"hell is above"

"passion of lovers"

"not my idea..."

Reccently, I came across the DC-based Record Label Fan Death when I found out that the group Screen Vinyl Image released a 7" on there . There seems to be a little buzz around said label, having/not-having some potential next-big-things on their rooster and whatnot. And of course they're also accused for an arrogant attitude, so people like to talk shit on them over there. Or at least, this is what I think is happening. All in all I don't care that much about it, but I really want to stress out that I think there are actually not that many small "companies" around with this wide range of music styles. When you got the time, check out their MySpace for some good and diverse tunes raging from Psychedelic Rock to Industrial to Shoegaze/Dream Pop.



Here is a song by one-man project Puerto Rico Flowers from Philly. It might be described as New Wave and Post-Punk. I'd say concerning the length of the songs, you might also add a little Swans and other Punk/Industrial bastards to that. Enjoy:
Not My Idea by dustwillneversettle

Some Talk with the men behind the label:
Fan Death Records Interview 1 from Denman C Anderson on Vimeo.


 

"what a very strange season this is..."

Five Songs to listen to right now:

Einstürzende Neubauten - Nagorny Karabac



Throbbing Gristle - Almost a kiss



The National - Terrible Love



Die Weisse Rose - Unser Leben geht dahin wie ein Geschwätz



Rome - Odessa

"all I can see - a gold mystic spree"

So, after downloading the new Interpol track Lights it took me some time to fully appreciate those nearly six minutes. But right now, there is not much space left for other music since said song is on heavy rotation for some time now.

I don't know what it is, but these fellows somehow figured it all out. When you play what some might call Post-Punk or New-Wave without being too much of a copy-cat, there's always a slight risk that the music ends up too pathetic. Interpol never had this problem, and this might also be the reason why people tend to speak more about White Lies or Editors. Even on their latest record, which was clearly more "mainstream" pop than the releases earlier on , they managed to walk that thin line between simple-kept Post-Punk and more orchestral (sometimes overthetop) Pop Music.

Now, all of a sudden the band is here with a new finished record and a free song to download in advance. Earlier this year, there were different quotes from different band members concerning the musical direction of the new material. While Singer Paul Banks was heard on the Radio, saying the new songs would have an "elegant, orchestral quality", Drummer Sam Fogarino mentioned a "back to the roots"-move. One should certainly not judge an album by one single track, but listening to Lights as I write these sentences down I have to admit that they're both right somehow. And this might be the reason, I'm still heavily in love with that band. They don't progress too much, but still they keep going.

I have not read of any Release Date, all I know is that Bass Player and Fashionisto Numero Uno Carlos D has recently left the band after the recording sessions.

Anyway, it's getting late and I've got work to do tommorrow (nobody believes it, but yeah!).

Get the mp3 file right here:

watching lucifer wandering through the sweet dew of morning

I reccently found an old Polaroid 600 including films. Value for money, bitches!

triumph and tragedy

"it's the inner beast that keeps pushing on"

interlude

rulers, ruling all things

Personally, I can't stand this whole new "Folk" music. Not that I want to spread some hate or something, but Born Ruffians, The Dodos or - really - Mumford and Sons are all bands I can't listen to for more than a 5 minutes. Yes, exactly 5 minutes, smartass! It's all too obvious and too catchy. I kinda see some similarities to the whole Trip Hop Phenomena some years ago. At the point where some new and innovative music just turned into Lounge Sound. Where (some) musicians all of a sudden seemed to be satisfied just producing Background Music. However, I should not generalize and it's not that it really bothers me that much anyways.

So, maybe I should just get to the point and tell you about my new found love. The band is called Midlake and even though I have heard the name several times, I didn't think there was a reason to really check them out. This all changed a couple weeks ago, when I read a recent review of their third record "The Courage of Others". It's been out a while now on Bella Union. Bands like Pentangle, Fairport Convention or even Changes were mentioned as new found inspiration. Call it Brit-Folk, 70ies Psychedelic Folk or whatever. What really got me interested is the fact that this band at least tried to get back a little further and not just surfed the same folky-artsyfartsy-lifeloving wave like others did/do just to please the masses. So, basically that alone was reason enough for me to get hold of their latest record. I'm glad I did.

What spiritual and almost hunting music this is! Without wanting to sound too cheezy this record basically takes you back in time. "In a foreign land, in a foreign town" like others would sing. This is the perfect soundtrack to this strange Spring weather and these even stranger times in which we're living. For sure, this is nothing new under the sun, but I'm sure that this also was not the intention of this Texas-based group. There's no Uberhit nor a potential Single to be heard on this record, but who needs these anyway? This is an album to listen to as a whole! So, yeah of course the people at Pitchfork won't like it (edit: I just visited their Site to check: 3.6 Points! How obvious...haha) and of course most other peope thinking Folk Music means Bob Dylan and Born Ruffians won't neither. Anyone else might give it a try. At least myself was sceptical in the beginning as well. But I really love it now.

Midlake on Myspace 

In The Nursery - Deux ex Machina

How the Military Snare Drum made it's way into Popular Culture or In The Nursery:

By the way: You wish you had their style, too...

How To Destroy Angels - A Drowning

Mater Suspiria Vision EXORCISM OF THE HIPPIES

documents

I know, it's been mentioned in other blogs before, but I really have to show you this. It's the flickr account of Throbbing Gristle mastermind Chris Carter. Beautiful pictures of him and his wife, the reunited TG as well as some others. I really recommend you to take some time and browse through his fotos. Just awesome. Really.

Diner with Blixa

Cosey, Gen, Sleazy

These and more beautiful pictures can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chris_carter_/

"primary colors"

"...into the new age!"

LES YEUX SANS VISAGE is the name of a more or less new post-punk/new wave outfit from Lucerne. I don't care about supporting some local scene or bands. But they just do what they do on a pretty high level. If you're a fan of bands such as The Chameleons, The Sound or (of course) Joy Division, you have to give them a listen. Beneath is an interview I did with guitarplayer Ismail a couple of months ago... You're welcome.

Please give our readers a short introduction. Who are you, in which band are you playing and what are some other interests in your life?

My Name is Ismail Osman and I play Guitar in a Band called Les Yeux Sans Visage. Besides the obvious music it has to be literature for me – loads and loads of books an never enough time to get through them all.

This may sound strange, but I'm always a bit sceptical when other people tell about this completely genius band from their town, nobody has ever heard of. I actually assume that LYSV is the first band ever out of my area which I listen to on a regular basis. I heard so from other people as well. What are your thoughts on that?

Yeah I know that feeling you're describing – and it means all the more to me, if people feel that there's something to our music that transports them beyond that amateurish local-band-feel.

The music you play could be compared to Interpol or Joy Division. Although I know that all of you really like said bands, it's clear, that there are way more bands, one could refer to. What bands have had some kind of impact on you as a member of LYSV in the evolution of your sound?

Definitely the Chameleons. Script of the Bridge was a major influence on how I wanted my guitar to sound – even tough I think I totally failed at doing so. Another, maybe less nostalgic influence, has to be the sound Joe Daniels guitar playing. Joe Daniel is the Co-Founder of Angular records (These New Puritans, Klaxons, Wetdog etc.). He also played Guitar in the now defunct Band The Violets. He's style is quite wild, inventive and uses lots of feedback and little tricks to hide the fact that it was the only guitar in the band.

New Wave/Post-Punk has been a genre, which always had some more-known Artists. It's never been really been dead. At the same time, it seems like most people are older guys who have never really lost track with this kind of music. You rarely see young folks into it. Any explanations for this phenomenon?

I'm not so sure if that's true anymore. I mean Bands like Editors orWhite Lies have a Pop-appeal and do make it to the Top if the Charts with that kind of Sound. The question is whether their fans know about the influences of these bands – I mean beyond Joy Division. In general I think that the sound has a certain timeless aesthetic – it might never be in high fashion but there will always be people that are drawn to that darker, clear-cut look and feel.

What's your musical background and how did you end up in LYSV? I guess you've always been interested in Music and Art, so what did Ismail Osman look like and listen to ten years ago?

Ten years ago, that would have been the year 2000, I felt quite lost musically. My first love, Hip-Hop, had degenerated to a gimmicky soap-opera that had lost all of the musical inventiveness that had drawn me towards it. I got a little into electronic music, but really it took me another couple of years to find what I was looking for. As for my looks back then, it's kind of hard to recall what I was wearing – I do remember wearing a pair of Diesel Jeans until they completely disintegrated but I was never the most stylish kid in town.

LYSV started about a year an a half ago, since then you managed to record and play quite a lot. One thing that fascinates me: You almost haven't had any musical experience before, right? Would you mind, telling us how LYSV came together and what the first rehearsal was like? Do you think you look at things the same way as if you had been in bands for over 10 years?

My musical background is extremely sparse, to say the least. We started Les Yeux Sans Visage about a year an half ago. Before that I was in a Band called Demons to Diamonds. We only played a handful of shows but it was my first musical experience. Me and Remo, our singer, who was also in Demons to Diamonds, decided that we would continue making music together. This came after the other two members had to pause, due to them going to travel abroad and entering
university respectively.

We quickly realised, that the two of us work quite well together but that there would have to be a new Name under which to make music as a duo. I happen to find this french horror-noir movie Les Yeux Sans Visage and we both liked the sound and imagery of that Name. We recorded the first song we came up with on a cell phone. I played guitar, Remo played drums and sang. Dominic happend to hear the phone recording and said: I like the song but the drumming is shit – I'll play the drums.

We had a first rehearsal together and we all knew right away – this
is it.

I guess it's somewhat of a blessing to be this new to actually playing music. There still seems so much space to discover and in the process becoming a better musician. Most of our songs come together in a matter of minutes. Its all very spontaneous and exiting when something new is discovered– I'm not sure if it was this easy, if we all had been playing in bands for ever.

Does the band have a specific goal? Are there some things you absolutely want to achieve?

I guess the goals were made up as we went along. In the beginning it was just the fun of playing together. Then it was to play a single gig – it happened to be a strobe-light-driven performance for an art-show – We then quickly decided to record a 7inch single – really just for our
selves, like a picture or a memory to have of that time. Somewhere in-between we received a certain amount of recognition and lots of positive feedback. The goal became to play more, and to play outside our hometown as much as possible, then to record new songs, then to get some airplay, then to organise and play a bigger release-show. Everything worked out quite nice so far – our next goal will bring us back to those art-show-roots somewhat, but that's all I'll say
for now.

Some bands in your genre also usecertain imagery. Now, as your lyrics and music are rather dark, how important is this to you? Are there any plans or concepts within your music or the way you want to present it?

We do try to make it all "look like us". By that I mean we try to give our music a distinctive look that matches the feeling we want the sound to conjure up within the listener. As our music is quite minimal and sleek, we wanted our records to have a sleek look themselves. For instance, we decided that there would be nothing written on the cover only a photo. The photos used are by the uncle of our drummer Dominic. He's name is Hany Madej and he is a very established news-photographer. He took a series of photographs in eastern Europe in the late eighties and early nineties. They are really dark and bleak and some are even shocking but they also carry something very beautiful within them. We got the permission to use some of his pictures for our records. They fit the music perfectly and our next record will most likely also feature one of his pictures.

Okay, let's do some guitar-related talk, then. What's your current set-up?

I play a Fender Jazzmaster (American 62' Vintage Reissue). My amp is a Laney VC30-112 with an extension cabinet. That's really not the most powerful or prestigious amp but it does give me the sound I'm looking for like no other has so far.

My effects include: Boss RV-5 Digital Reverb, Boss RE-20 Space Echo, Boss PH-3 Phase Shifter, Boss PS-2 Pitch Shifter / Delay (my secret weapon), Electro-Harmonix Little Big Muff and an old Pro-Co RAT.

And what's your dream gear? Favourite pedals? Amps? Guitars?

I would love to own a Vox Phantom Guitar but they are quite hard to get a hand on these days. It's mostly the angular shape of the guitar that gets me. I'm also quite interested in the modified Jazzmaster made for Lee Renaldo and Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth.

I definitely would like to upgrade my amp probably to some kind of vintage VOX AC30.

As for the pedals, that would be an endless list! I love all kinds of Reverb and Delay Sounds, right now I'm looking for some good chorus- and overdrive-pedals – and then take it from there...

You're the only guitar player in LYSV. Does this affect your style of writing? And are there some times, where you wish there'd be a second guitar player?

That's definitely a yes on both counts! I quickly figured out that being the only guitar means you need to change things a lot. It could get boring quite quickly if the guitar always sounds the same – especially if you, like me, are not the most virtuosic player. That's where the effects come in. They are supposed to add depth into the simple melodic structures a play.

There are also some songs, especially the newer ones, which almost require more that one guitar. We don't have a problem adding extra instrument to our recordings, so those ideas are mostly dealt with in the studio – We have been ask several times why we haven't added a keyboard player or a second guitarist to our line-up. It might very well happen in the future but for now, we feel quite comfortable playing as a trio.

Before we finish one last question: Please name your personal top 5 records as well as your favourite guitar riff/melody.

Albums (in no particular order):

Script of the Bridge – The Chameleons
Closer – Joy Division
But, What Ends When The Symbols Shatter? – Death in June
It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold us Back – Public Enemy
Primary Colours – The Horrors

Favourite melody/riff: The main melody in "Paper Tigers" by the Chameleons – actually the whole Song is just absolutely perfect from start to finish!

That's it. Place your last sentence beneath;

"These are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others!"– Groucho Marx

TANZVERBOT!

Das lustige sopkollektiv präsentiert an diesem Karfreitag im heimeligen Ambiente:

RITUAL | Hardcore mit Van Halen-Spirit (Deutschland)
www.myspace.com/ritualeurope

ILLS | Hardcore ohne Van Halen-Spirit (Finland)
www.myspace.com/illshardcore

Das ganze findet im Keller des Gemeinde-Sektenzentrum Michaelshof statt und ist selbstverständlich ein Privatanlass, da Tanzverbot. Um zahlreiches Erscheinen wird gebeten. Sofern Kohle übrig bleibt, wird ein Teil davon den armen Schluckern von Unveil gespendet, da die Jungs am vergangenen Wochenende in Hamburg komplett ausgeraubt wurden.

Es wird Getränke für wenig Geld geben.

UNVEIL und SEED OF PAIN werden je nach dem auch noch spielen. Kostenpunkt maximal 10 Franken.

Beschränkte Platzzahl, also pünktlich sein.

"Against the modern world"

"I'd rather be your enemy"

"Mes faiblesses"

"god damn the sun"

"all alone is all we are"

The band GOLDUST from Munster, Germany is one of the most efficient and ambitious Hardcore bands these days. Founded some years ago, the band managed to progress with every release they recorded so far, gaining more and more attraction and regocnition within the European Hardcore Scene. They will release their second album on Let it Burn Records and APIL Records in April. I'm not that stoked on Hardcore records these days, but DESTROYER | BORDERLINES is definitely one of them. If you're not familiar with the band/their latest release, you should head right over to their Myspace site to listen to their new posted track "Passage". (www.myspace.com/goldusthc)

I had a short email conversation with their Singer Lars and this is what the self-proclaimed "pretentious asshole" had to say. Enjoy!

Before we start off, I wanna know about your Bauhaus Tattoo. I have never seen it.
Hey Samuel, good to see that we dont need to introduce to one another anymore.
The tattoo is on my chest and it says "Swing The Heartache". To those who are unaware, it is an album and a song-title by a dark wave band called Bauhaus. I got it years ago. The typeface is quite unfancy and plain looking. I have taken the font from the Swing Kids split 10" inlay. I really thought that would be a cool idea. I think it actually might even be Times New Roman or something along the lines. It has a deeper meaning to me that i do not want to weed out here.
I might add something to this tattoo sometime soon.

We will get back on that topic later on. For the readers who maybe have not heard yet of your band. If you had to describe the band’s music and attitude in one sentence, what would that be?
Goldust is a hardcore-band, for the sake of creating rather then re-enacting.

As a person who has always wasted way too much time surfing the Internet, I have noticed GOLDUST already for a while. Brutal truth is: The way the band presented itself in the early stage as well as the musical output back then was really not my cup of tea. What’s your opinion now, looking back on the early months/years of your band? And do you often get that kind of reaction?
I would say we did a lot of mistakes back then, out of the reason we didn't know any better. I can not enjoy those songs much, probably they are a good act to laugh at.

You’ve always been really busy writing and releasing new songs. Actually, this is not that usual for most of the (european) Hardcore bands. Especially when you keep in mind, that most bands break up after their first 7“ anyway. Is there any philosophy behind?
While others bands and their members are at a state where they either sacrifice their life to the band or have no further obligations, each member of GOLDUST is stucked in his routines of every-day-life. Therefore we can't tour hard and be on the road all the time. So we are somehow in the fortunate state that we can either bore ourselves 2 times a week by staring at our own feet, and draw circles and play the old songs over and over again, or push ourselves, our capabilities and develop new soundspheres. With every song written and material created we push the boundaries a bit further and this leads to quite a productive output. We dont have a philosophy behind it. We just do what we do. Luckily we are being approached at the right time by the right people to release something.

To say that INTEGRITY as well as other Clevo/Holy Terror bands had and have a huge impact on your music is safe to say, I guess. Other than that, what bands, thinkers and/or art do inspire you?
We started out with no intention but to have a band. Concerning the beginning it is safe to say that Blacklisted and Integrity had a slight impact on us, some people compared us to Guns Up or Shipwreck, but i dont see that one resembled. Musicalwise it's hard to distinct certain influences. You see, we have got Robert on guitar who listenes to nearly everything from the 80s and 70s, hell, i don't even know what Robert favors. The collection on his iPod is the tiniest and pickiest one i have ever seen but there is definitly no hardcore but a lot of Pixies, Electronic and Kraftwerk. Then we have Christoph on drums who has got a taste for Krautrock and Black Metal and some obscure stuff. Christoph Gerhard on bass is seemingly the one that would listen and support most hardcore stuff but wouldn't mind listening to Metallica and Black Sabbath as well. Chris and me are somehow alike. We can not find much enjoyment in contemporary hardcore releases. We seek the outlet in all kind of genres as long as they transport a certain feeling. Concludingly the output of GOLDUST and how GOLDUST sounds is a melange of the 5 individuals and their tastes. Every single one plays their part and brings in their ideas and influences.
I can only speak for myself here i am highly influenced by art and creation itself and i can't narrow it down. May it be American Nightmare, Joy Division, Nirvana, Expressionism, Religious Psalms, Poems, Kafka, Poe, Philosophy, 80s wave, grund, black metal, Lord Of The Rings, Shoegazing, Psychology, Life itself, Movies, Jason Molina, Past events, Celtic Frost, Dead Heroes, Alive persons, Paintings. Fuck, i don't know where to begin and where to end. I try to be as open-minded as humanly possible as long as i find something that reflects or resembles my mind.

Dark, apocalyptic visions are chique nowadays. (Reversed crosses on every Hardcore bandshirt) You guys also deal with dark topics and kind of an „evil“ image. What’s your personal motivation behind this? I ask this because I do think, that most bands dealing with certain images have or at least should have individual reasons why they deal with such topics. And I also think that this is mostly missed these days.
I'd rather would not see GOLDUST in this context. We are not an evil, nihilistic, misanthropic band per se. We arent even an apocalyptic propaganda tool. This comparison got stale and lame so fast and i am quite aware what imagery other bands are choosing. You know, all this holy-terror-kindergarten, godfree here, VV for w, latin expressions, upside-down-crosses there. This is not our world. I totally see that it is quite easy to put that sticker on us. But it all comes from a personal perspective, if you think we are one of those bands, sorry, then you are terribly wrong.
This, what you may call it, dark and evil output is created in the chest of the 5 individuals in GOLDUST. This may sound generic but it comes naturally. Otherwise this band wouldn't make much sense. We dont sit hours uopn the material and debate like "we need a more dark edge so let's add this and that". You know, you can either grab the book of black arts or you can choose to swallow the sugar-coated fairy tale your mom used to read to you. Our choice comes naturally, not to suit a trend or being chique, attract a certain audience or to provoke a reaction. It's the potential each and everyone has got, it's either creation or destruction, good and evil. We have chosen to destroy by creating. At least we are creating something.

To me it seems like GOLDUST is heading more and more into a metallic direction. I was wondering if this has ever been a topic in the band itself? Is it important for you to be called a Hardcore band? Do you care?
We are a hardcore band.

You recently signed with Let It Burn Records to release your second full lenght in April 2010. It’ll be called „DESTROYER | BORDERLINES“. Could you elobarate on the name of the record as well as the overall-feeling of it a bit?
The first song which we have published is "Passage". I'd say it's the most straight-forward one, kind of the stupid aggressive grab-your-fucking-throat-type. It's definitely not a complete representation of the material included on "Destroyer | Borderlines". There are 12 songs on it which are quite diverse and of much wider range than our past releases. They blend the lines drawn by hardcore and metal even further. I dont really have a reference for it like it will sound like band A and band B mixed with band C.
Lyricalwise it digs really deep. It contains the most egocentric (yeah call it depressed) thoughts and feelings i have ever written. All the lyrics and writings are woven in one another. But it's not a concept record. Saying so would set the expectation way too high and i'm afraid i could never satisfy such an estimation. If you are familiar with our songs such as "crisis" or "aevum" you have a slight clue of what to expect lyricalwise. The content is quite harsh and extreme but i have chosen to write everything down upright. There was no other choice this time. The title refers to the band itself as well to the lyrical content.
It will make much more sense when you finally hold the record in your hands and you get the whole experience.

I want to change topics a bit. I was just thinking about it myself the other night: Hardcore, or at least what we label under said brand nowadays pretty much means running in circles, following rules and limiting yourself. If you won’t, you most likely end up as so-called Sell-Outs or you’ll just lose touch with the complete culture. Now, I don’t know if this is just my imagination based on my own experience, but I wanted to ask you about this. What is it, that keeps you „here“? And what eventually would help you disappear into nowhere fast?
Seriously. This is a total misconception of hardcore. Hardcore leaves no boundaries. It's argueable what kind of hardcore you enjoy or want to play. One should look into the wide range of hardcore and how many different styles are labeled as hardcore. This doesnt mean you have to buy into it or accept it. We never followed a trend or tried to be Germany's Next Integrity or something along those lines. As stated above we do what we do and that's it.

I know, that you are interested in Music in general. But somehow I noticed, that the most of the stuff you listen to - no matter what style – kinda represents a dark state of mind. Sir, do you ever actually listen to HAPPY & BEAUTIFUL music?
I may sound like a pretentious asshole now but who decides what is dark and depressed and what music is happy & beautiful?
But you are correct, sir, by saying that most of the stuff i listen to would be perceived as dark and depressed. I can't find much enjoyment in those easy-listening stuff. It makes no sense to me. I just need the heavy-hearted stuff that makes you cringe and leaves you with a sour taste in the mouth and makes you doubt that this world is the right place for you. Happyness through sadness, whether it is included in the lyrics or that really slow song "that makes you wonder if you will ever hear the next note". This is the kind of music i prefer over the weekender-radio-hits. Here are favourites of mine that are just too "heavy" in the sense of hard:

songs: ohia - the lioness
jason molina - let me go, let me go, let me go
pedro the lion - control
cat power - myra lee
benton falls - fighting starlight
the cure - 4:13 dream
deftones - white pony
codeine - fridig stars
crowbar - sonic excess in it's purest form
tw walsh - blue laws
grief - dismal

ok, i'm a pretentious asshole.

While we’re at it, do you sometimes think about playing other music than just metallic Hardcore? Or have you actually already done something different? Perhaps some almost forgotten projects you were once involved with? Or is it something you want to leave up to your Future-Self?
I am not a musician nor a singer. I'm a writer and i tell stories in simple manners but i do not want to scream at the sky for the rest of my life. In fact i was involved with a few projects. Among those i did the vocals in an electronic-goth project with 2 friends of mine around 2003-2005 or so? The project was called ALICIA LEDON and we've worked with vocoders, synths, drum-computers etc etc. We even recorded a record but it never saw the light the day. I wish i could regain those recordings but i am pretty sure they reside in the aether. I could see me return to such roots or something else apart from hardcore. Oh i don't care about the future. It's not a place for me.

I’m almost finished with my questions. But speaking of the future, what are the plans for GOLDUST for the next months/years? Are there certain goals you definitely want to achive furthermore?
We will tour with STORM & STRESS around april/may and do some weekend shows as well as play most of the LET IT BURN showcases and rehearse as usual 2 times a week. That's for the first half of 2010. We will try to promote the new record on our best terms. I would love to do another EP and a follow-up album. These are just lines i draw in the sand and the tide is always rising and lurking on the horizon.

That’s it. Here’s where you can put your Shout-Outs.
"All alone is all we are"

"as i looked on, i saw the crowds who gathered walk away..."

Carneval is in town. Parades to join, but I never really felt this way. So, this song's my saviour during this time.

Everybody be safe.

"Schlachtet!"

Now, this is some great news. I just got a mail from mital-u Labelchef and former Mittageisen-Mastermind Bruno W:

GRAUZONE 1980-1982 REMASTERED
We're proud to announce the new 2CD 'GRAUZONE 1980-1982 REMASTERED'. The 2CD set will contain about 20 digitally remastered already published as unpublished songs (Eisbaer, Film 2, Traeume Mit Mir, Ich Und Du, Wuetendes Glas, Moskau, Ein Tanz Mit Dem Tod, Ich Lieb Sie, ...) of GRAUZONE in a tri-fold digipak sleeve plus a comprehensive booklet. The release is planned for the 4th quarter 2010.
Future information about the remastering-project will be published in the mital-U MySpace-blog (www.myspace.com/mitalu). To be currently informed, we recommend the subscription of the blog.

Further information on GRAUZONE under > www.mital-u.ch/grauzone/index.html

Anybody who got held of a copy of the MITTAGEISEN Discography Digipack can imagine, that this release will look great and will be worth it's price, as well. GRAUZONE were a Berne/Zurich-based Post-Punk outfit mostly known for their classic track "Eisbär". Their guitarist Stefan Eicher later became famous for his solo stuff in France and Switzerland. But most of you will know this, anyways.

"pure and simple just for you..."

Greek Synth-Pop Duo MARSHEAUX covering LIGHTNING SEED's "Pure". I kinda like it.

"Love is the law, love under will."

Recently, I stumbled across the THELEMA NOW podcasts made by the U.S. Grand Lodge, Ordo Templi Orientis. The host of the program Frater Puck gets to talk to various musicians, writers and other people somehow involved/related with Aleister Crowley's Magick and Philosophy.

Here's what they write on the Official Site about it:
Our mission is to provide listeners with interesting, informative, thought-provoking interviews featuring individuals involved in myriad realms of mysticism, spirituality and magical theory and practice: authors, sorcerers, academics, entertainers. We'll be looking into everything except inter and intra organizational politics as that's ground very thoroughly tilled by other programs.

Reccent Podcasts include insightful and interesting Interviews with artists such as Genesis P-Orridge, Jarboe of Swans or Kris Force of Amber Asylum. Go ahead and check it out, it's definitely worth it.

Click the link to get directly to the Podcast HERE.

"never let me down"

"visions of johanna"

"und ich sang bis die putzkolonne kam"

Not much going on here. Yet. Stay tuned for new interviews. Meanwhile, all you Goths can dance to the following track:

"joy of life/in trouble and shame"

"we're beloved"

A couple of days ago I stumbled upon a band called THE BELOVED. Till that day I have never ever heard of said group. Needles to say I was psyched when I first heard their This means war EP. Especially the track "Saints preserve us" stood out for me. It's this kind of song you hear once and eventually it will stuck in your head forever. But I'll say that you should check it out on your own. Here it is:



Now, the funny thing about the band is, that they had a big, big succes in the early nineties. I guess, their members didn't have to work since, because with all these royalities they most likely manage to have a decent living after all. You're confused what I'm talking about? Here we go again. Same band, "different direction":



Of course, everybody knows this song. However, most of us didn't know the band behind it. I don't know about you, but I think it's funny to see how bands and artists can progress in the most different directions. Plus, it's kinda sad to realize, that people will judge THE BELOVED by their later work only. That being said, if you get a chance to buy a copy of their early work, DO IT!

Thanks for reading.

"celmetra, celmetra"

NADA were a band from Lucerne, Switzerland, too. They were active during the 90ies and released one (?) album called "Celmetra" on the label Common Cause*. Songs were sung in different languages, the lyrics come translated in french, german and english. Musicwise it seems like a more tribal-oriented relaxed version of SWANS, EINSTÜRZENDE NEUBAUTEN or even some NEUROSIS (especially with the vocals).

Here's the track "Power" off the record "Celmetra". Enjoy:



*(Swiss/German Label featuring Thomas Mölch. Mölch was also one of two guys behind OFF THE DISK Records, a label responsible for releasing records of bands such as MORBID ANGEL, INFEST or SLEEP)

"nur für automaten"

MITTAGEISEN were a post-punk/synth outfit from Lucerne, Switzerland which is actually my hometown. Two years ago the mastermind of the band, bruno w. remastered and re-released their complet backcatalogue on a nice looking 2xDigipack on his own label mital-u. Too bad that there is no vinyl version of it, yet. However, with a bit of luck you might be able to get one of the releases on ebay or discogs.com.

I found a good version of the "Automaten" musicvideo on youtube. Have a listen/look on it below.

Speaking of local acts, I made an interview with new wave/post-punk group LES YEUX SANS VISAGE. It should be up next week.