The shortest month of the year made up for its brevity with
a veritably fecund crop of new releases, with a preponderance of first-rate
post-punk projects from the current scene and surprise returns from some of the
genre behemoths. Names like Christian Death and Killing Joke, synonymous with
the first gothic wave of the 1980’s, resurfaced with new material, seminal 90’s
releases like the debut album by The Tors of Dartmoor saw welcome re-releases
and other projects from the second wave like Funhouse returned this month,
whilst some of the most exciting names on the current scene, from Then Comes
Silence to Je T’Aime, upped the ante with their own new sounds. Choosing just
twenty new songs to highlight has never been harder!
1. Then Comes Silence – Rise To The Bait
This month saw the undisputed kings of the current global
goth/post-punk movement, Sweden’s Then Comes Silence, release the first single
from their sixth album which is due this summer. Rise To The Bait
marries the slick melodies of last album Machine with the darker edge of
its predecessor Blood to (appropriately) whet the appetite for new album
HUNGER, with the accompanying video up to the band’s usual genre-leading
standard.
2. Kill Shelter and Antipole – All Or Nothing
The Kill Shelter/Antipole collaboration album A Haunted
Place was a permanent fixture on the various “Best of…” lists at the end of
2021, and it gets a very welcome (for those not lucky enough to snap up one of
the original physical releases last year) re-release this month, with a new
video single All Or Nothing released to coincide. The song is a perfect
introduction to the project to those still unfamiliar with the duo’s work, with
Karl Morten Dahl’s trademark reverb guitar and ear for a tune, and Pete Burns’
beats, mix and deadpan baritone vocal combining to showcase a sound that
typifies the sheer quality of the current scene, crossing the divide between the lonely attic and the packed dancefloor scenes.
3. Je t’aime – Dirty Tricks
Probably the first truly great album of 2022, Passive
(available now on Icy Cold Records) is a stunning return to form for the French
ensemble, stuffed full of great tunes, angular riffs and excellent songcraft,
playing and production. Dirty Tricks is arguably the pick of the bunch,
a manic helter skelter sprint reminiscent of Supergrass in their prime or The Cure at their most claustrophobic.
4. Crows – Room 156
The British post-punk scene has always been split between
those who appeal to the niche goth-tinged market and those on the more
lucrative alternative fringes of the musical mainstream, and the current crop
of bands, such as Idles, Ist Ist and Wolf Alice could yet make it big. Crows
have toured with both the former and the latter press darlings, and the two
teaser tracks from their forthcoming album show a distinct Idles influence on
their more traditional drone dark psych sound (think Black Rebel Motorcycle
Club, Loop, Dead Vibrations etc). Room 156 had punk inflections on the
verse but a wonderfully uplifting guitar tone on the chorus, referencing
classic acts like Pixies, The Chameleons and even Smashing Pumpkins.
5. Klammer – Progress (or the lack of)
Leeds post-punk band Klammer may be almost a different
generation to the likes of Crows and Je T’Aime, yet their latest single Progress
(or the lack of) from their brand-new album shares a similarly unorthodox
yet thrilling electrical charge. Whilst there are nods in the vocal delivery to
Expelaires, an angular rhythm redolent of Go4 and a manic energy not dissimilar
to Age of Chance, rather than merely aping their home city’s illustrious post-punk
past, Klammer build a new, lairy yet shimmering layer on top of it.
6. Secret Shame – Hide
American band Secret Shame’s 2019 debut album Dark
Synthetics caused a stir as much for its searingly honest lyrics as for the
band’s soaring post-punk sound, with Lena’s vocal a standout. New single Hide
carries on the good work, another dark yet fast-paced song which canters
along hauntingly in the style of classic Ghost Dance.
7. Killing Joke – Lord of Chaos
Rejoice! Arguably the most consistent band of the past forty
years is back with a new song, Lord of Chaos. Throughout their career,
Killing Joke has either confounded audience expectations by showcasing a
surprising new sound direction (the mellow goth pop of the mid-80’s, the
searingly brutal Extremities comeback, etc) or alternatively churning
out another record just like the last one. Lord of Chaos is definitely
the latter, with Geordie nonchalantly cranking out more of the ear-bleeding
riffs and Jaz’ s light tenor intoning similar lyrical fare to the tracks that
made Pylon such a punishing delight. KJ-by-numbers it may be, but this
is still at least one cut above almost everything else released this month.
8. Christian Death – Blood Moon
Valor reanimates CD’s festering corpse once more with a new
single, Blood Moon, which is actually a lot better than my (admittedly
low) expectations. A spooky e-bow guitar riff over an eight-to-the-bar bass
riff sets the scene for a somewhat patchy, over-theatrical verse which opens out into a wonderfully full, epic chorus.
9. Funhouse – Dark and Stormy
Sweden’s Funhouse were one of the most reliable trad goth
projects of the 1990’s second wave, and their solid, dependable Missionesque sound is shown in
full force on new single Dark and Stormy, a song which has been around
in various guises over the past couple of years. Main man Mikael Korner’s
fruity vocal and the full-on goth rock production give their music a timeless
feel, so much so that I had to check that this wasn’t a reworking of an old
Funhouse song.
10. Merciful Nuns – The Kvltanians
I’ve always found Artaud Seth’s po-faced occult goth
projects (Garden of Delight, Merciful Nuns) faintly ridiculous, but despite the
usual over-the-top growled preaching, the Nuns’ slow-burning goth rock is undeniably
subtly-textured and skilfully multi-layered in an ersatz Nephilim kind of way on new single The Kvltanians.
11. Your Life On Hold – Our Common End
Seth’s Solar Lodge label is host to a number of other
overtly occult goth rock/metal acts, the best of which is Belgian project Your
Life On Hold, who also take the likes of Fields of The Nephilim as a starting
template to craft some beautifully old school gothic rock, with Jan de Wulf’s
strong vocal always a key selling point. Two years on from their last (excellent) album,
YLOH have contributed a cover version of one of fellow countryman Psy’ Aviah’s
tracks to the bonus disc of his own new album. Beautifully paced, it’s hard to
believe Our Common End is not a YLOH original, with its trademark wonderful
atmospherics, subtle guitar flecks and uplifting vocal over a doomy four-chord
progression. Bandcamp link
12. Byronic Sex and Exile – Salome
Although operating at a completely different end of the
market (think: frilly-shirted dandy rather than singlet wearing rock god),
Byronic Sex & Exile’s Joel Heyes is also a fan of constructing a
slow-burning epic out of an initial simple chord progression, and new single Salome
is no exception. Melancholy keyboards set the tone and provide a perfect
counter-point to Heyes’ lugubrious vocal as the cinematic atmospherics build
towards a Floyd-esque guitar solo climax. The b-side is a take on the Doors’
classic retitled here LS Woman (after the Leeds zip code), with Headingly
standing in for Hollywood in the lyric.
13. Chaos Bleak – Calling From Afar
The UK goth rock stalwarts continue their run of monthly
singles with Calling From Afar, which begins with their familiar Play
Dead-inspired biker-goth chugging before flowering into a mellower, more vulnerably wistful chorus more
reminiscent of The Damned. Project leader Trevor Bamford is an absolute legend
of the UK scene who was partly responsible for its survival in the 90’s but he
shows no sign of reducing the quality of his output on this latest single.
14. Deliverance MX – Milo
More trad goth rock magnificence from Monterrey’s finest on
new single Milo. A superbly buzzing bass underpins a dark tale whose
spooky atmosphere is maintained throughout, particularly in the spidery
middle-eight, but the real strength here is a memorable chorus in which the
guitars and bass build then duel in classic Red Lorry Yellow Lorry style. Bandcamp link
15. The Palest Grey – Suicide
Sadly, The Palest Grey has already split up since releasing
their debut mini-album Always Haunted, meaning that physical copies of
the project’s sole release are likely to become highly-prized collector’s items
as the mythology around the deathrock act, which featured Obscura Undead’s Azy
on bass (and some vocals), starts to grow. The variety of tracks on the new release
hinted at potential musical differences despite the unifying deathrock theme,
with the descending riff and theatrical vocal on the opening to Suicide
a perfect example, with the dramatic intensity owing as much to the likes of
Virgin Prunes and UK Decay as to legendary deathrock US acts like Christian
Death.
16. Who Saw Her Die? – Love Like Glass
Another fabulous EP from Louisville project Who Saw Her
Die?, with lead track Love Like Glass oozing Eldritchian cool with a musical
vibe not unlike the Sisters’ Body and Soul, with similar lyrical themes
to Leeds’ finest circa 1983-1985. A multi-tracked baritone vocal deep in the
mix, and a familiar song structure makes this sound like a long-lost demo
recorded somewhere in a Leeds basement in the mid-1980’s. Intriguing.
17. LisaWars – Gift
Talking of bands influenced by TSOM, LisaWars (two men and a
drum-machine) from Germany are back with a new album of storming new wave goth.
Gift features insouciant lyrics and a louche if pitchy vocal that
recalls prime-era Philip Boa and the Voodoo Club. Distinctly European in
atmosphere, Gift harks back to an era when the coolness of your vibe was more
important than the slickness of your production.
18. Brotherhood – Valentine
Yet another TSOM-influenced title for Swedish project Brotherhood’s
new single, continuing a theme which began on their earlier releases. A
suitable song for February, Valentine features brooding sombre goth pop
not unlike 80’s stalwarts The Church, with a chorus which would not be out of
place on a single from The Mission.
19. Ploho – Plattenbauten
The darlings of the Russian doomer scene return with a new version of one of their early drum-machine driven low-fi treats re-recorded with a simple German lyric (ideal for revising your possessive pronouns). Minor chord melody and
depressive vocals joust with kooky keyboard motifs on a typically counter-intuitively uplifting
track which will surely broaden their European fanbase. Like many Russian artists, Ploho have pinned their colours firmly to the "No War" mast.
20. Shaman Tud - Музыка не спасёт тебя
Every month brings new musical delights from Eastern Europe, and this month Georgia’s Shaman Tud released new album Salut!, a wonderfully fresh and eclectic release straight outta Batumi that draws on many different traditions. Музыка не спасёт тебя (Track Four on the full album link below) fuses krautrock underpinnings with C86 jangling and a frenetic post-punk pace to create one of the more memorable sounds of this highly productive month for new music.