Weekly Post-Punk / Darkwave / Dark Synth Tips – JUNE #26-22
Robin Isely a.k.a. Sliplead
PICKS OF THE WEEK:
- Brighton, UK dark wave /gothic rock /post-punk band The Last Cry – “Fragile Life” final single
The last final chapter for the veteran band from Brighton whose origins date back to the mid-80s, split up at the beginning of the ’90s, and then reformed in the second decade of the new millennium to drop all their 4 full-length albums so far. A vibrant and energetic, but immersive and melodic gothic-rock /darkwave with nuanced dramatic and melancholic tones, always soul-stirring in its poignant, emotive vocality, with the ability to harmonize the classic influences from the 80s in an absolutely cohesive and organic way, adding more and more electronic elements over time, but, at the same time, while constantly nurturing it with a distinctive emotional heft, fully unrestrained, it seems, in their live dimension. “The Last Cry” can’t help but drag in a feverish and intense vortex of dark emotions via echoing piercing guitar riffs and swirling evocative keyboards, to provide the pulsing framework for the storytelling of a painful rebirth through deep-felt impassioned vocals.
- Glasgow post-punk collective (featuring members of The Liquidators and Kaputt), Memorabilia “Act Of Compliance” from “Memorabilia” EP on Future Shock (USA), Gob Nation (EU) and Unwound Records (AUS)
Likened to the doomy atmospherics of The Sister of Mercy, Xmal Deutschland and Chrome by the press release, I would add as well, why not, the scratchy romanticism and raw intensity of fellow 80s Scottish cult band Josef K, the Glasgowian outfit churns out a cold, sinister and gloomy concoction of mechanical rhythms, punchy basslines and edgy and spiky jangly guitar wanderings that chime with poignant sparks, somberly melodic and discordant at the same time, around sullen and downtrodden baritone, to overwhelm with relentless menace and anxiety.
- Malmö, Sweden lo-fi indie rock /post-punk DIY project After A While “Paint it Grey” debut single
Although recorded in a DIY lo-fi attitude, the Malmö band’s debut single, mixing moody Post-punk and dynamic Indie Rock, sounds sharp, crispy and vibrant at the same time, with edgy and excruciating guitars and a serpentine bassline that murmurs forlorn emotions, achingly pulsing in unison with the poetic introspection of urgent and emotive vocals dwelling in an anxious realm of guilt and fear aroused by haunted secrets and painful scars.
- Boulder, Co goth /synthpop /deathrock solo project, Cyrus Dark and the Symbols of Reverence – “Under Your Control” from the debut LP “Flowers for the Mass”
- Albuquerque, New Mexico lo-fi /goth /post-punk /darkwave /coldwave solo project (aka The Endless), Slow Danse With The Dead “Maggots and Worms” single
- England experimental /neo-folk /industrial /post-punk /death-pop group Vukovar “The Sheltering Sky” from the LP “The Body Abdicator” on Other Voices
- L.A. goth coldwave /post-punk project DEATHFAUNA “Divina” single
- Port Hope, Ontario coldwave /synth wave /minimal synth musician Ethan Harman aka ALAN HARMAN “Frontlines II” from “Human Research Program” cassette album on Suction Records sublabel, Ice Machine
- Hungarian synthpop act Post Analog Disorder “Magam Elé Nézek” single
- Sumqayıt, Azerbaijan minimal wave /electronic project Faruq Turan “Busytime” debut single
- Norwegian dreamy electro-pop project featuring Essence Of Mind’s frontman Erlend Eilertsen, LIGHTS A.M “Another Life” from the upcoming new album “Clouds” on Alfa Matrix
- Santiago based, Chilean electronic /new wave /dream pop /synthpop outfit led by Angelo Santa Cruz, AKA Hablemos del Alma “Distracción, Veneno… Dispersión” from the cassette album “Hypnotica” via Poxi Records
- Boston new darkwave /synthwave /electronic music collaboration between longtime conspirators Reuben Bettsak and Bo Barringer (Future Carnivores, Emerald Comets, Guillermo Sexo), EX-HYENA “Tremors” 2nd single from the new album “Moon Reflections” via Hush Club Ltd./Brutal Resonance
- Kyiv, Ukraine lo-fi coldwave /minimal synth /post-punk solo project (Fka Night Excitement), Night Voyager “I’m burning your letters” single
- Minsk, Belarus post-punk /coldwave side project of Nürnberg member Jan Pyatranka, фарфоровые коты [Farforovyekoty] “цепи” from the album “вместе”
- Toronto Post-punk /Darkwave duo Give My Remains to Broadway “Returnal (Skeleton Key)” single
- Toulouse-based, French Coldwave/ Darkwave one-man band August Angst “You’ll Never Know” new single
- French minimal synth /coldwave project by Boris VölT from Rennes, MODE In GliANY “arbenniñ” from “A-skarv” EP
- Athens, Greece experimental dark /minimal wave duo INCIRRINA “Careworn Face” from the upcoming album “Lip Led Scream” on Cold Transmission Music
- Brussels based Synth Wave /Darkwave /Electronic artist Alix Van Ripato “Survive” from the debut album “Red Spells” on Red Maze Records.
- Parisian dark electro cold wave duo Minuit Machine “Lion In A Cage” the first single of Minuit Machine’s upcoming LP to be released on November 4 via Synth Religion
- Paris based, French body music /techno /minimal wave /post-punk act led by Timothée Gainet, POISON POINT “Poisoned Gloves” title track from the upcoming ltd. boxset CD edition LP “Poisoned Gloves”
- Flagstaff, AZ dark electronics /goth /EBM /industrial /synthwave solo project CLOVEN FETE “Interdimensional” from the mini-album “Future Trippin'”
- Chicago, IL EBM /coldwave /darkwave /dark electronic anonymous masked duo NONE OF YOUR CONCERN “Hard Heart” single
- Asheville, NC based industrial /EBM /darkwave /hardtechno, early 90s formed, Latin American act led by Xavier Latorre and Hafid Félix, aka A-tria “Ya no Juegan” from S/T EP
- German EBM /Synthpop collaboration between Armageddon Dildos and Orange Sector, AKA Kanka + Bodewell “Universal Love” from the upcoming debut LP “Herzblut” via Infacted Recordings
- Finnish Dark Synth Pop trio from Helsinki, Ten After Dawn “Circles” single
- German New Wave/ Synth Pop duo SEA OF SIN “Synchronize (The KVB Remix)”
- French Coldwave /Post-punk 3-piece band SINTHOME “Le Boulevard des Allongés” from the debut s/t EP
- Gothenburg, Sweden goth post-punk band Novitjok “Stand under torture” new single
- Guayaquil, Ecuador synth wave solo project Gentx Violentx “Flores” (Single)
- Seattle, Wa based Synthpop /Coldwave /Post-punk /Darkwave solo DIY project Festering Wounds “Ideations” from the debut double LP “Dark Futures in Fluorescent Lights”
- Indianapolis based coldwave /dark post-punk band ANGEL-MAKER “Regret” from the new EP “Spring”
- London based dark synthpop project led by Alessio Croe (former lead vocalist for Italian post-punk band In Loving Memory), My Hysteria “Pacific” single
- Katowice, Poland experimental /folk /synth wave /post-punk band wędrowcy~tułacze~zbiegi “Pierwsza siostra” from the new EP “Trzy Siostry”
- Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia Indie /new wave /post-punk band Teresa In The Moon “Silent House” single
- Brussels, Belgium romantic post-punk band Factheory – “Got You (OK Lion! Remix)”
- Los Angeles based darkwave duo IT SPOKE IN TONGUES “1800° F” title track from the debut EP “1800° F”
- Detroit, Mi gothic rock /electronic /darkwave /deathgaze duo VAZUM “Angel” (Single).
- Chicago‘s post-punk /dark wave band BLEACHED CROSS “Mercy” from the debut s/t album on Protagonist Music
- Udine, Italy synth wave duo Sun’s Spectrum “Hotel Dream” single
- L.A. goth /darkwave /post-punk duo Tsaffire “Hades” single
- Colombian darkwave /post-punk band Insepulto “Aversión” (Single)
- Lisbon-based Glam Synth-Punk Darkwave/ Electro-Rock duo of Su Eko and Harris Iveson, VELVET KILLS – “Spellbound” from V/A “Icon – Tribute to Siouxsie and the Banshees” compilation album
- Darmstadt, Germany‘s Synth Wave /Dark Wave trio DELTΔ KOMPLEX “Empty Souls” from the vinyl 12″ debut album “Veils” on Unterschall
- Athens, GA deathrock/ post-punk project Tears for ʇhe Dying “Wouldn’t it be Funny” from “Eyes Wide Open in the Dark” EP.
- Spokane, Wa darkwave /goth rock band Cruel Velvet “Dedalus” single
- Seattle, Wa goth /darkwave /post-punk band Neuroprison “Solid Water (feat. Kat Fox)” from the new s/t album
- French Shoegaze /Coldwave / Post-Punk trio from Paris, FTR “White Light” from upcoming third LP “Vicky Vivid Experience”
- One man Post-Punk project out of Germany, ANOTHER ABYSS “Nothing Remains” new single
- Costa Rica new wave/post-punk band from San Josè, CAIDAS LIBRES “Cansancio” from the new EP “Sangre”
- New York based dreamy post-punk band, Spirits of Leo “Solaris” from the upcoming cassette LP “Gossamer Blue” via à La Carte Records
- Cincinnati, Ohio dream-pop/ post-punk/ shoegaze solo project of John Paul Wang, DEEP//FAKE “Gray Matters” from the debut S//T EP
- Spanish post-punk /shoegaze /darkwave solo project OSCURIDAD ROMÁNTICO “She Went Away”
- Cologne, Germany post-punk solo artist Ädwud “Magnolia” from 3-track EP
- Barnaul, Russia lo-fi /new wave /post-punk outfit, юность-1201 [yunost-1201] “Тоска” third single.
- Salonika, Greece gothic rock/ post-punk band formed in 2010, Remain in Light “Crossing Heavy Seas” from the new 4th album “ANOSOGNOSIA”
- New York goth /industrial /electronic /darkwave solo project Deather “Sleep” from the single “Sleep / Sick”.
