Tag: post punk

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Object of Affection Returns with Anthemic “Con-Man”

Los Angeles-based post punk outfit Object of Affection features members of acclaimed local acts Death Bells, LOCK, and Fury. The project sees its members tapping into the primitivism of their diverse projects while elevating their capacity for both atmosphere and melody. While hints of gloomy punk, brooding New Wave and down-and-out Regan-era alt rock reverberate in their sound and approach, it’s not in pastiche; but rather in a sort of sonic kinship to the austerity and fatalism embedded in the previous generation’s dejected anthems. Plus. holy shit, things are really fucked.

Since the release of the project’s 2020 self-titled, debut EP, they’ve been busy: They’ve released “Through and Through” through Suicide Squeeze — and they’ve already shared stages with the likes of Ceremony, Fiddlehead, Special Interest, Gulch, and a growing list of others. Building upon a growing profile, the members of Object of Affection signed to Profound Lore, who will release their highly-anticipated full-length debut, the ten-song, Alex Newport-produced Field of Appearances on March 3, 2023. 

Field of Appearances reportedly sees the band expanding upon their sonic palette with the addition of drum machines, synths, acoustic guitar and auxiliary percussion, highlighting their evolution — and a growing sense of experimentalism. Each of the album’s ten songs are part of a cohesive and complete statement, while standing part on their own, with the material exploding in character, contract and excitement. Thematically, the album’s material touches upon reflection, insufficiency and Déjà vu among others. 

Earlier this year, I wrote about the album’s lead single, album opener “Half Life,” an anthemic track that’s one-part angular post-punk, one-part mosh-pit friendly grunge with rousing hooks and a forcefully propulsive rhythm section. Bearing a bit of a resemblance to Ceremony‘s In The Spirit World Now, “Half Life” is rooted in an uneasy and palpable sense of existential dread right around the corner The song thematically touches upon the inevitable passage of time and the aching effects of hopelessness — both are which are often a weird part of life. 

“Con-Man,” Field of Appearances‘ latest single continues a run of material that meshes elements of of post-punk and grunge: Centered around a quiet-loud-quiet song structure featuring angular guitars, propulsive drumming and rousingly anthemic hooks, paired with a feedback-driven bridge, “Con-Man” is a remarkably accessible, almost pop-leaning track that throbs with palpable disgust — and a sense of betrayal. The song as the band explains is about “being ripped off and how we deal with wounded pride in the aftermath.”

Employing the use of silhouettes, strobe lights to create a sense of brooding unease.

You can pre-order and/or pre-save the forthcoming album here: https://linktr.ee/objectofaffection

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Wings of Desire Share Dreamy, Krautrock-Inspired “Runnin'”

Rising British indie duo Wings of Desire — James Taylor and Chloe Little — draw inspiration from several eclectic sources, including early 00s New York post punk, Factory Records, krautrock and the work of philosophers like Alan Watts, Noam Chomsky and Wim Wenders.

Sonically, they attempt to key into a specific lived in experience: “We were inspired by a trip to Berlin where we visited the legendary Hansa Studios, and got drunk at Neues Ufer.” Built in 1913, the building was later used as a cabaret and chamber music hall during the Weimar era, and converted to a recording studio in the early 1970s. Because of its outstanding acoustics, the studio has played host to David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Brian Eno, U2, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Depeche Mode, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Killing Joke, Manic Street Preachers, R.E.M. and Living Things among others. It’s been said that Bowie wrote “Heroes” at a window of the studio, from which he saw his producer and longtime collaborator Tony Visconti kiss backing vocalist Antonia Maass, by the Berlin Wall, an image that’s referenced in the song’s lyrics.

Hansa Studios is a spiritual home for the rising British duo as they specialize in a gritty take on dream pop rooted in earnest, lived-in emotion. So far, the duo have received praise from Stereogum, BrooklynVegan, The Line of Best Fit, DIY, Clash Magazine, Dork, The Independent and others. They’ve received airplay from BBC 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq and Lauren Laverne and Radio X’s John Kennedy. And last year they’ve opened for JOVM mainstays Nation of Language.

Building upon a growing profile, the duo share a new single, the expansive “Runnin,'” which will appear on effort slated for release later this year. Featuring shimmering and reverb-drenched, angular guitar attack, atmospheric synths and a relentless motorik groove paired with Taylor’s plaintive vocal and rousingly anthemic hooks, “Runnin” to these ears, sounds like a sleek synthesis of Berlin Trilogy-era David Bowie and The Jesus and Mary Chain, but rooted in incisive observation of the contemporary human experience.

With their new single, the duo offers a much-needed reminder, that there’s more to life than what we’re being served and fed on a daily basis through the algorithm. “Running endlessly in circles under the tight grip of a culture designed to distract us from ourselves,” the band explains. “Do we still believe that the internet knows what’s best for us? Maybe it’s time to get off the wheel and see what’s outside.”

The accompanying video featured slickly edited stock footage — of natural and man-made disasters, news broadcasts, the Wall Street trading floor, people in internet cafes and elsewhere. All of them feeling desperately empty, inadequate, lonely and desiring earnest connections that they don’t know how to achieve. It’s as much of a critique of the social media world, as it is of capitalism.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Rising Bristol Act Saloon Dion Shares Anthemic “I Don’t Feel”

Bristol, UK-based post punk outfit Saloon Dion quickly exploded into the national scene and international scene with a handful of singles released through Nice Swan Records and Permanent Creeps, which have widespread critical praise from The Fader, Brooklyn Veganr, Clash Magazine, Dork Magazine, NME, So Young, The New Cue, CRACK and a lengthy list of others. That early material has also received airplay on from BBC Radio 1 personality Jack Saunders, BBC Radio 6 personalities Lauren Laverne and Simone Butler, as well as Radio X personality John Kennedy.

Building upon a growing profile, the rising Bristol-based outfit will be opening for Pip Blom on their UK tour next month. They’ll then make their Stateside debut at this year’s SXSW in March. They’re one of the first 26 British acts to be announced on the festival lineup. (As always, tour dates are below.)And the band’s highly-anticipated, debut EP is slated for release later this year.

Their latest single “I Don’t Feel” was released yesterday through Mucker Records. Centered around swirling and angular guitar attack, a driving groove. crooned verses and shout-along friendly choruses with sneeringly ironic lyrics, “I Don’t Feel” is a decidedly Brit pop-take on post punk: think Blur-meets-Gang of Four.

“’I Don’t Feel’ is a song about being reluctant to seek help from others. What it isn’t, is a song about having no feeling, but more of choosing what to feel and when to feel it,” the members of Saloon Dion explain. “It speaks of the barriers we all put up to protect ourselves, no matter the damage they may do in the long run.”

Directed and created by Clump Collective, the accompanying video shows the members of the band struggling with social ettiequte, and taking part in a handshake class — perhaps to better learn an awkward yet necessary social interaction.

Live Dates
31st Jan – Elsewhere, Margate*
1st Feb – Portland Arms, Cambridge*
3rd Feb – Face Bar, Reading*
4th Feb – Boileroom, Guildford*
5th Feb – Moles, Bath*
17th Feb – The Cluny, Newcastle
18th Feb – Exchange, Bristol
24th Feb – The Old Blue Last, London
13th-19th Mar – SXSW
16th Apr – Outer Town Festival, Bristol

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: North Carolina’s Cor De Lux Shares Angular and Trippy “Syncopated”

Formed back in 2018, Cor De Lux grew out of of the music scene of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. The band can trace their origins to a chance conversation about a deep love of music between its two founding members Tim Lusk (guitar) and Dawn Moraga (guitar and vocal) had while Moraga waited for a phone repair in Lusk’s shop. That conversation wound up being the catalyst for the band’s formation: John Bliven (bass) and Dana Quinn (drums) joined the band, completing its first lineup. Last year saw Quinn departing and being replaced by Thomas McNeely (drums).

The quartet’s music — a mixture of post-punk, goth-tinged pop and shoegaze — has earned then tongue-in-cheek nickname “shoe-gazi” by their friends.

The band’s newest album MEDIA is slated for a February 10, 2023 release. “The album draws on emotions from being on lockdown, media and uncertainty of what will happen next,” the North Carolina-based outfit explain. “The underrated silver linings we all have in common but have to fight to see. What we experience still needs to be questioned while remembering that conflicting beliefs can end with healthy discourse if we see other as equals. If we are scared to talk to each other, we have already lost.

Understandably, the band leaned on one another during the worst of the pandemic — as a sort of therapy. And that foundation helped build the structure of the album’s songs. This was paired with the powerfully undeniable urge to learn more than what they were being told both mentally and musically. “There was so much checking in on people around us and when we got together to play it was our way of forging ahead and getting the emotions put down as art.  The angst post punk driven builds in most of these songs came naturally as the entire album was recorded from jams with little direction as we wanted the songs to build emotionally. We lost our original drummer shortly after recording the last song. A personal decision by him to leave he felt like the story was written and these songs are a part of him as much as they are of us. Thank you.”

The band adds “We all agree that there’s an excitement to see what comes next and want to continue to skirt around genres and create only what comes naturally.”

MEDIA‘s latest single, the breakneck “Syncopated” is featuring glistening and angular guitar attack, carefully syncopated and propulsive groove, Moraga’s icy delivery and Gang of Four-like hooks placed within an expansive, alternating quiet, loud, quiet song structure with an explosive coda. The song is rooted in a palpable unease and uncertainty that properly captures the past couple of years.

The accompanying video features footage from a surreal cartoon by Inkwell Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures, which features KoKo the Clown and dog and was directed by Dave Fleischer. KoKo the Clown and the dog wind up at Earth’s control rooms; While KoKo plays with the switch that controls day and night, his misbehaving dog feels compelled to pull the switch that would end the world. A series of surreal yet cataclysmic events occur from that point on. Although the cartoon was originally released back in 1928, it captures how close human are to ruining everything for future generations.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Automatic Shares Slow-Burning “Turn Away”

Los Angeles-based post punk outfit Automatic — Izzy Glaudini (synths, vocals), Lola Dompé (drums, vocals) and Halle Saxon (bass, vocals) — can trace their origins to their hometown’s DIY scene: Each individual member had been immersed in the scene when they met. They started jamming back in 2017. The trio quickly became a local club circuit mainstay.

Their full-length debut, 2019’s Signals saw the trio quickly establishing their sound, which paired motorik grooves with icy atmospheres. 

The trio’s sophomore album Excess was released last year through Stones Throw Records. The album sees the band sonically riding an imaginary edge where the ’70s underground met ’80s corporate culture. As the band puts it, “That fleeting moment when what was once cool quickly turned and became mainstream all for the sake of consumerism.” Using that particular point in time as a lens through which to view our uncertain and seemingly apocalyptic present, the album’s material sees the trio taking aim at corporate culture and extravagance through deadpan critiques and razor sharp hooks. 

Last year, I wrote about two album singles:

  • “Skyscraper,” a dance floor friendly bop built around glistening synth arpeggios, relentless four-on-the-floor and disco-influenced bass lines paired with an icy, insouciant delivery and razor sharp, well-placed hooks. And while sonically seeming like a slick and effortless synthesis of Blondie, Devo and Talking Heads, the song is rooted in incisive and politically charged commentary. The band’s Halle Saxon explains that “Skyscraper” is ” . . .about spending your life making money and then spending it to fill the void created by said job.” Lola Dompé adds, “Kind of like going to LA to live your dreams.”

  • “Teen Beat,” a single centered around multi-part harmonized chanted vocals, bubbling and arpeggiated synths and a relentless motorik groove that seemed like a seamless mesh of Gang of Four and Nots. Much like its predecessor, “Teen Beat” continues a run of material that rooted in incisive and urgent political commentary. “The title was taken from a preset on a dinky drum machine, and the song is about the chaos of climate change descending upon Gen Z,” the band explain. 

“Turn Away,” Excess‘ latest single is a slow-burning, bop centered around a syrupy groove rooted in a rapid-fire boom bap-like drumming, twinkling, reverb-drenched keys and a propulsive bass line paired with sultrily delivered vocals and the trio’s unerring knack for razor sharp hooks.

Directed by Amber Navarro, the accompanying video for “Turn Away” begins with the band flying aboard a private jet, when something goes disastrously wrong mid-flight. The plane crashes and the trio miraculously survives what appears to be a catastrophic crash in the middle of the desert. Naturally, the members of the band are left to fend for themselves — completely alone.

“We got to work together with Ambar Navarro, our friend and director of the first music video off our album Excess, ‘New Beginning’. We have a lot of fun on set with Ambar because she gets our sense of humor and she visually adds some lightness to the heavier themes of our album, like climate change and income inequality. We become the capitalist death cult in this satirical animation of what could happen if we as a society continue on this path of excess.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Los Angeles’ Object of Affection Share Anthemic “Half Life”

Los Angeles-based post punk outfit Object of Affection features members of Death Bells, LOCK, and Fury. The project sees its members tapping into the primitivism of their diverse projects while elevating their capacity for both atmosphere and melody. While hints of gloomy punk, brooding New Wave and down-and-out Regan-era alt rock reverberate in their sound and approach, it’s not in pastiche; but rather in a sort of sonic kinship to the austerity and fatalism embedded in the previous generation’s dejected anthems. Plus. holy shit, things are really fucked.

Since the release of the project’s 2020 self-titled, debut EP, they’ve been busy: They’ve released “Through and Through” through Suicide Squeeze — and they’ve already shared the stages with the likes of Ceremony, Fiddlehead, Special Interest, Gulch, and a growing list of others. Building upon a growing profile, the members of Object of Affection signed to Profound Lore, who will be releasing their highly-anticipated full-length debut, the ten-song, Alex Newport-produced Field of Appearances on March 3, 2023.

The album reportedly sees the band expanding upon their sonic palette with the addition of drum machines, synths, acoustic guitar and auxiliary percussion, highlighting their evolution — and a growing sense of experimentalism. Each of the album’s ten songs are part of a cohesive and complete statement, while standing part on their own, with the material exploding in character, contract and excitement. Thematically, the album’s material touches upon reflection, insufficiency and Déjà vu among others.

Field of Appearances lead single and album opener “Half Life” is anthemic track that’s one-part angular post-punk, one-part mosh-put friendly grunge centered around rousingly enormous hooks, angular power chords and a forcefully propulsive rhythm section. While bearing a resemblance to Ceremony’s In The Spirit World Now, the song is underpinned by an uneasy and palpable sense of existential dread around the corner: The song thematically touches upon the inevitable passage of time and the aching effects of hopelessness — both are which are often a weird part of life.

Directed by Miwah Lee, the accompanying video for “Half Life” follows a young woman as she goes on an a surrealistic journey through Los Angeles — without an actual plan or real destination in mind.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 67th Birthday, Bernard Sumner!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Bernard Summer’s 67th birthday.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Distance H Teams Up with Saigon Blue Rain’s Ophelia on Brooding “Bitch 16”

Distance H is a post-punk/darkwave/coldwave recording project of French producer ManuH. The project sees ManuH collaborating with an eclectic array of female vocalists, who contribute melodies and lyrics.

Released earlier this year, the brooding and cinematic “Bitch 16.” sees ManuH collaborating with Saigon Blue Rain‘s Ophelia on a Cocteau Twins-meets-Sixousie and the Banshees-like song rooted in eerie atmospherics and razor sharp hooks.

Directed and edited by Anaïs Novembre, the accompanying video for “Bitch 16” is split between gorgeous and broodingly lit footage of the collaborators in studio, and Saigon Blue Rains Opehila dancing in a creepy, goth-like forest.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Nice, France-based duo Divine Decadence — Sabrina and Tatiana — can trace their origins back to 2020: With the duo being confined to the home studio as a result of COVID-19 quarantines and restrictions, it allowed them the opportunity to write and then refine songs, while gradually developing a sound that’s informed by film soundtracks and darkwave.

The duo’s self-titled, five song, debut EP was released earlier this year. The EP’s first single “Purple Dress” is a cinematic bit of post-punk/darkwave centered around moody atmospherics, Sabrina and Tatiana’s eerie harmonies, and swirling guitar textures that become stormier as the song progresses to its explosive coda. “Purple Dress” manages to bring both Cocteau Twins and Kælan Mikla, complete with a palpable, creeping dread.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: West Wickhams Share Shimmering “This is a Hang Up”

Originally formed in Tresco, the second biggest island of the Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, UK, an island famously known as “The Island of Lost Souls,” and now currently based in Richmond, UK, the self-described psychedelic, garage noir duo West Wickhams — Jon Othello and Elle Flores — have a name that’s an imagined rival gang name to British punk style icons The Bromley Contingent, a group who followed Sex Pistols and whose style was largely influenced by David Bowie and Roxy Music. 

Their overall aesthetic is influenced by a wide range of goth and horror sources including the work of Mary Shelley, Whitby Abbey, Edgar Allan Poe, Andy Warhol, abstract painting, film noir and more. 

Earlier this year, the duo released their debut EP Consider Her Way, which featured EP title track “Consider Her Way,” a brooding bit of goth-leaning post-punk centered around angular, reverb and delay-drenched guitars and a motorik groove that sonically sounded informed by The Cure and Cocteau Twins.

Released last month, the British duo’s second EP of the year Magenta is informed by the color. “Magenta is the colour of universal harmony and emotional balance,” the duo explain. “It contains the passion, power and energy of red, restrained by the introspection and quiet energy of violet. It promotes compassion, kindness and cooperation. The colour magenta is a color of cheerfulness, happiness, contentment and appreciation.”

Magenta‘s second and latest single, the “This is a Hang Up” continues a run of nostalgia-inducing, goth-leaning, post punk rooted in shimmering and reverb-drenched guitars and driving rhythms paired with ethereal vocals buried into the mix. Sonically, “This is a Hang Up” seems like a slick synthesis of The Cure and New Order, complete with a dance floor friendly hook.

The accompanying video is derived from edited footage from the B-film The Planet of the Vampires.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstays Dream Wife Return with a Tense Post-Punk Influenced Ripper

Deriving their name from a pointed criticism of society’s long-held objectification of women, the acclaimed London-based punk rock trio and JOVM mainstays Dream Wife — Rakel Mjöll (vocals) (she/her), Alice Go (guitar, vocals) (she/her) and Bella Podapec (bass, vocals) (they/them) — can trace their origins to when the trio met and started the band back in 2015 as an art project rooted in a unique concept: a band born out of one girl’s memories of growing up in Canada in the 1990s.

Dream Wife’s 2018 self-titled debut was released to widespread critical acclaim, and led to the punk outfit opening for Garbage, The Kills and Sleigh Bells, as well as playing that year’s SXSW. Building upon a growing international profile, the members of Dream Wife also went on a series of headlining tours across the European Union and the States, which included a Rough Trade stop with New York-based genre-defying artist Sabri. 

The acclaimed London outfit’s 2020 Marta Salogni-produced So When You Gonna . . . saw the JOVM mainstays writing and recording their most urgent and direct material to date. Thematically touching upon “women’s issues” like abortion, miscarriage and gender equality, the album’s material is fueled by a “it’s-now-or-never” immediacy, with the listener being reminded that now is the time to get off their ass and start doing something right now to make a world a much better place for all of us. If not, we may all be doomed.

In the UK, Dream Wife’s sophomore album was a critical and commercial success: The album landed at #18 on the UK Albums Chart, making it the only album in the Top 20 to be produced by an all womxn/non-male production and engineering team — and the only non-major label release to chart that high. 

The trio’s latest single “Leech” is the first bit of new material from the member of the London-based JOVM mainstays since So When You Gonna . . . is an urgent post-punk inspired ripper that sees the band’s Mjöll alternating between spoken-word delivery for the song’s verses and feral shouting for the song’s choruses. Mjöll’s delivery is paired with an alternating song structure that features a looping and wiry guitar bursts for the verses and explosive power chord-driven riffage for the song’s chorus. The song manages to be a tense, uneasy and forceful mosh pit friendly anthem for our uncertain, fucked up time with the song addressing the double standards of power — while urgently calling for more empathy.

“It’s an anthem for empathy. For solidarity,” the JOVM mainstays explain. “Musically tense and withheld, erupting to angry cathartic crescendos. The push and pull of the song lyrically and musically expands and contracts, stating and calling out the double standards of power. Nobody really wins in a patriarchal society. We all lose. We could all use more empathy. As our first song to be released in a while, we wanted to write something that feels like letting an animal out of a cage. It’s out. And it’s out for blood…”

Directed by Bethany Fitter, the accompanying video is centered around a concept and creative direction by the members of Dream Wife, and CGI effects by Amy Gough: The video features the band wearing outfits by East London-based designer Ingrid Kraftchenko, playing the song in someone’s blood stream with CGI leeches crawling around.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: ZADAR Teams up with Isa Niels on Shimmering and Brooding “Halos On The Moon”

Antonio G is a Philadelphia-based songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and creative mastermind behind the goth/darkwave outfit ZADAR. He’s currently working on the project’s first album — and is searching for like-minded musicians to join him in playing the material live.

ZADAR’s latest single “Halos On The Moon” sees the Philadelphia-based Antonio G collaborating with Isa Nielsen, a singer/songwriter and guitarist, who has opened for Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello and John 5, who has played with Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie — and is the newest member of Mötley Crùe. Nielsen has also played on MTV Specials, MTV’s VMB Awards. Built around shimmering guitars, a relentless motorik-like groove, Neilsen’s plaintive vocals and enormous hooks, “Halos On The Moon” may recall The Sisters of Mercy and Cocteau Twins, while being rooted in swooning Romanticism.

“‘Halos’ is a song about regret and loss. It’s a song about somehow coming to terms with your failure and past mistakes and still moving on with your life,” Antonio G explains.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Automatic Share Urgent and Angular “Teen Beat”

Los Angeles-based post punk outfit Automatic — Izzy Glaudini (synths, vocals), Lola Dompé (drums, vocals) and Halle Saxon (bass, vocals) — met while immersed in their hometown’s DIY scene. They started jamming together back in 2017.

Since then, the trio quickly became a local club circuit mainstay. Their full-length debut, 2019’s Signals saw the trio quickly establishing their sound, which paired motorik grooves with icy atmospheres. 

 Stones Throw Records released the Los Angeles-based trios sophomore album, Excess earlier this year. Sonically Excess reportedly rides the imaginary edge where the ’70s underground met ’80s corporate culture — or as the band says “That fleeting moment when what was once cool quickly turned and became mainstream all for the sake of consumerism.” Using that particular point in time as a lens through which to view our uncertain and seemingly apocalyptic present, the album’s material sees the trio taking aim at corporate culture and extravagance through deadpan critiques and razor sharp hooks. 

Earlier this year, I wrote about album single “Skyscraper,” a dance floor friendly bop built around glistening synth arpeggios, relentless four-on-the-floor and disco-influenced bass lines paired with an icy, insouciant delivery and razor sharp, well-placed hooks. And while sonically seeming like a slick and effortless synthesis of Blondie, Devo and Talking Heads, the song is rooted in incisive and politically charged commentary. The band’s Halle Saxon explains that “Skyscraper” is ” . . .about spending your life making money and then spending it to fill the void created by said job.” Lola Dompé adds, “Kind of like going to LA to live your dreams.”

“Teen Beat,” Excess‘ latest single is a centered around multi-part harmonized chanted vocals, bubbling and arpeggiated synths and a relentless motorik groove. Sonically being a bit of a mesh of Gang of Four and Nots, the song continues a run of material rooted in incisive and urgent political commentary.

“The title was taken from a preset on a dinky drum machine, and the song is about the chaos of climate change descending upon Gen Z,” the band explain.

Directed by Kevin Clark, the accompanying video for “Teen Beat” is a surreal and apocalyptic fever dream that features the trio seemingly preparing for the end of the world in the California desert.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Since their formation back in 2013, the Novosibirsk, Siberia, Russia-based post-punk trio PLOHO have firmly established themselves at the forefront of a contemporary, new wave of Russian music. Inspired by Joy Division and late Soviet-era acts like Kino, the Siberian act’s cold and bleak sound evokes both the bitter cold of their homeland and that uncertain and uneasy period of the Soviet Union just before its inevitable collapse.

Back in 2020. Artoffact Records released the Siberian trio’s fifth album, the critically applauded, Фантомные Чувства (Phantom Feelings), which featured: 

  • “Танцы в темноте (“Dancing in the Dark”), a nostalgia-inducing, dance floor friendly bop featuring reverb-drenched guitars, shimmering synth arpeggios, a motorik groove and rousingly anthemic hooks paired with lyrics delivered in a seemingly ironically detached Russian. 
  • “Нулевые” (in Cyrillic) or “Nulevyye” (in Latin),” a bracingly chilly bit of 4AD Records-like post punk centered around frontman Victor Ujakov’s sonorous baritone, shimmering and reverb-drenched guitars, skittering four-on-the-floor, a relentless motoik groove and an enormous hook. And much like its predecessor, is a dance floor friendly bop. 

The Russian post-punk outfit began the year with “Plattenbauten,” their first ever German-language song. “Plattenbauten,” is a translation of the band’s 2015 debut single “Новостройки (New Buildings)” featuring lyrics translated by German poet Boris Shneider and re-recorded as a standalone single. Centered around a relentless motorik groove, forceful four-on-the-floor, Uzhakov’s deadpan delivery and shimmering guitar attack, “Plattenbauten” is a decidedly new take that evokes an oppressive, seemingly infinite grey; an overwhelmingly oppressive sameness, crushing poverty and bitter frustration over lack of options and opportunities. 

Ploho’s sixth album,  Когда душа спит (When The Soul Sleeps) is slated for a November 4, 2022 release through Artoffact Records. Centered around somber yet beautiful lead guitar, Uzhavok’s lush baritone, gorgeous melodies and emotionally devastating synth and drum work, the new album will reportedly be among the most engaging of their growing catalog. 

Earlier this month I wrote about “Магнитофон,” a bracingly cold bit of post-punk centered around glistening synth arpeggios, reverb-drenched bursts of guitar, paired with a motorik groove and Uzhakov’s lush and expressive baritone. And while sonically bringing The Cure, Cocteau Twins and 4AD Records to mind, the song evokes something much darker and foreboding — an impending sense of doom.

“Никогда не говори никогда (Never Say Never),” Когда душа спит (When The Soul Sleeps)‘s latest single is a seemingly upbeat and swooning bop centered around an angular and propulsive bass line, relentless four-on-the-floor and glistening synths arpeggios paired with Uzhakov’s lush baritone, a fluttering synth solo, a sizzling guitar solo and the trio’s unerring knack for big hooks and enormous chorus. Much like its immediate predecessor, “Магнитофон” will continue to bring 4AD Records and 80s post-punk to mind but with a slick, modern production.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Emotional Response Records‘ Typical Girls compilation series derives its title from the legendary British all-female punk/post-punk outfit The Slits, who gleefully proclaimed “Who invented the ‘Typical Girl'” as they attacked gender and sexual stereotypes back in 1979. Obvious, if you’ve lived long enough and have gotten to know real, human women, you’d discover that the “typical girl” is a bunch of bullshit.

Inspired by the bold and pioneering women of punks and post-punk’s fist wave, the Typical Girls compilation series has proudly highlighted remarkable women making remarkable music. Volume 6 of the series features the finest female-led acts in contemporary punk, indie rock and darkwave from all over the planet. Volume 6 features tracks from:

Typical Girls Volume 6‘s latest single “Landscape Shift,” is by Memphis-based duo Optic Sink, an which features Nots‘ Natalie Hoffmann and Ben Bauermeister that specializes in a genre-defying sound that morphs from cold wave to psychedelia to distorted noise rock, often within the same song. Thematically and sonically, the duo fragment and reassemble sounds, concepts and verbal constructs while attempting to find beauty in the journey despite what the final resolution may be. 

“Landscape Shift” is a bracingly icy, minimalist track centered around skittering Casio synth-like beats, Hoffman’s deadpan delivery and woozy and pitchy synth oscillations. Sonically, the song evokes, the sense of having the rug yanked out from under you — and being in a brutal and mad, mad, mad world that makes no sense.