The first six months of 2024 have witnessed a frenzied hive of activity on the goth/post-punk scene, with the annual treats of festival line-up announcements, high quality new releases from scene big-hitters and unexpected returns of names from the distant past to the recording scene, with Xmal's Anja Huwe and French legends Corpus Delicti amongst the latter category so far this year.
This period may have seen the unwelcome return of the extremely tiresome gatekeeping
debate, but also the start of a more mature discussion about the need to actively
grow the scene in younger generations, with the pace of the decline of the
elder goth audience noticeably starting to quicken, amongst gig cancellations and poor ticket sales. Any new recruits who are currently stumbling across
the scene for the first time have certainly chosen a good time to do so, judging by the depth and breadth
of the new sounds on offer over the first half of 2024. Below you will find
the Goth/Post-Punk Revival blog’s selection of some of the most significant new music releases of the past six months.
They Die – Tied To Your Bed
Black Magic is the third excellent album from the
experienced Italian trio They Die, and is a perfect unifying “state of the goth
nation” manifesto for 2024. With judicious amounts of a dark dancefloor retro-sequenced
backbeat, haunting reverberated guitar riffs and a sepulchral vocal deep and resonant enough to wake the
dead, They Die’s rich gothic soundscape should appeal to all the diverse strands
of the contemporary goth diaspora. Whilst Call My Name gives an indication of
how Utah Saints would have sounded had Andrew Eldritch’s one-gig guest
appearance become a permanent reality, album title track Black Magic shows that the
project can innovate as well as synthesise (no pun intended), whilst the Clubbing
Mix of Our Blood is filling basement dives from Copenhagen to CDMX. Elsewhere on the album it’s on tracks such
as opener Glass Girl and (featured here) Tied To Your Bed that the true essence
of goth is perfectly distilled, a full-on dark soundscape. If there’s a more perfect goth album released in
2024, I’ll eat Carl McCoy’s hat.
Stranger and Lovers - Dominik
Long time favourites of this blog (their debut set was the final pick of the Best Albums of the 2010's list almost five years ago), S&L continue to develop their own S&M-themed sub-genre, with more of the material on their new LP P3RV3RT again going for a harsher, more minimalist, DAF-influenced sound. Tracks like Dominik, however, hark back to their more guitar-integrated past, allowing the dynamic strength of their skilled songwriting and production (with razor-sharp mastering by Young and Col head honcho Daniel Hallhuber) to shine.
Treponem Pal – The Fall
As over-the-top in their own way as They Die and Stranger and Lovers, long-serving French goth
indus metal act Treponem Pal released The Fall as the latest single from 2023’s stunning Screamers
set. That unsolicited annual Spotify update confirmed that this guilty pleasure
was my most streamed song of last year – "madness" indeed, to quote the band! The video for this juggernaut behemoth of a track features a welcome cameo
from original guitarist Amadou, which mercifully draws the attention away from the fact
that his successor appears to base his appearance on disgraced former British PM
Boris Johnson!
Then Comes Silence – Blind Eye
The peerless Swedish act’s seventh album Trickery was released this Spring to justifiably universal acclaim (including a full review on this site), and online fan polls indicate
that this track is one of the strongest songs on the LP. It certainly contains
many of the features which make the band so appealing to a broad cross-section of fans of contemporary alternative music, from Alex’s
velvet croon and retro-synth embellishments to Hugo’s stunning guitar tone and
shimmering melodies over Jonas’ metronomic drumming. The masterful arrangements and
production add a perfect sheen to the sound without in any way diminishing
the band’s pure power.
Faux Fear – Forgotten Bodies
Forgotten Bodies is the standout track on an awesome debut
album from Pennsylvanians Faux Fear, which came out just too late to make last year's Best Of list. Combining the intricate guitar and bass
work of Second Still with the effortless cool of Tempers and old school
post-punk enthusiasm of Girls At Our Best, the wonderfully lilting vocal melody
and echoing guitar sound have the charm of a more upbeat early Cocteau Twins, combining
perfectly on songs like Forgotten Bodies to produce wistful melancholy that could lift the darkest of spirits.
Sweet Ermengarde – Sweet Sacrifice
To be honest, innovation is not a word synonymous with Drew
Freeman, gravel-throated vocalist and frontman of UK trad goth perfectionists All My
Thorns and current undisputed king of the Nephilimistic bellowing style of singing.
This teaser track from German goth rock act Sweet Ermengarde’s current album, their first with the English singer behind the mic, has the slightly
more bloated metallic vibe of Freeman’s previous project Sometime The Wolf, but smoulders with bombastic power. Freeman’s
day job involves building beautiful new structures using recycled period
masonry, a clear metaphor for his ongoing stellar contribution to the trad goth
rock community, as exemplified by this latest, erm, well-crafted offering.
Corpus Delicti – Chaos
French act Corpus Delicti were one of the most consistently
excellent bands of a rather cannibalistic nineties goth scene, and the rapture
which greeted their live return was matched by the reaction to this, their first studio
release in almost three decades. Updating their sound by harnessing more recent studio
technology to great effect and incorporating influences from their own subsequent side-projects, CD retain their ability to deliver a
powerfully anthemic goth rock chorus with Sebastien’s strong vocal and Franck’s
guitar versatility very much to the fore on this eye-catching video.
The March Violets - Hammer The Last Nail
The latest incarnation of the classic Leeds goth band showcase the lead single from forthcoming album Crocodile Promises in their first release since making the decision to continue without Si. With William Faith no longer available to fulfil studio and performing commitments, Mat Thorpe returns on bass for this summer's album and tour. Hammer The Last Nail features a surprisingly 60's influenced twangy guitar motif from Tom Ashton, and an overall psych-influenced dark melodic sound closer to The Damned than The Sisters of Mercy.
Ground Nero - Signs
Manx/Belgian collaboration Ground Nero have this year released the sixth and seventh singles from last November's album, Blood Never Sleeps, another great release which got a little lost in the end-of-year rush. Signs, like its predecessors from a very strong LP, features Ground Nero's signature modern gothic wall of sound and Mark Sayle's distinctive baritone vocal, which can also be heard on Resist, the new darkwave synthpop album from his other project Mark E Moon. Almost a decade on from their first release, Ground Nero continue to epitomise the very best in contemporary goth.
Whispering Sons – Try Me Again
The rise and rise of Belgian post-punk band Whispering Sons continues with their latest album The Great Calm. Although the group’s sound has generally become simultaneously more low-fi yet more melodically mainstream as they have developed, Try Me Again shows that they still have an ability to produce high quality gothic post-rock to showcase Fenne’s unique contralto to the greatest effect in a truly stunning vocal performance.
Diavol Strain – Traicion
More wonderfully uneasy listening from the recently-married Chilean duo on
this wilfully cacophonous new single, featuring the usual mesmeric fretwork
from Ignacia and the stentorian vocals and buzzing basslines of Lau. Traicion
is the customary juxtaposition of the uncompromisingly challenging and the thrillingly synergical, the end result being one of the truly unique sounds on the gothic/darkwave spectrum.
Suffice to say that the insanely talented but criminally underappreciated Diavol Strain continue to confidently plough their own
fertile furrow and remain one of the most dynamic and least derivative acts on
the scene. Felicidades!
Malefixio - Estoy Dentro
A more subtle and mature sound this time around from Spanish deathrock disco trio Malefixio, whose atmospheric new single takes a couple of minutes to reach full speed. Whilst Eva's theatrical vocal adds the usual spooky vibe, guitarist Jordi's angular riffs are less buzzsaw than on previous releases, allowing the song's dramatic soundscape to unfold in a more structured and dynamic manner, much like the krautrock-influenced extended jams which Alien Sex Fiend used to specialise in. The Barcelona-based trio's song ends with the lyric "Estas son nuestras cancionas" - "These are our songs", summing up the increasing sense of community amongst the global gothic fanbase.
Tears for the Dying - We Are The Darkness
Modern goth is often accused of forgetting its punk roots, an accusation which could never be levelled at Adria Stembridge's ensemble Tears for the Dying. The Athens (Georgia) act are now into their third decade but have lost none of the energy and revolutionary zeal of 2004's deathpunk classic Go Die (the 2020 re-recording of which seems to be a permanent suggestion on my Spotify), as the lead track We Are The Darkness on the musically varied new album In The Shadow of the Midnight Sun will testify.
Anja Huwe – Rabenschwarz
A fabulous cheese-grater riff in the intro is the perfect beginning
to this much-feted return of one of the grandes dames of the original scene, the
foghorn-tonsilled Anja Huwe of Xmal Deutschland, who continues what was seen in the 80’s as the highly-risky strategy of singing in her native tongue rather
than in English, the sadly expected convention of the early 1980’s. Huwe’s
simple vocal style has lost none of its style on this, the lead track for what was
a more diverse album (Codes), with the backbeat suitably updated for the new century, although the unrefined guitar tone of Manuela Rickers remains pleasingly unspoilt by progress.
The City Gates – Lapidation
The Canadian act return on the uber cool Icy Cold imprint with a new album this summer, prefaced by this wonderfully powerful new single. A Curtis-inspired vocal, FX-laden guitars and a breathless combine in an effective but simply-structured post-punk gallop. The band toured mainland Europe recently in support of the single, prior to the album’s release, further raising their global profile.
Vazum – Breach
Also crossing to the Old Continent earlier this year were Detroit deathgaze duo Vazum, who had already released several singles from their (then highly-anticipated) Western Violence album which eventually came out in June, and of which Breach is the most
powerful. Zach adopts a deeper pitched vocal well suited to the dystopian lyric
to great effect on the chorus, contrasting beautifully with Emily’s straighter
singing style, but as usual it’s his Pumpkins-esque guitar musings which dominate
this high tempo goth grunge classic.
Byronic Sex & Exile – Nemesis
Released appropriately on the Ides of March, the Libertas EP
coincided with a live one-off performance by one-man gothic tour-de-force Byronic Sex & Exile (a.k.a. Joel
Heyes) of this mini-LP about the famed murder of Julius Caesar. Typically, Heyes has already put out his next release whilst continuing with his idiosyncratic mini UK tours and putting on some of the best goth festivals in the UK, leaving us to enjoy this thrash goth curio from the typically varied Libertas release.
Varsovie – Artefacts
The release of a further single from the superbly consistent
Pression A Froid album gives us the very welcome opportunity to sing the
praises of Grenoble-based duo Varsovie. Modern post-punk at its best, Artefacts
is based round a strong wave guitar riff with an interesting bass counterpoint, Gregory’s
je m’en fous-tist vocal and a clever syncopated drum beat which stops dead twice
during the song in classic crowd-confusing style.
Raskolnikov - Masterfreak
Like Varsovie, Raskolnikov have established themselves at the forefront of the current intelligent post-punk movement, particularly since the release of their last LP Lazy People Will Destroy You. Masterfreak was the first new music of 2024 from the international trio, and features a guitar riff that is surprisingly reminiscent of the "Blue Angel" section of the Nephs' Blue Water in places.
Mayflower Madame - A Foretold Ecstacy/Paint It All In Blue
Talking of outstanding yet under-rated European post-punk acts, Norway's Mayflower Madame have returned with two wonderful singles from their forthcoming third album, featuring their hypnotic blend of dark psych pop sensibilities and low-fi shoegaze sheen. Mayflower Madame are the band the Bunnymen could have become, and deserve the rare accolade of having both their recent releases listed here. Mayflower Madame will be visiting the UK in November when the album (Insight) is released, and are highly recommended to fans of The Secret French Postcards.
Crows - Bored
The UK and Irish post-punk scene seems to lazily focus on a small number of bands like Idles and Fontaines DC, but other, arguably more talented acts struggling to attract the younger alternative gig-going crowd as a result, such as Ist Ist and Crows, have found fans amongst the goth fraternity. Like many bands of their generation, the four wonderfully-talented musicians that make up Crows may have imbibed influences of Joy Division, Chameleons, Gang of Four and Pixies through the filter of the early Muse and Radiohead albums they grew up with, but tracks like new single Bored bristle with the anger and ennui of Iggy's song of the same name back in 1979. This classic sound of youth rebellion will strike a chord whether you grew up listening to The Godfathers, grunge or The Viagra Boys.
California may have been the birthplace of deathrock, but
whilst Altar da Fey and Shrouds amongst others do a great job of maintaining the state’s
reputation, the mantle has well and truly passed to Italy this millennium, with
Horror Vacui and Der Himmel uber Berlin at the forefront of an insanely
talented posse of acts. The national house style is obvious on this new track
from Romans Date at Midnight, who have released their first full-length album
for eight years, which whilst driven by a typically pounding Pasquale Vico
bassline is dominated by some truly spellbinding guitar courtesy of Francesco
Barone. The album has deservedly already garnered rave reviews from respected scene veterans like Mick Mercer, and is another certain fixture in 2024's Best Of lists.
Horror Vacui - Distressed
Few bands can construct a song with the same drive and deceptively beautiful simplicity as highly-respected Italian 80's-influenced deathrock act Horror Vacui, and there are goth/futurist alt pop vibes in the very melodic recent single Distressed until a more dramatic middle eight. Another act who will be touring the UK in the autumn and are well worth seeing live.
Sinclair Noire – Vampire Drowns
Nothing fancy, just some no-nonsense melodic old school trad goth rock from American
act Sinclair Noire on this trope-laden track, powered by some fantastically
overdriven guitar very reminiscent of Red Moon Macabre but with some additional Severin-esque
basslines.
Gallow’s Eve – 13 Thorns
Arguably the most derivative selection here (in what would certainly be a very close-fought category!), Gallow’s Eve’s
13 Thorns is one of the new tracks on a thirteen (naturally) song compilation
of the Swedish band's best moments so far, revealing a perfect understanding of the key
components of old school trad goth rock, much in the same way as Long Night.
Velvet Mist - Midnight Fire
In a very similar vein, Belgian retro trad goth rock specialists return with a typically upbeat and uplifting full-one goth-by-numbers classic, much in the style of The Waning Moon. Generic Husseyesque guitars, trope-laded lyrics, impassioned upper baritone vocal, all very professionally done if hardly wildly original.
Funhouse - Stay With You
Archetypal 90's four-to-the-bar no-nonsense goth'n'roll act Funhouse are back with a new album for 2024 which will delight fans of the goth'n'roll veterans, with Mickael Korner's deep croak ageing like a fine wine. Both lyrically (Stay With You, You and You Alone etc) and musically there is plenty here for long-term fans of The Mission to enjoy on another pleasant and highly competent album from the Malmo act which again is barely breaking new musical ground.
Animal Rojo - The Cage
Mexican trad goth rockers Animal Rojo return after two years with a new single featuring a more textured and subtle sound over a simple repetitive uber goth riff. Carolus Cat Noir's deep baritone intones a tale of dystopian entrapment, with Miguel Corvus' haunting echoing secondary motif adding effectively to the claustrophobic atmosphere.
