Dance With The Dead "Dark Matter" (2024)

 

Synthwave aces Dance With The Dead return again with a tight six track EP. Dark Matter strikes firm and fast, dialing in a two pronged approach to sell its concept. Subduing their ever powerful synths, mid-tempo Industrial Metal guitars step into the limelight. Rocking easy grooves on cushioned distortions, a Familiar breed of Metal manifests, akin to the likes of Gothminister and European contemporaries.

The other angle is collaborative, working with a unique band, like Gunship, or singer on each track. The result? A conforming twist of the arm that has their songs yielding to simple song writing oriented around the verse chorus structure. Vocally, Kat Von D resonates sublimely with a solid helping of reverb on her dreamy chorus hook.

Dark Matter starts strong with Cold As Hell and Neon Cross rocking hard grooves around a whirl of nightly neon synth melodies. The instrumentals then tame, toning down, before finding an ironic peak at the records conclusion, its one vocal-less song hitting the hardest. Rust pounds its rhythm guitar chugs and dense synths in unison.

Cole Rolland then lavishes us in one blazing guitar solo after another, a sweet matching of styles, complimenting well and making for a memorable conclusion as he shreds through so many inspired techniques. A roaring end to a brief record that falls shy of a big impact yet is commendable for its stride to be different through the interesting collaborations offered.

Rating: 5/10

Gothminister "Pandemonium II: The Battle Of The Underworlds" (2024)

 

Excitement swiftly squashed, another cast iron installment diminishes my faith once again. In retrospect, my expectations were unreasonable, considering this is a direct follow up to Pandemonium. Unable to grow past this Gothic symphonic Trance fusion with Rammstein style Industrial Metal, Gothminister recycles their blueprint with even less pizzazz than usual. Scenic interludes play underwhelming, attempting to raise theatrical stake yet any deviation from the tested formula sadly felt stale.

 The word of the record is "we". More so than ever, this perspective illuminates itself, a Gothic horror inspired realm of witches, demons, ghouls, zombies and monsters of the underworld. These flag waving war cries paint a protagonist's voice for these unsavory beings, rallying them together in the shadows. Its fun but at this point driven into the ground. Repeated lyrical cadences and thematic stagnation churn the whole anthemic angle into rigmoral, as track after tracks repeats itself with little new to offer.

When bands fail to evolve, they run the risk of writing themselves into a corner. It's a shame, a few albums back they hit a nerve. That spark is lost. Every song here lingers in its shadow, saying nothing new and often making you feel a sense of Deja-Vu.

Rating: 4/10

Sierra "A Story Of Anger" (2023)

 

Introduced via a collaboration with Health, this French artist fits snugly into the dark electronic music I've been exploring of late. Not fully Synthwave, Aggro-tech or Electro-Industrial, Sierra rests in an inviting middle-ground. With brooding tones, she embarks on gloomy venture through moody indulgences broken up by bursts of dance adjacent energetic movement. Her voice is quite underwhelming, a half spoken presence muttering musings under her breath, occasionally mustering strength of presence. Soft and pleasant, it gets by but lets the focus fall on the instrumentals.

These virtual synths deliver snappy oscillated wave forms in range. From buzzing baselines to jittering melodies, an angular intensity lands these crisp arrangements fit for dystopian night life. Percussion is tight, hard thuds groove off claps and snares, always titled with an Industrial texture. Airy atmospheric synths drift in the gaps of these plucky arrangements, levers that can be dialed for the required direction.

As an album, its a fair listen, an overcast tone is set and explored but nothing much leaps of the page. With exception to Power, a collaboration with Carpenter Brut's who's excellence shines again. Bring about some urgency, sizzling melodies play off background sirens with sinister satisfaction. The albums best track, no doubts.

Rating: 5/10

Mega Drive "Arc Ascension" (2023)

With a brief chance to catch my attention, distinct dazzling synths with a certain glossy sparkle about them allured me in. Also present in other tracks, a few of its various VST tones come polished with ludicrous cleanliness. It increases a familiar sense of high octane production within the Synthwave niche. This approach steps up game again, refining aesthetic edges but in conclusion probably not offering anything new.

Typical themes and moods evoking the glow of neon lit cities, thrill seeking vehicle speeds and the underworld night life are stirred competently among dense compositing. Jostling among a dense web of busy synths, each track offers up a smothering plunge of pulsing sounds. I ended up falling to its cruising atmosphere as a ceaseless energy drives the music along, best felt on title track Arc Ascension.

It offers a few slower tempo cuts too, often home to big bass and thumping kicks as the mood turns to a darker leaning. Shadow Dancer stood out for its tropical synth selection and unusual percussive drive. A welcome change of pace but stirs little beyond its initial mood as these compositions tend to rotate and interchange its assembly of melodies, lacking progression or sense of destination beyond identity.

Rating: 6/10

Gothminister "Pandemonium" (2022)

 

With age comes a diminishing pace. Now five years apart from The Other Side, Gothminister makes a meager return. Seemingly stuck in their ways, this seventh outing suffers its own lack of inspiration. Pandemonium breeds business as usual. A deck of songs, recycling their Gothic brooding theatrics, still tinged with clubbing Synthwave aesthetics and built on the triumphant march of chunky Industrial Metal.

Guitar leads brazenly assail stomping power chords chugging below, a militant syncopation by the rhythm section. With darkly drive, each song lunges forth with a cadence Bjørn Brem has performed before. Lyrical themes echo past musing of outsiders embattled against all odds. Both sentiment and delivery fit an unchanged mold. Lined by rhythmically oscillated synths, both aesthetic and music is expectant.

Getting off to a rocky start, Pandemonium's opening title track toys with an experimentation. The percussion drops convention in favor of unsettled grooves, attempting polyrhythms but seemingly out of step with the rest of this music. Its an odd impression for a record that has absolutely nothing new up its sleeves. Despite being of my liking, a lack of anything fresh lands this one as a disappointment. Although its a fair execution of the Gothminister sound, I'm left with little reason to return again.

Rating: 5/10

Abstract Void "Wishdream" (2021)

 

 

Venturing further into the union of Synthwave and Black Metal, we find elevated production aesthetics that I'm not entirely sure aids the experience. My main gripe is with the vocals. On Back To Reality they served as an incessant groan, elongated barks of discernible noise. Not as intrusive, Wishdream's strides for clarity has the shouts and blemishes of ambitious drum programming break the illusion on occasion.

Otherwise Its a similar animated experience again with little to comment on in terms of progression and direction, its another seven tracks of nighttime adventure taking periodic plunges into the abyss. Glossy, luminous synths and flickering melodies eventually give way to metallic grooves. Dense distortion guitars are notably reserved, leaving much of the colorful charm with its energetic key arrangements.

 

Each song blazes along with similar arpeggio melodies and sharp synth oscillations. A few keyboard solos give some context to direction but rarely does the attempts to break the mold feel gratifying. Beyond the appeal of this union of opposing style, Abstract Void doesn't quite land on anything deeper with this next chapter, even though there is potential. Wishdream essentially serves as more of the same, fitting for the right mood but rarely breaking ones attention with its ambitions.

 

Rating: 6/10

Tamaryn "Dreaming The Dark" (2019)

  

Embarking on a forth of four records, Tamaryn's linage becomes crystal clear. From her patchy embryonic origins, The Waves roots in Shoegazing noise steadily blossomed. Culminating with an arrival of infectious Synthpop suggestions on Cranekiss, Dreaming The Dark is a natural conclusion. Steered away from ethereal ambiguities and dense guitar textures, this record lands firmly on the catchy synth driven sound of 80s. As a retroactive sound, it embraces all the glories of modern production, carving ear worms with courageous singing and jiving keyboard melodies.

Angels Of Sweat roars out the gate with an empowered stride, setting a striking tone. Soaring vocals scale the octaves, animated with emotion as Tamaryn lends her words to wild hooky inflections. Hard hitting saw waves bustle and punchy percussive rhythms rock to form a united front, executing this fantastic song writing boldly.

As great records do, Dreaming The Dark explores temperament and mood narrowed to nightly vibes. The shadowy allure of melodies shimmering in cold resonance broods. Stiff drum patterns loop, charging vivid synth leads with a subtle curation of hazy steel guitars in the backdrop. Its a key chemistry, chaining Tamaryn's energetic, upbeat presence. Leading her through shrouded, dreamy drifts into darker spaces.

On occasional, this spell is broken. Victim Complex amps up bold synths, jiving hard on a vibe. Her singing explores a multitude of catchy deliveries, the chorus erupting with charisma. The Jealous Kind hits a similar cheery tone while offering a broody plunge between its bright lead melodies. Another song of note, possibly the records best, is Path To Love. Possessing a beautiful instrumental chemistry, a duet with a brief male counterpart gives it another riveting flavor that gels smoothly.

Dreaming The Dark reshapes the best attributes of 80s Synthpop into its glorious dreamy sway. Tamaryn swoons on a high, backed by a contrast of bright, cheerful infection and hazy Ethereal wonder. It hangs in a cunning balance. When locked in by grasp, the record feels reminiscent to the sways of classics like Black Celebration. Yet in its latter half, a couple songs loose pacing, finding a lull. Otherwise this would of been near flawless. One to come back to again in the years to come for sure!

Rating: 8/10

Abstract Void "Back To Reality" (2018)

 

What do we have here? A Synthwave and Black Metal crossover. Is this possible? Anything in music is but that doesn't always lead to success. In the case of Abstract Void this union of styles is slick and smooth, a luscious mix of glossy synths, dense guitars and distant shrill screams. Together, they steer Dance grooves into aggressive plunges as Back To Reality gradually layers on the intensity in its opening stretch.

The atypical night life, neon light vibes finds its balance with an atmospheric approach to Black Metal where slow, lunging Shoegazing melodies bridge the gap in composition. Percussion steers the music into its extremes as drum patterns rattle into blast beats and the like. Consistently emanating dazzling melodies from the layered keys, each song has quite a luminous presence. Glistening in its well crafted resonance, they venture to emotive the grandiose with its epic scaling melodies. Very satisfying.

The harsh yet muzzled screams feel like an afterthought. With such synthetic vibrancy steering the musics mood, the vocals arrive like discernible blocks of noise barely contributing to anything rhythmic. Its a minor blemish of wonderful chemistry that does feel somewhat obvious in retrospect. Although a brilliant union of distant realms, its played down the middle, nothing unique or unheard emerges as a consequence. With a little more adventurous spirit this could of traversed new terrain but to these aged ears it mostly resonated with solid ideas heard many a time before.

Rating: 7/10

Carpenter Brut "Leather Terror" (2022)

 

Its gritty and grisly, a leather clad clenched fist, the blood stained blade and lack of face to identify this anonymous gruesome demeanor... An apt fit for the nightly wailing music that awaits. Sticking firmly by an established, yet darker Synthwave aesthetic, Leather Terror gets pulled on the dusky, nefarious path as sinister symphonic themes and bouts of pounding aggression permeate the overarching mood on this outing.

I'll admit, engagement dwindled. Quite often is cruise control engaged. Sharp pulsing kick snare grooves crusade over devilish synths that hit hard with intense tones and gruesome half melodies hinged on deep groaning textures. They recycle and strike on a similar vein. This string of songs sways between a dread driven demeanor, then contrasted with typical 80s, upbeat Synthpop. Sometimes its thematic transition are jarring, if not for instrumental consistency but the writing reveals itself.

This record is a notably more collaborative project. Ulver returns again for another sublime union on lofty moment of calm. Gunship, Greg Puciato, Persha and Sylvaine led their vocal chords too. Unlike previous mixed results, they all gel well with the song writing vision. The musics power gets by on instrumentals alone but Leather Terror has its harmonious voices in the balance. Interestingly, its conclusive track goes Metal with Jonka bringing both terrifying ghoulish screams and full on metallic drumming to the mix. Its an interesting genre crossroads. Haunting organs fuse the two in a fiery contentious conclusion, by an artist inching closer towards infernal damnation.

 Rating: 6/10

Carpenter Brut "Trilogy" (2015)

 

Stead and with patience, Ive been enjoying this lengthy eight minute juggernaut known as Trilogy for some months now. When first recommended the debut album by Carpenter Brut, surely a nod to John Carpenter? I was taken aback by the sheer volume of listeners visible on Spotify. To my limited knowledge, this might just be the biggest artist in the retroactive world of Synthwave? That was excuse alone to invite me in. My caution however, came as a result of fatigue. The genre had established its identity swiftly and now an army of adoring clones has been ushered in, emulating the sound and its tropes to a point where the music can feel stale. At least to this listener.

It took time, but with repetition, then familiarity, the class of these compositions emerged with gleam. Frankly, there is a thematic horror on offer that goes beyond the typical synth tones and nostalgic electricity of Synthwave. Energized baselines prop up steady dance floor grooves for a body moveable warmth to be found in every track, as excursions into the nightly mystique unravel. Often spearheaded by its more extravagant and experiment worbling synths, Brut cracks open whats possible with these dense oscillations on more than one occasion. These moments expand on the mood, with theatrics and noise manipulation turning tunes with twisted expressions.

After a handful of tracks, starting specifically with Roller Mobster, intensity amplifies and the execution tightens up. Although the following music explores temperaments and scenic passages more chilled and cautious, its synthetic instruments arrive with gloss and glaze, a slick polish for its liveliness. The density and weight is stunning as rapid pulses of jittering melodies dance macabre atop its dark thumping percussion. Many instruments interchange, taking center stage , giving voice to the cyber dystopian atmospheres conjured. Trilogy is truly is a wild ride through the neon lit night life of cities but Brut's music takes us much further than the established tropes.

A sense of horror and spectacle permeates as each song finds its avenue. To be fair, they are not to distant from one another but they find a character. At its end, Anarchy Road introduces a one of vocal performance to lukewarm reception. I'm uncertain of Brut's singing. Neither good or bad, the voice is simply present with little in the way of power or persuasion. He sounds like a softer Ulver, waging in meekly. The music so works so well its hard to imagine a voice bringing much more to the table but that wasn't it. Anyways, my conclusion? One of the classiest Synthwave records I've heard. Trilogy is solid front to back and surpasses any tiring that clones brought along.

Rating: 8/10

Dance With The Dead "Driven To Madness" (2022)

 

With several years passed since my plunge into Dance With The Dead's albums, this lively return, polished of with an aesthetic upgrade, has re-invigorated my interest in the band. Bolstering their metallic adjacent temperament with brimming distortion guitars and equally aggressive synths, the duo pivot musically to something akin to a breed of Synth-Metal where the horror inspired Retrowave aesthetic meets modern Metal song structures and metallic themes in somewhat of a perfection union.

This charge of ten songs is kicked of by a symphonic horror treat as John Carpenter lends his classic theme melody style to the opening March Of The Dead. The record then shifts into gear, stomping down with chunky aggressive grooves, interwoven by stylish, creepy movie inspired synth melodies. At times it embodies an Industrial Metal temperament, reminiscent of Rammstein in places. This aided greatly by its gorgeous instrumental textures that make the music a pleasure on two fronts.

With crystal clear instruments churning away in this superb production, one will pick out favorites among the grooves and melodies but one thing feels strikingly absent, vocals! Somewhere early on there was a soft choral choir voicing used but other than that its a wordless affair that I felt really needed a persona up front to guide its verse chorus structures. As someone who isn't all to captivated by lyrics it was peculiar to feel its absence. With compositions being recycled and only the occasional guitar solo to give it a voice, I could really see a commanding presence at the front elevating the songs. Other than that, this was a much better execution of everything they had striven for in the past, at least to my semi critical ears!

Rating: 6/10

Hexenkraft "Gravity And Impact Volume I" (2021)

 

Within exception to the fifth of five tracks, this brief EP of two minute songs is quite the departure from the dark Synthwave sound Hexenkraft is known for. Still keeping its sense of diabolic mischief intact, the music pivots to a meld of momentous electronic aesthetic percussion and world building cinematic instrumentation. These brief encounters feel like an exploration into territory Ive heard with other artists before hand, an ambitious overlap between classical instrumentation, cinematic scores and lively yet ambiguous electronic production. The orchestration on Omega Arcane a keen memory of a style and feeling not to dissimilar from this one.

Retaining a little of its outer space evil chills, these compositions are grounded to earth by bold string sections, swells of horns and sprinklings of warm human melody. It feels at odds with its busy web of percussive noise that tend to equal the surges of sound its counterpart directs. The chemistry is just right, the two play off one another with tension and theatrics as the music ebbs and flows in a state of constant unrest. Quite the impressive step forward with more vision and image than melody or groove.

Its final song Light Of The Champion abridges the past with its arpeggio base synths and bright synthetic leads. With cheesy 80s synth tom drums it playing right into the Synthwave trope with not much of a connection to the chemistry heard in the four songs before. Perhaps it was the song that kicked off this new direction. Although brief in duration, this EP shows quite a matured evolution that I look forward to hearing more of in part two!

Rating: 4/10

Dynatron "Origins" (2021)

 

Home to Dan Terminus, Irreversible Mechanism & Chaos Moon, Blood Music has been a great spot to pick up music I know I'll enjoy. With the label offering up a new, sleek, nightly Synthwave album, I felt lured in for another round with a style I now know well. Origins doesn't offer up any surprises for this listener but serves as a masterful execution of ideas and aesthetics I'm fond of. New to Dynatron, this one man band and producer is fondly reminiscent of Oscillotron, Contact and Grimrik.

And with familiarity and the easy pace of this record, it very much becomes background music, distilling with its stylish cool atmosphere, free of worry and tension. As the percussion pounds with its rock steady marching groove, one breezes through the night lights with that common feeling of being safe in a warm automobile watching the passing lights go by. The synths are gorgeous, pristine and lush, they muster the power of the saw wave's gusto yet glide smoothly throughout this experience.

A surprise awaits in the opening as deep, dense and gristly distortion guitars add a thick wall of gravity to the mix with their lumbering chugging between drawn out power chords. The idea isn't revisited again as much of the albums focus shifts to ideas its brighter, bold melodic leads evoke. They play dazzling melodies with a progressive flair to them, its what reminded me most of the aforementioned Contact.

And so the nine tracks whirl by with their particular identities somewhat suppressed by the consistent tone and perpetual pounding of snare and base kick. It flirts with darkly distortion, textural noises that add some ambiguity. Its lead instruments steer a little alien, inhuman, cosmic and mischievous in places but never does it lean to hard on any of these details. Its all easy listening, night life Synthwave, executed stunningly but a tad underwhelming in its inability to escape the rich atmosphere it locks into.

Rating: 6/10

Offermose "Stilhedens Tårn" (2020)

 

The journey continues, as it always does, now I find myself floundering blindly into a new scene. So familiar, yet built on a different tonality. The engulfing spells of Dark Ambient and nostalgic mystique of Dungeon Synth, channeled through shivering soundscapes, find a convergence on classic synth sounds resurrected from decades gone by. Known as Berlin School, my introduction has come through a musical darkness which I adore. Arcanist was my first and now I'm unearthing more of these broody plunges into the shadowy realms. Hinged on electronic tones, keys and modern conventions that are more often seen as fun and entertaining synthetic instruments than ones to conjure the eerie and ambiguous as Offermose does here.

With all that said, Stilhedens Tårn and its six chapters use this electronic force sparingly, acting more as atmospheric conjurings that journey somberly and morph into satisfying, driving swells of emotion. The haunting whirl of winds, unsettling ambiences and rustling sounds of nature nestle a rich sound design for its synths to bring haunting drones and chilling melodies too. The whole affair feels organic and natural as its potentially pristine synths are dressed down with an aesthetic tarnishing to ground the music in an earthly feeling. It does come in degrees though, Sjælens Ruin finds itself morphed midway by tight synth arrangements, playing out woven around a steady and simple percussive groove of snare and bass kick.

Much of this record lingers on an ambiguous spot, lonely yet beautiful. Meditative and broody but never drifting to far to the bleak, its poise hints at something devious with discernible human voices creeping into the backdrop on occasion. It all unravels with Tvillingeflamme as the pains of a despairing voice are muffled under a sinister vampiric synth. The arrival of a demonic voice and sounds of strikes paints a torturous scene in the imagination as the flame of the song flickers out with a funeral macabre air to it. A stunning way to seal off a wandering set of mysterious musical spells.

Rating 7/10

Erang "Prisonnier Du Rêve" (2021)

 

Its album number nineteen for Erang! A release that arrives with a drastic stylistic shift, the first to truly shed the Dungeon Synth and Fantasy origins. Heading for a new adventure in the realms of electronic nostalgia, the pallet of instruments migrates to buzz saws, sine waves and all manor of oscillating synths to house a familiar sense of composition and melody. Initially starting out with a chirpy and upbeat vibes of childhood wonder, Machine Humanoïde reels the mood in towards familiar darkly Synthwave vibes of Anti Future and Songs Of Scars for just a few tracks. Its presentation and promotion, all conducted in native French, plays into the albums narration, a mischievous voice narrating the twists and turns that come about with each song. Of course as linguistic illiterate, this is just my interpretation.

With a more familiar middle, its start and end sections jostle melodies in such a predictable way that I almost want to abstain from opinion. The shift in pallet doesn't drift far enough for a surprise. Being this deep into the French musicians discography, there is little that of the chord progressions, arpeggios and general notation that feels fresh or unexpected. The production style also leaves little out of focus. With all its instruments and percussion crisp and clear, the textures of big bustling old-school synth waves overpower the focus and rather quickly does it overstay its welcome. Its a nostalgic affair for old school synth and early electronic music with spacey overtones. It doesn't always click when dealing with and aesthetic heard many times before.

That being said, Erang always has vision and intent. Emotion is ripe and present as one feels the realm they carve out for themselves. For me, C'était Demain and Demain Les Mondes ride the basics a little to hard on bare bones compositions where as L'avenir Et La Mer and Passage land the ending well scenic and soundscape alike compositions weaving between the melody led strides. Ultimately I've enjoyed Prisonnier Du Rêve for being what I like about this musician but the artistic stride for something new and different feels only knee deep this time around.

Rating: 5/10

Hexenkraft "Deep Space Invocations: Volume II" (2021)

 

Being rather fond of this Doom adjacent darkly Synthwave ride into the depths of hell, I thought I'd give some time to this new two track EP, having now built up an itch for the ever delayed full length debut Permadeth set to arrive some time in the future. Unlike Volume I its cuts are half the length but twice as intense, taking a massive influence from the Doom Eternal soundtrack. Gone are the acoustic guitars, soft strings and general meandering to the unsettling quiet of space and nature. These songs ride percussive strikes and dense wave synths to the edge of oblivion as danger lurks nearby. Its breaks for respites always pull one back into the action like a force of gravity. Its synthetic edge bleeds the lines between tone and force as it ebbs and flows in rhythm and shimmers of melody as notation whirls in its dark frenzy. Its always intense, like a spree of action with moments to catch your breath, knowing you've got to do it all over again.

Its reminiscence of Doom Eternal is uncanny. Although devoid of big chunky Djent guitars, its follows many of the same tropes and tricks to create a hellish synth atmosphere for action and carnage in other worldly environments. Track two, Devastated, feels like a guilty partner for its blaring siren like buzz saw cutting in and out of focus like a heart attack. Going purely off of memory, this is either a lifted idea from the Doom soundtrack or a brilliantly crafted inspiration that would also fit sweetly into the games audio, which in turn complimented the gaming experience massively. These are two of Hexenkraft's best executed songs, yet closely ride the curtails of another beast. Most important though, they are fun, engrossing and immersive even if short lived in the eight minute runtime. Its craft is focused and doesn't need to go beyond its means, unlike its predecessor which felt as if it had room for something more.

Rating: 4/10

Dan Terminus "Last Call For All Passengers" (2020)

 

 Its been a few years since I last checked in with the French musician Dan Terminus. Back then the Synthwave scene was still emerging and this darker flavor caught my ear. With only a few songs making marks, much of those early records have faded from memory. This particular niche in Electronic music is one that I feel often doesn't go far enough with many of the artists clinging close to the pillars of aesthetics that define it. Much of that applies again on Last Call For All Passengers, however its opening cuts aim for something with more of a percussive drive that is present throughout but makes itself known fresh out of the gate.

Kicking off with Oubliette, big slabs of meaty synthetic buzzing slam into the fray as baselines following its opening arpeggio. A harsh slapping snare drum, hollow kicks and snappy cymbals pound away giving structure to the choppy shuffling of hard hitting virtual instruments that dance between with a subtle reminder of those old jolting Dubstep drops. There is a whiff of something in the air, track two's opening melody and sense of groove confirms beyond doubt, The Prodigy have had an obvious influencing hand, pushing the John Carpenter Synthwave sound into club territory.

Its two persuasions don't add up for me. The dazzle of glossed up melodies, spearheading a spirit of pedal to the metal night life, rubs right up against the harsh deployments of hard edged synths and an Industrial like, colorless approach to their timely union with the thumping drum arrangements. It often plays with that loud quiet dynamic, yet the two don't compliment one another. An atmosphere conjured with one hand, is often smashed by the shift in temperament to grooves that don't feel all to fresh in the face of whats come beforehand.

On the aesthetic front its production is hard and crowded, often cramming sound in for the loudness effect. The grittier sound of its drums could do with some polish too. Its a game of contrasts that doesn't pay off. Many of these songs are embellished with layers of synths, oozing in slick textures that conjure visions of cybernetic cities from a dystopian future. They work in tandem, moving in directions and illuminating the neon glow but often thwarted by this return to a club floor banger mentality. That unfortunately dispels any magic for me and leaves this one feeling like an arrangement looking better on paper than in execution.

Rating: 4/10

Hexenkraft "The Infernal Schism" (2017)

The Infernal Schism is the second mini album from Synthwave outfit Hexenkraft. Its a pivot from the genres tropes to a far more fitting direction. The diabolical theme, present in name, presentation and sound, finds a different temperament across its five tracks. The pulsating, energetic, oscillating synths are deployed at a steady pace with a target on atmosphere and scale, as opposed to high octane onslaught that came before. Gone are the driving, thudding kicks and cutting snares of club EDM beats. Now the drum patterns utilize space as a weapon, casting a bare framework to build percussive tangents out of, many of which are rather gaudy and unsatisfying given the pallet of sounds. Clinging to them, a swirl of unraveling synths, buzzing and phasing across the soundscape. Loose forms of melodies drop in and out of focus and occasionally some heights are scaled by lead synths playing out a form of nightly adventurous solo. There is even an actual distortion guitar solo stashed in here too.

Despite this pivotal move to a steady, brooding beast, the same problems plague the music. Its overselling of the theme leaves a couple tracks out of color. It does however conjure streaks of gusto as its components align with a sinister presence, the likes found from the comfort of a video game. The final track gets fired up with aid from heretic samples. After its opening phase the song lulls with suspense as its synths steadily build to the unleashing of some chunky Industrial Metal style guitar emulating tones. Its got Metal fever and energy to match, a big bow out for a rather mediocre project. A lot of the record is meandering and without conclusion of direction. The occasional Doom snippets muster some excitement but unless in the right mood, often as background music, it doesn't hold up so well. It would however make a fantastic game soundtrack. Music like this often does and If I had gotten into it charging down corridors of a demon infested mars base, blasting weapons at beastly creatures, I'm sure id love it. Its a fair grade better than the debut, the shift in direction a fitting one but there is still a long way for this project to go in my opinion.

Favorite Track: Diabolus Ex Nihilo

Rating: 5/10

Hexenkraft "Hexenkraft" (2016)

With the discovery of Hexenkraft Ive stumbled upon one musicans diabolical answer to the retro inspired Synthwave scene. The music already tends to lean towards shadows given its origins in 80s Horror through the soundtracks of John Carpenter. Dance With The Dead embody that spirit and others like Dan Terminus takes it in a night life, cyber punk direction. This project however takes a clear inspiration from video game Doom with its satanic iconography and similarities to the soundtrack.

Its "evil" inspiration is far more thematic than felt, the record deploys no low fidelity ambiguity, wretched screaming or ripping guitars. It turns in the opposite direction, its synths cut hard buzz saw waves with instantaneous attacks and minimal decays for harsh envelopes to deliver a punchy, snappy, high octane experience of electronics. It initially turned me off, the aesthetics came across sterile and clinical but through its construct does emerge a sense of atmosphere and partially devilish semantics.

 The music has a core of firm tempo drum patterns that rattle off slick, hard, thumping percussive aesthetics over a triad or more of basslines. They groove in the form of razor sharp waves toting dexterous, textural oscillations off one another. Its a driving force in the low range that leaves room for its lead synths to queue in the melody and direction in the spaces above. Once again its achieved with slick and pristine wave forms, often transitioning through some form of phase effect on its journey.

The Hexenkraft name and evil intention is a little overplayed in comparison to the musics tone. Its final of four tracks does strike a nerve with an audio sample, probably from a horror movie. Two figures exchang dialog of diabolic inspiration and the ferocity of the possessed individuals voice brings a menace and danger the instrumentals don't muster on their own. Its been a fun listen but the name and nefarious artwork oversells itself in comparison to what other artists have done with this theme.

Favorite Track: Inspirati A Diabolo

Rating: 4/10

The Lion's Daughter "Future Cult" (2018)

With every listen Future Cult has crept deeper into the conscious, its harsh iterations of Extreme Metal and obvious synthetic experiments have yielded charm in their familiarity. What was initially a wretched experiment of clashing styles found its territory as the repetitions revealed the chemistry that's not so always apparent. The Missouri based Black Metal outfit jump the bandwagon and fuse elements of Synthwave and this surge of interest in Carpenter horror soundtrack aesthetics.

The band have a harsh aesthetic, readily reliant on the pummel of blast beats and angular discordant guitars, commanded by the flat and narrows shouts of singer Giordano. The best bits emerge from the moments between when intensities wavier and so its harshness serves as that root into extremity it frequently turns too as the music drops in and out of its anger. In these fluctuations the trio prime the atmosphere for the music to break to its more meaningful and progressive passageways which give most the songs here conclusive moments of dark illumination.

The retro synths would fit sweetly into a 80s horror soundtrack but not so much in the case of this mid paced metallic pounding. Instead of sacrificing their harsh and assaulting aesthetic and jagged music to fit the synths in, the three let them rub upside. The clash is obvious yet the charm is in progression, how the music finds its way to more cohesion, the brutality sways into chemistry and that is their sweet spot.

The introduction to The Gown highlights this chemistry as the dialed down guitar tones work with the synths through an initially percussion less instrumental in perfect tandem. The texture and atmosphere oozes over the warm, burly baseline. As the record stretches on a couple of tracks cop out of the experiment with the synths being pushed deep to layers of grit and fuzz heard in the creeks between thick distortion chords. The do however remain as solid songs in the run time.

There is definitely something to be done with these two styles. The Lion's Daughter have dipped their toes in and proved the waters warm. However my take away from this record is their musicianship, more so than the aesthetics that often feel rigid and raw. The synths could easily be swapped out for guitars and retain the same atmosphere as I felt their dark avenue is what shinned more so that the Carpenter accent. I hope they continue on this path and push the fusion further.

Favorite Tracks: Future Cult, Call The Midnight Animal, Die Into Us, The Gown, Grease Infant, Galaxy Ripper
Rating: 8/10