The remix is part of a series entitled “Nothing Never Was” that sees musicians and artists from various backgrounds remixing Crass tracks. Youth’s remix, called “Living Asylum,” is “Nothing Never Was VI.” Previous artists contributing to the project include Paul Jamrozy of Test Dept, Johnny Dynell, and others. Youth’s “Living Asylum” remix features Marc Collin and Beki Mari, and it has a decidedly dub feel.

Although Crass and Killing Joke are very distinct entities, this isn’t the first time Youth has crossed paths with the anarcho-punk juggernaut. Around the time of Killing Joke’s infamous performance at the October 26, 1980 CND Rally in Trafalgar Square, London, which helped inspire the musical direction of anarcho-punk stalwarts like Amebix and others, who were watching in the crowd, Killing played several shows that featured Crass Records artist Honey Bane standing in as Killing Joke guest vocalist. (Youth, in fact, was dating Honey Bane at the time.) Additionally, Youth also contributed bass guitar to Annie Anxiety‘s record, another Crass artist; Annie Anxiety now goes by Little Annie and recently toured with Swans. All money raised from sales of “Living Asylum” will go to the UK domestic violence charity Refuge.

The Youth “Living Asylum” remix of Crass can be ordered here.

The post Youth of Killing Joke Unveils New Remix of Crass appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Last year’s list included some bands that may not have thought of themselves as deathrock, or who have moved away from playing that style since then, and/or perhaps don’t neatly fit the genre tag in any case. (Last year’s list included Vueltas, New Skeletal Faces, Rosegarden Funeral Party, Detoxi, and Mystic Priestess.) This year’s list isn’t so different in that regard:  That is, “deathrock” is a contentious label for many, and, just as Andrew Eldritch doesn’t consider the Sisters of Mercy to be a gothic rock band, even though they really are, many bands that sound deathrock-ish would never describe themselves as deathrock, either—even if you’d be hard-pressed to describe said band any other way. But let’s set aside the debate over labels and say that it’s perhaps best to speak of the following five bands as bands that fans of deathrock ought to be listening to.

Our five bands this time around are: Vision of the Void, Nehann, Desenterradas, Altar de Fey, and Peers on Pyres.

1) ALTAR DE FEY. It’s probably appropriate to start this list off with a band that’s been around, off and on, for several decades. A true California deathrock staple, the Bay Area’s Altar de Fey have serious roots in the oft-neglected North California deathrock scene of the 1980s. The band features members, past and current, of acts like Phantom Limbs, Chrome, and Black Ice. “[O]ur San Francisco contemporaries at the time [1984/1985],” Altar de Fey drummer Aleph Kali once told me regarding the band’s founding (after the release of the band’s 2016 Echoes in Corridor LP), “were groups like Our Lady of Pain, Fade to Black, Thrill of the Pull, Wages of Sin, Beast, Nothing Sacred, and eventually even Specimen and Rozz Williams relocated here.” Altar de Fey’s 2020 “And May Love Conquer All” EP is worthy of those classic comparisons, as well; just check out this stomper of a track from their latest EP:

2) NEHANN. Japan’s Nehann have recently released what may very well be one of the best gothic rock LPs of 2021: “New Metropolis” on Japan’s KiliKiliVilla Records. The New Metropolis LP came out in May, 2021, and unfortunately, the logo of Nehann makes it look like their LP came right out of a bargain bin of CDs from the 1990s (and, ironically, the word “Nehann” apparently translates to “Nirvana”. . .). But—let’s get to the substance of this band instead of the superficial: A lot of Nehann’s output sounds remarkably like classic-era Bauhaus, including the track below, “Nylon,” which is the lead-off track on their new LP. Japan of course has its own formidable deathrock and dark postpunk tradition (called “positive punk” there, similar to the Brits in the early 1980s), from Genet’s Auto-Mod to Phaidia to newer-ish bands like 13th Moon. Nehann’s vocalist is a dead-ringer for Peter Murphy when it comes to timbre of voice and overall singing style, and a lot of Nehann’s tracks sound as if they were lifted from unreleased Bauhaus recordings, and I mean that in a good way.

You can check out Nehann’s 2021 “New Metropolis” LP here.

3) DESENTERRADAS. Spain’s Desenterradas are one of my favorite bands as of late: They remind a lot of classic Spanish acts like Las VulpeSS and Paralasis Permanente; or bands like Burning Kitchen, with maybe a tad of newer-ish (comparatively) bands like Naughty Zombies, and American bands like Vueltas or Arctic Flowers. The band’s Danzando En El Caos LP came out only a few weeks ago (September, 2021) on the always-amazing Symphony of Destruction label from France. On their new album, Desenterradas tap back into the power of dark punk and classic, anarcho-tinged goth-punk like Rubella Ballet or Lost Cherrees. Would Desenterradas themselves agree with a “deathrock” designation? Maybe, maybe not—but they’re a lot like groups like the aforementioned Arctic Flowers or Rule of Thirds in that they’re really more of a hybrid of postpunk, deathrock, and the classic early 80s tradition of Spanish punk and UK anarcho-punk. Their new Danzando En El Caos LP is highly recommended. You can listen to the new Desenterradas’ LP here.

4) VISION OF THE VOID. I have to admit, I don’t know much about Vision of the Void—except that their music is really, really good. They’re from Anaheim, California according to their Bandcamp page; and that makes them perfect for a post like this that’s focused on deathrock (given the genre’s Southern California roots affiliations, that is). Think early 80s Superheroines when it comes to the sheer impact of VotV’s purist deathrock brand of music.

I’m really eager to hear more from this band, to see if they will tour, and the like. Vision of the Void’s “Promise of Escape” EP came out a few weeks ago. You can listen to it all here.

5) PEERS ON PYRES. I have to thank my friend Gary Evans for introducing me to this band. From Liverpool, UK, Peers on Pyres’ slogan is “Music for Pleasure (mine, not yours).” This outstanding band, like Desenterradas, above, may not even consider themselves “deathrock,” but that’s fine; unlike, say, the term “post punk,” the “deathrock” genre tag can still be shockingly contentious. Regardless, Peers on Pyres’ self-titled LP is comprised of many songs that fit the bill; and if you don’t like to think of them as deathrock, perhaps the band could be called a callback to the early 80s UK positive punk of bands like the Virgin Prunes. This British band’s highly recommended LP came out in April of this year (2021), and one of my favorite things about their Bandcamp page is their self-deprecating sense of humor: “Is it [our LP] any good? Not really. There are maybe only two songs worth of decent ideas across the 8 tracks here.” I disagree (but—hah).

Who are your favorite current deathrock bands?

==================

Thanks are owed to Gary Evans and Jack Control for contributing band suggestions.

The post Five MORE Current Deathrock Bands You Should Definitely Be Listening To appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

An early report from friend Pete Keeley indicates Sale passed from digestive cancer, in Thailand. I asked Pete if he thought there was anything people should know especially about Sale, not including her work with Delta 5. Pete responded, “After Delta 5, Julz spent a good few years being one of the people who made the Rough Trade Distribution warehouse tick, and was a force to be reckoned with. She moved to Thailand a number of years ago and got married to a local, and was teaching English out there. This is very sad news.”

Delta 5, of course, are best known for their breakaway 1979 single “Mind Your Own Business,” since covered or remixed by many acts, including Chicks on Speed, Le Shok, Pigface (Chris Vrenna), Peter Hook, and many others. (The song even recently ended up in an Apple iPhone commercial!) Delta 5’s dueling bass guitars, conversational/call-and-response type female vocals (see, especially “You”), incorporation of funk and dance beats into their repertoire, and Gang of Four-esque angular guitar style are all trademarks of the group’s influential sound. The group’s lyrics and Sale’s vocals reflected a feminist and socialist sensibility, and the band were active in the Rock Against Racism community.

Sales’ death occurs in a period of a few weeks that has seen devastating losses in the postpunk and goth communities, including the loss of Richard H. Kirk of Cabaret Voltaire (and also “contemporary techno’s busiest man”), who recently passed at age 65, and Olli Wisdom, founder of the seminal Batcave Club and singer of Specimen, who recently passed at age 63.

Thanks to Pete Kelley for contributing to this report.

The post Delta 5 Founder and Singer Julz Sale Has Passed Away appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Interestingly, Sevit’s live lineup showcases a powerful five-piece act—and this provides a compelling experience, recalling the classic days of strong, live club shows of goth-ish and darkwave acts like The Associates, Pink Turns Blue, and, especially, The Cure. Sevit singer Jackie’s vocals, in fact, somehow manage to affect—if even poetically—a fragility not often found in many of today’s darker postpunk projects (but see: early Underpass). Sevit’s music, which can switch from the sentimental to (surprisingly, even) the oddly anthemic lures you in. But the bursts of triumph in Sevit’s music are fleeting; their strength only helps coax a wellspring of feelings deep in the listener’s gut; and sometimes, if you align yourself too intently with Sevit’s aural performance, it can feel like your heart might rip out of your chest.

North Texas’ Sevit has recently announced a new LP, On the Edge of a Darker Place, on InClub Records, and they are playing dates with the likes of Bootblacks, Astari Nite, and fellow Texans Twin Tribes in some upcoming, celebratory outings. The Pornography-era Cure vibe that emanates from Sevit’s new, 13-track album is spot on. On the Edge of a Darker Place is indeed a dark, and gothy, and moody postpunk affair, for certain—and it’s top-shelf stuff, at that. Below, we asked the band what inspired this deep and shadowy dive into the recesses of the darkness of the heart. Label InClub mentions Sevit’s LP ships out within the next month, probably by the end of September, 2021.

SEVIT were interviewed for post-punk.com by Oliver in August, 2021

So, guys—what does that name “Sevit” mean? What’s it from, and who thought of it? What’s the story behind the name of the band, in other words?

Jackie (vocals, guitar): I get this one a lot. I asked Cam B. the exact same thing when he approached me with the name. I vaguely remember asking him, “What the hell does it mean?” His response was a little less interesting than the word itself.

Cam (synths, programming, etc): I laugh because fellow North Texas musician Leah Lane from Rosegarden Funeral Party asked me this as well, and it caught me off guard. The only thing I know is I came up with the name by seeing it in a book and then looked it up and the definition said something to the effect of, “Seeing in third person,” which friggin’ made sense to me—so it stuck, or maybe Jackie can sort that one out!

Jackie: I did find several meanings for the word “Sevit,” deriving from the French word sevi, which didn’t hold a whole lot of resonance to what we do as a band, but then I hit the jackpot! One of the meanings I found described the word as “wildly wandering or to ravage”; this made more sense to me.

 Who is in SEVIT now, when did SEVIT begin, and where are ya’ll from, and currently based?

Cam: I am and always have been pulled towards the dark and the unknown, musically—it’s in my nature. Sevit was started by me and Jackie a few years ago, moving through transitions to get where we are now and incorporating the newest members. I am from Dallas, born and raised, but have traveled outside of the states and country many times…. and I still don’t have a Texas accent!

Jackie: Living on both sides of the United States, I would personally now consider myself a Texas guy, but in a very non-conformed way! I will admit that I still say the words “You guys” vs. “Y’all,” which is still strange to me. Sevit went through a few transitional stages (as any band possibly would) before embracing our true nature of doing what we love and what we are best at. SEVIT now, to us, is the spirit of our life that remains emotionally bonded to an era long since past. We, “Sevit”, get a chance to share the lovely, romantic, yet dark, atmospheric sounds we mostly grew up with without having to stereotype or limit our approach in the music we create. We do what we feel comes natural, musically and visually.

Is there a studio Sevit lineup versus a live Sevit lineup? How has that worked out so far? Who all plays on the Sevit recordings so far?

Jackie: After much toil and hard work, Cam B. and I discovered a formula that works for both of us since we both enjoy writing music. I personally love writing melodic, dark bass lines and keyboard lines, and I also enjoy programming drums during my time in the studio for whatever gives our music a solid foundation. My real passion, however, is guitar! There’s nothing more exciting than finding perfect guitar hooks, tone, and sound. I also give Cam a lot of credit. If it wasn’t for his imagination during production, and contribution of songs like “Bleed,” our songs wouldn’t sound quite as lovely.

That being said, our live approach is a different animal altogether. Having someone like Keith Madison on bass is a definite advantage; we share a similar style in playing. Brian Weems on second guitar is also quite rewarding as he wails that beautiful hollow body into something I would have not imagined. When it comes to Alex Lohmann on drums—though Alex is a guitarist by nature, he delivers originality that our former drummer, although still a fine drummer as well, didn’t seem to find. Contributions into making this band work are fairly shared whether in the studio or on the stage.

Cam: As Jackie said, Sevit is kind of a tag-team package; we write together, and I do all or most of the final production on the albums. I love taking demos of Jackie’s ideas or presenting my songs and then giving them the full-on Cam B. touch, adding soundscapes or synth parts where they need to be. But overall, we are a unit and the live production is its own aspect. We always want the live experience to be over-the-top for our listeners.

If I’m not mistaken, didn’t Sevit begin as a three-piece? Last I saw you all live I think ya’ll were a full, five piece band, which is increasingly uncommon today when so many darkwave-y or postpunk-ish type acts are either solo acts or synth-based duos. Is it hard juggling the schedules of five people for live shows and everything else?

Jackie: This is true. We were a short lived-three piece for a bit but after we finally developed “a sound” we decided that we needed more kinetic energy on stage, and only because you don’t get this from a lot of other groups, as you mentioned. Luckily, somehow or another, we manage to keep a free balance with the additional guys in the band without too much of an issue. Aside from that, we don’t only play in a group together; we’re also in each other’s lives, as we hang out like friends, often. You’ll rarely see any of us out and about without the other.

Cam: Yes, Sevit is kind of a dysfunctional family! I have known Jackie for 20 years, Brian 10 and Keith 25. Keith and I dabbled in music before losing touch, and now he is back. But yeah, we are a close group and look out for each other.

What are the details behind Sevit’s recent record label signing to Inclub, and when will that record come out?

Jackie: InClub Records [Sevit’s new label] has been a learning experience, mostly because they’re based in Lima, Peru. Somehow or another, they caught a glimpse of us via Facebook. We signed with InClub Records in October of 2020 and then Covid hit all nations and threw things into a whirlwind. The vinyl was scheduled to come out in Spring of 2021 but has since been pushed out to late September, 2021 worldwide. If this album could only spread as fast as Covid we would have been on our first leg of a European tour already.

How did you get the attention of In Club Records for your release?

Jackie: I’m not a social media type of person but from what I gather, they first saw us on Facebook and shortly after they contacted us with interest.

I’m sure a lot of folks have compared you all to the Cure. Do you think that’s a fair comparison, and who are some of band members’ favorite, or most influential bands, when it comes to the sound Sevit is trying to achieve?

Jackie: On a personal level, being compared to The Cure is a compliment but it’s more of a compliment when we hear, “Yes, you can hear some Cure undertones in their music but you all are simply not another copycat band.” This is pleasing to hear! Yes, of course there’s some influence there but our choice in influence varies anywhere from Radiohead, U2, The Sundays, Joy Division, Bauhaus, David Bowie, Siouxsie & The Banshees, New Order, The Smiths/Morrisey, Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, to more recent bands like Interpol, White Lies, etc… (ed: The Associates—Oliver.)

Cam: Well you know I have to chime in on this question! I love a lot of the new bands – Cold Cave, She Past Away (who we are opening for in December in Houston), Drab Majesty, Orville Peck, Twin Tribes, and our local friends Rosegarden Funeral Party. I also just got turned on to Paper Saints thanks to our manager, Krystal, but I also love older bands and my dark roots such as Dead Boys, The Church, Tears For Fears, Depeche Mode, OMD, Yazoo, Gary Numan, Japan, Specimen, Rational Youth, Slowdive, Cocteau Twins, Christian Death, Killing Joke, and the list goes on and on.. I am a huge collector of vinyl and think I am up to 4,000 records.

What do Sevit’s lyrics tend to be about? What are some common lyrical themes or concerns of the band? Are they personal, political, or…? And – is there a primary lyricist for the band?

Cam: That’s all on our singer, Jackie!!

Jackie: I have always been intrigued with writing lyrics and I sometimes can base an entire song off just one word. I think that music only works well with lyrics that someone might think they can relate to. Most people hear one of our songs and will imaginatively already have their own perspective on what it means to them “the Individual.” People have asked me in the past… “Who did you write that song for?” Maybe they’ve assumed I’ve written for a long lost love, a long lost time, the past, or something continually haunting? Yes and no. I approach lyrics in the sense of poetry, and things that might have directly and indirectly crossed my path in life. I can honestly say I don’t know where it comes from—it just happens! I would also say that I have an inner influence and in my imaginary world, it doesn’t involve politics in music.

Will there be a tour in support of the new LP?

Jackie: GOD WILLING!!! We were recently discussing that with our label a day ago and though it’s in the works, we want to get out there to our fans in Europe, Mexico, and South America and all those other wonderful places that want us to come out! I want this to happen! I think our fans deserve to see their bands up front and personal. That’s what makes music fun. It’s the interaction between band and audience. I’m sure you know what I mean…

What are some webpages or other social media sites that folks can go to to keep up with Sevit?

Jackie: Again, I’m not much for social media but you can virtually find us everywhere! Facebook, Twitter, Bandcamp, Spotify, iTunes, Soundcloud… Myspace if there was one! [Links below! – Oliver]

Cam: I think what Jackie is saying is http://www.SevitBand.com and Bandcamp ( https://sevitband.bandcamp.com/ ) and Instagram (@sevitband) if you get into that stuff. But our music is available on our Bandcamp, CD Baby, iTunes, and Spotify. I can’t believe Jackie just said MySpace. Well, maybe ol’ Tom is rooting for us?

Follow SEVIT:

SEVIT has a Bandcamp page for their new album HERE.
Their label, InCLub records, has a Bandcamp page here.
SEVIT has a Twitter account HERE.
SEVIT also have a Spotify account you can check out, HERE

And according to vocalist Jackie, there may even be a MySpace band page for them out there. Google it and let us know!

SEVIT ARE PLAYING WITH ASTARI NIGHT, BOOTBLACKS, and LORELEI K, with DJ Death Church spinning before and between bands on Sept 24, 2921, in Denton, Texas at Rubber Gloves, See you! Facebook event page with details:

RSVP HERE

The post Texas Post-Punk Act SEVIT Unveil New, Moody, Intense Darkwave LP appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

The aptly-named Batcave’s location at 69 Dean Street at the Gargoyle Club in London, England, (though it frequently moved around) introduced early 80s crowds to DJs spinning a new, darker style of music that was only just beginning to be called goth, and the club also provided a forum for then-current underground goth and postpunk live acts, including Olli’s own Specimen, who served as the house band. The haunted house, cobweb-y, Halloween-esque atmosphere also set down a template for goth club decor thereafter.

Famous regular’s at Olli’s Batcave club included a who’s who of postpunks, goths, and even aging punks (including members of The Clash, who popped in once to see what the fuss was about). Other patrons included included Nick Cave, Robert Smith of the Cure, Siouxsie Sioux, Steven Severin, the members of Bauhaus, Marc Almond, and the members of Foetus. Not all of them loved the admittedly campy digs, but this list reveals to what extent Olli’s club was becoming a launching place for the new Gothic movement.

The Batcave’s popularity grew phenomenally, providing a friendly place for goths, punks, misfits, club kids, and other assorted colorful characters that had come from the punk scene or were exploring new underground music’s darker side. Alien Sex Fiend and others were notable regular performers. Resident DJ Mark Scaithe kept track of what some of the popular dance floor hits were, songs you couldn’t hear at other clubs at the time. Batcave resident DJ Hamish MacDonald added in his diary at the time: “There are big differences between ’77 punks and ’83 punks. Mick Jones came to the Batcave once and stood there not knowing where he was. Old punks just want the Pistols; new punks have switched into people like Alien Sex Fiend.”

Olli’s band Specimen was like the Rocky Horror Picture Show come to life: Ian Astbury of Southern Death Cult and later The Cult, a fan, said they were “like a Death Bowie.” The Batcave even assembled a vinyl sampler, Batcave: Young Hymns and Numb Limbs, of acts they wanted to promote for the club. Olli Wisdom and keyboardist Jonny Slut’s glam-vampire-punk image helped define what’s still thought of as the “Batcave” or “deathrock” look today.

Besides his band, Wisdom selflessly tried to champion other acts and DJs, and in fact, a lot of his time was spent behind the scenes, coordinating, promoting, organizing, and advocating for current underground dark bands in the UK, the USA, and Europe. In the mid-1980s Olli took the Batcave event as a roadshow across America through various clubs where acts like Christian Death performed, helping sow the seeds for the further development of goth in the US, or at least linking up previously isolated bands and scenes.

Olli later moved into trance music (Space Tribe) and psytrance DJing after the Batcave shut down in San Francisco in the late 1980s. But Olli was always incredibly generous with his time and with his efforts to bring new bands to new audiences and to help patch together isolated dark music scenes in a time where there was no social media, messaging boards, or cell phones.

Olli Wisdom is a founder of modern goth culture  and will be greatly, greatly missed.

Olli Wisdom apparently died on August 23, 2021. Details are still forthcoming.

Below, Olli and the gang at their finest:

The post Olli Wisdom of Specimen and the Legendary Batcave Has Passed Away appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Given the band’s name, one could be forgiven for assuming that Lorelei K’s primary influence is the Cocteau Twins, vis a vis the Cocteau Twins’ “Lorelei” song off that band’s 1984 Treasure LP on 4AD. But that’s only somewhat right. As singer Dahlia notes in our interview below, the choice of her band’s name reflects an encounter with a primary source of the Lorelei legend—that is, Dahlia’s encounter at age 16 with the statue of the famous Lorelei aquatic siren on the banks of the Rhine in Germany.

And yet—the Cocteau Twins, still, really aren’t a bad place to start when discussing the shimmering and immersive vibes that do flow, fluidly, from the music of Lorelei K; and this is seen in full effect on their upcoming “Swimming Pool Eternity” album. I was privileged to get an early digital copy of the LP, and it is indeed hard to assign it neatly to any single genre: On display are elements of ethereal wave, dream pop, and some more straightforward postpunk tunes. It’s a solid 7-track album, and the LP’s entirety amounts to a well-rounded, captivating, listening experience. In fact, on repeated listens—and the LP does lend itself easily to repeated listens—I’ve come to think of the “Swimming Pool Eternity” LP as something like a musical sapphire—blue and sparkling, like the gemstone itself, and also deeply blue like the watery inspirations behind Dahlia’s concept for the band, but still fluid—maybe like a liquescent sapphire that shimmers as it’s melted into a purely liquid azure—like a musical sea of liquid cerulean crystal. And like a sapphire, too, every song on the LP seems to constitute a different facet or side of its cohesive and gem-like whole—that is, the LP is like one whole gem that features various glistening fascia, but which nonetheless combines at its solid center to form one lapidary and lush aural object.

There are elements of dreampop, shoegaze, straight-ahead postpunk, and darkwave on the LP. Dahlia describes the LP’s songs as “dreamscapes,” and it’s hard to argue with that description. The band is releasing the “St. Groupie” single off the album on Friday, August  6, with a special show in Denton, Texas, at Andy’s.

But it’s best to go to the source (Dahlia K) for more info on the upcoming singles and LP, and so that’s what we did:

Lorelei K was interviewed for post-punk.com in late July 2021

First things first: Who all is in Lorelei K, and when and where did the band start?

Dahlia Knowles (vocals): There’s a total of five of us in the group. We have Rex Davis on bass, Mills Chaiken playing guitar and synth, Michael Briggs on synth and backing vocals, Dean Adams on drums, and of course, myself, performing lead vocals. When this core band formed, I briefly considered renaming the project Lorelei and the K-Holes, just for the camp of it. All of my band members live in Denton, Texas. I live in Old East Dallas.

About the name—who chose it? I like the legends behind the idea of the “Lorelei”—watery vamps, sort of, like the sirens that sang to Ulysses on his ocean voyage. Am I on the right track, thinking that? And yet, the band’s name is “Lorelei K”—what is that K for?

Dahlia K: I found the name Lorelei at sixteen. I was at the Rhine in Germany when I saw the dark and shining siren sitting at the top of a steep hill, ducking her head as if, instead of peering out, she was looking inward. That long hair that lured men to wreck their ships in their lustful state, slick and waving down her spine, her likeness in a statue by her dominion.

Like those men at sea, I was seduced by the name—the way it felt on the tongue, so easy. I knew early on that my first chief project had to honor this mythic girl, and it stuck. The “K” in Lorelei K used to represent my last name. Now I think of it as a sound, a punctuation.

I notice your upcoming LP on Idol Records is called SWIMMING POOL ETERNITY, and given the history of Lorelei being the watery, “seductively dangerous” feminine entity that brings folks to a watery death, to me the LP title has a darkly comic effect, referencing not an ocean, but a swimming pool. Was that intended?

Dahlia K: Yes, and I’m glad you picked up on this angle. I’ve referenced a dark, personal mythology throughout my discography thus far. I’ve built Lorelei a universe with lore, and it’s expanding still. The swimming pool is also a personal life reference, giving a geographical location to a place lost in time, with company that is now gone. The starlet in this record is a heartbroken girl. I guess the starlet is kind of always a heartbroken girl, actually. I’m always finding something to be sad and feel sexy about.

Dahlia K: Another thought on the swimming pool thing—it’s a metaphor for the complex water we swim in when we are opening ourselves to love. Maybe Lorelei is a siren and her rock is a lifeguard stand at a public pool. Maybe she’s there peering out at all of the memories that summer brings to her. Sticky sunscreen days of childhood, or dancing in the water with her first love. It’s a contained space for archived nostalgia.

From the first track in, it seems there’s a lot of attention paid to atmosphere. The first track’s drumming has an almost martial ring to it, which I immediately loved. Otherwise, there is a very vibe-y, almost Cocteau Twins-y feel to some of this — was that intended? What were the sound goals with this LP?

Dahlia K: The goal with this LP was to push the boundaries of what looks like a rock outfit. I’ve had this combination of words stuck in my head the whole time we’ve been making this record — it’s a glamorous burnout. Songs like “Saint Groupie” and “Swimming Pool Eternity” were intended to be cutting, colliding, and expansively dark, while other tracks like “Breakthrough” and “Blue Part Four” were considerably more paired down, romantic, sentimental. Atmosphere is always very important to me, I love anything that gives a song a space. I feel like Michael really added a lot with his synth layers and backing vocals that really expanded things.

These songs are all dreamscapes, which seems to be the throughline from Lightbender to SPE.

Dahlia K: I also will always have a deep, passionate love for dripping wet, layered lead vocals. I can barely listen to my own voice dry. I just like that when I sing, I can close my eyes and feel like my feet are no longer on the ground, and in the air my voice is traveling through endless variations of reverb, delay, echo and the like. Maybe eventually I’ll buck up and do the opposite, just to see what happens, but for now I’m sticking to what makes me feel good.

Who all composes the music and is produced as a band, or is it collaborative? Do you primarily write the lyrics? How would you describe or explain the actual songwriting process…?

Dahlia K: Michael Briggs at Civil Audio has always been my producer, ever since our Holy Holding LP in 2016. All Lorelei K’s lyrics are written by me. The music is definitely collaborative, especially on Swimming Pool Eternity. I come in with a basic structure and concept of a track, then Rex, Mills, and Dean all take their turns contributing massively influential ideas. They really are so brilliant.

If you HAD to assign LORELEI K to a genre—and most bands hate this question, because no one likes pigeonholed, and I get it—what would it be? darkwave? Ethereal? Dreampop? Post Punk? Atmospheric goth? Just curious. Every song on the LP does have a different vibe, to me, so I can see y’all crossing over some (imaginary) genre lines.

Dahlia K: I like floating above genre, which everyone in any band ever will say. When I’m in the studio, I’m never really concerning myself with where we fit in. Typically in conversation, I refer to my music as darkwave, alternative pop, or post punk. Sometimes I wish I could call it shoegaze. Generally, I like to keep it vague.

There are some songs with titles like “Breakthrough at Mt Zion,” and “The New Psalms,” that reference almost Biblical stuff. Is there something to this theme you thing conveys some message or idea, or feeling, you’re trying to impart via the songs? What is the story behind the song “New Psalms”? (Unfortunately I don’t have the lyrics – just curious!)

Dahlia K: While I’m one of many southern LGBT people to have undergone religious trauma as an adolescent, the biblical references placed on Swimming Pool really have nothing to do with that. Like I previously mentioned, there is a lore that I’ve built in my writing for Lorelei… in the song “Lightbender,” I wrote a lot about purity of form and falling from grace. In “The New Psalms” the woman is a mortal and has no reservations about being flawed and being open. It’s written for the audience, with lines like “I know that someday each and every one of us fades into obscurity / I just hope that somewhere I said something to somebody who carries it sacred within their heart.” In the end she is (I am) concerned with what a song can contribute to someone’s life, and if loneliness is the cost of creating that world for somebody else, even just for three to five minutes, then it’s a willful sacrifice. I like big, dramatic titles that create an epic feeling, and can develop multiple meanings depending on how you look at it.

The musicianship generally on this LP is remarkable. Everyone sounds like they know their stuff, and the production is very “immersive.” Maybe the name of the group and the LP title make me think this, but there’s even a kind of “oceanic” feel of ebb and flow and liquid immersion. What are the backgrounds of everyone musically, and was there an attempt to make an immersive LP with this?

Dahlia K:I know that Dean and Mills both have experience at the University of North Texas with extended musical training. Rex has played in multiple punk bands. Michael of course has tons of experience as a sound engineer, but this is one of his only active projects as a contributing musician.

The theme of water and the ocean is present in a lot of songs in my discography, but I agree that it’s more present than ever here in this set of songs. I’m really proud of the boys and what each of them has brought to the pool.

Dahlia, have you had professional vocal teaching? Who are your vocal influences, and who do you admire as far as vox and songwriting generally?

Dahlia K: I have seen Sarah Ruth Alexander in the past for vocal training. I admire Joanna Newsom, Beth Gibbons, Patti Smith, and Elliott Smith. I always think about athletics when I sing, and boys, and my past. I’ve tossed many letters I’ve started writing to Patti Smith. Her approach to reading and writing, her raw voice, and her singular energy has always enthralled me.

Do you (Dahlia) write poetry (or prose, or anything) generally outside the band? If so, what? And what is your background, otherwise, musically if any?

Dahlia K: I write consistently, but I still feel like I’m learning how to create a solid piece of text that does not involve music. I do not have an academic approach to writing. I would love to publish a book of poetry, and maybe a memoir, someday when I’m older.

I started piano lessons when I was seven, and went on to participate in choir, band and theater as I grew up. My brother and I grew up learning different instruments together; that was a bond that has lasted into adulthood.

You recently signed to Idol Records. When will the LP come out? Vinyl, digital, CD, all of the above, some of the above?

Dahlia K: We are so honored to be signed with Idol. We are beginning the release cycle with a series of digitally released singles. We are looking at early Spring 2022 for a digital release of the record, then it will be pressed on vinyl.

Where can folks go to get more info on LORELEI K? Websites, Bandcamp, etc.?

Dahlia K: lorelei-k.bandcamp.com – merch coming soon!

Lorelei K is active on Instagram and Twitter @l0releik.

Lorelei K have a Facebook page HERE.
Lorelei K also have a Bandcamp page HERE

The post Dreampop Heroes Lorelei K announce new single, LP on Idol Records appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

New Skeletal Face’s new EP, “Sextinction,” underscores Errol’s point. Sounding like an unholy marriage between Lords of the New Church, Deathcharge, and the more dark, rocking side of Sisters of Mercy or Terminal Gods (or, for the true believers, check out old 1980s US garage gothic rock like The Dispossessed, for another comparison…) the new “Sextinction” EP is a full-on affair of caustic bleakness. Big, sprayed-up black hair, leather jackets, sunglasses, leather boots, and a sound powered by doomy riffs—New Skeletal Faces quote early The Cure in their interview below vis a vis their eclectic, dirgey approach to music. While some NSF tracks do remind of “Deathwish”-era Christian Death, that comparison may be too easy for this group’s new EP.

Check out the interview with California’s New Skeletal Faces, and listen to their new EP, “Sextinction,” below.

Where did the name “New Skeletal Faces” come from? Who thought of it and what does it “mean”?

Errol (guitars, vox): I came up with the name. NSF represents a malevolent post-human entity.

So, a basic question, to get some basic facts out of the way: When did NSF start? Who was in the band originally, versus now?

Errol: In late 2016, after my previous band ended, KRO and I collaborated to create New Skeletal
Faces. With KRO on bass and me on guitar/vocals, we wrote 3 songs using shitty keyboard drums with some atmospheres which I programmed. An EP with those songs were released in 2017. The songs came out good considering the situation. It wasn’t a proper representation of what we were going for, though. We were already planning on getting a drummer from the beginning, we just wanted to get our stuff out there asap. But eventually we found Don Void soon after.

KRO (Bass): Errol and I started it together. Both our bands had broken up so we linked up and started practicing and writing. Originally, we had E-drums that Errol would program with a synth. We shot a DIY music video for “Skeleton Structure” in my old apartment during this era. We tried out a series of drummers; but then Don joined and our band has been complete since then. We were thinking of adding a keyboardist for awhile but we find being a 3 piece to work really well for us.

Don (percussion): Originally Errol and KRO started the band as a two-piece, but very early on I joined as the original drummer and it’s been us three ever since. I play drums and occasionally keyboards or second guitar tracks. I’ve also taken the lead on the recording, mixing and mastering through my studio.

So, being a “power trio” (hah) there’s an obvious comparison I want to make to Rudimentary Peni, also a trio, and the EP artwork looks sort of Rudimentary Peni-ish—so I have to ask: How large does Rudimentary Peni’s shadow loom over ya’ll’s songwriting?

Errol: Rudimentary Peni’s 1983 “Death Church” LP is the perfect punk rock album. But I can’t say we’re consciously inspired by them. I have a specific style to my visual artwork, which is how I’ve been attacking the canvas long before I even heard the band: Acrylic paints with a lot of color is what I use. Nick Blinko of Rudimentary Peni usually does black and white pen. So it’s very different, but maybe equally disturbing! I’m naturally attracted to artists that see things similar to me.

Don: In regards to New Skeletal Faces being a trio, Lol Tolhurst of The Cure once said, “In a three-piece, everyone must play to the best of their abilities. There is no room for mistakes. It tends to make you very accurate and tight as musicians, but it also means that each gig has some tense moments. Each member has to literally carry the show at certain points in the set, because any bum notes or miscues will be very obvious in the skeletal structure imposed by the three-piece band.”

So, that is something that I absolutely agree upon as a three-piece. There is a sort of nakedness on stage that larger bands do not experience as much. Though Rudimentary Peni is an all-time favorite of mine, I would say their influence is somewhat slight. I’ve still yet to use the traditional Rudi Peni/Jon Greville drumbeat (think of their song “Blissful Myth”) in any of our work.

Errol: We were all a part of bands previously. Now, New Skeletal Faces is our main focus. I was playing in a friend’s bestial black metal band for a short period too, which kind of influenced my tremolo guitar playing and wanting to incorporate double bass drumming into NSF. People always assume we just worship Christian Death and Rudimentary Peni, but there’s a lot more to us. I’m into a lot of extreme metal like Celtic Frost, and rock n’ roll like the Stooges

KRO: I was formerly a touring upright bassist. NSF is my first band playing electric bass. While we don’t consciously summon any particular influence on our music, we all listen to gothic rock, deathrock, punk, post-punk, anarcho, black/extreme metal, glam, etc. and I suppose a certain fraction of influence has naturally permeated into our playing.

Don: NSF is so forward-looking we don’t spend much time thinking of the past. Rudimentary Peni and
Bathory are two of my favorites and consistently have been since the late 90s. Drum-wise. NSF takes some influence from the expected places but also less expected as well, for instance there’s a fair amount of Nausea and early ’90s Fenriz playing in my approach to drums as a whole.

When NSF started, was there any sort of overarching vision for the band? If so, what? What is the band’s “purpose”?

Errol: At its core, NSF is an artistic outlet. When it all started, we just wanted to make dark intense rock n roll that was totally original. Everything was feeling so stale in the scene. I would go to shows and not feel satisfied. What’s happening currently in music does not inspire me, but it actually drives me to do more. We have to shake things up because no one else will.

KRO: New Skeletal Faces prophesizes the dark fate that humankind is bound to. We want to explore this vision and create a savage, otherworldly atmosphere with our music. We are always trying to push the limits of what we are capable of, so growing as individual musicians has been important to us, as well.

Don: Honestly to make music that we want to listen to. Explore dark and rarely touched-upon areas of music.

So, as far as that goes. what do NSF’s songs tend to be about, thematically? And about the songs on thyour new EP; are they political? Is NSF a political band?

Errol: We’re about reality. A reality too harsh or beyond our understanding. In a society plagued by anxiety, many people seek false comfort. My lyrics aim to show the unpleasant side that many choose to not see. The track on our EP, “Banshee Sex Tomb,” is about lust and embracing the immoral nature of humanity. Some of the lyrical imagery is inspired by a succubus during a sleep paralysis episode I had. The other track, “Extinction Of Bodies,” is very apocalyptic. It’s anti-human. Our species will cease to exist at some point, and the earth will continue on. Other creatures will flourish. We are not important. I understand if people interpret my vision as negative. But I think it can be a positive thing to shed the skin of fantasy.

KRO: NSF is not a political band. We have a dark and surrealist artistic vision that doesn’t engage the political.

Don: No, NSF is not political. What we do focus on, however, is the cold universal darkness that binds the
cosmos.

How would you categorize yourselves? To me, you play raw, back-to-basics deathrock. Is that
accurate? If someone never heard you, how would you describe your sound?

Errol: We’re often described as deathrock. But when I listen to a lot of bands in the genre, we’re not like them at all. Our sound is definitely old school, yeah. But it’s also fresh, at the same time. We have no interest in recreating the past. It’s intense and darkly atmospheric music. Genres are lame but useful. Sometimes I just end up saying “Dark Punk.”

KRO: We are not interested in being confined to any rigid, homogenized framework. I feel we are an inexplicable blend of punk, gothic rock and metal. We quite enjoy being a band that people struggle trying to fit into a category.

Don: I just usually refer to us as “Dark, Heavy Music.”

When and where was this EP recorded? what label is it on now? when is it coming out?

Errol:  It lands on June 25th, 2021. It’s self-released. Order the record now!

Don: Sextinction was recorded in the same place as our Celestial Disease LP, from my Cosmic Void studio. The tracks briskly followed the Celestial Disease recording session and were done a track at a time, beginning with drums, to bass, to guitars, and finally vocals. The tracks were then mixed and mastered with me sitting as engineer. The session was built off of what we learned in self producing Celestial Disease but with improvements across the board. I’m particularly proud with the massive low end this record achieves, especially on vinyl.

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You can order New Skeletal faces’ “Sextinction” EP HERE.

NEW SKELETAL FACES have a Bandcamp HERE.
NEW SKELETAL FACES have a Facebook page HERE.
NEW SKELETAL FACES have a webpage HERE.

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The post California Deathrockers New Skeletal Faces Release Blistering “Sextinction” EP appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

As the pandemic begins to abate in the United States, VIO\ATOR have started to play out again, this time buttressed with the announcement of the aforementioned full-length recording coming out later in the Summer on Young and Cold Records. The act has released the track “Your Victim,” below, as a teaser—and what a difference a year (or more) makes! VIO\ATOR is now a fully-fleshed dark synthy-industrial juggernaut.

“Following my first tour that I had done,” Tyler remarks, “I found myself having learned to play bass while filling in on the instrument for another band, so I now found myself knowing how to play a new instrument. I had an entire tour booked for March of last year and a couple of new songs ready to go, but then the pandemic hit and the entire thing had to be cancelled. I was heartbroken over this, and I listened back to the new songs, but they weren’t up to my standards, so I decided to finally purchase a guitar and learn how to play it, and immediately I began writing on the guitar, which is something I never expected would happen with me. So almost every song on this new album was written and recorded almost entirely live, with very little software involved: guitar, bass, live synths, and on about half of the songs the percussion was programmed manually onto a drum machine. This is the album where I finally feel like I’m an actual musician. The music itself is post-punk at its core, but with elements of industrial dissonance and darkwave-inspired atmospheres.”

That increased musicianship is on show on the new LP, Solitude, and VIO\ATOR’s evolution feels complete. The new album, which we were able to get a sneak preview of, still showcases Tyler’s fragile/vulnerable vocal style—which at times remind of late 1970s or early 1980s Brian Eno and/or Gary Numan—and the layered guitar, bass, and other texturing give a robust sound to the finished product that builds upon the band’s prior minimalist foundation. There are even some very spectral, ghostly guitar lines on Track 3, “Nothing Left But to Heal” (perhaps my favorite track on the new LP), that keep things spooky and should please all the goth-rockers in the crowd. But let’s be clear: The LP as a whole is a very darkwave-y synth-and-drum-machine affair, echoing at times with a tragic, off-kilter resonance aided both by Tyler’s interesting choice in eerie synth lines and unexpectedly creative drum machine patterns, both of which serve to hold the listener’s attention. The presence of Numan, Eno, and “Low”-era Bowie are palpable on most of the album’s eight entrancing tracks.

I asked Tyler about the origins of his project’s name, and if conjuring up Depeche Mode was the idea behind it:

“Yes, it is definitely a Depeche Mode reference, to the point where someone who booked me for a show and didn’t take the time to listen to me had me billed as a Depeche Mode tribute act. The name definitely was inspired by that, but I had moved to Los Angeles shortly before the project began, and I saw many signs around saying, ‘Violators will be prosecuted,’ and variations of that. It made me start thinking, ‘What exactly does it mean to be a violator? A violator of what? Someone’s space? What someone hears? A thought that worms it’s way into someone’s head and doesn’t leave them alone, keeping them up at night?’ I enjoyed the various interpretations of the word and how I could play with it, and the preconceptions that people have about that word. The idea to put the \ to replace the L was a stylistic choice by [my wife] Annie; it adds to the unease of the word.”

Who was in VIO\ATOR when it started, and who is in it now? What guest musicians etc. have you had join in?

Tyler: I’ve always been the sole actual member of the project. My wife Annie had early input in writing a couple of songs and acted almost as a producer, but that was the extent of outside input until this most recent album I’ve just finished. I asked Leah Lane of Rosegarden Funeral Party if she would be interested in singing on one of the songs, and that turned into a full collaboration, complete with both of us playing various instruments on the song, and then Ivan Delint from Warsaw Pact played guitar on one of the other songs on the album. I also have to mention that Michael Briggs, who mixed and mastered the album, acted essentially as a co-producer on this one, and he came up with some great effects and noise parts on some of the songs on it.

What bands or artists are the primary inspirations for VIOLATOR, and why?

Tyler: Obviously Depeche Mode was an early influence, as was Gary Numan, although recently it’s shifted to more contemporary artists like The Soft Moon or VOWWS, although I wouldn’t say that those influences are ones that I wear on my sleeve.

When will the new album come out, and where can folks buy it when it does come out?

Tyler: The pre-order for the album should be going up in July. It is going to be released through Young & Cold Records, who are graciously also pressing it onto vinyl, which will be my first ever physical release outside of hand-made CDs and cassettes that I made for my first EP and my first album.

VIO\ATOR have a Bandcamp page here.
VIO\ATOR also have a Facebook page here.
The Young & Cold Records Bandcamp page is here.

I also encourage folks to check out Tyler’s Youtube channel, where he often reviews new releases and posts other insightful commentaries on music. That Youtube channel is here.

The post Oakland Dark Industrial-Synth Act VIO\ATOR Announces New LP appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Below, Post-punk.com’s Oliver Sheppard sits down with Rosegarden Funeral Party singer, songwriter, and guitarist Leah Lane to ask about the band’s Covid-19 activities and what this multi-part video series entails. Included after the introductory interview is the new video for the old song “Blitzkrieg in Holland,” exclusively available for Post-punk.com.

More details after the video:

Earlier this month Rosegarden Funeral party unveiled their new video for “Salvation and Saving Face” on post-punk.com HERE.

Rosegarden Funeral Party have a Bandcamp page HERE.

Rosegarden Funeral Party also have a Facebook page HERE.

Photo by Vera Velma Hernandez.

The post EXCLUSIVE: Rosegarden Funeral Party Debut New “Invested in Nostalgia” Video Series appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

The new TSOL track features a cameo by Grisham’s fellow So-Cal punk vet Keith Morris, singer of the Circle Jerks, OFF!, original vocalist of Black Flag, and also of other bands. The cover is fun and faithful, with the soon-to-be-59 years old Grisham sounding as good as ever in his singing role as Dr. Frank N. Furter.

Despite his large frame and height, TSOL’s Grisham was among the first of the original LA hardcore punk scene to begin dressing in makeup, wearing eyeliner, and introducing a sort of surly androgyny into LA hardcore. “Jack Grisham was the Iggy Pop of LA hardcore,” Brett Gurewitz of Bad Religion and Epitaph Records recalled in the 2006 American Hardcore documentary. “Grisham used to go up on stage in full drag. A full face of makeup, and a dress. And if anyone at the time said anything to him about it, he’d kick the living crap out of them.”

Check out TSOL’s new Rocky Horror cover below!

You can buy TSOL’s cover of “Sweet Transvestite” on Bandcamp here.

The post Deathrock Legends TSOL cover Rocky Horror Picture Show in new release appeared first on Post-Punk.com.