Saturday, April 30, 2011
Pleiadians - I.F.O. (Identified Flying Object)
In the same light as Hallucinogen's classic album, Twisted, Pleiadians' I.F.O (Identified Flying Object) rockets into space with constant flurries of synthesizers. Absolutely intense but never overbearing, delicious melodies intertwine with the complex, dizzying electronics. Don't take my word for it though, check out a track!
You're in for a wild ride.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Above & Beyond - Tri State
It's difficult to find truly excellent trance music; the stuff you'll find in dance clubs and the radio is unintelligent, blatant, and much too quick (not all the time, obviously, but you get the picture). The idea is that if they can cover up their flaws with louder sounds and a crapload of guest vocalists, no one will be wiser. Well, that formula gets old real fast. If you want something better from the genre, check out Tri State. This album enthralls with glorious atmospherics and brilliant synthesizers, the kind that actually stay with you. Perhaps it's not as instant as some trance, but the end result is trance that's actually worth taking the time to listen to. Check it out!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Telemetrik - My Lightyear
So tell me, and be honest: How cool is your city? Pretty cool? Well, I hate to break it down to you, but your city hasn’t got anything on Rouge City. Period.
What is Rouge City you ask? It’s only the best track from Telemetrik’s album: My Lightyear. His light year. How awesome would it be to own a light year? Not as awesome as owning this album, let me tell you. It’s essentially drum and bass, but it’s so much more than that. It’s not “dirty” drum and bass, but don’t you run away just yet you dammed purists! It’s more melodic and accessible, yet it stays with you for a long time.
If you are new to drum and bass, get it. If you are a seasoned veteran, get it. If you are a deaf hobo with nothing to lose but a heart of gold, you better get it or else I’m selling your vital organs.
So check this out and put your city to shame:
Amazing, right? Now move to a better city.
KMFDM - WTF? (2011)
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Santa Hates You - Rocket Heart
Santa Hates You is a sketchy group, but they always bring the laughs, creeps, and beats. Equally freaky and funny, the band knows how to draw the line between being humorous and being smart. Describing their music as "juicy electronic-gothic-industrial", Santa Hates You combines fun beats and synthesizers with minimal extras, yet retain a freaky sense. The group prefers the dark side of electro, and you can bet that this results in some super catchy songs.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Here we have it. The famous "The Imperial March" put to dubstep. You can just bet that once the first wob hit, fanboys and nerds everywhere felt a miniature explosion in their nether region. If George Lucas' awful script writing in Attack of the Clones angers you, perhaps some cool, forceful dubstep will simmer you down.
Ulver - War of the Roses (2011)
Shpongle - Ineffable Mysteries From Shpongleland
Yes. Yes. I'd like to teach you about, uh... I'd like to have a talk to you about, uh... school days. School days, yes. Various tortures that they gave me when I went to school.
Assemblage 23 - Failure [2001]
Released: November 13, 2001
One of the greatest things about A23 is that all of his albums are able to stay melodic yet have a very raw atmosphere and production around them. His first few albums demonstrate this feel best, and I must say Failure is probably his strongest album because of this. The last track on this, "King Of Insects" still remains as one of my favourite ebm songs.
Try it
Be My Enemy - Shot By Both Sides
For some reason music in the electronic vein seems to love to fill E.P.'s with remixed tracks, often making me wonder what would an E.P. be like with all new material. UK group Be My Enemy is slightly different with their latest E.P. Shot By Both Sides, having three of the four tracks being new material. While the opening track "Eyes Set To Kill" showcases a more rock influenced sound that meanders into lightly influenced dubstep territory (the band is self described as "a uncompromising energetic fusion of Rave ,Metal ,Techno and Punk") the other three tracks are the real gems of this free release. "Acid Test (Black Sheep Cover)" brings to mind the silliness of Neuroticfish combined with a fast danceable beat, whereas "The Chemical Suite" would fit in The Matrix soundtrack with its prominent guitar and interplaying harsh and soft vocal work. My main complaint with the E.P. is that "Eyes Set To Kill" is no lyrical wonder, actually hurting what could have been a strong if mediocre track. Luckily the band included the remixed version which does away with the horrid repeated lines and provides the listener with six and a half minutes of electronic goodness.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Assemblage 23 - Contempt [1999]
When you think about futurepop, there may be a certain duo that comes to mind: VNV Nation. And while I do not doubt that VNV did coin the "futurepop" label, I do feel as though a certain somebody is always overlooked and that man is Assemblage 23. The one man project consisting of Tom Shear (lyrics & music) really does what the definition of futurepop is: emotional vocals and dance-y arpeggios layered on simple 4/4 beats. Any fan of VNV Nation, Pride And Fall, or Neuroticfish is sure to become a fan of this man. And despite already having 6 studio albums, Assemblage 23 remains as one of the most consistent futurepop acts I've ever heard.
Try it
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Tonikom - The Sniper's Veil
An agent of darkness and variety, Tonikom bestows upon the masses an incredible sophomore release. Run entirely by one of the most attractive women to ever participate in the underground, Tonikom is under the label Hymen Records (which I find incredibly humorous). Her music is a diverse composition which combines drum and bass with IDM, aggrotech, and some dubstep, and is solidified with an immense and glorious sound-scape of dark/avant-garde ambience.
Xpq-21
In honor of my favorite (sarcasm) holiday I thought I'd share one of the bands that I love even though they are relatively new to my collection. Xpq-21 is from Germany and mixes together many genres (industrial, techno, some trance, and gothic) to create some insanely catchy tracks. From their cover of the classic Bauhaus track "Bela Lugosi's Dead" featured on Belle Epoque to the the 8 minute "In Your Eyes" from their limited edition Alive LP, Xpq-21 really have a diverse offering at their disposal. With a plethora of remixes, edits, and guest vocalists on many of the bands tracks there are multiple versions of about everything they have ever done, making it easier for people to find something that they enjoy. The Vampire Freaks Fxxk The Mainstream Compilation version of "Jesus Was Gay" is an example of this, as the track has been remixed specifically for the collection. Overall this is band that fans of many genre's can enjoy, go check them out!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Hirshee - So Good
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Blue Stahli - Blue Stahli (2011)
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Hocico - Cronicas Letales IV [2010]
Released: October 31, 2010
The last chapter in the Cronicas Letales series, but certainly not the last album to be released by Hocico. Part 4 contains the 2004 LP "Wrack and Ruin" plus a rare compilation track. The second disc contains the "Hate Never Dies" remix album along with two tracks from the rare digipak version of "A Traves de Mundos que Arden".
Try it
Namnambulu - Distances
Monday, April 18, 2011
Emalkay - Massive
Hocico - Cronicas Letales III [2010]
Released: October 31, 2010
Part 3 contains Hocico's 2002 "Signos De Aberración" LP plus several tracks from their "Born To Be (Hated)" vinyl, "Disidencia Inquebrantable" EP, "Untold Blasphemies" single and "Born To Be (Hated)" single. Enjoy!
Try it
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Vaski - Storm Chaser
ManufraQture - In Spite
If you can find their first album No Rest For The Wicked give the track "Ready To Face (Violence Machine Remix)" a listen as it is more in the vein of Encephalon's Drowner E.P. Best of luck though, as I have yet to find the track streaming on the Internet.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Subheim "Approach"
A divine and benevolent beauty, Approach will shock and awe even the most sophisticated listener with Subheim's trademark mix of IDM and ambience. Themes of compassion and sorrow underline every melody hidden beneath the textures and patterns that make up the album's complex nature. Each track is more lugubrious than the one before and yet, they each hold an angelic undertone that will have your cathartic experience contrast both, relief and appreciation, as the album ascends your curious mind. Approach carries classical, cinematic and experimental influences which all combine to make one fantastic record. Please enjoy what is, perhaps, one of the greatest atmospheric IDM albums ever to have been composed.
Foetus - Hole
Hocico - Cronicas Letales II [2010]
Released: October 31, 2010
Part 2 of Cronicas Letales features Hocico's second album "Sangre Hirviente" from 1999 as well as the 2000 mini-album "Aqui Y Ahora en el Silencio" and five rare tracks from long-deleted compilations. Enjoy!
Try it
Benn Jordan - Pale Blue Dot
Benn Jordan is best known for his solo work under the moniker of The Flashbulb, but fewer may have heard of his space ambient album, Pale Blue Dot. A complete escape from his typically eclectic music, the album showcases a serene, introspective side, that works immensely well in conjuring sounds of the mystical void. With ethereal, profound melodies, Benn portrays space as something full of life, something tangible - reachable. Space is given a voice which is neither cold nor dead. With lush synths, he paints the infinite blackness with a sense of warmth, like feeling the sun’s rays upon one’s face. The result is a breathtaking journey that glides effortlessly off Earth, into the unknown, and back home again. For the common man who may only ever experience space vicariously through a television set, Pale Blue Dot nurtures the space adventurist in us all. The ride is a smooth one from beginning to last, reminding us that although there is much to fear out there, the beauty, the complete illustriousness of the universe is magnificent to behold.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Octopus Project - Hexadecagon
Like a stroll through Disneyland while on shrooms. As the album cover suggests, the music is intentionally styled to sound like it was recorded many moons ago. Perhaps the sole appeal of the album is that it reminds the listener of the good old days, but that is quite the appeal. With nifty electronics and piano parts combined into a progressive, quirky, experimental, and engrossing mix, Hexadecagon is certainly better than it looks.
Hocico - Cronicas Letales I [2010]
Cronicas Letales is a four part anthology that books Hocico's first four albums along with lost remixes and tracks. The first part we have here includes their debut album "Odio Bajo El Alma" from 1997 plus a track from their early demo "Triste Desprecio" from 1995. Also included is their 1998 EP "The Cursed Land" and the 1998 mini-album "El Dia de la Ira". Keep in mind, this is Hocico from when they started so what you'll be getting is some ebm that is truly harsh around the edges. Enjoy!
Try it
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Hyx - The Multiverse
Hyx. You don't know Hyx? Well, it's not surprising since this is his solo debut. He is part of a drum & bass collective called Telemetrik (Coming soon to a blog near you) but his EP is far from being remotely connected to d’n’b. This 4-song release is a great display of electro-house and a good omen of what’s to come. Not good enough for you? OK, what if I tell you it’s free? Well, not completely free but all he asks from you is to pay with a tweet or facebook update. If you’re too cheap to do even that or don’t do social networking (you lonely man) post and I’ll upload it.
But tell your friends.
Have a taste:
Pay with a tweet or fb update!
Mind.In.A.Box - R.E.T.R.O. [2010]
Released: February 26, 2010
R.E.T.R.O. is a bit of a weird album for The Box and to be honest, it caught me by surprise when I first heard it. Not having heard anything about its release, I expected it to be the usual storyline affair but I was treated to an album that essentially served as a time machine. R.E.T.R.O. takes you back to the days of Commodore 64 with all of its glitchy and bleepy goodness. If you're anything like me, this album may take a few listens to get used to, but I believe it is well worth the wait. My only real issue with R.E.T.R.O. is that there are a few too many instrumental tracks. Any Box fan will tell you that the vocals are what make the act truly amazing but regardless, there are still plenty of tracks with vocals that can be enjoyed.
Try it
Submerged - Before Fire I Was Against Other People
Noisia - Deception
Speaking of drum & bass, have a Noisia track
Andy C - Nightlife 5
Tracklist:
Disc 1
1. Kingdom - Spor
2. Space Time - Delta Heavy
3. Onslaught - Mind Vortex
4. No Problem - Chase & Status
5. Moonwalker - Wilkinson
6. Link To The Past - Loadstar
7. Spartan Law - Bladerunner
8. Echoes - Hamilton
9. Seven - Octane & DLR
10. Messiah/Babylon - Konflict/Splash
11. Crash Dummy - Sparfunk
12. Bounce - Mindscape
13. Polygon (Dirtyphonics Remix) - Shock One
14. Now Its Time - Mind Vortex
15. Stronger - Sigma
16. Deception VIP - Noisia
17. Transition - Survival, Octane & DLR
18. Blackout/Schranders Dice - Hive/Ed Rush & Optical
19. Scream It - Wilkinson
20. Hold On (Sub Focus Remix) - Rusko (Featuring Amber Coffman)
21. Snorkel/Colour Wheel - Siren/Logistics
22. Halogen - Spor
23. Strange Science - Phace
24. BLVD - Loadstar
25. Tuning VIP - D.Kay & Lee
26. Breakfast - Break
27. Ohrwurm - Culture Shock
28. Take That - DC Breaks
29. Run - Spinline
30. The Jitters - Gridlok & The Upbeats
31. Gridlock (Break Remix) - Ram Trilogy
32. I Have You - Commix
33. I Remember - Culture Shock
Disc 2
1. Turn The Page - Craggz & Parallel
2. Ghet'to Business - DJ Die
3. All Thats Left - Break
4. Mission To Mars - DJ Fresh
5. The Music Makers - Tyke & Recipe
6. Go With The Flow - S.P.Y.
7. Section VIP - Fierce & Vicious Circle
8. One Chance - Enei
9. Footloose - Culture Shock
10. Lounge (DC Breaks Remix) - Hold Tight
11. Triple X - Sub Focus
12. L.O.V.E (Hamilton Remix) - Blackout
13. Take The Stairs - Delta Heavy
14. Chubrub - Ed Rush & Optical
15. Rock It VIP - Sub Focus
16. Hot Love - Break
17. Protection - Culture Shock
18. Floating Zero - Noisia & Phace
19. Cylon - DJ Fresh
20. Gangsta - Total Science & S.P.Y.
21. Squash (S.P.Y Remix) - Total Science
22. Supreme - Callide
23. Soundboy - Hamilton
24. Samurai - Wilkinson
25. Can You Feel It? - Drumsound & Bassline Smith
26. Atlantis (Marky Remix) - LTJ Bukem
27. Hit The Ground - Loadstar
28. Get Hot - Break
29. Scribble - Underworld
30. Pickett Line VIP/Deep Space - DC Breaks/Sub Focus
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Mind.In.A.Box - Crossroads [2007]
It was feared that this may be the final installment to the storyline Mind.In.A.Box had created but rumor has it that The Box is currently working on their 5th studio album which, in fact, takes off from right where Crossroads left off (yay!). But in terms of this particular album, I feel that it is slightly more "action packed" that the first two Box albums. Never a bad thing of course, but I feel as though this album really focuses on the dance aspect of their music. But as stated in my previous post, all Box albums are just fantastic and regardless of how different this one is, it is wonderful. Enjoy!
Try it
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
The Visual Tendencies of Kangding Ray's Music
Although culture in North America gets tossed back and forth by the technological outburst of the past couple of decades, our world has not yet flourished into the Post-Utopian society that was readily fronted by 90's science fiction. There are no flying cars, holographic computer devices that are control by the thought processes of your mind, robots or really anything as cool as the future that was, to some degree, promised through a constant re-occurrence of interrelated themes and concepts. However what has been, nearly mastered, is the music which we will use to provide the ideal soundtrack for this future, the future we are all waiting in hopeless anticipation for. Kangding Ray offers some of the best music in this regard. His music offers complex textures and subtle mechanical beats that truly reflect the abstract futuristic concept. I often imagine myself sitting in a solid white room with the bleep-bloop-bleep of computers functioning around me and the subtle glitching of Stabil as it plays in the background. I the observer having the epiphic and pleasantly comforting thought like "yes, this is the future and anything is possible". However I have also been told that people imagine the pleasantries accompanied with trips to the beach and watching the water burst upon the shore, only to recede beautiful back into the vivid vastness of the ocean. Whether it provides either of these, or maybe even a completely different meta-physical observation one thing remains certain. Kangding Ray's music creates a relaxing and blissful glimpse into what could be, rather than what is, within the moment in which you listen to it in.
Mind.In.A.Box - Dreamweb [2005]
Released: Jun 07, 2005
Algol - Follow The Cepheid Light
You can certainly judge this album based on its cover. It’s ambient music, and you know something else? It’s good. A cheesy trip through space, the purpose of the album is fairly straightforward, yet the music is not. With a penchant for long, drawn out songs, Follow The Cepheid Light slowly but surely piques interest. Briefly skimming songs will ruin the experience, but if one has the time, this is a real teeth sinker. Great music to chill to.
Shpongle - Tales of the Inexpressible
Have a taste:
Now that you're hooked, get the whole thing.
Audio - Genesis Device
Monday, April 11, 2011
Black Sun Empire - Lights And Wires
Electronic Saviors: Industrial Music To Cure Cancer
02. Stromkern - Notes From A War
03. Boole - Smoking Gun
04. Interface - Never Say Farewell
05. Chemlab - Solar Max (The Jimmy Semtex Coil)
06. Bow Ever Down - Goodbye
07. The Gothsicles - Jim, Let Me Know When You Can Drink Again (Extreme Party Stylezz)
08. Terrorfakt - Painkiller
09. 16Volt - Things Unkind
10. Rein[Forced] - Malignancy (Pancreatitis Mix)
11. Ego Likeness - Save Your Serpent (Light As A Feather Mix)
12. Burikusu!!! - 7 Dimensional
13. Inure - Rapture
14. Cesium_137 - Endure (Encoder Mix)
15. Cyanotic - Axiome (Post Affliction Mix Feat 16Volt)
16. Silent Auction - Deliverance
17. Terror Firma Sky - Cancerous Catalyst Converter
DISC 2
01. The Dark Clan - Beat It, Kill It
02. The Azoic - Search And Destroy (Savior Mix)
03. genCAB - Version 2 (Aesthetic Perfection Mix)
04. Christ Analogue - The Fight
05. Prometheus Burning Feat Jimmy Semtex of Rein[Forced] - Malignant Disco
06. Boxed Warning - Run First
07. Assemblage 23 - Impermanence (Flight AC-112 Mix)
08. I:Scintilla - From A Wasteland To A Dream
09. Imperative Reaction - Giving In To The Change (Assemblage 23 Mix)
10. ThouShaltNot - Sick
11. Combichrist - Nosepad
12. Sonik Foundry - Stigmata
13. XuberX - Fear Is Fear
14. Mindless Faith - Into The Wind
15. Cyber Strukture - Some Sorta Rhythmic Machine
16. vircon - Count Backwards From Ten
17. Jordan Decay - The Great War
DISC 3
01. Deathline Int’l - Breaking
02. Encoder featuring Jimmy Semtex of Rein[Forced] and Patricia Wake - Jim’s Song
03. Vicious Alliance - Right Beside You (Save Me Now Mix)
04. backandtotheleft - Maybe Today
05. Nachtmahr - Katharsis (Purification Mix)
06. Null Device - Under the Gun (Immune Response Mix)
07. Suicide Commando - Until We Die (Winter Edit)
08. Agnes Wired For Sound - Don’t Worry (We’ll Meet Up Again)
09. System Syn - Blood (2009 Edit)
10. Acumen Nation - The Juice Of Rotted Fruit
11. Aesthetic Perfection - The Ones (genCAB Mix)
12. Dismantled - Not Me
13. FGFC820 - Children Of Decay (Northborne Mix)
14. Everything Goes Cold - I've Sold Your Organs On The Black Market To Finance The Purchase Of A Used M
15. Leæther Strip - The Scalpel Song (Neoplasm Edit)
16. Mordacious - Sleeping Beauty
17. Flesh Field - Detritus Of Reason
DISC 4
01. Noisuf-X - White Noise (Gift Mix)
02. Hardwire - I Am Forever
03. The Atomica Project - Transmission
04. Massiv In Mensch featuring Mind.In.A.Box - Supermassive Gravity (Endanger Mix)
05. SD6 - Free (Interface Mix)
06. Obscenity Trial - Here And Now (Banging Mix by XP8)
07. Alter Der Ruine VS Premeditated Light - Dawn
08. nolongerhuman - Survival
09. Iris - Imposter (ThouShaltNot Remix)
10. Debutante - Alive
11. Andraculoid - You Tried To Kill Me, But I Killed You First
12. Deviant UK - Access Denied (Rotersand Mix)
13. Hypefactor - The Sweetest Soul (Rex Mix)
14. Freezepop - Duct Tape My Heart (Chinese Theatre Remix)
15. Spahn Ranch - In The Aftermath (Moroder Mix)
16. Caustic - Jim Made Cancer His Bitch
Disc 5
1. Wreckcreation-Incomplete Me (Remix)
2. Borderlines-Visualization
3. AimOniA-Three
4. Beloved Dead-Twist of Fate
5. Derek C. F. Pegritz-Please Let Me Go
6. Molecule Party-Riser
7. Patricia Wake-Peaceful Shores
8. Neurobash-Left 4 Dead
9. Jon Zaremba-The Best Way to Tear Anything Down is to Blast!
10. Less Like Flesh-Virus Free
11. EVP-Schrödinger
12. Surviving The Odyssey-Dissolving the Sanity
13. Retar-D2-EXTRA LIVES!
14. The Hose Face-Dread
15. Sachem Orenda-Evident Product of Effort
16. TowerOpensFire-With Heavy Hands