New Jersey-based darkwave/post-punk band, Neon Funeral has just unleashed their new EP, Banned From The Goth Club courtesy of Cleopatra Records.
The EP's theme is based upon the band feeling alienated from the goth scene. The name of the EP, Banned From The Goth Club was given because of the band's challenge in finding their audience given their contradictory sound.
The band states, "The goth audience can't exactly get fully immersed into the music because of the aggression and intensity of the vocals and the hardcore scene can't exactly understand the softer and dance-driven instrumentals for moshing. We once performed at a goth venue and seemed out of place and out of touch with the audience. We then coined the phrase "Banned From The Goth Club" to welcome the eclectic sound and introduce it playfully."
The songs on Banned From The Goth Club go through different emotional undertones. "Avolition" is fast and dance-driven with a good melody. "High Tech Low Life" takes a slower, more somber approach but ends with a very fast, intense electronic sound and metal vocals. "A Void" is a very introspective song that covers questions of nihilism, drug addiction, and societal pressures. The last track is a cover of Eddie Murphy's 80s "one hit wonder", "Party All The Time".
The video for "Avolition" was filmed at a local vintage arcade and bar that the band felt would match their aesthetic well.
Banned From The Goth Club is available on all major digital outlets including Bandcamp.
Industrial band, Panic Lift completes their five EP release cycle with the new release, Again. Again features the blistering lead single, “What Happens Now?” and is accompanied by the downtempo “Timelines” along with two remixes from E.S.A. and Absynthe Of Faith.
For “What Happens Now?” Panic Lift lead singer, James Francis addresses the anxiety of watching the world around us in turmoil and the long-term effects it has on the human psyche. “In the 80’s we had the Cold War, in 90s we had Iraq, then September 11th, and now we've had COVID-19. I feel like each generation has been constantly on edge due to the world being in a constant state of upheaval, and it’s hard to ever imagine a time where we could be optimistic about the future.”
The release of Again also celebrates a milestone for Panic Lift as they complete the entire 21 song release cycle by unleashing the DOUBLE CD titled Split Pieces Stitched Together Again. This album compiles all 21 songs into a long play album format. The CD is limited to 100 copies worldwide.
Again is available on all major digital outlets including Bandcamp.
A punk power industrial sparring match between two bands, ESA & Moaan Exis yields a crushing new two-track EP, Spit & Spite courtesy of Negative Gain Productions.
In 2020, just before the first lockdown of Covid appeared on the horizon. ESA and Moaan Exis played a show together in Prague, Czech Republic. That encounter comprised of an acknowledgement of mutual respect for each others projects, along with a pinky promise that at some point we would collaborate and put something together in the future.
Fast forward three to five years and the schedules finally aligned enough to create something that we all felt deserved to actually live. The artists wanted to make sure that whatever they put together felt like a 50/50 split - like ESA ingested Moaan Exis or Moaan Exis injected ESA.
They wanted to make sure that fans of both bands were able to feel exactly what a merging of these projects would sound like. ‘Spit & Spite’ is a double A-side of absolute power. ESA’s hooked up rolling rhythms combined with Moaan Exis’ punk- like industrial energy. Moaan Exis’s snarling basslines combined with ESA’s pummeling percussion.
It's all there and in its purest form; the punk power industrial sparring match between ESA & Moaan Exis.
Polish post-punk/darkwave band, Mekong has just unveiled the first single from their upcoming album, Danse Danse.
In "Going Numb", the hypnotic fusion of post-punk and dark-wave weaves a haunting tale of a girl's last night out. The dance floor becomes her sanctuary one final time. Amidst the pulsating beats and disco-inspired rhythm, she embraces the numbness, surrendering to the melancholic melodies that guide her through a poignant journey. The song encapsulates her bittersweet dance, capturing the raw emotions of her final moments before the inevitable darkness descends.
"Going Numb" is available on all major digital outlets including Bandcamp.
On this day, 43 years ago, British Post-punk band The Fall released their third studio album Grotesque (After The Gramme) - 17 November 1980. It was their first studio album released by the Rough Trade Records label.
The album was preceded by two acclaimed singles, "How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'" and "Totally Wired", which did not appear on the original pressing but were subsequently included on CD reissues of the album.
The Fall's music at the time was described as "Mancabilly", and by singer Smith himself as "Country 'n' Northern".
The album was generally well received and highly acclaimed by the music press, rating it with four to five out of the five star ratings.
The album reached number one on the UK Independent Album Chart for 3 sequential weeks, spending 29 weeks on the chart in total.
Grotesque (After The Gramme) (ROUGH 18 - LP)
| A1 | Pay Your Rates | |
| A2 | English Scheme | |
| A3 | New Face In Hell | |
| A4 | C'n'C-S Mithering | |
| A5 | The Container Drivers | |
| B1 | Impression Of J. Temperance | |
| B2 | In The Park | |
| B3 | W.M.C. - Blob 59 | |
| B4 | Gramme Friday | |
| B5 | The N.W.R.A. |
