As ever in the heat of summer, goths tend to head for the
shadows and the recording studios, so the number of actual new releases tends
to decline a little in June and July. However, on the back of renewed media
interest in the genre, thanks to the Siouxsie comeback and the recently
published histories of gothic music, there is still plenty of excellent new music
to keep us entertained. This month’s new selection is a real curate’s egg, with
old school deathrock rubbing shoulders with everything from trad folk goth to industrial
goth rock. Enjoy!
Back from the grave are legendary German goth industrial act Girls Under Glass, with this fantastically-produced spoiler track which heralded their current comeback album Backdraft, their first for nearly two decades, built around an electro darkwave strong metallic riff that recalls the over-the-top vibe of an early nineties Nine Inch Nails dancefloor stomper.
2. Byronic Sex & Exile – Kiss of the Firebrand
There’s an equally Wagnerian epic This Corrosion quality about the lead track from the latest EP from the prolific Byronic Sex & Exile, Joel Heyes’ one-man project which aims to keep the gothic flame burning bright in its Leeds heartland. Other tracks on the EP such as Ectoplasmic Dreams are more typical of the project, gradually building huge slow-burning Floydesque soundscapes from an initial simple, haunting riff.
3. Temple - Submission
The Portland (Oregon) trio are back with a fabulous album of hauntingly heavy deathrock-influenced darkwave. The title track features some superb reverb riffing over a wonderfully muddy rhythm section, whilst the verse has an almost Chameleons-esque purity. Another essential purchase from the ever-reliable Swiss Dark Nights label.
4. Perish - Reliquary
Reliquary would appear to be a hardcore five-track Bad Seeds meets Christian Death deathrock demo recorded by a supergroup of San Francisco band members in 2013 and finally given a Bandcamp release last month. Heavy, unhinged, scuzzy and inventive, there’s a raw energy and power in these songs which mark this out as one of the best releases of 2023 in a sub-genre enjoying a real renaissance.
No Youtube link but here is the project's Bandcamp page
5. Decena Tragica - Mirame
There’s a distinct Paralisis Permanente vibe on the opening section of this excellent new track from Mexican stalwarts Decena Tragica, although the song opens into a broader gothic darkwave soundscape in the skilled hands of producer Ariosto N Uribe (of La Procesion de Lo Infinito fame).
6. Ember Sea – Meet Me By The Fire
Soothing trad goth folk from German band the Ember Sea on this new EP, like All About Eve at their most wistful. Acoustic guitars, strings and a predictably big soft goth metal chorus for this epic and melodic ballad which will surely go down well across Europe.
7. Varsovie - Perspective Nevski
Great new classic French wave track from Grenoble outfit Varsovie, a wonderfully full production with a busy, driving bassline, typically semi-spoken crache ton venin/je m’en fous-tiste vocal and even a bit of dark twang in an unpredictable song whose twists and turns whet the appetite considerably for forthcoming album on Icy Cold Records, Pression à Froid.
8. Misery Eden - Woods
Fabulously dense and occasionally cacophonous post-punk production on this dark punk deathrock track from the excellent six track debut EP Thorns and Woes from Misery Eden, a project based in Tallin (Estonia). Of the other tracks, Salvation is less breathy and claustrophobic but equally intriguing.
9. Grinning God – Arrow of Wrath
From the Rope Sect stable comes side-project Grinning God, with Sardonicus releasing a new version of the debut Sardonios EP with a couple of extra tracks of equally high quality. The droney dreamgaze of Divine Decadence is probably my favourite of the pair, with its dark garage psych vibe, but Arrow of Wrath has the same mix of sotto voce screamo vocal on the verse changing to a warmer melodic tone for the chorus in an unusual (note how I’m clutching at genres here!) yet highly effective manner.
10. Final Gasp - Mourning Moon
Very strong late 80’s Killing Joke vibe for this Massachusetts band, with a chugging, versatile goth-indus guitar sound, pounding bass, thumping drums, haunting keyboard riff and an angry echoing vocal. Great production and dynamics on a well-structured if derivative song.
