4 Bourbon Tide
5 Amelia
6 Suicide Watlz
7 The Drunken Elephant March
8 Lovesong
9 Midget Caravan
10 Midnight
11 Moreschi's Waltz
12 One Fine Day
13 Lobotomy
14 Lullaby
15 Ode to My Employer

Booking info:
Jimmy Berg - Eucrow23@aol.com
Austin Quist - VileVileMan@aol.com

Silent City Records
PO Box 94356
Seattle, WA 98124-6656

A Midnite Choir is:
Greg Adair - Lead vocals, Accordion, Banjo, Guitar, Organ, Saw, Piano, Glockenspiel
Jimmy Berg: Accordion, Organ, Lead Vocals, Melodica, Glockenspeil
Austin Quist: upright bass
Luke Hopkins: Percussion, Saw, Raw Meat
Backing vocals: The Midnight Boys Choir
Stomps: Greg, Austin, Jimmy and Paula
Guest Musicians: Shirl Sherburdt - Piano, Kevin Hinshaw - Clarinet, Sari Breznau - Vocals, the Midnight Choirgirls (Sheri Sherburdt and Paula Oliver): Screams, Guffaws and Arrgghs.
 

My Dying Bride
The Dreadful Hours
~reviewed by Matthew

This review may be a bit biased, as this band has been my all time favourite band for almost eight years, so in my mind they can do no wrong.  “The Dreadful Hours” is the band’s seventh full-length release and seventh testament to quality gloom.  After the band received some criticism for 1998’s “34.7888% Complete” release, they followed suit with the now legendary release “The Light At The End Of The World” which brought the band back to form, including the resurrection of guttural death vocals that the Aaron had abandoned after their canonical “Turn Loose The Swans” release.  “The Dreadful Hours” picks up where the last album left off, continuing to juxtapose extreme melancholia with metallic horror.

While some may be apt to criticize MDB for ‘recycling’ their sound and ideas, hardcore fans are genuinely appreciative that the band continues to perfect their sound and retain the characteristics that they have come to be known for.  Unlike bands like Theatre Of Tragedy, Anathema, Katatonia, and so many other acts that were once contemporaries of MDB, My Dying Bride continue to give their fans what they want while the aforementioned bands’ recent output is barely recognizable as Gothic, Doom, or even Metal, or thanks to the influence of trends and labels, not even DARK.

My Dying Bride continues to be the salvation of the bleak hearted dark music fan.  They can pull this off because they are excellent and unrivaled at what they do, and being that the inspiration for the music originates within the souls of these musicians, and remains unfiltered by trends, the music will continue to be effective, powerful, fresh and undeniably 100% My Dying Bride for as long as they continue to release material.

This album is without a doubt, a welcomed addition to my collection.  I cannot say that I was at all disappointed with it.  There were admittedly some things that were different than I expected, but the surprises on the disc were more pleasant than disappointing. The band has always been remarkably good at kicking their CDs off with a strong opening track.  (The piano/violin duet and crestfallen narration of “Sear Me MCMXCIII” for “Turn Loose The Swans” and the cascading drums and dreary feedback of “Cry Of Mankind” for “The Angel & The Dark River” are their most memorable and best loved intros) The title track that opens “The Dreadful Hours” is easily my favourite prelude they have done yet.  The sound of rain falling while a lethargically plucked watery guitar plays and then BAM perhaps one of the most depressive and SAD riffs the band has ever composed explodes through your speakers, with Aaron’s wistful and unsteady voice pleading above it all.  But just as you are ready to slash your wrists, the band takes a sudden turn down memory lane and tears through a galloping death march of thick guitars, pummeling drums and Aaron’s monstrous death growls.  The chorus dances at the edge of melodic black metal, with raspy shrieks, cold swelling synths, and double bass pedal blasts.  A stunning juxtaposition of theme and mood that foreshadows the emotionally manic album that follows.

“The Raven & The Rose” kicks in next with a very crunchy beginning, a pretty straightforward old school sounding MDB song, that concludes with a solo piano interlude that segues into another collage of gorgeous moody guitar riffs.

“Le Figlie Della Tempesta” was one of the pleasant surprises. An extremely long and dreary song, with an inarguably dense Gothic Rock feel throughout the verses, somewhat like a thicker Fields Of The Nephilim or early “Catastrophe Ballet” era Christian Death.  Nice cascading drums, a lulling bass line and layers of ghostly synth effects in the background.  The gloom of the song is broken by a more aggressive and metallic chorus, but overall the song is one of the most unique I think the band has ever done and easily one of my favourites.  A bit too long for club play (and admittedly a bit repetitive) but that hasn’t stopped me now on at least two occasions!

“Black Heart Romance” simply rules, with a sludgy, dare I say, sexy down tempo intro, very dark and swayable with an awesome watery guitar break between the first few verses, and then a return to sludge.  The song breaks for an eerie cadence of strange guitar fret noises and murky synth effects, then charges into a mid paced, mischievous Sabbath-inspired groove to carry the song to a close.  Another perfect example of how the band still sounds 100% like themselves but introduce some new and subtle twists to the mix.

The first half of the album has more of the aggressive elements, while the latter half is predominantly more melodic tracks with Romantic lyrics. “A Cruel Taste Of Winter” begins with sentimental courtly imagery in the lyrics (in their usual macabre sense) that eventually acquires more metallic muscle and crunch in the middle, when Aaron turns his voice from woeful contemplation to his beloved growl.

The Romantic sentiment continues for the extremely touching and moving “My Hope The Destroyer” with a decidedly upbeat gallop, however containing some of the albums most heart-rending and beautiful melodies in both the guitars and the synths.  The keyboard work in this song recalls the bands earlier days, when the passion was intensified by the presence of a live violin.  Though not as organic, the sense of orchestral drama in the track succeeds on several levels.  This is also perhaps one of the most accessible tracks on the album, featuring only a light shading of death vocals that in no way disrupts the forlorn fluidity of the song.  This is the song that fans should attempt to introduce the band to fans of traditional Gothic or ethereal music.

The big finale of the album commences with a long-awaited re-recording of the song “The Return Of The Beautiful” from the band’s debut release “As The Flower Withers.”  Rumous have been abound for years that MDB had planned on re-recording some of their earlier material, and christening it with a warmer and fuller production, as well seasoning it with some of the band’s newer vocal elements.  While I very much like the new version, now dubbed “The Return TO the Beautiful,” I don’t think it holds a candle to the funereal claustrophobia and unsettling drama of the original (which was partially due to the poorer production, not to mention the presence of a live violin).  The main thing that disappointed me about the new version of the song was the vocals.  The original song was growled all the way through. Though true to the starkly erotic and slightly necrophilic themes of the song, I envisioned clean vocals for some of the more dreary parts, which would have better expressed the gloom and regret of the lyrics (which in part deal with the death of beautiful woman, spoken through her widowed lover).  Instead, Aaron brings a more ‘black metal’ rasp to his voice, making the vocals sound suitably daemonic, which is great but there are no clear vocals save for the very last verse.  Where they were originally.   Though the production is better, the song is not that much different and I have to reluctantly question if it was worth the re-recording since it is not that considerably different.   This is the only time that I think the band were capable of being more innovative.

The song will still scare the living hell out of people, but it’s not nearly as effective as the original.  Overall, I was quite pleased with “The Dreadful Hours.”  It continues to forge ahead for the band, finding them dabbling with some different production techniques and studio effects, but remains loyal to the elements that made them absolute heroes and masters of the Gothic Metal genre.  One of the year’s best releases without any shadow of a doubt.

Track List:
1.) The Dreadful Hours
2.) The Raven & The Rose
3.) Le Figlie Della Tempesta
4.) Black Heart Romance
5.) Cruel Taste Of Winter
6.) My Hope The Destroyer
7.) The Deepest Of All Hearts
8.) Return To The Beautiful

My Dying Bride is:
Aaron Stainthorpe– vocals
Andrew Craighan - guitars
Ade Jackson – bass
Hamish Glencross – guitars
Shaun Steels – drums
Yasmine Ahmid – keyboards

My Dying Bride – Official Site:
http://www.mydyingbride.org

Peaceville Records:
http://www.peaceville.com

Morticians
Private Void
~reviewed by Blu

In a world of overplayed synthpop; it takes a lot to impress me these days. I suppose I'm getting old and jaded. Nothing quite seems to measure up to the joys found discovering the magic sounds of bands like Wolfsheim so many years ago now. I have recently been stubbornly dismissing anything that calls itself synthpop in nature, expecting the same old same old. Until now. Enter a Swedish band bound to take the US club scene by storm:  the Morticians.

Mike Ventarola, a StarVox staff writer and creator of Hidden Sanctuary, sent me a link to this band's music and I immediately feel in love with it and wrote to them inquiring. They were very gracious and sent over a press kit and CDr which hasn't strayed far from my CD player since it's arrival.

Founded by Andreas Rimheden in 1991, Morticians started out as a harsher, industrial band but has, over the years, morphed and grew into what he says is "a mix of soft melodic electronic music like synthpop and a cold hard EBM-inspired sound." Musically speaking, the beats are good and varied (not this dull thump thump thump we've been hearing a lot in clubs) and the melodies are are brilliantly simple and irresistibly catchy. The lyrics are wonderfully sarcastic, dark and morbid at times. Quite a punch packed into an innocent sounding lullaby. As if the music alone wasn't enough,  Andreas - whose vocals are smooth and quiet, yet masculine;  brought in Marie Hagelquist to do backing vocals on this CD. Perfect point and counterpoint -- I don't think you could have asked for a better combination.

Upon hearing the first track, "Alive", I knew this CD was going to be wonderful. A solid yet complex set of percussive rhythms plays against keyboard melodies before Andreas vocals come gliding over the top singing quiet freely,  "Life is just a lie, just a terrible way to die."

I suspect the songs "Goodbye" and "Aware" will be a huge favorite on the dance floor with their harsher EBM beats, (early) Depeche Mode-like melodies, and again, lovely bitter lyrics sung so innocently, "Is the meaning of love, to say goodbye?"

"Last Dance" is my absolute favorite song on this CD in melody and sentiment.  There is a certain peaceful comfort that wells up in my eyes when he sings, "The end is near, I can feel it closing in now, I've lived with fear, I'd really love to rest now, so long my friends, this is my last dance." Wonderfully danceable and dreamy; I believe I could keep this song on repeat for hours.

"Wonderland" is a nice change with the sound of acoustic guitar pluckings initiating the tempo as an electronic melody builds up behind it.  I don't think even Robert Smith got as gloomy as this on his best days: "Wishes never ever come true; but nightmares do..."

"To Heaven" is a *beautiful* ballad where Marie's vocals are wonderfully showcased in this duet with Andreas. The melody speaks of simpler times, and reminds me of favorite singer/songwriters that I used to love when I was little like Cat Stevens.

It's a long walk to heaven yet
Quite a way
Don't think I'll reach it on Saturday
One step forward and two steps back
Life keeps dragging me off my track
I will build an aeroplane of dreams of lost
And I will fly beyond the world where living costs
A million miles from heaven still but moving on
Fantasies will be for real
The day I'm gone
Hear me whisper in the wind
Empty words that never had a meaning
Every time you try to understand
I'm in heaven

Tracks
1. Alive
2. Stereotyped
3. Goodbye
4. Last Dance
5. Wonderland
6. Sustaining Waves
7. To Heaven
8. Aware
9. Bedlam
10. Reincarnation
11. Distant
12. In My Head
13. Electric I
 

Official Website:
http://www.morticiansmusic.com

Hear them:
http://www.mp3.com/morticians

This Midnight Stream
Cinematic
~reviewed by Kevin Filan

Best known as America's country music capital, Nashville is also home to darkwave duo Carole Edwards and Robb Earls, a/k/a This Midnight Stream.  Their CD "Cinematic" combines the slick sound of darkwave pop with heartfelt lyrics that wouldn't be out of place on an alt.country album and vocals straight out of a Projekt sampler.  The end result is accessible but complex enough to bear repeated listenings, and the musicianship and production is never anything less than top notch.

"Cinematic" is definitely the product of two talented musicians with unique and frequently divergent visions.  Edwards' ethereal vocalising provides the underpinning for "Midnight Stream" and "The Way Inside," and shows she is as skilled at providing background as lead vocals; in the uncharacteristically upbeat "Dream Love," she even shows a talent for shiny happy 80s synthpop.  I was most impressed by songs like "Esther" and "Fallen Angel," where she paints bleak pictures of alienation and despair among America's substance-abusing class.  The narrator of "Fallen Angel," who "[sits] here with tihs bottle late... All around my twisted fate/mocking me I can't see straight... Oh momma say a prayer" could be the hero of any Hank Williams (SENIOR, thankyouverymuch) song, as could the young Black protagonist of "Esther."  The sound is Darkwave pop -- there are synthesizers and drum machines, not steel guitars and cheesy string sections -- but the sentiment is genuine.  It's a welcome change: far too much Darkwave is about as emotionally involving as an Andy Warhol exhibition.

Robb Earls' is technically quite an adept singer, but I found his vocal stylings sometimes at odds with the instrumental backgrounds.  His Reznor-esque muttered/sung/growled vocals on "Black and Blue" and "Where Does the Time Go" were too precise, and the production too clean and smooth, to capture that Industrial angst-and-rage.  His duet with Edwards on the Bauhuas track "She's In Parties" is more successful, as is his baritone crooning on "Midnight Stream" and "Down to the Bone."  But I found that his instrumental and studio skills were the real standout. He provides a gorgeous lead guitar line on "The Way Inside," and glossy, crystal-clear production throughout this disc.

The dynamic tension between two talented artists can result in a sum that is greater than the parts: Lennon and McCartney come to mind immediately.  Edwards and Earls are both exceptionally talented artists.  This is a promising debut which shows there's more to Nashville than the Grand Olde Opry.  Southern Gothic never sounded so good.

1.  Fallen Angel
2.  Black and Blue
3.  The Way Inside
4.  Esther
5.  Midnight Stream
6.  Down to the Bone
7.  Dream Love
8.  Head
9.  Where Does the Time Go
10. She's in Parties
11.  Midnight Stream (Tommy Dorsey Dance Remix)

This Midnight Stream is:
Carole Edwards - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboards
Robb Earls - Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards, Programming

Additional Musician:
Derek Greene - Drums on "Head"
Tim Lorsch - Violins on "Fallen Angel" and "Black and Blue"
Kirby Shelstad - Tabla and Tambourine on "Esther"

Produced, engineered, mixed and mastered by Robb Earls at Sound Vortex, Nashville, except for Midnight Stream (remix) produced and arranged by Tommy Dorsey.

This Midnight Stream MP3 site
http://artists.mp3s.com/info/295/this_midnight_stream.html

moth wranglers
never mind the context
~reviewed by Michael Otley

Moth Wranglers debut full-length is a very interesting collection of folk emo songs spanning the spectrum from the beautiful and gentle Galaxie 500 influenced songs to a brutally annoying Beatle-esque chantmid-album.  Overall this is a really amazing release.  I've been listening repeatedly for days, although there are a handful of tracks that I really can't bare, the rest give me chills.  It's one of those- "Are you trying to sound annoying there?"- and I think they are.  The album art-work is especially indicative of this, with completely random and mostly unrelated photos, stamps, and textures throughout the booklet; words running upside-down, sideways, crossed out.  But we'll let them have their fun.

The album starts with a traditional a cappella piece "I never will marry".  The male voices sound slightly 'oldies' here.  "Turnabout" has a similar sound but with an added banjo and violin (sometimes distorted) giving it a backwoods flavor.  "Six-page letter" sounds like a Flare song with additional ambient guitars, but that's reasonable considering there are some Flare members involved here.  Most of the tracks are lead by male vocals with guitar and other string and/or reed or wind instruments; most are fairly laid back and even touching.  One of my favorite pieces "Counts for nothing" employs gentle bass, riding high-hat, clear female vocals with back-up male voices, and the most beautiful clarinet sound, with quiet guitar weaving itself in as the song continues.  "Souvenir" reminds me of a lost 80's song, but not in synthetic glory, more as in the stylings of They Might be Giants but completely restrained and contained within a gentle framework.

It's quite an eclectic bunch of songs.  Fans of Flare will love it, also Magnetic Fields listeners may get something out of it as well.  I really do think there are some really cool songs here.  By all means, see if it's up your alley.

www.mothwranglers.com

Neptune Crush
self-titled EP
~reviewed by J

Neptune Crush&'s EP opens with the spacey, breathy "First Communion", which is reminiscent of old Radiohead. The instrumentation is sparse but heavily produced, resulting in a pretty, lush intro that builds up as it progresses along. This merges seamlessly into the second track, "Suns of God", which is hard rock with an electronic coating. I rather like it, and am impressed by the engineering/production skill of bassist Tony Persyn. I don't know if he is available for hire, but I would recommend him to any bands in the St. Louis area in need of some assistance with recording.

However, the CD starts dragging by the third track, "Clara Venus", which, despite the fact that it is dressed up with fancy production, it is about as generic a rock song as I can imagine. I could see it as track six on an album by Danger Danger or Bad Company. Neptune Crush also gets points off for gratuitously slipping its own name into the lyrics. "Emeralds" is like that obligatory ballad '80s metal bands used to have to do to get face time on MTV. At least the chorus doesn't contain the word girl. (You can hear this song and "Suns of God" on their mp3.com site.)

The moderate rock of "Little Dipper", with its repeated chorus of "throw it all away", is neither good nor bad; it simply is. It's the average track for this CD. It was very skillfully overproduced, which doesn't make up for the lack of substance of the music and lyrics. The sixth track, "Happiest Boy in the Land", uses the same recipe (angst, heavy electronic sound, lightly distorted vocals, and the word motherfucker) that made Marilyn Manson famous.

"Violets" is very similar to the opening track, but the band excels at the slow, spacey stuff, so the repetition is okay. The vocals and e-bow lines smear together into a pretty soundscape, though the rhythm section plays as if they are about to nod off. Overall, the CD is a shining bad example of what every band knows but few follow: It is better to make a shorter CD of only your best material than it is to use your mediocre songs merely to fill up time. However, if you find yourself wishing that bands would pay less attention to art and just rock, maybe Neptune Crush is for you.

Track listing:
1. First Communion
2. Suns of God
3. Clara Venus
4. Emeralds
5. Little Dipper
6. Happiest Boy in the Land
7. Violets

www.neptunecrush.com
www.mp3.com/neptunecrush

November’s Doom
Amid It’s Hallowed Mirth
~review by Mathew

This is easily, without question my favourite November’s Doom album ever.   “Amid It’s Hallowed Mirth” was the band’s debut 1995 release, which earlier this year was re-released and repackaged for Dark Symphonies records.

This is Gothic Doom in its purest sense; the tradition forged earlier by My Dying Bride, Anathema, and Paradise Lost in the early nineties, and still carried on by Thorns Of The Carrion and Necare, and to an even greater degree, Evoken.  But this is it: frigid and truly creepy riffing, choking walls of uncompromising crunch, plodding drum dirges, and monstrous, tormented death growls.

Themes of doomed love suffocated by feelings of inexplicable terror and celebrated in mischievous and anguished horror, an absolutely desolate stage set for a bleak and bitter aural tragedy.   Ah, so overdramatic, but I can never express my gratitude to these musicians that continuously bring my melancholic and drear fantasies to light so perfectly.

There are few records in this genre as listenable and addictive as this one; and though the album predates the band’s critically acclaimed second and third efforts, this album to me is just so much easier to digest.  This is much more straightforward DOOM, and less avant-garde and arty melancholia.  Though I love the direction the band evolved into, and the distinct sound they developed over the years, but this style and the way November’s Doom originally delivered it pierces me to the blackest core.   The music doesn’t sound dated (well, unless you consider how perfectly it evokes 18th century horror) and the remastered production is exquisite.  I didn’t expect the album to sound so full and well produced for coming out so long ago.  But indeed, this just utterly makes me cackle in frenzied and maniacal despair.

The album as a whole possesses a solid and consistent unity, maintaining an impenetrable atmosphere of gloom, wintry darkness, and unabashed grinding heaviness.  Though as accustomed within this genre, there are elements of murky Romantic beauty that briefly make their way to the surface, like a rotten, mildewed memory rising from a musky, enveloping grave.

One of the most impressive elements to note on this album is the meticulous and tasteful use of female vocals.  The manner in which Cathy Jo Hejna’s preternatural voice perfectly exemplifies the original idea behind juxtaposing female and male vocals in death/doom metal music in its most effective sense.  Her vocals are there for a purpose and they compliment the lyrical content.   They are used rarely, appearing like a spectre and then vanishing just as the listener is properly enchanted.  Cathy Jo, in particular, has an otherworldly and icy quality to her voice; it truly does represent something sublime and seemingly unearthly, the very Ideal, unapproachable, unattainable, the very object of the expression of longing in the bestial vocals .  He cannot grasp Her, she forever eludes him, whether it be by the impenetrable veil of death or a more earthly indifference on her part, She appears as a ghostly vision only to haunt him and they can never be united.

It truly has a mystical and theatrical element to it, the way it is supposed to, and over time this ingenious and novel idea has been utterly bastardized over time.  At the very least, if you are not as analytical or as imaginative as I have been trained to be, you will recognize the fact that Cathy Jo is an exceptional and properly trained soprano vocalist, suited for operatic arias more so than ‘lowly’ doom.  If the music doesn’t crush your soul into oblivion, her voice will.The mere fact that such a talented and powerful voice makes an appearance on this disc makes it even more special, timeless, and effective.  This is the real deal.

I thought I had heard most of the ‘major’ doom releases, and I am sure there are many more hidden treasures lurking around for me to unearth.  But this is indeed one of the finest Gothic Doom releases ever.  When one considers the amount of fluff that is circulating in the scene now, and the empty, hollow music that is definitely musically challenging but barren of emotion, this is a classic in its simplicity, in its atmosphere, in its raw passionate agony and dreary disconsolation that nary a Doom fan cannot be utterly satisfied.   The oncoming season is the ideal time to experience this music, and I doubt I could be any more insistent about the value and necessity of this album to fans of truly morose and abysmally Gothic (capital G, by literal definition) music.

“I rest my head upon your stone
And caress engravings of thought
All that’s left is remembrance of life
Is it too late to say goodbye?”

Track List:
1.) Aurora’s Garden
2.) Amour Of The Harp
3.) Tears Of The Beautiful
4.) My Agony, My Ecstasy
5.) Bestow My Desire
6.) Chorus Of Jasmine
7.) Dance Of The Leaves
8.) Sadness Rains
9.) A Dirge Of Sorrow
10.) Nothing Earthly Save The Thrill
11.) Seasons Of Frost

Novemeber’s Doom were for these recordings:
Paul Kuhr – vocals
Steve Nicholson – guitar and bass
Cathy Jo Hejna – vocals
Joe Hernandez – drums

Mike Lagger – bass / upright bass (tracks 8 & 9)
Jim Dobleski – drums (tracks 8 & 9)
Jim Brenahan – second guitar (tracks 10 & 11)
Brian Whited – bass (tracks 10 & 11)
Emmett Hall – drums (tracks 10 & 11)

November’s Doom – Official Site:
http://www.novembersdoom.com

November’s Doom – Mp3 Site:
http://www.mp3.com/novembersdoom

Dark Symphonies Records:
http://www.darksymphonies.com
 

Various Artists
Very Introspective, Actually: A Tribute to The Pet Shop Boys
~reviewed by  Mike Ventarola

When the announcement about this tribute was initially made, there was a great deal of anticipation for its release. The thought of The Cruxshadows, Behind The Scenes, Human Drama, Endanger, Athan Maroulis, Rhea’s Obsession, Icon of Coil, Hungry Lucy and Cleaner on the same CD was enough to make anyone in the underground pregnant with expectation.

 In the interim, while waiting for its release, I made the big mistake of pulling out the entire Pet Shop Boy CD collection and played them to death. Naturally, with all those songs still ringing in the back of my head, it was quite difficult to be objective without overly comparing the songs to the original work. No matter how much one may try, there is always that element of comparison with an original song or group of songs that we cannot escape. Needless to say, I put all the PSB music away for a bit until I felt it was time to approach this new compilation tribute with a fresh perspective, without having the original tunes echoing in the back of my mind.

Quite frankly, this tribute is many cuts above the glut that is already out on the market. Unquestionably, this project was created with much love and passion towards the musical genius of Tenant and Lowe. The featured artists provide unique twists on music that has thrilled a couple of generations already, while still maintaining some semblance to its original brilliance in many cases. As Patrick Rogers states in the liner notes, a fine “tightrope” had to be walked to figure out if the work should be “faithful covers” or “radical re-workings,” thereby risking tough criticism in either direction.

The bouncey aspects of some of the more popular songs are retained to some extent, however there are other elements woven into the very fabric of the songs where each band clearly made it a demarcation for their own brilliance as well.

The Cruxshadows open with It’s A Sin, a militaristic drumbeat echoes in the distance, which then segues into an electronic froth. Rogue and company stripped away some of the overblown elements from the initial recording and add other touches, giving it a dance vibe with an undercurrent of somberness. This is made more evident with a siren wailing in the distance at the closing of the song, giving the confession of sin a bit more poignancy.

Behind The Scenes have not only thrilled the music buying public with their seductive harmonies on their CD Homeless, but then take that same brilliance and revamp it for a song renowned for its cynicism.  Rent clearly becomes a song that Behind the Scenes owns lock, stock and barrel. With their flavorful touches, harmony, and pensive notes, Rent now has a new owner.

Human Drama recreated This Must Be The Place I’ve Waited To Leave into a tome of medieval beauty. This pop song was transmuted into a lyrical poet’s melancholic musings in a sonnet-like fashion.  Rather than doing a faithful rehashing of the original tune, Human Drama recreated a pop song into a wandering minstrel’s ballad that could have come from the Middle Ages. Many kudos go out to the band for taking a leap on this track and delivering a work of such beauty.

Fictional offers an interpretation of the popular song, Opportunities. This was the track that initially placed the PSB on the map as far as the MTV generation was concerned.  Despite the earlier PSB hits, this was the track that started to make many in the mainstream sit up and take notice. Needless to say, because of this, the track was played to death. Fictional may have been aware of this because they managed to give a gentle reinterpretation, which stays somewhat faithful to the original track, but breath enough fresh air into it so that the listener is not bored. As a remake, the band does this as well as the original creators and added a rather great break in the middle of the track that harkens back to the days when many more DJ’s knew how to beat mix.

Motormark took another very popular song and rather than playing it safe, went for a punky alternative hybrid of Left To My Own Devices. The purist may find this track disconcerting, however a few listens will be enough to win over even the harshest critic. The female vocals are harmoniously blended and the “hardcore” beats are kinetic enough for any dance club.

Endanger made Suburbia the nightmare it was most likely meant to be when it was initially penned by the PSB. This version reaches out and captures the essence of suburban mediocrity and boredom that is akin to hell for anyone who doesn’t fit within their parameters. The beats are steady and danceable, but the underlying message of the lyrics seems more poetically rendered to give the listener some pause for reflection.

Sweep provided Love Comes Quickly, which was another hit that haunted the psyche of a generation. This was the type of song that folks sang or hummed along to simply because of the almost subliminal chorus line and beat rhythm. Sweep maintained the integrity of this element but updated the tune without going too far afield with changing too much of the structure of the initial work.

Athan Maroulis & Zeitmahl entered with the lesser-known track, Heart, from the PSB repertoire. For many listeners this may be the first time hearing this song, which in a sense gives these artists a leg up simply because the recall is missing with which to compare it to. This track was given a very smoky-jazz bar room blues feel. Think of the dark backstreet bars that have been featured in film noirs to understand the element of the gritty feeling that is conveyed. The vocals are well delivered, reflecting a bit of the heartbreak coupled with the growing ambivalence to the ever unyielding involutional moroseness.  The bluesy horns round out the track in just the right spots to make this a dark midnight jazz piece.

Rhea’s Obsession have been all over the place as of late with work in films, television, compilations and live appearances.  Somehow they manage to squeeze in the time to an already tight schedule to tackle What Have I Done to Deserve This? This track was initially recorded with the late Dusty Springfield and was played quite a bit upon its initial release. Rhea’s Obsession may have pondered long and hard on the best angle to approach this track. They utilized their signature sound with Mideastern percussion and added sampled loops of Sue Hutton’s vocals.  The dance element is maintained, but it is given a bit more of surrealism that plays with the already well known chorus and verse of the original.

Icon Of Coil tackled New York City Boy which is another track that the mainstream may have ignored, though club patrons and DJ’s did not. This track percolates with up to the minute synth beats, up front lyrical rendering, and captures the feel of the life of a New York City boy with a highly contagious dance-club grooves.

Momus shuffled around with elements of the original hit So Hard and added sullen notes to reflect the tragedy of the song and its lyrics. Instead of an outright dance track, the song is delivered with the intensity and impact that the lyrics have begged for over the years.

Hungry Lucy slows down the pace with Jealousy, executing a morose and somber ballad. Many fans may be quite surprised to learn the power in the lyrics of this song as delivered in this fashion.  Further into the track, there is a bit of a trip hop beat that rounds out the tonal elements, however, by this point you are snared in the web of heartbreak that is conveyed with the sweet vocals.

Cleaner touch things up with You Know Where You Went Wrong with a pounding electro-dance floor beat. The vocals are given the NIN treatment with a mild amount of compression and repetitiveness. The delivery on this track is more for dancing away one’s anger and accusations than an actual outright homage to any substantial lyrical content.

Nicole Blackman & John Van Eaton entered the foray with the first big PSB hit, West End Girls. You will either love the marked different reinterpretation or hate it. This is not a selection that will have listeners sitting on the fence. Rather than an actual song, there is a poetic recitation of the lyrics combined with a darkly chilling background of tonal colorations, which highlight the rather hostile intensity and brutality of the song.

David J handles another very popular track, Being Boring, which once again focuses on how the PSB can manage to take ordinary situations that fit into the lives of everyone and make it into a mega-hit by talking to that part of us that seems to speak to the subconscious. Here, the song is delivered in a dark folk manner rather than recreated as a dance floor cut. Like the preceding track, there is more of an emphasis on the lyrical intensity coupled with slower tones which manages to add more impact.

Whether you are a purist when it comes to tribute CD’s or you are the type that enjoys uncovering gems of reinterpreted versions, there is something for everyone here.  The depth and magnitude that went into this project is clearly evident.  Some artists managed to toss us a few bones of similarity while others were diametrically opposed to recreating the original song and decided to make it almost unnoticeable, thereby creating their own mark. This is what makes Very Introspective, Actually such a good tribute CD, that it should make the Pet Shop Boys very proud. As the title suggest, this was begun as an introspective work that delves into the lyrical genius of the these artists. It could not have been an easy choice for any of the artists to finally decide which road to choose with highly popular standards.

Beyond the mere dance elements of the Pet Shop Boys and this tribute CD, Dancing Ferret Discs’ goal was to attempt and succeed in capturing the lyrical content of the band. As an avid PSB fan, the power of the lyrics often became white washed in the original rhythm of the work when they were first released.  This tribute CD helps to rectify this, thereby giving new life to these songs. It also demarcates the timelessness and brilliance of the Pet Shop Boys lyrical writing skills.

Dancing Ferret Discs is to be commended with this undertaking of assorting some of the finest performers for this tribute. Instead of a slapped together tribute Cd, this work reflects the artistic integrity and respect for a fellow performer in its design and execution, and is highly recommended.

Tracks:
1. The Cruxshadows:    It’s A Sin
2. Behind The Scenes:     Rent
3. Human Drama:      This Must Be The Place I’ve Waited Years To Leave
4. Fictional:    Opportunities
5. Motomark:    Left To My Own Devices
6. Endanger:    Suburbia
7. Sweep:    Love Comes Quickly
8. Athan Maroulis & Zeitmahl:   Heart
9. Rhea’s Obsession:   What Have I Done To Deserve This?
10. Icon Of Coil:    New York City Boy
11. Momus:     So Hard
12. Hungry Lucy:   Jealousy
13. Cleaner:    You Know Where You Went Wrong
14. Nicole Blackman & John Van Eaton: West End Girls
15. David J:    Being Boring

Released by Dancing Ferret Discs
Website:  www.ferrect.com
Email:   Patrick@Ferret.com

Rakit
Self Titled
~reviewed by Sonya

Well, I'm not a 16 year old boy raging with testosterone; but I actually like the heavy guitar and drum "alterna-metal-goth" sound of Rakit.

I found myself doing the head-bob to "Lethargic", and playing this opening track over and over several times.

Rakit sounds like something that would be blasted from a boom-box echoing down the hallowed halls of any American high school.  Abundant with adolescent rage and 4-letter-words that would make any teen proud to bring this one home to mom for sheer shock value alone - especially the track M.I.A.B. (Man In A Box) which is full of filthy lyrics with a sort of rap style delivery. Not my favorite track, really; but the next track, Hate, more than makes up for it. Hate has a feeling of that "Marilyn Manson" influence - a  sort of raw aggression with a heavy drum beat and a static-laden background.

I can imaging hearing the closing track, "Stab", while shopping at stores like Hot Topic. Rakit seems to have a very marketable appeal. I suspect we will be seeing more of Rakit in the years to come.

If the energy levels from their live shows come anywhere near to matching the intensity of their recorded music, my guess is that Rakit would be a very fun live show. I can envision their club scene as more of an open-house party spectacle... where spilled beer and hormones blend together into a pheromone molatave-coctail - with Rakit holding the match.
 

Track List:
Lethargic
No Pain
M.I.A.B.
Hate
Rage Power
Stab

Jag.Rak Music
website: rakit.net

Robert Rich
Bestiary
~reviewed by Matthew

I am loath to even write this review, because I feel so unworthy.  This guy is a legend, an absolute and utter legend to the ambient electronic genre.  But I just cannot honestly say that I can get into this.  Granted, it’s very eerie at times, frightfully hypnotic, to the point where you are paralyzed to listen, but it is an extremely conditional release.  If you were to buy this, and you listened to it in the wrong mood, you may miss the point entirely.  It took me two months to really sit down and listen to it.  There is a rather unsettling loss of control when you finally listen to the album, an irresistible pull to just give in and let it take you into a surreal nightmarish maze.   Like walking through the tunnels beneath a carnival house of mirrors, your perception twisted and contorted to reflect the sight of something beyond our understanding.  I mean, this is the guy that would conduct ‘sleep’ concerts, which were designed to instigate bizarre states of dream and unconscious reactions during a slumbering audience, which is pretty damned wild in itself.

Apparently, Rich’s latest effort, “Bestiary” is one of his darker releases, inspired by tales of mythological animals.   Throughout most of the CD, I get a very distinct impression of water, and images of strange kingdoms beneath the sea appear in my mind, blurry sights of all the sun-shunned inhabitants lethargically lurking about in the black, briny deep.

But that is just me.

I am half tempted to listen to this after consuming a ridiculous quantity of alcohol, and going to sleep to this just to see what types of bizarre entertainment my unconscious could provide.  I assume that is the purpose of this release, and others like it (sans the alcohol for the truly enlightened.)

So therefore, on that level, a level of experimental, mind altering unique experiential music, this succeeds tenfold.  But if you are fan of regular rhythmic and traditionally structured music this is definitely not for you.  You will be apt to resist the magnetism of the CD, and be prone to ask “what the hell is the point of all this?”

This is a CD created for a specific audience.  Not a particular genre, just a specific kind of people, a patient, peaceful and relaxed soul that can kick back and chill.  I am not one of these people most of the time, but I definitely can recognize the brilliance and effort that went into this release.  If you know who Robert Rich is and enjoy his music, then you know what to expect and this is reputed to be one of his better and more intricate works as of late.  For those of you like myself that are new to all this, curious, bewildered, or plagued by this music, if you are looking for something to invoke a sincere amount of colour to your dreams and meditative moments, then this is a must.  But if you are uncertain as to whether or not you would like this kind of music, and have a penchant for traditionally Gothic or dark alternative musics, this may not be the place to start investigating the genre.

Track List:
1.) Mantis Intentions
2.) Nesting On Cliffsides
3.) Dante’s Anthropomorphic Zoo
4.) Bestiary
5.) Carapace Hides The Delicacy
6.) Folded Space
7.) Sharpening Her Talons
8.) Premonition Of Circular Clouds

Robert Rich  – MOTM modular synth, steel guitar, processed acoustic sources, glurp
Forrest Fang – marxolin, hichiriki
Andrew McGowan – bass
Haroun Serang – guitar

Robert Rich – Official Site:
http://www.rrich.com

Release Entertainment:
http://www.ReleaseEntertainment.com

Relapse Records:
http://www.Relapse.com
 

Rachael's.Surrender
summer
~reviewed by Michael Otley

Rachael's.Surrender is an interesting mix of mostly synths in a moody version of ethereal rock.  What makes some of their work unique is their ability to add a touch of indie sensibility to their song-writing. Songs "soul's tide" and "6-4=3" prove some of the more exciting moments of their song-writing with simple verse chorus structure punctuated by textural contrast.

Rachael's.Surrender's summer opens with a very light and clinky, mostly synthetic, "secret lives of angels (prologue)" and never really drops it's uplifting take on ethereal synthetics.  It really had me expecting a Zoar type album with the thickness of synthesized atmosphere, and I think that's true to a certain extent.  There's a kind of grandness that comes in and out of the compositions, more or less what you get from Zoar often.  But there's also something, like I said, light and clinky.  Even a sing-song sway element which is evident during the verses of "soul's tide".  The opening strumming of "burn" sets up a laid-back approach that works well for the band.  Intermingled live and synth percussion works well with light bass, spacey synths, distant guitars, and relatively high male vocals.

Track 4, "crimson sky", proves to be one of the weaker tracks of the album.  David Gahan-like vocals are really lost in the mix of awkward drums and just too much synthetic confusion.  It feels like they are trying to build up to something, but the building anger or frustration comes across insincere.  However Rachael's.Surrender really makes up for this with "6-4=3" and it's eerie instrumentation.  The very subtle and tasteful bass solo at the song's close is particularly effective.

The album closes with "secret lives of angels (epilogue)".  There is something about this song that reminds me of Depeche Mode's Black Celebration and even Violator but not as punchy.  In fact many moments on this album have the kind of simple sensibility of Depeche Mode's "Waiting for the Night".   Fans of Zoar as well as Depeche Mode should check out Rachael's.Surrender.

1. secret lives of angels (prologue)
2. soul's tide
3. burn
4. crimson sky
5. dreams of a child
6. serrated
7. 6-4=3
8. sleep
9. one little kiss
10. secret lives of angels (epilogue)

Rachael's.Surrender:
http://www.surrender.com

Kitten Eye Records:
www.kitten-eye.com

Various Artists
Sex, Death & Eyeliner: The Soundtrack
~reviewed by Mike Ventarola

This present compilation is the soundtrack to the “gothumentary” of the same name, whose accompanying video is available through Dark Future Music, Amazon or CDnow.
The present CD is the premier and launch of the new label, Dark Future Music, and if the quality and standards from this work is any indication, they stand to become a leader in the dark underground community in the not too distant future.

At the opening and closing of some tracks are bits of anecdotes and commentaries from the film. These annotations round out this project by providing multiple ideations and concepts from those entrenched within the scene. Not having seen this film as of yet, these bits of dialogue manage to whet the appetite to want to acquire it as well.

Included with the CD is an enhanced, exclusive live video footage of  Godhead from the Endless Night Festival in New Orleans.

Xorcist’s track Nomad is simply one that seems to have a subliminal enticement built into it. Each time it is played, it draws the listener in on a cloud of  dark gauze and seductiveness. This track plays much better in an open room than it does on the headset as it seems to have been designed to echo correctly from the corners of the wall. There is an exotic, electronic Middle Eastern, Medieval base line that is driven by a sensuous flow of percussion that is nearly impossible to get out of your head. All of this is underscored by understated vocals that are simply magic.

St. Eve is an artist whom Mistress McCutchan of Morbid Outlook Magazine fame has touted time and again. This New York artist enters with No Human Words, delving into the dark smoky registers of her voice that is reminiscent of Annabel Lamb. Her enticing voice is seductively powerful and well delivered over the layers of percussion and electronic effects. For those who have not yet sampled her work, she can also be found on MP3.com. This track will make you a fan after just the first few bars are sung.

Godhead immediately follows the previous track with the industrial-goth rock tune GIMP. The vocal compression is minor because, quite frankly, they don’t need to mask a very well executed male tenor lead-vocal the way other more popular bands do.

Mindless Faith, who have scored many kudos for their previous work, bring electronic seduction to the next level with Open Up. The track is something of a hybrid that one could describe as Tears For Fears meets The Cure. The vocal effects belie a surreal quality that is given a bit of compression to deliver a sense of midnight surrealism.

The Razor Skyline push the beat in the phenomenal track Hanged Man that MUST be on every DJ playlist. The style is a harder version of Moonchild meets Lena Lovich and is simply incredible for its infectious energy, well intoned vocals, and driven beats. Can anyone say major HIT?!

I Parasite tone things down a bit with Piety. It is a blend murky spookiness of electronic energy pulsations which veer into a mid-tempo trip hop groove that just seems to envelope your senses. Despite this reviewers aversion to compressed vocals, they are very well done in a macabre fashion which actually enhances the song quality. Utilizing any other style of vocals would have just detracted from the music’s inherent dark beauty.

Soil and Eclipse immediately follow with Thief Of Always. The opening intro sets the scene for a midnight graveyard romp which segues into a trip-hop percussion which combines deep male vocals and a wonderfully infectious and tightly delivered chorus.

The Machine In The Garden provides a track that is magnificent beyond compare. Summer Bowman harmonizes with herself on Miserere Mei with 6 vocal tracks, sounding like a choir of dark angelic harmony that is absolutely brilliant and entrancing. The opening anecdote from the film emphasizes the element of “beautiful sadness” and “dark but not evil” which clearly describes and illustrates this Gregorian style ethereal work. One could easily equate this as the band’s magnum opus.

Xorcist are featured again with Spiritual Angles, a Middle Eastern style romp that once again is darkly sensual and reminiscent of the first track. After being lulled into the beauty, the percussion kicks up, which makes this a sonic seduction of the highest order.

Kommunity FK have thankfully reformed to garner the time and attention that their great work deserves.  Having been among the leaders of the goth music movement during its early inception, it is more than fitting that they are included in this documentary. 23rd Curse is their contribution, which has a touch of Celtic nuances, space age electronic effects and just deeply driven sensual grooves that seem to effervesce in order to keep the dance floor hopping all night.

The Winter Chapter is included with their phenomenal track Blinded. Some may not have heard of this band yet, but make no mistake, their full CD, Time Of Faith, is a wall to wall hit. If you like this track, you will just adore their full CD. As with many bands in the underground, much of the sales are generated by club play and word of mouth, and sadly, too many bands are not being given the time and attention they honestly deserve. Their style is early Goth rock with the obligatory powerful, expertly sung, male vocals which are vibrantly sieved  through great guitar riffs and steady drum beats of pounding ecstasy.

Noxious Emotion is part of the ADSR Musicwerks Group who seem to be cornering the market on great electro-industrial bands. The song Entropy continues to deliver on the reputation of the parent company. This finishes this disc with a driven rhythm underscored by an element of morose background keyboards that entwine perfectly with up-to-the-minute electro-chords.

By now, it is evident that the current financial element in the States is rather abysmal. Those in the goth underground, particularly the artists, seem to be the hardest hit because there is no main company helping to foot the bills during this economic crisis. In light of this situation, one can still get more bang for their buck from this compilation and the many CD’s offered from the artists on it. This particular compilation clocks in at 59:52 and also includes a live video from Godhead. While most major studios push out CD’s that run between 38 and 50 minutes, the majority of music by these independent artists run from an hour to even longer.

As far as compilations go, this is one that I just don’t want to take out of the CD player and was rather hesitant about reviewing it, simply because it would mean I have to move on to other work.

The producers of this CD made sure to line it up with 12 of the best songs they could find for a wide diversity of tastes in the underground. It is a musical repertoire of our lives as part of this great beautiful dark art form. The cost was half of what I would pay  from a major studio and it provided MORE music, a video, and a desire to NOT want to stop listening to it.

As a premier release for the new Dark Future Music company, they exceeded this reviewers expectations regarding a compilation. There isn’t a dud in the bunch and is worth the money. Highly recommended!
 

Tracks:
1. Xorcist    Nomad  ( www.cyberden.com/xorcist )
2. St. Eve    No Human Words  ( www.st-eve.net )
3. Godhead   Gimp  ( www.godhead.com )
4. Mindless Faith   Open Up ( http://alterculture.hypermart.net )
5. The Razor Skyline  Hanged Man ( www.copint.com) and
6. I Parasite   Piety ( www.iparasite.net )
7. Soil and Eclipse  Thief Of Always ( www.copint.com )
8. The Machine In The Garden Miserere Mei ( www.tmitg.com )
9. Xorcist    Spiritual Angles ( www.cyberden.com/xorcist )
10. Kommunity FK  23rd Curse  ( www.deathrock.com/kommunityfk )
11. The Winter Chapter  Blinded  ( http://destined.to/winterchapter )
12. Noxious Emotion  Entropy  (www.noxious.com )

Released by:
Dark Future Music

Produced by:
Walter New, Jack Dean Strauss and Eugene Gordon

Cd and Video Available from Dark Future Music directly at:
Website: www.darkfuturemusic.com

Or by Snail Mail at:
Send a Check or Money order (Be sure to include $7.99 for Shipping and handling on domestic orders and $15.99 for International Orders!) to:
Dark Future Music
P.O. Box 1350
Hollywood CA 90078

CD also available at Middle Pillar www.middlepillar.com, Amazon www.amazon.com and CDnow www.cdnow.com

Various Artists:
Gothabilly (III): Razin' Hell
(pre-release promo)
~reviewed by Blu

Poised for a timely Halloween release this October, Skully Records has put out another outstanding various artists compilation for the third year in a row titled  Razin' Hell.  Although bands on these compilations embody various genres from Deathrock, to punk, goth, rockabilly and psychobilly; make no bones about it, this is themed comp full of zombies, vampires, B-horror movie queens and ghoulish delights and is appropriately dubbed "gothabilly." If you're having a Halloween party, you'd make a mistake not to have one, if not all three of these CDs spinning on your turn table. If you're a DJ, these are invaluable as a way to add in ghoulishly fun tracks to your mixes all year round.  This is my favorite Gothabilly comp yet - they just keep on getting better and better. Kudus to Kevin at Skully Record for taking the time and effort to make these CDs  - I daresay I wouldnt know about 98% of these bands if not for these comps.

A cartoonish vampire from Transylvania (by way of Texas) opens up the CD:
"mmm... I can hear zee cemetery gates creeking; it iz time.  I can feel zee blood lust rouuuuussing to my head, zee lid from my coffin is removed. Nothing can stop me now... I'm free at last!"

And we're off with the Johnny-Cash-sounding spaghetti string western romp of "Back from the Grave" and later with "The Pale Man in Black" by The Coffin Shakers.  Big John Bates follows with the laid-back  jazzed down track "Rhyolite" (and later "Sickle-Billy") until Demonspeed,  with vocals sounding like a hellbound version of The Cult,  rouses the tempo back up to a serious brutal level with their "Hand of Glory".

Mr. Badwrench slimes us with a playful "Bodies Piled Up" ("Blood on the floorboards, blood on the walls, blood on the dog's hair... blood on the rooftop... blood on the bedspread... who's gonna clean it up?") and Johnny Dark, pleasantly reminiscent of Nick Cave's The Murder Ballads, tells the villain of his story, Hey there... Mr. Tough Guy, yeah, I 'm talkin' to you, I know you think you're bad with that gun in your hand but I've been waiting for you.., you've  made a "Grave Mistake."

I don't know whether to giggle or run for cover when Psychocharger comes at us with "Invasion of the Ball Snatchers" - they sure as hell sound serious enough with their grinding zombie drive and seeing as how lead singer Jimmy often performs in his underwear (or saranwrap for that matter)... this song could be very interesting live I think.  And if that's not enough grose anatomy for ya, 44 Double D rocks us with "Three Poison Knives" and thereby, leads us to the logical conclusion found in "Teenage Monster" by  The Immaculate Deceptions (I'm a teenage Monster and I know what I want... I want blood!").

Next, a band that I'm convinced does not truly exist because I've yet to make contact with them since I move to Seattle (hint-hint-elbow-winkwink) - The Hammerdowns, perform one of my favorite tracks on this comp: "Frankenstein's Hotrod." With their ever-present, engaging story-telling country style, they take us on a "Cannonball Run" of the monster world as Frankenstein's Hotrod travels down to Louisianna Raceway to race monster cars driven by the Wolfman and the Mummy at the Purgatory 500. Continuing the "monster car theme" with the song "Phantom Cadillac," The Heptanes will make your engines purr with solid rockabilly rhythms and guitar riffs.

Another favorite of mine on this comp would be "All Souls Day" by The Intoxicats that opens with one of *the* most truly creepy intros I've heard in a long long time before slamming headlong into a massively brutal set of vocals (fuck - does that guy have any vocal chords left ?!?!) and good old fashioned punk steam power.

Stepping away from the elegance of Faith & the Muse, William Faith lets lose on guitar in the band Frankenstein -- the brainchild of the "legendary L.A. art terrorist/singer Dave Grave (The Schizos, Zombie Legion, Voodoo Church, Bone Cult, The Rotters, and The Screaming Things)". They contribute "Lovecraft" - an intimidating, in-your-face display of musical power.

Long time favs, the polished and mature western sounds of Texas' Ghoultown (god they just sound better and better every time I hear them) are evident in "Fistful of Demons." Truly one of the most disturbing songs on the comp if you listen to the lyrics - (about a forcefully aborted deomon-boy shoved under a house, hacked in pieces, who comes back for revenge...), this is one sure to make head turns.

"Trick of Light and Shadow," a more straight forward goth rock song by Mr. Underhill, is another fav of mine on this comp with its addictive male vocals. Mr. Underhill, I'm delighted to say, should be our guests with Fallen Angel Designs at the next StarVox LIVE in Seattle so be sure to drop by and see the boys if you're in town on Oct 6th (we're quite sure we'll be drooling over them all evening long).

Halloween Socks. You know them. You fear them. You love them. Everyone has a pair tucked away somewhere - some orange things with pumpkins on them. They're absolutely ridiculous but the urge to own a pair is undeniable. At any rate, The Memphis Morticians (featuring Paul Morden - from The Brickbats fame), bring this startling and closeted addiction to light on track 17 - yes indeedy, "Halloween Socks".

One of my newest local addictions and truly one of the most amazing guitar players I've ever seen live - The Spectres, contribute the slick, dusty stylins' of "Bloodsuckin' Cowboy."  Then, track 20, "Blue Tattoo" by Pussyliquor, seems an almost strange addition here compared to the rest of the CD with its electronic beat, keyboards and mixed in guitar parts. While its noticeably a different style, its not altogether out of place and serves as a perfect example of how electronic music can be pushed into genres that one would not expect to hear it in.

Finally, Skully gives us a treat with a quiet and sad instrumental by Scary BOOM called "Winter Lullaby". Featuring what is almost Spanish acoustic guitar licks in places, its that one track as the lights come up and the credits roll... Indeed, this is the soundtrack to every b-horror film ever made.

Tracks:
1 - The Coffin Shakers - "Back From the Grave"
2 - Big John Bates - "Rhyolite"
3 - Demonspeed - "Hand of Glory"
4 - Mr Badwrench - "Bodies Piled Up"
5 - Johnny Dark - "Grave Mistake"
6 - Psychocharger - "Invasion of the Ball Snatchers"
7 - 44 Double D - "Three Poison Knives"
8 - The Immaculate Deceptions - "Teenage Monster"
9 - The Hammerdowns - "Freankenstein's Hotrod"
10 - The Intoxicats - "All Souls Day"
11 - The Coffinshakers - "Pale Man in Black"
12 - Frankenstein - "Lovecraft"
13 - Ghoultown - "Fistful of Demons"
14 - The Heptanes - "Phantom Cadillac"
15 - Mr. Underhill - "Trick of Light and Shadow"
16 - The Immaculate Deceptions - "We Eat Your Flesh We Drink Your Blood"
17 - Memphis Morticians - "Halloween Socks"
18 - The Spectres - "Bloodsuckin' Cowboy"
19 - Big John Bates - "Sickle-Billy"
20 - Pussyliquor - "Blue Tattoo"
21 - Scary BOOM - "Winter Lullaby"

Band Bios for Razin' Hell:
http://www.skullyrecords.com/goth3bios.htm

Skully Records
http://www.skullyrecords.com/

09/02/01

Various Artists
Gothabilly: Rockin' Necropolis
~reviewed by Blu

Halloween is my favorite holiday (well duh) and I'm looking forward to some big Halloween parties this year. If you're anywhere in the vicinity of my house -- you'll be hit upside the head with a healthy dose of Gothabilly - guaranteed. Always morbidly fun and great for "drinkin' music" -- its particulary great this time of year when everyone's got monsters on the brain. Thanks to Skully Records, I'll have more than enough music to torture virgin ears.  With this second collection of Gothabilly songs Rockin' Necropolis, Skully Records is breaking ground by giving alot of unheard bands a chance to sling their zombie-dusted monster-slimed blood-coated sounds across the universe. And as if that were not enough in itself, on October 28th there will be a CD Release Party at CBGB's in NY featuring The Cryptkeeper Five (Trenton, NJ), Eight Ball Grifter (Lansing, MI), Psycho Charger (NYC), Ghoultown (Dallas, TX), The Hammerdowns (Seattle, WA), The Gettin' Headstones (Atlanta, GA), The Deep Eynde (Los Angeles, CA), and Cult of the Psychic Fetus(Cleveland, OH). For those unfortunate souls not able to attend this fright-fest of a show, the show will be Cybercast so people all over the world can watch it live. There will be a link set up from  www.skullyrecords.com. Check out that website for more information. Now onto the tunes:

The UK's The Krewmen contribute "Beware the Moon" from their CD The Final Adventures of The Krewmen (part 1). Starting with a sound sample from an old movie, they launch into this hard hitting song about what else -- Werewolves! The gritty vocals give it a harder edge and the sound samples are nicely placed. Ghoultown add their sound-track featured "Killer in Texas" (see the blurb in our news sectoin about their movie cameo!).  I've commented on this band before (see Interviews) but I cant  help but say yet again - how much I adore them. The Western twang and Mexican trumpet adds so much to this sound. Count Lyles vocals are sultry and sexy and have that wonderful story-telling flair to them. The musicianship (which sometimes falls permissably short in this genre) is superb and probably the best I've ever heard.  Later in the CD they add "Pale Skin Diva" which is a new track to me (it wasn't on their EP) and again, I'm in love. Fun, musically impressive and addictive with their trumpeting, guitar riffs and rumbling bass lines, it doesn't get any better than that.

Up next is Eight Ball Grifter with "Spit on my Grave" - a song more rooted in that traditional Psychobilly sound with an addicting bass line and head throbbing beat. Later they moter in with "Vampire" - a tale about a seductive blood sucking vixen. The Cryptkeeper Five give us the naughty "She's Gotta Lotta Pain" and fun "Scream She Devil, Scream" which I simply cannot get enough of. The bass lines are sexy and slink and the tormented and emotional vocals remind me a bit of The Toadies (a dark band misplaced and lost in the 90's much to my dismay) and the drumming is impressive.  While I'm taking about feme fatals, I cannot fail to mention cornerstone founders The Cult of the Psychic Fetus with their track "She Devil" (nice vocal manipulations at the end.. made me SHIVER!)

The jazzy smooth stray-cat sounds of The Deep Eynde's "The Feast" make a sweet backdrop for fiendish debauchery while the Dragstrip Demons take the tempo up a few notches with their punk-inspired "Graveyard." Mr. Badwrench add "From the Cradle to the Grave" - a somber and slower song with angsty vocals and a sliding guitar riffs.  Psycho Charger gives us their namesake song "Psycho Charger" as they declare, "With a gun in my hand I will Rockn'Roll!"  (for more see our CD review on Psycho Chargers)

For some ghoulish fun - check out track number 9 where the 3-D Invisibles do a pseudo-elvisian "Rockin' on Mockingbird Lane."  In that same vein (er...), Atlanta's The Gettin' Headstones add "Scare Your Skirt Right Off" (and ironically -- The Gettin'  Headstones can often be found wearing 3-D glasses while performing...hmm...wonder if there's a connection?)  Dante and the Infernos round out the rockabilly influenced songs with  the toe-tapping  "Shock Substance."

The Killcreeps contribute a nice monster-movie instrumental (with fun and fitting sample thrown in) called "Humanoids from the Deep" while The Ghastly Ones do a spooky "House on Haunted Hill" ala beach-party guitars.  Sex With Lurch (I love that name!) comes crashing in with their surf-tweaked "Monster Surf Party" which should NOT be left out of any Halloween Party this year.

Probably the biggest surprise for me on this CD is hearing Seattle's The Hammerdowns for the first time. You'd NEVER guess they were from Seattle if you weren't told before hand. They'd give Ghoultown a run for their money in Texas and god what I'd do to see these two bands play together in NY on the 28th at the CD release party. Its gotta be one hell of a party. The Hammerdowns have that same Western-twang that Ghoultown has perfected. Both tracks they contribute on here - "2-Wheel Sinner" and "The Vampire Road Trip" are story-telling adventure songs at their best. Hell, I've played this at the office and they all loved it.

Move over "Monster Mash" -- you're about to be replaced.

Tracks
1 The Krewmen - "Beware the Moon"
2 Ghoultown - "Killer in Texas"
3 Eight Ball Grifter - "Spit on my Grave"
4 The Cryptkeeper Five - "She's Gotta Lotta Pain"
5 The Deep Enyde - "The Feast"
6 The Dragstrip Demons - "Graveyard"
7 Eight Ball Grifter - "Vampire"
8 The Cryptkeeper Five - "Scream She Devil, Scream"
9 3-D Invisibles - "Rockin' on Mockingbird Lane"
10 The Gettin' Headstone - "Scare Your Skirt Right Off"
11 The Killcreeps - "Humanoids from the Deep"
12 Sex With Lurch - "Monster Surf Party"
13 The Ghastly Ones - "House on Haunted Hill"
14 Cult of the Psychic Fetus - "She Devil"
15 Ghoultown - "Pale Skin Diva"
16 Mr. Badwrench - "From the Cradle to the Grave"
17 The Hammerdowns - "2-Wheel Sinner"
18 Psycho Charger - "Pyscho Charger"
19 Dante and the Infernos - "Shock Substance"
20 The Hammerdowns  - "The Vampire Road Trip"
*Hidden track (?)

Various Artists
Gothabilly: Wakin' The Dead
~reviewed by Blu

Here it is folks - the one CD that will quench that zombie-sized thirst you have for Gothabilly. Skully Records have put together one of the best, all-encompassing Gothabilly/Deathrockabilly CD comps out there. What a ghoulish treat! You can't HELP but love this outrageous CD with the impressive line up of artists. Even our beloved Brickbats donate a track. Every song on this CD kicks ass. There's enough ghouls, funky bass lines, western tinged fat cat blues beats, monsters, plenty-O-VooDoo and zombies to keep your mud-encrusted boots a-tappin' all night long. Rip out your heart , wrap it in barbed wire and toss it on the cow-print sofa... this is the shit. Extremely fun and nicely put together - this is must have for every DJ and party host.

Track Listing - Check out these BANDS!!!!
-Cult of the Psychic Fetus, "Dead Bride"
-Mr. Badwrench, "Gasoline"
-Psychonauts, "Devilshake"
-Deadbolt, "Crime Scene"
-Phantom Cowboys, "Transylvanian Girl"
-Deep Enyde, "13th Floor"
-Agent X and the Kill Villians, "Bad Girls Go to Hell"
-The Independents, "Death Notice"
-8 Ball Grifter, "Thigh Highs"
-Phantom Cowboys, "Voodoo Bunnies"
-Thee Hallowteens, "Evil Doer"
-Cult of the Psychic Fetus, "You Can Make It If You Run"
-Empress of Fur, "Johnny Voodoo"
-The Brain Bats, "Oblivion"
-Barnyard Ballers, "Skitzo Family"
-Mr. Badwrench, "Dark Passage"
-The Witching Hour, "Burn Witch Burn"
-Deadbolt, "Creepy World"
-Psychonauts, "Ghoulfriend"
-The Brickbats, "Undead Rock & Roll Music"
-Electric Bird Noise, "Lazy Tumbleweeds"
 

Skinny Puppy
Doomsday: Live In Dresden (Back & Forth vol 5)
~reviewed by Matthew

I know it’s rather typical to regard Skinny Puppy as THE Industrial Dance band, but what can one say that could deny them their crown?  My passion for Skinny Puppy actually boils down to a few very simple, yet ever so important elements that go hand in hand with their music: darkness and rhythm.  Unlike the monotonous thud and bounce of today’s electronic music, Skinny Puppy were and apparently still are the masters of the jagged, schizophrenic rhythmic assaults that were once synonymous with Industrial music.  They wrote the book, and several worthy imitators followed suit.  As the years progressed, the worth of that imitation declined but the music of Skinny Puppy never fell out of favour.   They were the most violent, aggressive, unmerciful, and punishing of the second wave of Industrial (FLA, 242, Nitzer Ebb, Ministry, etc): anything but polished, smooth, or at all relating to ‘pop.’

At any rate, the band called it quits after a successful run that was brought to a halt with the untimely death of Dwayne Goettel.  The 1996 release “The Process” marked the end, and cEvin Key and Nivek Ogre have been keeping active with a multitude of their own solo projects.  At last, the day that many never thought would happen, cEvin and Ogre regrouped for a one time live performance last year.  Fortunately for those of us that couldn’t make it to Germany, the show has been captured in all its raw and relentless glory.

When I first heard a release of this performance was going to surface, I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s nice, sounds cool, I have all the studio albums so I am content.’  I have to admit, I didn’t anticipate this CD to be anything more than a very generous gift to hardcore Puppy fans that were in denial that the band is no longer active.

Then I saw the track list.

My excitement for the track list is probably very subjective, and a lot of hardcore fans might disagree with me.  Though some may be disappointed that such classic dance floor gems like “Smothered Hope” “Assimilate” and “Addiction” are absent from this collection, I was personally excited to see that lesser played and (in my opinion) darker songs like “First Aid,” “Harsh Stone White” and “Grave Wisdom” appeared in the band’s set.  Let’s face it, as much as we all adore the more popular tracks from the band, how many more times can we hear them?  I applaud the band for digging into their ‘archives.’

Of course, fear not – “Testure,” “Worlock” and “Dig It” appear, as well as “Deep Down Trauma Hounds” which kicks the disc off with the appropriately agonized scream from Ogre.  I got chills before the song even kicked in.  Fans will also be pleased to note that a neck breaking and mischievous rendition of “Tin Omen” appears, arguably the bands most aggressive (yet still structured song).

A breath-taking and energized performance of “The Choke” draws the album to a close.  When it is all said and done, you want more, you don’t want to go home, you want the band to just continue playing and you sadly have to expect that this is the end.  For now.  Hopefully just for now.  But then again, would a new Skinny Puppy release benefit or taint the band’s canonized Industrial music repertoire?

Whatever Skinny Puppy has in store for us in the future, only they know. In the meantime, this is an awesome addition to the band’s flawless discography.  With a clear and well-engineered production, a balanced, near perfect set list (my main gripe being the absence of “Far Too Frail”), and a severe and passionate performance, this is a must for rabid and casual Skinny Puppy and Industrial music fans alike.

Track List:
1.) Deep Down Trauma Hounds
2.) Love In Vein
3.) Inquisition
4.) Convulsion
5.) Warlock
6.) Grave Wisdom
7.) Killing Game
8.) Social Deception
9.) First Aid
10.) Testure
11.) Dig It
12.) Tin Omen
13.) Harsh Stone White
14.) The Choke

Skinny Puppy is:
cEvin Key & Nivek Ogre

Recorded August 20, 2000 in Dresden, Germany

Nettwerk Records:
http://www.nettwerkamerica.com

Skinny Puppy – ‘Ultra’ (Polish Fan Site)
http://www.skinny-puppy.dhs.org/

Soulwhirlingsomwhere
Please Sennd Help
~reviewed by Adrian

Soulwhirlingsomewhere is a project about explorations of emotions and existence (or is it anti-love songs). The musical creation of Michael Plaster, SWS's 4th and latest cd please sennd help gives us just that and a few more surprises, although maybe not as forceful or intense as previous releases. Swirling beautiful layers of acoustic sounds within delicious electronic waves, please sennd help takes the listener on a journey deeper into the somewhat melancholy world of Michael Plaster, whose elusive and provocative lyrics tease you with hints of heartbreak, decay of spirit, and lost oceans of faith and memories yet realized.

Starting off the cd, in typical SWS fashion we have a light musical piece called 'The Wedding' which is almost playful compared to the rest of the tracks on the cd. Sounding a bit like his last double cd Hope Was we find Michael exploring an easy, almost jazz like quality about his work, which is refreshing. Songs such as 'Nani', 'Aileron', and 'Box' float around the listener, explaining stories of what were once hopes of love, but somehow take a different path. If you are familiar with SWS's previous works, you will be a bit more surprised to find an ever so slight edge popping up here and there by adding a bit more percussion work into his largely atmospheric work. There almost seems to be a sinister feel about his track 'Box' or 'I Give Up. Goodby' and at times I can start to see where he is trying to develop onto a path which is less taken in previous works. That is a good thing. 'Sun in Braids' and 'Little Gaze" again explore more of the instrumental side of SWS that I tend to enjoy more. If I was to dig up a complaint about the disk, as a whole, is that it tends to be a bit of a rehashing of his last cd Hope Was, and at times it almost sounds like the tracks that just didn't make his last collection. Each release of his has almost had a completely different feel from each other, yet this release keeps to the same style and sound and the release before. Is this a bad thing? Not really. Do I feel maybe he is holding something back? Maybe. Maybe there are more tricks up this artists sleeve than he is letting on and it is up to you, the listener, to figure that out on your own or fill in the blanks with your own story. Almost interactive eh? What SWS does, he does well and unlike anyone else, but I would like to see a bit more different territory explored. Ok, maybe not so different, but deeper, perhaps more exotic. He dances about the edge, almost hitting those intense points like he had on Everyone Will Eventually Leave You, but then draws back and drifts you down gently and somewhat leaving me wanting more out of the songs.

I hope I haven't been too elusive about this disk, it has not been my whole intention at all. Trying to place your finger on the pulse of something that doesn't want to be defined is not always that easy. What I can say is that as a whole, Please Sennd Help is definitely an artist expression of lyrical razors that can really show you what your missing in the world of breaking up and heartache. Excellent as a cd, but judging from his past release I know he can go further down this path that he so lightly glides. Perhaps this is a taste of what is to come on his next release and this appetizer is just warming us up to new worlds and wonders. That or perhaps he will one day find that true love, and what will happen then?

Soulwhirlingsomwhere
Please Sennd Help
1. the wedding
2. nani
3. aileron
4. salt angel
5. shivering fox
6. you stutter when you sleep
7. box
8. the sun in braids
9. in on
10. little gaze
11. gaze
12. happy valley
13. i give up. goodbye.

http://www.soulwhirlingsomewhere.com/
www.projekt.com
for mp3's of his tracks, visit www.mp3.com/soulwhirling
 

THEY
Frobnitzem
~reviewed by Wolf

Seattle based artist THEY (Mikhail Bohonus) makes quite a sonic statement with this release. At first I expected this cd-r to be filled with "attic studio" industrial of the copycat kind, but my recent experience with electro/industrial cd-rs was sharply contrasted by Frobnitzem. After checking out THEY's trippy site I learned that the reason for its mature sound is Mikhail's 17(!) year long experience with creating electronic music.

THEY's music fits under electro, yet avoids all cliches and shamelessly incorporates jungle, noise, trance and techno elements to form this gritty hybrid of electronica. The songs are filled with heavy modulation and filtering, which is at times so prominently featured that the sound is very experimental. Not a bad thing however, since THEY does not stray into obscure soundscaping and manages to keep the beats dancefloor-capable.

The opening track "eclectric" instantly shows a high level of production. There's no sign of amateur mixing skills and it sounds clear and convincing on headphones, a home stereo system or even in a club atmosphere. I tested the latter and aside from a great dancefloor response the clear mixing and production also had no trouble keeping up with those of "popular" releases. The tech-step breaks are absolutely infectious and refreshing compared to all the uninspired 4-4 rave beats with which most "industrial" appears to be infested nowadays.

Since there aren't any vocals on this cd (aside from some sampling on "mushrooms") it's all up to the music to grab the listeners attention. Tracks like "neorites" and "terminak" manage to do this especially well, with wildly sliding sequences not unlike those on NCC's excellent "7 Steps of Nervousness" (though THEY's pleasant insanity is a bit more contained than NCC's). A rapid succession of changes also keeps things interesting, which makes inventive composition the project's main strength. With its dynamic analogue feel THEY would be capable of creating some excellent videogame scores as well. I can easily imagine playing WipeOut to tracks like "roboto" and "insectual".

So yes, definitely an impressive effort as far as I'm concerned, although I do feel this could be even better with the right amount of additional layers. Occassionally the tracks remind me too much of the "backbone" I'd write for a track. Mind you, quite a better backbone than I'm capable of creating, but at times it feels a little too...not minimal, but stripped down. The music is very beat and modulation oriented, which I personally love but it risks creating a rather selective audience. Not that "accessible" and "popular" are always such wonderful phenomena. They is far more interesting than most pre-chewed electro/industrial out there and should certainly count this fact as a capital, triple-underlined plus. The final track, "g patch", lifts itself a little above the rest thanks to subtly sampled guitars and underlying string parts, which is exactly what I mean by layering the music a little more. It shouldn't have to lose any of its originality because of this and through these additions I could easily see They head in the direction of the music of Index. That's not a small compliment either. ;) Then again, I haven't checked out THEY's new material yet, so the music could already be way ahead of me.

In closing: excellent, refreshing release that certainly deserves to be exposed to a wider audience. They's new release, Ant Planet, can be sampled and ordered through mp3.com, so be sure to check it out. I will as soon as I've edited this review! Keep up the good work, looking forward to more.

Tracklisting:
1.   eclectric
2.   apollo 1
3.   neorites
4.   sky train
5.   terminak
6.   mushrooms
7.   fubonium
8.   rubberbahn
9.   roboto
10. insectual
11. mind tunnel
12. g patch

Band members:
Mikhail Bohonus

Additional info:
Official site: http://www.theyrehere.com
Mp3.com: http://www.mp3.com/they
Contact: they@theyrehere.com

VLE
Book Of Illusions, Chapter I
~reviewed by Matthew

“One cannot achieve greatness if not ruled by Illusion”

There are some seriously promising and interesting ideas abrew within this project.  As the title would suggest, this is just the beginning and it is obvious that VLE is still in its formative stages.  But as this young musician continues to tap into his abilities, VLE has the potential to evolve into something very special.  This EP alone is full of charm, despite a somewhat amateur production (which actually accentuates the effectiveness of the music) and the overall brevity of the mere seven tracks.  I believe this musician is but a few steps shy of finding the right element.  The ideas are here, and I still cannot get over the power behind some of the melodies that crop up on this CD.  A slightly more refined production will capture the attention of more skeptical listeners, and succeed in winning over those who are not as well accustomed or partial to independently produced dark music.  As well, a more reserved and critical focus on the composition itself and a patient fleshing out of these developing ideas could possibly boost VLE into the forefront of the dark music scene.  The competition is more vast than fierce; it all boils down to if whether or not this music will be heard.  Regardless, I simply cannot wait to get my hands on to Chapters II and III.

Pay a visit to VLE’s mp3 site and hear this music for yourself.

Track List:
1.) Kano
2.) Freedom To Fly
3.) Behold The Night /// Beyond Sunsets
4.) Timeless
5.) 3 in 5
6.) Drift
7.) Stark

VLE – Mp3 Site:
http://www.mp3.com/vle

VLE – Official Site:
http://www.geocities.com/infestvle/

email: vle25@hotmail.com

VLE
West 34th Street
Apt 14C
New York, NY 10001 USA
 

THE WAGNER LOGIC
self-titled CD
~reviewed by Kevin Filan

Two 19-year olds in Alaska get together, form a band, then move to California to make it big.  It's aquintessentially American story; one could almost see Busby Berkeley directing "Andy Hardy in Alaska."  Jeremy Wagner and James Glaves, aka the Wagner Logic, have given us a CD which is enthusiastic, fresh-faced, and fun.  It's an unrefined and low-fi effort, but the rough edges only add to the charm.

The first track, "What I Say," begins with a fuzzy, distorted electric guitar, and then features a vocal/vocoder duet.  There's not a whooshing synthesizer to be found on the entire track: this could have been recorded in the 1970s by a bunch of kids playing with real instruments -- the kind you play, not program.  It's catchy and memorable; with some work and a more professional production, this one has definite potential as a single.  "Shot Nerves" works in the same vein, but is somewhat less successful.  Glaves has an interesting voice, but hasn't yet learned his range.  As a result, a couple of sour notes sneak through.  There were a couple of high points, though, notably a grungy electric guitar solo which reminded me of Neil Young.

"The Yanni Song" tells a tale of unrequited love (is there any other kind?), over a simple chord progression and 4/4 drum beat.  It's sloppy but no less heartfelt for that.  I'm not sure why they call this "The Yanni Song."  There are no pompous synthesizer riffs on this track -- or on this CD, may the gods of alternative music be praised!  Nor does Linda Evans' ex get so much as a mention (not that he deserves one).  I might change the title of this one, but other than that is just fine.

At 9:10, "Something is Nothing" is as long as the three songs preceding it.  The opening formula is the same -- guitar riff and drums -- but more intricate and harder this time.  I was reminded of power pop like the early Police as Glaves chanted "I don't know where/is where you stand" over a solid guitar backdrop.  The song may need some editing; the distorted spoken word interlude in the middle of the song is not really necessary to the narrative flow.  Still, it's a good solid effort which makes me look forward to their sophomore CD.

There is not much advice I can give a young, promising band like this... other than "Practice, Practice, Practice."  Some are born musical prodigies; the rest of us only improve by sitting at home doing scales until our fingers or throats are sore.  I'd also suggest, nay, urge, nay, BEG them not to lose their enthusiasm.  CDs like this one help to restore my battered faith in the music industry.

Recorded February 2001 at Area 51 Studios,  Kasilof, Alaska
All songs by Jeremy Wagner & James Glaves
Jeremy Wagner: Guitars
James Glaves: Vocals, Bass, Drums, Guitar*

1) What I Say*
2) Shot Nerves*
3) The Yanni Song
4) Something is Nothing

c. 2001 Evil Heidi Music

Wagner Logic on AcidPlanet.com
http://www.acidplanet.com/Lounge/ArtistDetail.asp?ArtistID=12322

Clan Of Xymox
Notes From The Underground
~reviewed by Matthew

Clan Of Xymox are a band that has preserved through nearly two decades of trends, ups and downs, and have left a wealth of contributions to the dark music underground.  I have always been more partial to the band’s early 4AD days, with albums such as their self-titled debut and “Medusa.”  I enjoyed the band’s ‘come back’ album for Tess Records “Hidden Faces” but missed out on their last album “Creatures” that featured the club hit “Jasmine & Rose.”  So my coherence of the band’s entire career is very sketchy, but having seen them live and having several favourite songs from them, I am familiar enough with the band’s sound to note that this may be one of their best, if not most absorbing album in years.

I was excited to hear this latest release for Metropolis Records.  It took me a few listens to fully comprehend the intensity and the angst-ridden darkness of the entire album, but I have been hooked on the disc for quite a few weeks now.

The opening track “Innocent” is incredible, kicking the CD off with a stark and very rhythmic blast of emotion.  The lyrics are comprised of clichéd phrases that are recited to mock the condolences they are meant to offer the lovesick:
 

“Sticks and stones break my bones but it hurts too much
Easy come and easy go in love and war all seems fair,
It is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all.”

“Anguish” is an appropriately titled track clocking in at just under nine minutes, a track that volleys between clanging sludge and mischievous Gothic rock.  “Number One” is in the same vein as “I Want You Now,” though it is a bit more relaxed and moody, but still an unmistakable upbeat Goth rock anthem, with some cool guitar riffs and sneaky piano chords.  “Into Ber Weh” is a dreary acoustic ballad, full of vivid images and a morose, heartrending atmosphere. Obviously one of my personal favourites!  “The Bitter Sweet” starts off as a slower, slinky darkwave track, but after about two minutes a sudden shift occurs when some harsh electronics make their way into the song.  It is definitely one of the more unpredictable and interesting songs on the album, exhibiting a great sense of variety.

Skipping ahead a few tracks, the final song, “The Same Dream” is the heaviest on synth pop friendly elements, with a steady thud bouncing behind a hurricane of electronic blips and pops, serving as a driving and energetic close to a powerful CD.

One of the best things about Clan Of Xymox is their ability to balance their musical delivery, as much of the music is centered on electronics, they are not relied on too heavily.  They masterfully blend in organic Gothic rock guitar styles, driving bass lines, and Ronny Mooring’s distinctive, fluid male vocals to create a solid and complex musical maze of emotional devastation and cathartic danceabilty.Though definitely catchy, perhaps due to some subtle romantic new wave sensibilities, this album is also a dark introspective journey into the insecurities of love or the oppressive realities of life in general.  “Notes From The Underground” is a journey into extremely personal experiences, but set to a backdrop that can easily be enjoyed by almost all fans of dark music.

This is SURE to be a hit amongst fans of not only recent club and darkwave music, but I think fans of early Goth will also pick up on the emotions that seem to extend all the way back to the band’s mid 1980’s repertoire.

Track List:
1.) Innocent
2.) I Want You Now
3.) Internal Darkness
4.) At Your Mercy
5.) Anguish
6.) Number One
7.) Into Ber Weh
8.) The Bitter Sweet
9.) Liberty
10.) Something Wrong
11.) Mysterium
12.) The Same Dream

Clan Of Xymox is Ronny Moorings, with additional vocals by Sonja Rozenblum

Live:
Ronny Moorings: vocals, guitar
Mojca: bass & vocals
Paul Whittlesea: guitar
Denise Dijkstra: keyboards
Rui Ramos: drums

Clan Of Xymox – Official Site:
http://www.clanofxymox.com

Metropolis Records:
http://www.metropolis-records.com

Clan Of Xymox
Notes From The Underground
~reviewed by Blu
(promo photos courtesy of the band's website)

Sometimes it puzzles me why Clan of Xymox is not more readily accepted as goth music *legends* - especially in the US club scene. I worship this band.  Over 15 years have passed since their debut on the 4AD label with Clan of Xymox (1985) and later Medusa (1987).  Before that they had released Subsequent Pleasures on their own label in 1984. They've been on a major label (Wing/PolyGram), played the corporate game, and came back to their roots establishing their own label time and again. Stamina, if nothing else, should make them something other bands should aspire to. Keeping up with current trends and most importantly, still remaining true to themselves and the scene, CoX has continued to give us incredible, quality releases year after year. No where else has a band fused electronics and organic music like CoX has continued to do. In an interview they did with us in February 2001, Ronny commented, "As you know Clan of Xymox always delivered an album with a hybrid combination between keyboards and guitars, only the overall atmosphere this time is much darker than the previous releases.  As far as I can see this is the line I will follow for the future as I feel this suits me the best and feel the most comfortable with; the dark side of Clan of Xymox!  "

That being said, personally, I cannot tell you what a comfort this new CD has been for me in the past few weeks - especially regarding the happenings here in the U.S.  I've drowned myself in this CD, over and over again and nothing has felt so soothing and "right" in a long, long time. It was like a homecoming in a way. Comfort in old familiars.   Its classic Xymox in feel and darker tones, but its also current, with updated electronics and club-friendly beats melded with crunchy guitars. Its yet another perfect step forward in their progression as well as one of their most "atmospheric" CDs in a long time. The title Notes from the Underground is appropriately descriptive - having never lost touch with goth aesthetics. The production on this CD is incredible. Never has CoX sounded more polished and more mature with every note and sound tweaked to perfection. In appearance, its utterly beautiful - the cover in brilliant green and black covered in cryptic symbols and words and contrasting inside the liner notes and on the CD itself - an elegant and graceful spider spread out on a sea of crimson.

The first track, "Innocent," opens with a scratchy intro that gives way to classic CoX sounding keyboards that set the feel and beat of the song. Slightly reminiscent of their 80's sounding keys, its tempered with a darker, atmospheric minor synth line as Ronny's vocals pour over them like familiar and warm worn-velvet. Guitars scream accents and reinforce a sense of urgency related in the lyrics.

"I Want You Now" catches the ear immediately with an addictive guitar line and steady drumming. Electronics are used more as appropriately placed accents in this song... lots of noises and twitching going on and off throughout like audio-candy. Ronny croons, "Love.... love me not" with that deep whispery voice and I could just melt to my knees on the dance floor.

"Internal Darkness" follows at a more laid back beat. Loping along in self-indulged misery, its gloomy goth at its best ending with a plaintive piano line...

Sunshine, I wait for dawns recurrent light
I ponder in my narrow hour and warm myself
Moonlight calmly shines through the night
I stare at  these old photographs, my heart beats fast

I find no peace to read or write
My soul is lost, my spirits down
There's no one in the dark
my little world has lost its light

"Anguish" is a complex track, changing tempo and mood many times through out - sometimes enjoyably sinister, sometimes contemplative depressive. Although probably not as viable on the dance floor as some of the other tracks, it is a song with alot of musical merit... a journey that changes and morphs right before your ears from steady, driven tempos, to rumbling punk-like bass lines,  to near silence interludes full of minimal electronic accents. At the end, it plunges into a stark soundscape and if you listen carefully,  you'll hear a keyboard line that will be repeated with more force in the track
"Something Wrong".

"Number One' starts off with some interesting electronic rumblings that rather remind me of Chewy from StarWars (credit to my child-like imagination).  Whatever it was intended to be, it adds mysterious texture before the song kicks into this fast paced, up beat song. Smart guitar lines drive it and layers of keys in the background fill it. Reminiscent of classic Xymox, its an easily recognizable as one of their songs no matter if you've heard it before or not.

Mournful piano lines open the sad ballad-like "Into Ber Weh." Accented by delicate acoustic guitar and pensive vocals, its easily the most beautiful piece on the CD. However, if I had to chose a favorite track at this point in time, I do believe it would be "The Bitter Sweet" with all its dynamic changes, mysterious tone and perfect fusion of electronics and guitars. It opens with chiming darkness and a bubbling synth line infused with very industrial sounding noise. Ronny's voice announces, "I'm not a savior, I'm not a saint, I'm not an angel who's coming in, I dont believe in anything pure like you do" twice while intricate textured noises come to life in the background. The tempo picks up slightly and then fades into an angelic chorus until the song erupts into a new, faster tempo completely out of the blue. This transition is my absolute favorite part of the song. There's nothing like a good anticipated tempo change on the dance floor for added drama. After being electronic-heavy in the beginning, you get a good dose of guitar midway through the song and the beat continues to drive the song home while melody lines that appeared in the beginning are repeated at this new tempo. What a rush!

"Liberty," the title track to the single we saw previewed last December,  is included here as track number 9. At the time of release, Anthony had written:  " 'Liberty'  is a song that could be interpreted different ways.  " I guess it's gonna be, a question of my sanity - I guess it's gonna be against the heart of liberty."  The things that lie at the " heart of liberty " are the things that keep us sane.  They are our freedoms, however we define them.  There is such an erosion of personal freedom throughout our life, that it leads to real desperation, a sickness of the soul.  We might very well " warm to the thought of being through."  Eternity still remains a veiled promise. "

"Something Wrong" is a fine example of their excellent and forward evolving synth work opening with some heavenly lines before plunging  into a more desperate and sinister melody first heard at the end of "Anguish."  The song moves along at a moderate pace, fusing guitar and bass in here and there and still, that keyboard line sings out in the background - akin to mournful strings, its get louder and louder and finally takes over in a furry of emotion.

Track 11, "Mysterium" was quite an unexpected treat for me and a demonstration of this bands wide ranging talent. Its an dark ambient, instrumental tracks slightly reminiscent of the Murder of Angels project put out on Middle Pillar Presents. Dark and thick in noises and gloomy atmospheres, its primordial ooze, its an industrial wasteland haunted by ghosts from different realities.

The final listed track, "The Same Dream" starts out with a version of that same synth line used in "Something Wrong" and "Anguish" neatly tying this CD together with its thematic inclusion. Sonja Rozenblum provides airy, heavenly backing vocals contrasting against Ronny's smooth voice. The beat is synth-pop in nature making it a prime candidate for the dance clubs while remaining true to its dark nature without getting too "poppy".

In conclusion, Notes from the Underground is a solid 12-song release with no bad apples in the bunch demonstrating once again that Clan of Xymox is one of the leading bands in this genre and one that deserves quite a bit more accolades than it gets. This is the standard other bands should aspire to. This is the marker for excellence from thematic approach, to infusion of organic and electronic elements, to production and presentation. This is quite possibly, the best release I'll hear all year. This is a must have.

Track List:
1.) Innocent
2.) I Want You Now
3.) Internal Darkness
4.) At Your Mercy
5.) Anguish
6.) Number One
7.) Into Ber Weh
8.) The Bitter Sweet
9.) Liberty
10.) Something Wrong
11.) Mysterium
12.) The Same Dream

Clan Of Xymox is Ronny Moorings
Additional vocals by Sonja Rozenblum

Live:
Ronny Moorings: vocals, guitar
Mojca: bass & vocals
Paul Whittlesea: guitar
Denise Dijkstra: keyboards
Rui Ramos: drums

Clan Of Xymox – Official Site:
http://www.clanofxymox.com

Metropolis Records:
http://www.metropolis-records.com