LA based Dark Synth artist THRILLSVILLE has released the debut track off of his upcoming, yet to be named album, "Second Sleep."
“Reworking and reinterpreting a song wasn’t a stretch for me. It’s kind of like taking a theme and varying it when I’m composing for film, TV or video games. It’s fun to take the same source material and put it in a completely different musical world. I’ve always loved Stolen Babies’ version of 'Second Sleep' and getting Dominique from SB to add background vocals to my version made it really special for me. It wouldn’t have been right without her. I feel like the dreamy and moody quality of the original rock version translated even better with this dark dance version.” - THRILLSVILLE
“Hot off the presses, Thrillsville has a new single called 'Second Sleep,' and it may be my new favorite song. Almost impossible to pigeonhole, this track is equal parts industrial tinged Stabbing Westward and Sisters of Mercy-esque Goth rock. That’s a poor attempt to categorize what Thrillsville has pulled out with this song, but wherever it’s meeting in the middle is a sonically perfect place and I want more of it. I can only hope that this is a teaser of things to come!” - Echosynthetic
Thrillsville is the industrial music / dark wave solo project of Rani Sharone. Known for his dark cabaret band Stolen Babies, Sharone has collaborated and performed with Puscifer, Marilyn Manson, and TV/film composer Tyler Bates. A fellow in the Sundance Film Composers Lab Sharone also produced music for highly acclaimed Films/TV Shows including Samurai Jack, Ray Donovan, American Ultra, My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea, and more.
“Second Sleep,” the first single off Thrillsville’s upcoming album, is following his horror themed debut ep, Haunt Music, which spawned the Claymation videos for “In the Hall of the Chainsaw King” and “Lycanthrope” as well as the 3-D animated video for “Sirens.”
"Conjuring up tantalizing and warped soundscapes...Thrillsville’s music sounds like it's been ripped directly from a melted B-movie VHS tape. It's ghoulish, grizzly, and just plain great" - Phoenix New Times
"A treasure of an EP... 'Haunt Music' is like watching a horror movie with your eyes closed. Images of Freddy Krueger, Jason, Michael Myers fill your mind as the rough guitar tones, the creepy synths, and sinister beats wash over you." - Victim of Sound
"...manic carnival music" - The Hollywood Reporter
“Punctuated with a superb eighties influenced instrumental score from Rani Sharone, [...] has an irresistible charm that sweeps over you” - Biff Bam Pop!
On this day, 17 years ago, Frank Tovey / Fad Gadget died at the age of 45.
Today it’s been already 17 years since Frank Tovey, also known as Fad Gadget, passed away at the age of 45 (°8 September 1956 – † 3 April 2002). He was a pioneer of both (electronic) New-wave and Industrial music. As no other, and we even dare to say upon today, he succeeded in fusing together darkish electro-pop with industrial and noisy experiments.
His sarcastic and darkly humorous view on life reflected his lyrics that were mostly filled with biting social commentary towards subjects such as machinery, industrialization, consumerism, human sexuality, mass media, religion, domestic violence and dehumanization.
In 1978 Frank Tovey sent a demo tape of Back to Nature to Daniel Miller, who had just released his own, and thus first Mute label single, as The Normal.
Tovey signed as Fad Gadget to Daniel Miller's Mute Records made him the first artist to sign to Mute and ”Back to Nature" the second release on Mute Records. The single was recorded on a 8-track recorder and released in 1979. After this successful single release, the follow-up single Ricky’s Hand record was recorded and released. Tovey also began recording a full album, his iconic debut album Fireside Favorites which was released by Mute in November 1980.
In 1981 Tovey released another single “Make Room", featuring the "Lady Shave" on the b-side, the latter went on to become one of his most known and played tracks.
For Tovey the ideas and concepts behind his live performances were just as important as his music. His live appearances quickly became known for his confrontational stage antics.
In total Frank Tovey recorded four albums under the moniker Fad Gadget, four as Frank Tovey and two as Frank Tovey & The Pyros.
After the release and tour from Frank Tovey & The Pyros album Worried Men In Second-Hand Suits (1992) he withdrew from the music scene for almost a decade.
In 2001 he started performing again as Fad Gadget supporting label mates Depeche Mode on their world tour. Fad Gadet was invited by Depeche Mode themselves as they once supported Fad Gadget on tour in 1980.
On April 3rd 2002, only a few days after he had returned home from a Fad Gadget come-back tour through Europe, Frank Tovey died due to a heart failure. Apparently he was aware of the risks of a heart failure that were already diagnosed when he was a chid. This could explain why he called one of the track on his Fireside Favorite debut album the Arch Of The Aorta.
Album Discography
As Fad Gadget
• Fireside Favourites (1980)
• Incontinent (1981)
• Under the Flag (1982)
• Gag (1984)
• The Best of Fad Gadget (2001)
As Frank Tovey
• Easy Listening for the Hard of Hearing (1984) (with Boyd Rice)
• Snakes and Ladders (1986)
• The Fad Gadget Singles (1986)
• Civilian (1988)
• Tyranny & the Hired Hand (1989)
• Grand Union (1991)
• Worried Men in Second Hand Suits (1992)
• Fad Gadget by Frank Tovey (2006)
On this day 30 years ago Front Line Assembly released Gashed Senses & Crossfire!
On this day 30 years ago Front Line Assembly released their seventh album Gashed Senses & Crossfire (1 April 1989). Two singles were taken from this album: Digital Tension Dementia being the first and released prior to the album in November 1988 and No Limit which was released later in August.
Digital Tension Dementia became FLA’s first Billboard appearance in the U.S. reaching nr. 45 in the 1988 Dance Club Songs.
All tracks were written by Bill Leeb and Michael Balch.
Gashed Senses & Crossfire - Tracklist
01. No Limit 4:53
02. Antisocial 4:41
03. Hypocrisy" 3:48
04. Shutdown 5:24
05. Prayer 3:29
06. Digital Tension Dementia 4:46
07. Big Money 4:15
08. Bloodsport 5:55
09. Foolsgame 3:36
10. Sedation 3:56
Vandaag precies 30 jaar geleden verscheen Gashed Senses & Crossfire (1 April 1989), het zevende album van Front Line Assembly. Er werden 2 singles van dit album uitgebracht: Digital Tension Dementia, dat als eerste en reeds vóór het verschijnen van het album in november 1988 werd uitgebracht en No Limit dat later in augustus verscheen.
Digital Tension Dementia werd de eerste single van FLA die in de Verenigde Staten op Billboard verscheen, met als hoogste notering nr. 45 in de 1988 Dance Club Songs.
Alle tracks werden geschreven door Bill Leeb en Michael Balch.
Gashed Senses & Crossfire - Tracklist
01. No Limit 4:53
02. Antisocial 4:41
03. Hypocrisy" 3:48
04. Shutdown 5:24
05. Prayer 3:29
06. Digital Tension Dementia 4:46
07. Big Money 4:15
08. Bloodsport 5:55
09. Foolsgame 3:36
10. Sedation 3:56
Rammstein - Deutschland (Official Video) reaches almost 500.000 views in just 30 minutes!
Rammstein just confirmed that the new (untitled) Rammstein album will be released on May 17, 2019!
The first single “Deutschland” was released today on all streaming channels and as a download. The video premiere took place at 6 PM CET today and reached almost 500,000 views in just half an hour!
With this video, Rammstein sparked the anger of Jewish groups, historians and politicians as some of the band members can be seen as concentration camp prisoners awaiting their execution with a noose around their neck.
Felix Klein, Germany's anti-Semitism commissioner, calls the clip “a tasteless form of artistic freedom and provocation. This visualization of the disasters that the Nazis are guilty of is highly irresponsible and is only meant to bring music to the public's attention in a shocking way of necrophilia", while foreign expert Alexander Graf Lambsdorff states that" the horrors of the Second World War should never be used for promotion.".
Rammstein are known for their theatrical stage shows and taboo-breaking antics, reaching from cannibalism through incest to necrophilia. Their new album will no doubt stir up controversy!
This month it is 42 years ago Kraftwerk released Trans Europe Express (March 1977), their sixth studio album. The album was recorded during the summer of 1976 in their Kling Klang Studios and released on their own label Kling Klang Records. Two singles were taken from this album, Trans-Europe Express and Showroom Dummies. It was the first Kraftwerk album that was recorded in two different versions. One in English, one in German. The song Showroom Dummies was also released in France and Belgium as Les Mannequins, with the lyrics sung in French. The original German title was Schaufensterpuppen.
Musically Kraftwerk again moved further away from their improvised instrumental Krautrock style, fine tuning their tracks into more melodic electronic compositions.
The introduction of the analogue and customized 32-step Synthanorma Sequenzer with 16 channels was an important game-changer on this record. Kraftwerk also went to railway bridges to listen and analyze the sound of trains passing by which they altered slight to make it more danceable.
The lyrics on Trans Europe Express refer to David Bowie’s album Station To Station and to the actual event of Rafl Hütter and Florian Schneider meeting Bowie in Germany. At that time Bowie was living and recording in Berlin with Iggy Pop (The Stooges). Ralf Hütter refered several times to Iggy Pop And The Stooges as his most favourite band.
Joy Division singer Ian Curtis introduced Kraftwerk to his bandmates and insisted Trans Europe Express was played every time before the band went on stage.
Siouxsie And The Banshees covered the song The Hall Of Mirrors on their cover album Through The Looking Glass (1987). A cover version that todays only remaining original Kraftwerk member today, Ralf Hütter, hailed in glowing terms as extraordinary version.
Many still see this album as one of the most important pop albums of the last decades.
Trans Europe Express (Lyrics)
Trans Europa Express
Trans Europa Express
Trans Europa Express
Trans Europa Express
Rendez-vous auf den Champs Elysees
Verlass Paris am Morgen mit dem TEE
In Wien sitzen wir I'm Nachtcafe
Direkt Verbindung TEE
Wir laufen 'rein in Düsseldorf City
Und treffen Iggy Pop und David Bowie
Trans Europa Express
Songwriters: Emil Schult / Ralf Huetter
