Seabound, the moniker under which the duo of Frank Spinath (vocals) and Martin Vorbrodt (electronics) collaborate, is one of the most highly regarded acts in the dark electronic scene. A unique ability to combine cutting edge, modern music and emotional vocals and lyrics to create an atmospheric, compelling work separate Seabound from its contemporaries. Speak In Storms is possibly Seabound’s strongest effort to date.

It is cohesive, with the ominous tension started in early tracks like “For Life” and “Contraband.” The tension keeps building through to the danceable “Everything,” which seems to be a deep exhalation of breath, a release. The relief is short lived, as “Lair” builds once again from the darker atmospherics, taking the listener once again into the moody world of Seabound. Speak in Storms is a compelling piece of work; it’s the sound of broken dreams, of loss and anger, and, of course, love.

Client return. As an addictive appetizer for their upcoming fifth album „Authority“, the pioneers of Female Electronica release their groovy anthem “You Can Dance” as a 12” clear vinyl, limited to 500 copies.

Electronic, club-compatible and enticing, Client pull the listener into an emotional interplay of cool distance and wicked heat, into a web of innocence and seduction fuelled by a cocktail of catchy melodies, minimal beats and driving sequencers. This massive track serves as the perfect introduction for charismatic new vocalist Client N, a protagonist of the legendary scene in her hometown of Bristol who has been making a name for herself through collaborations with names like Massive Attack, Roni Size and Portishead.

The 12” contains another outlook on the upcoming album in form of the cool rhythmic track “XXX-Action” and three remixes for some dance floor power: a minimal club-vision from DJ Lukas, a beat-laden melodic Synth-Pop approach from CHROM and a New-Wave-y interpretation from Dear Strange. This classy 12”, limited to 500 copies world wide on clear vinyl is a must-own for fans and heralds the beginning of a new era for what is probably the most seminal all-girl Electro-Pop-group of all time.

Having spent the previous four years living in North Carolina, primary songwriter Jamie Stewart relocated to Los Angeles, moving blindly into a neighborhood whose notoriously dangerous reputation was unknown to him. A park divided among four gangs, a lake routinely dragged for bodies, a building wherein two infant skeletons were recently uncovered - the aura of his new home bleeds into every pore of the album, each lyric and note bearing traces of its essence: the terrible beauty, the despair, the violence, the humanity.

"I know to a degree I must have romanticized it," Stewart admits, "But when it's not safe to go out at night, what else can one do?" Romanticized is hardly the word anyone other than Stewart would use. Like its namesake, a Japanese erotic noir film, 'Angel Guts: Red Classroom' is not easy to digest.

The subject matter - racialized sex, double suicide, double penetration, criminality, fear of physical harm - is unsuitable for the faint of heart. In the wrong hands, such topics could be rendered as far-fetched fantasies. But Stewart's evocative vocals lend his provocative lyrics the balance they need, grounding them in a stark realism that forces us to acknowledge their existence, even confront them (as discomforting as that is).

Unsettling, too, is the music. Recorded at Nurse (Stewart’s home studio) and producer John Congleton’s Elmwood studio in Dallas, Texas, and working with only analog synths, drum set and 1970's analog drum machines, Xiu Xiu has never before sounded so focused, so captivating, so intent on delivering a kick to the throat. Take 'Stupid in the Dark' - its tone ominous and pulsing, its harmonies simple and direct, its grip unrelenting. Or 'Botanica de Los Angeles', a sparse yet anthemic merging of bruising drums and bone-rattling bass synths. Undeniably dark, yet incredibly illuminating. 

So the fearlessness continues. An album such as Angel Guts: Red Classroom demands an equal fearlessness from the listener; to surrender to this magnificent maelstrom. By facing the worst of mankind, at least we know we’re very much alive. 

Angel Guts: Red Classroom will be released 3rd February on Bella Union

 Have you seen the four Paranormal Activity films and are you looking for some answers? In Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones you’ll surely get some! In this frightful movie the main character finds out that he’s obsessed. All images are made with a handycam and it seems like this new chapter is once again a thrilling event to never forget. 

Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones is running from1 januari on in the Belgian theatres, talking about a fresh start!

Desire celebrates its 100th release with Ike Yard's third remix EP from their classic eponymous debut album.

Track listingHalf a God
A1 –Powell remix
Cherish 8
A2 – The KVB remix

Cherish 8
B1 – Vessel remix
NCR
B2 – Bandshell remix

Ike Yard came into being as No Wave passed on, Industrial was in the air and 'proto techno' had yet to be coined. Propulsive, paranoid, aggressive electro minimalism, with as much attention paid to the mixing board and effects processors as to vocals, guitar and synth. At once starker and more fully-formed than virtually all other contemporaneous post-punk music. desire's 2012 edition represents the first ever vinyl reissue of this classic, prophetic album. 
 
The line-up for the third remix EP includes a great deal of diverse music. It starts with Powell (Diagonal Records) doing a great beat-driven rework of Half A God. It has been mastered by Matt Colton @ Alchemy Mastering. The A side is closing with The KVB doing a post-punk rendition of Cherish 8. Cherish 8 is also remixed on the B side by Vessel of Tri Angle/ Young Echo fame. The last remix (of NCR) is signed by UK enigmatic industrial/dubstep Bandshell.
 
Ike Yard was originally a quartet comprising Michael Diekmann, Stuart Argabright, Kenneth Compton and Fred Szymanski. The group are active again after a 28 year hiatus, sans Szymanski; their most recent album is 2011's Nord and they are currently working on a final album. 

Out soon:
Egyptology 'Remixes' 12"
Zex Model 'Mind Slaughter' LP
JBLA debut 12"