Since The Divine Comedy’s inception Neil Hannon has time and again proved to be one of the UK’s best and most original songwriters. Recorded in Ireland and London and written, arranged and produced by Neil Hannon, ‘Foreverland’ is a byzantine patchwork of love, longing and imperial ambition.
Neil says of the new record, 'it's about meeting your soul mate and living happily ever after... and then what comes after happily ever after. Get ready for the most historically inaccurate hit of the summer'.
The first single to be taken from the album is ‘Catherine The Great’ and it will be available from Friday June 24th. The accompanying video was made by French director Raphaël Neal (Fever, 2015) and stars acclaimed actress Elina Löwensohn (muse of Hal Hartley and Bertrand Mandico).
The Divine Comedy will play on 30th January 30 at Cirque Royal at Brussels.
By the early 1980s, new wave had edged closer to bombastic pop than its punk origins, no doubt influenced by David Bowie’s shift from new wave pioneer of the 1970s to his New Romantic pop of 1980. Furthermore, the song was an answer to Bowie’s Space Oddity.
Peter Schilling’s debut album ERROR IN THE SYSTEM actually arrived a year earlier in Germany (FEHLER IM SYSTEM) (1982) before Elektra released the record in English. What is even more surprising is the durability the record had given how fleeting new wave pop could be in terms of commercial presence. ‘MAJOR TOM’ may have provided Peter with the best hook to gain an international audience but the album boasted even more melodic (and melancholic) anthems. ‘ONLY DREAMS’, ‘LIFETIME GUARANTEE’ and ‘I HAVE NO DESIRE’ are also highlights.
A biting criticism of the U.S.A.’s inflated capitalism of the 1980s, the lyrics are easy to overlook given how upbeat the song sounds. It’s this dichotomy that elevates the album from being defined by ‘MAJOR TOM’, Peter Schilling’s only release with international success.
This HOT SHOT RECORDS edition of ERROR IN THE SYSTEM also features a wealth of bonus tracks, including original versions from the album’s German release as well as 12” mixes of ‘MAJOR TOM’ and the albums second single ‘DIE WUSTE LEBT – THE NOAH PLAN’.
HOT SHOT RECORDS is thrilled to present this expanded and remastered edition of ERROR IN THE SYSTEM in a deluxe super jewel case with a brand new interview with remixer John Luongo as well as nine bonus tracks.
Ghost & Writer (Frank M. Spinath from Seabound/Edge Of Dawn and Jean-Marc Lederman from The Weathermen) will make their live debut with selected dates in 2016.
The live set will see them playing songs from their two albums out on Dependent and Metropolis ("Shipwrecks" and "Red Flags", the latter being heralded as a true masterpiece by many reviewers) plus some audio surprises.
Their live gig will also see specially made background videos intertwining with the duo's personal take on dystopian romantism and boy-meets-girls-and-barely-comes-out-alive-from-it.
First date is set on Saturday, 13th August, in Fort 2, Wommelgem (Belgium).
Further dates will be announced later.
Silken Tofu has always had a firm belief in eclecticism, crossing borders and finding new paths, and this new release is the perfect example of that stubborn attitude.
KRISHNA is the ongoing collaboration between experimental techno producer Drvg Cvltvre and free jazz/metal outfit Dead Neanderthals. An invitation by the Dutch Valkhof Festival for a residency at Nijmegen’s Extrapool art space in July 2015 led to their debut album ‘Ascend To Nothing’.
The result is a monolithic techno improv stomp that will both pummel and hypnotize you. Clocking in at just under 36 minutes, ‘Ascend to Nothing’ is a relentless attack on the senses, a mind-expanding trip through sound and rhythm.
Dutch sax & drum duo Dead Neanderthals are known for their New Wave Of Dutch Heavy Jazz: an outrageous combination of jazz and metal, interlaced with noise, drone and minimal music. FUCK conventions and FUCK expectations.
Vincent Koreman a.k.a. Drvg Cvltvre has been working on his ‘doomed out psychic house’ for years now. His rich background in the DIY scene of punk, metal and experimental music shines through as he is influenced by Suicide, Sun Ra and Terrence Dixon.
So, when two acts with such an outspoken disregard for rules and borders join forces you know the result will be intense and not for the faint-hearted. ‘Ascend to Nothing’ picks you up and throws you into the vortex of the ever-growing cosmos. Let’s get lost in the void forever.
CD digipack released on July 22nd. Pre-order at silkentofu.bigcartel.com
Digital release through silkentofu.bandcamp.com
Having already released a split-LP with Amenra and a self-titled EP, both issued in 2014, Belgian post-hardcore/sludge quintet Eleanora now offer Consouling Sounds their first full-length album titled “Allure”.
Recorded and mixed by Tim de Gieter at Much Luv Studio in Belgium, “Allure” sees Eleanora sounding more dangerous and urgent than ever before, offering a scorching combination of sludge, doom, screamo and hardcore.
The way Eleanora blends the visceral aggression of the more tumultuous hardcore into their bleak and emotive screamo/doom sound is what makes the record especially challenging and intense.
Harsh, intense, depressing and distressing in the best possible way, “Allure” has the capability of disorienting and alluring the listener throughout its full 45 minutes.
