Mark E Moon - Lux Vindictae EP review and Ten Further Questions to vocalist Mark Sayle

 Mark E Moon’s position in the upper echelons of the current goth/post-punk revival is concretised with the release this month of their excellent new EP Lux Vindictae, available now in digital and CD format on the seminal German label Cold Transmission.

Whilst 2021’s sophomore LP Old Blood saw the Isle of Man based project heading for a more dancefloor-friendly synth-dominated sound than on their debut set Refer, Lux Vindictae sees the band retreating into darker, less predictable goth-inspired territory whilst retaining their strong sense of melody and the distinctive focal point of singer Mark Sayle’s warm and emotional baritone croon. Often compared to James Ray and Andrew Eldritch, Sayle is arguably the strongest male vocalist on the current "wave" scene, able to deliver lyrics of hate and love with equally strong emotion and possessing a rich timbre which enables him to carry the most powerful of songs. This fact did not escape the attention of critically-acclaimed Belgian band Ground Nero, who saw Sayle’s voice as the perfect complement to their infamous gothic “wall of sound”, resulting in three excellent singles to date from the collaboration, with an album promised for later this year.

Sayle’s voice dominates from the very start of the Lux Vindictae EP, spitting out the opening couplet of the darkwave track Blacklight with a melody and pace not unlike that of the verse of The Sisters of Mercy’s When You Don’t See Me, before the song develops into a more Editors-like post-punk chorus. Second track Revenge is kookier, with Sayle and new second vocalist Shelly Rourke trading single words on the theme of power and revenge much in the style of the B-52’s or Scissor Sisters, over a backbeat which is reminiscent of Mark E Moon's more up-tempo previous singles like Animals from the previous album.

Erika Dane is the most powerful and most experimental track on the EP, with both Sayle’s vocal and the sequenced synth backing scuzzier and darker than on the other tracks, with the overall impression not dissimilar to the imagined sound of The Prodigy covering a Manic Street Preachers track, the kind of unexpected juxtaposition that seasoned Mark E Moon listeners will relish. 

Drowning finds Sayle in more sombre and reflective mood on a song about the ravages of alcoholism. A descending bass line, simple JD snare rhythm and a stark piano motif provide the spartan backing for the singer’s rasping opening line “Well, it’s six o’clock in the morning” performed at the very bottom of his range, sounding uncannily like the original Man In Black Johnny Cash attempting The Sisters’ Afterhours, before opening out into a more epic chorus, ably assisted again by Shelly’s counterpoint vocals. 

In complete contrast, Anastasia showcases Sayle’s fellow founder member Phil Reynolds’ skill in creating the lushest and most atmospheric of arrangements on the most accomplished track on the EP, with a huge retro goth chorus and sequenced rock backing which has all the 80’s power and drive of the Miami Vice theme tune, and the track is further enhanced by Shelly evocative recitation of a haunting Russian lullaby. 

Final track The Awakeners brings the excellent release to a suitably portentous close, with its bleak doomer pitch-bending synth theme (with new member George Parsons contributing effectively) and slow pace a stark reminder of the overall Mark E Moon mission of purveying “uneasy listening for the unquiet mind”.

Lux Vindictae is highly recommended to both new and long-term fans of the band and is available both digitally and physically via Bandcamp. Although the new release stands on its own merit and requires no further explanation, I am delighted that Mark Sayle agreed to a further interview so that I could find out more about recent changes to the line-up, the rationale behind putting out an EP at this stage and the band's plans for the future. Thanks, Mark!

 ________________________________________________________________________________

1.       Around the time of Old Blood, the original Mark E Moon duo of yourself and Phil had become a band with the addition of Kieran and Steve, but on the new EP the latter pair are no longer involved and George and Shelly have joined the project instead. How did these changes come about?

Mark Sayle: The change was quite organic actually. Kieran and Steve are very busy guys and it seemed that when we would rehearse Kieran had other plans or gigs of his own and Steve is a very busy drum teacher, so couldn't contribute the time we needed.

They didn't necessarily leave, they certainly weren't kicked out, they just didn't appear on the more recent stuff. The line-up just evolves around what the songs demand at any given moment.

 

2.       You’ve put out two full LPs (and a remix LP) so far. Why did you go for the extended EP/mini-LP format this time around?

Mark Sayle: There were a few songs slated for the next album that we felt weren't 'right' for it. They were more post punk/goth and the next album is definitely more electronic.

We put them together with a couple of songs we had demos for but had never got around to producing properly.

 

3.       Lux vindictae is the Latin for “The light of revenge”. Where did you get the phrase from, and why is it in Latin? Does it refer to the track Revenge or to the release as a whole?

 Mark Sayle:  Mark E Moon have always been a very fun, irreverent band. We're not afraid to have a laugh at ourselves and the faintly ludicrous nature of what we do.

We like to do what we do with our tongues pressed VERY firmly into our cheeks. Why Latin? Well, it's pompous, pretentious and utterly ridiculous.

Mark E Moon do pompous quite well I think. The lyric booklet in the CD of the EP is titled Verbis, which literally means 'Words'. You couldn't make it up.

There are so many bands who take the whole Gothic scene super seriously and, to us, that's laudable but also a bit silly. Look at the bands who started this movement.

Do we really think Bauhaus were devoid of a sense of fun? (Is In The Flat Field really a deadly serious song or is it a commentary on having to do the washing? Who knows, who cares, it's a great song.

Where they taking the piss a bit? Probably. Does it stop ITFF being an ace post punk number? Nope.)

 4.       Shelly provides backing vocals on several tracks, giving you the male/female contrast showcased in many goth bands going back to The March Violets. Was that something which you felt was missing from the earlier releases?

Mark Sayle: Not at all. We were perfectly happy with what we'd done before. It was really serendipity that Shelly came to the band.

We've known Shelly for a long time and know her as a singer par excellence. We asked her to do some backing on Anastasia and she sounded amazing.

Our voices really seem to work well together, so that's ace. She also came up with the idea of adding the Russian lullaby and went out of her way to learn the pronunciation.

The level of professionalism and dedication she brings to the band is a much-needed counterpoint to three idiots in a room making music and having a laugh.

While we're exceptionally happy with what we've previously accomplished, Shelly has given the project a new focus and direction. You'll be hearing her a lot more on Pop Noir.

 

5.       Was the track Erika Dane inspired by the comic book story of the same name?

There's a comic book named that? I'll have to check that out. No, it was a random name I came up with for the female protagonist of the song.

It was actually originally written for the Refer album but wasn't developed until last year. Phil and George dug up my, admittedly very sparse, demo for me to record some vocals over.

 

6.       The lyrics on Mark E Moon songs tend to focus on the bleaker side of human nature – in your own words “depression, rage, assault, alcoholism, the murder of an innocent child and the sheer horror of life” according to the liner notes for the new release. Do you find it cathartic to write about such themes, and do you write from the point of view of a specific character when penning the lyrics?

Mark Sayle: The lyrics are written from the point of view of various characters, some recurring but mostly one-off appearances.

For instance, Blacklight, Erika Dane and Drowning are all about the same night out from three different perspectives.

Revenge is heavily influenced by John Wick and films like Taken, etc. Anastasia is pretty obvious I think.

The most 'out there' reference is The Awakeners, which is based on the book(s) of the same name by Sherri Tepper.

They aren't really cathartic as such, I enjoy writing about the darker side of life and imagined scenarios but I don't see it as expelling pent up frustrations. It's just what I do.

The day I need to start releasing negative emotions I think I'll see a therapist...again.

 

 7.       You have also been the vocalist for Ground Nero for the past eighteen months. Are your lyrics for the two projects inspired spontaneously by the music which the bands produce, or do you have themes and lyrics in mind that you already feel would suit one or other of the projects?

Mark Sayle: Each song is always inspired by the music. I try not to have preconceived notions of how a certain song should go based on my previous output for that particular project.

Whether I have had a hand in writing the music or not, I try my best to find just the right lyrical ingredients to bring the composition to its rightful conclusion.

 

8.      As you said, you have an album due out later this year, entitled Pop Noir. Will any of the songs on Lux Vindictae also feature on the album?

 Mark Sayle: No. Lux Vindictae is very much a standalone EP. Revenge was originally scheduled to be on Pop Noir but we felt it would fit better on our dark little EP.

 

9.       The title Pop Noir suggests that the contents might be a little “lighter” than the dark lyrical and musical themes of Lux Vindictae. Is that the case in reality?

 Mark Sayle: Perhaps. You'll have to wait and see!

 

10.   Are there plans for live dates in the near future, now that Mark E Moon is a four-piece band rather than just a duo?

 Mark Sayle: There are plans for a couple of gigs. There is always an issue for us as it's so expensive to get off the island in the first instance.

We'd love to do an extended tour of the UK and Europe but we'd have to fund a great deal of it ourselves. We'll definitely try to get more gigs in 2023.

 

Black Angel - The Black Rose album review and a further Ten Questions to Matt Vowles

 

It’s less than three years since the unusually fully-formed new act Black Angel burst onto the goth revival scene, with Matt Vowles’ transatlantic crew immediately impressing with their dark atmosphere, earworm melodies and in particular, the uber high quality production values on their debut album The Widow.

Actor/singer Corey Landis replaced the more theatrical Rob Steffen for second album Kiss Of Death, a more homogenous set of songs which mixed up-tempo gothabilly with slow burning goth rock to forge a unique template which illuminated both 2021’s concept album Prince of Darkness and the new release, this month’s The Black Rose.

Whilst there’s a cosy familiarity throughout The Black Rose in the song-writing style, with its easily recognisable musical tropes, strong melodies and somewhat cliched lyrics, the production and mastering is very on-point, and Landis’ velvety croon is the perfect icing on a classic gothic rock cake, so whilst there is nothing startlingly original going on here, when the overall package is so enjoyable, it would be pedantically churlish to quibble on that score.

The scene is set with first single and opening track on The Black Rose, Breathe with its insistent stomping beat and riffs which remain consistent throughout the song, eschewing the traditional verse/chorus/verse straitjacket, revealing a band fully confident in its own skin four albums in, whilst retaining the spirit of legendary 80’s albums like Phantasmagoria and Floodland which inspired the Bristolian Vowles to form the band in the first place.

Title track The Black Rose tightens things up a notch, with its gothabilly drumming, grungy descending riffs and a strong multi-tracked semi-falsetto chorus taking seasoned Black Angel fans to more familiar territory. Recent single All Or Nothing is arguably the band’s most obviously influenced track yet, where the distillation of Love-era The Cult is very much to the fore (Vowles took the band’s name from the eponymous track on that album), and Billy Duffy himself would surely be proud of the riffing on this new track as Vowles effortlessly slides up and down the strings as Landis’ vocal theatrics match Astbury’s “I’m On Fire” wailings of over thirty years ago as he hits the higher octave. After the beautiful Take Me Down, with its slower pace and quieter, more reflective ambiance, with Landis again in more subtle, magisterial form,  Look Me In The Eye returns with a class goth rock chord structure and motif, but developing this time into a huge chorus where Maneesha Jones makes a welcome return on backing vocals.

Sinner begins with another wonderfully rich guitar tone and is another song that builds from effectively humble beginnings to bigger chorus, with Vowles, the master of guitar dynamics, adding some Bauhaus harmonic atmospherics in the background. Carnival Man starts more laconically, over a swirling backing which is vaguely reminiscent of The Stranglers’ Golden Brown, and it is certainly the most experimental track on the album, but normal service is resumed with arguably the album’s best track, Intoxicated, which features all the classic Black Angel touches, a sultry Landis vocal, driving bassline, in-your-face catchy riffing and memorable chorus with more than a touch of classic I Wanna Be Your Dog honky-tonk swagger. The album finale, Battle Cry starts with a mournful guitar arpeggio and falling bassline combination, building to a slow-burning (think A Rider In the Snow rather than Spiritwalker) epic soldier’s lament, a slight discordance in the chorus and a sudden-ish ending adding to the love song's poignancy, to round off another album of mature and accomplished gothic rock.

I was delighted when Matt Vowles immediately agreed to submit to another Ten Question interrogation for this blog, and his answers illuminate this latest album’s genesis and hint at major changes ahead for a project which has been synonymous with quality over a four album career to date. Thanks as ever for Matt for taking the time and trouble to furnish such full and honest responses.

Bandcamp link

___________________________________________________________________________________

 

1.                   New album The Black Rose is Corey’s third album with the band. Do you now write with him in mind, as the songs seem perfect for his range and timbre? And do you do the same for Maneesha’s parts, can you “hear” her voice in your head when you’re writing?

 

MV: Now that this is the fourth album for Corey and I, I will actually do some research into this, normally I just write how I think it should be and I keep my fingers crossed that it’s going to work for Corey but this time around I will actually start listening through the tracks where I think his range is the best and start writing in that key.

2.                   You’ve always handled all instrumentation yourself, but the sleeve notes on the CD credit an additional drummer. Was that just on one or two tracks (Intoxicated would be my guess!), or is this a new direction for Black Angel?

MV: I credited one drummer on the sleeve notes, this person is entirely fictional: my favourite movie of all time is Spinal Tap and on each album I like to credit one of the drummers from the film! If you know the story, different drummers explode on stage all the way through the movie and they keep getting replaced, so I like to pay homage to the film by citing one of those drummers, with a slight name change or spelling change. I still do all the drumming!

3.                   Haha! The new album features a striking monochrome image of clasped hands with ultra-long fingernails, rather than a more predictable film noir photo of a black rose that I was expecting! Why did you choose that image to accompany the new songs?

MV: Choosing album covers takes longer for me than writing and producing a whole album of music. I spend months trying to think what would be the best image for the cover. This time I decided to reach out to a very talented artist, Eshmoon DM, and see if they fancy having a crack it. I had the idea in my head already and over a few months. We managed to get it to a point where I was happy and it looked awesome, I’m probably more particular about the album cover than I am about the music if it comes down to how good it needs to be.

4.                   Have you had offers to produce/master other band’s releases over the past couple of years? Who would you like to produce?

MV: You know I haven’t! I thought someone would’ve reached out and asked me to produce their record! To be honest, with my film career and family career I would never have the time, producing an album, to put your heart and soul into it, takes months and months and you get consumed by it, so, maybe being a bit selfish, I have only got time for my material - and, as soon as I finish one album, I’m right onto the next one.

5.                   Early reviews have picked up on the track Carnival Man, with its fairground organ sound and waltzing Golden Brown feel. Does the positive reception to this track encourage you to take more risks on the next release?

MV: Yes, Carnival Man seems to be going down well, the first person to hear it was Corey and he particularly mentioned that he liked the direction of this new track so I think on the next album, which is going to be called Devil In A Black Dress, I don’t know if I’m going to take more risks but I’m definitely going to be more experimental, although, it needs to stay within the gothic rock lines so it’s going to be a tricky balance but I’ve started writing already, only a week after the last album came out (!) and I’m really excited to see what I can come up with.

6.                   When I interviewed you when the last album was released, you said that the next album would contain a cover of Duran Duran’s The Chauffeur. Will this now go onto the next album, or do you have a bigger cover project planned?

MV: It’s still on the list, I did write a version of the song for the last album but I tried too much to make it sound like the original and there is no way I could ever do that justice, or want to, so I think I need to go in a completely different direction this time, stay tuned…..

7.                   Well-respected scene commentator Simon Lebby commented that many of the tracks on the new album seem to have similar chord progressions or repeated motifs, giving The Black Rose a concept album feel. Was that deliberate?

MV: Definitely not deliberate, on the last album Prince Of Darkness, I tried to keep a theme running throughout but on The Black Rose if there’s any theme or motif that get tagged as repeating themselves or being connected then that’s all by chance.

8.                   You mentioned recently that the band have been approached about a publishing deal. In what ways will that help the band to get to the next level?

MV: We were approached by a major label and we are still in negotiations as to whether we will sign with them or not. It’s important for me to have Black Angel reach a larger audience, it’s not about stardom or money, it’s just about connecting with more people. We’ve had a really great experience on Bandcamp and I think we have the goods to take things further and reach more people, we just don’t have the marketing power, money or expertise to really cast the net wider. It’s really great when you hear from people that say “I was clicking around today and I heard your music and I really like it” or “Somebody told me about you guys and then I listened to the album and I really love it” - so it’s really just having the opportunity to get the music to more people.

9.                   Let’s get to the elephant in the room. Industry lawyers have suggested that it might be wise to change the project’s name to avoid potential litigation from longer-standing projects with a similar name. Do you look on this as a chance to relaunch the band to a new audience? Will you tweak the name or go for something different?

MV: Yes, that definitely is the elephant in the room right now, I never really gave it that much thought before and the music is so oversaturated with bands and from so many different genres but as we have been advised by our legal friends this could be a sticking point in the future. It’s been weighing on me this week whether this is a positive or negative thing, on the negative side it means we need to remove all of all media from all digital streaming platforms which is a task in itself, we then need to re-publish everything with the performing right societies, an even bigger task - and then I have read that there is no guarantee if we re-submit the music whether the big streaming companies will even except it, so the administrative side of this is an absolute nightmare. We also need to keep a connection with the name Black Angel otherwise nobody is going to really know who we are - and to start building a fanbase again is another potential nightmare, we are not looking for new fans, we love the ones we have already:) on the positive side….. I don’t think there is one……

10.               What’s next for the project? Do you have songs in mind for a new album, and will you be playing any live shows in 2022?

MV: Plans for the new album is to make this even better than the last one, the great thing about The Black Rose was I felt really good about every single track on the album, I think on previous albums I’ve always had doubts about some of them, my acid test is when I play the album in the car, do I skip the track or not. Starting a new album is always tough, there’s a very long road ahead, and there is also the pressure of it needing to be better or equally as good as the last one - so my usual process is to find new guitar sounds that inspire me and just start writing, I already have 15 song ideas down over the last couple of weeks and I keep an audio recorder with me so if I get any ideas I drop them down, and then I’ll come in the studio and see if something can blossom from it. As for live, yes Corey and I have chatted about it briefly, we’d love to play some big festivals. A North American tour would be cool, maybe supporting a bigger band - so if there’s anyone out there that wants to play, please drop us a line!

 

  

The Best New Goth/Post-Punk Releases of March 2022

March saw the return to the stage of goth behemoths like New Model Army, The Sisters of Mercy and Killing Joke as the live scene finally spluttered into life once again, with mini festivals taking place all over Europe and the US giving rise to hope that the worst of the pandemic is finally over. The biggest releases on the alternative scene this month were an experimental new “song” by goth godfathers Bauhaus (their first for fourteen years) and a new single by Neue Deutsche Harte band Rammstein (which already has fifteen million YT views), but on the more niche contemporary goth/post-punk scene there were again great new sounds from projects old and new, from which this Top 20 has been complied. It proved to be a particularly strong months where excellent new releases from Morosinthe, Mother’s Son, Ciern, Celestial Shadows, 13^th Moon, Assassun, Aux Animaux and Into Grey narrowly failed to make the grade.

1.        Whispering Sons – Tilt

Doggedly ploughing their own distinctive furrow, the relatively youthful Belgian post-punk band are back with Tilt, a track left over from the sessions of their last album Several Others. With its stripped back production, simple motifs, slow build up and angst-ridden contralto vocal, Tilt is typical of Whispering Sons’ unique appeal.

2.       Killing Joke – Total

If Lord of Chaos drew a collective “meh” from Gatherers (KJ fans) bemoaning its lack of originality, the other brand-new track Total on the new EP is much more promising, despite a frustratingly muddy mix from Tom Dalgety. Cold war synths wail over a chugging bass backing, with Big Paul’s furious tub thumping matched only by Geordie’s nu-metal angular riffing on the chorus where Jaz’s plaintive chant goes full agonised bellow, mixing the raw power of Revelations with the claustrophobic melody of Night Time.

3.       Red Moon Macabre – Mefistofele

There’s a wonderfully over the top Wagnerian folly to Renzo Tellez’s project Red Moon Macabre’s new single Mefistofele, merging old-skool Crazy World of Arthur Brown hell-fire kookiness with unhinged Banshees-inspired spookily claustrophobic gothic rock guitar in the style of Vazum.

 

4.       Velvet Mist - Your Ghost

Belgian trad goth rock duo Velvet Mist’s excellent debut EP Visitation was released this month, featuring the wonderfully accomplished singles Hollow Eyes and Your Ghost. The latter has distinct Leeds tinges, with a Sisters baseline and psychedelic rock touches more reminiscent of The Rose of Avalanche. Unashamedly retro in packaging and sound, this is both a reverential and highly effective take on classic 80’s gothic rock.

5.       Black Doldrums – Dead Awake  

Fuzz Club Records enjoys a fully deserved great reputation for promoting the very best new dark psych releases, and Black Doldrums’ new album is a perfect example of the gems they uncover and bring to a wider audience. Melding Paisley Underground vocals with fuzzy dark pop, Dead Awake’s strong tunes and Dandy Warhols meets The Telescopes vibe make this another highly recommended LP for those with an interest in this highly rewarding sub-genre.

6.       Slow Danse With The Dead – Blood On Your Hands

Blood On Your Hands, the new single from prolific New Mexico one-man miserygoth project Slow Danse With The Dead, shuffles along nicely over a Cassandra Complex-style backbeat, a lugubrious baritone vocal recounting another tale of despair over a punishing dancefloor beat.

7.       Scary Black – Tragedy

A bass heavy synthesised and syncopated backbeat provides the perfect canvas for a nightmarish tale of tragedy on Scary Black’s new single of that name. Lashings of reverb guitar create a haunted feel on a great new song from the king of the misanthropic ambiance.

8.       Funeral March of the Marionettes – Slow (Trapped In This Moment) 

Recent releases from Funeral March of the Marionettes have surprised with their breadth, and Slow (Trapped In This Moment) is no exception, a slow burning epic which conjures up an image not dissimilar to Fields of the Nephilim’s Psychonaut played by a Dead Can Dance tribute band.

9.       L’appel du vide – Das Programm

L’appel du Vide from Chemnitz in Germany play off-beat post with a dark punk feel and a Mittel Europa 80’s vibe. Das Programm is a slightly shambolic but complex song reminiscent of the likes of Aroma di Amore, when continental bands took more risks with instrumentation and time signatures than the majority of their more conservative and straitjacketed UK counterparts.

10.   Clan of Xymox – Save Our Souls

Wave veterans Clan of Xymox are one of many acts this month to release a new song inspired by the situation in Ukraine (A Cloud of Ravens' synth cover of The Clash's anti-war song The Call Up being another), and Save Our Souls is one of their best songs of recent years, a beautifully produced humanitarian reverb-drenched call for peace with a typically soaring vocal.

11.   Tempos de Morte  - Solitude

There’s a distinct whiff of Joy Division on the intro to this low-fi track from Brazil’s Tempos de Morte, with a key distorted riff played high on the bass Hooky-style, although the powerful female vocals are more reminiscent of Xmal’s Anja Huwe on the studio version now available here on Bandcamp

 

12.   Absencia - El Frio

El Frio is the lead track from Chilean goth duo Absencia’s strong new EP, and starts with a strong Lucretia style bassline with a sparse reverb guitar line, lush synth swirls and a straight understated vocal combining pleasantly as the track builds into a much more complex arrangement. Bandcamp link here

13.   Vazum – Thief

Emily’s Happy House style bass riff and Zach’s wonderfully angular guitars merge perfectly from the opening chords of another outstanding single from Detroit duo Vazum. Emily’s haunting vocal and the galloping positive punk beat drive the track ever-forward in their distinctive ethereal horror deathrock style.

14.   Who Saw Her Die? – Self-Destruct

Louisville duo Who Saw Her Die?’s reputation for high quality, varied darkwave releases grows ever stronger with the release of new song Self-Destruct, building on the successes of their recent EPs. Self-Destruct features a strong, multi-tracked Eldritchian vocal over a sparse, wave-style backing on a melodic tale of the pain of watching a loved one self-implode.

15.   Lords of the Northern Sky – Eyes Like An Abandoned Place

Hailing from Hamilton in the heart of Scotland’s heavily industrialised Central belt, prolific one-man project Lords of the Northern Sky evokes instead the wonderfully open vistas of the Highlands with his sparklingly gloomy take on traditional goth rock. Eyes Like An Abandoned Place is a slow-burning atmospheric treat with a doomy vocal, FX-drenched sheets of guitar and a simple backbeat.

16.   Fearing – However Long

The lead track from the ever-reliable Californian dark post-punk’s new EP Desolate, However Long is a perfect slice of moody atmospheric darkwave, built upon layers of reverb guitar, echoing baritone vocals, and an upliftingly dismal aesthetic such as championed by Pornography-era The Cure. Five years since their debut release, Fearing continue to stand out in a crowded sub-genre with their subtle appreciation of dark dynamics.

17.   Nino Sable – Ultima Estacion – El Underground

German scene legend Nino Sable has compiled recent singles on a new release sedate/seduce, which features Lars Kappeler on production with Ultima Estacion – El Underground a personal highlight, apparently a tribute to Lord Fer’s infamous El Real Under club night in the current unofficial world goth capital, Mexico City. The track’s metronomic dancefloor beat, full-on synth and guitar assault and Sable’s sepulchral vocal combine to create a floor-filling dark delight.

18.   Sexblood – Silent Hill

Released on Swiss Dark Nights, Sexblood’s debut album Teach Me To Cry has a very 90’s influenced trad goth feel with Missionesque guitar sounds and motifs and somewhat histrionic vocals, heard to best effect on opening track Silent Hill.

19.   Shelley’s Lullaby – When The Sky Falls Down

A gloriously stupid melange of Lucretia era Sisters and Gothic Girl era 69 Eyes, Shelley’s Lullaby (a one man project from New Jersey) peddles unashamedly derivative yet effortlessly cool goth’n’roll by numbers on When The Sky Falls Down from this month’s new LP Eternal. Classically timeless goth rock done to perfection.

20.   Locust Revival – Your Delusions Are Not Mine

A wonderful EP of distantly mixed darkwave from Brisbane band Locust Revival, with the same shimmering Chameleons-esque guitar tone as other promising post-punk acts like Switzerland’s Future Faces or Germany’s late lamented Holygram. Your Delusions Are Not Mine is a typically well-constructed track on a consistently excellent release.