German and Brazilian Metal, British Alternative, Colombian Dark Techno, American Alt-Rock, Japanese Goth, Norwegian Post-Punk and more in this week review.
Solid Supposed | Caulbearers: Forward-thinking musical force song is a well-constructed blend of Bill Laswell and Massive Attack with Laura Marling and Mojave 3. Manchester-based Caulbearers present 'Solid Supposed' featuring Somerset-based vocalist Ruth Blake, with haunting vocals and multi-layered delivery, perfectly resonating with the dream-like, otherworldly theme of the lyrics. The vocals bathed in distortion and delay, accompanied by Caulbearers’ signature horns, strings and live breakbeats. The stunning B-side to their single 'Burst Through The Borders', a different version of this song was released on the ‘More Lie Deep’ EP (2011), In this rendition, frontman Damien Mahoney's vocals are switched out for Blake's. This is part of an ongoing collaboration between the two artists, Mahoney also having produced her recently-released single 'Brave Ships' single. More info.
Outlier | Emily Wolfe:A fresh, well-produced, genre defying album, that blends the best of rock, pop and alternative music. Emily Wolfe is an Austin, Texas based singer-songwriter and guitarist generally described as the sonic merging of PJ Harvey and Jack White, her 2019 self-titled debut album was co-produced with Ben Tanner of Alabama Shakes. Its brand-new follow-up, ‘Outlier’, is produced by Michael Shuman (Queens of the Stone Age, Mini Mansions) and marries Wolfe's rock roots with the soaring choruses of modern pop, exploring and obliterating the boundaries of both and arriving at a guitar-drenched sound that is wildly unpredictable yet immediately magnetic. It is an album built on exquisite tension: an endless push-and-pull between desire and resistance, determination and self-sabotage, the instinctive need to belong and the urge to strike out on one’s own in its bold but masterful genre-bending.More info.
Diamante | EDFO: How often do people look oneself and can't see everything they are? How important is it for a person to feel loved? These thoughts are the essence of ‘Diamante’ (Diamond), the recently released single by singer-songwriter EDFO. According to the artist, “'Diamante' is about a person you have a great deal of affection for and, for some reason, you realize she's not okay. So the lyrics are about reminding her how important she is. Maybe, at that moment, the problems and difficulties seem bigger than the good things and she doesn't realize how reat she is.” Listen to Diamante.
Colombian dark electro act Alien:Nation strike back with 2nd album: The Colombian dark electro act Alien:Nation are preparing the release of their second album after having completed a huge number of remixes, joint tracks and compilation appearances. The studio work from the past 5 years – collected on the 2CD LP 'Extraterrestrial BIOS Systemshell' – will now be released on Insane Records on July 9th. More info and Album preview via Side-Line Magazine.
Sem Reação| Mad Monkees: With a new formation and in partnership with singer and songwriter Maria Sabina, Mad Monkees releases new single inspired by “the defense of the environmental cause, neglected by the (Brazilian) federal government for years and culminating with the burnings in the Pantanal and the Amazon Rainforest, in addition to illegal logging, invasion of indigenous lands by miners, causing death and destruction of the forest, animals and indigenous peoples”. The band is also preparing a new album, which is expected to be released mid-2022. In addition to the new songs, the Brazilian quartet will participate in two compilations playing covers of classic Rock songs. Listen to Sem Reação.
Homebound (live) | Enslaved: Taken from the live DVD 'Utgard – The Journey Within' which is part of the live DVD compilation called 'Cinematic Tour 2020 Live Releases', Homebound' is a snippet of a unique show, recorded in the summer of 2020 in Sotra, Norway, which compiles five tracks taken from the Utgard album, Enslaved's latest studio album. Utgard has seen Enslaved inhabit esoteric space, finding themselves fueled by the rhythm of their black metal origins as they continue to evolve melodically. Watch Homebound.
Kiss Of Death | Enforcer: After the release, in March of this year, of their second live album ‘Live By Fire II’, Swedish heavy metal band Enforcer locked themselves in their own studio to compose new material. The release of the single 'Kiss Of Death' allows for a first impression of what will be the band's sixth studio album, set to be released in early 2022. Watch the band's concert here.
Helloween | Helloween: “'Helloween' combines everything that defines the band Helloween”, writes DEAF FOREVER editor Lothar Hausfeld, and it seems that was exactly what the band's fans had been hoping for, as the album reached number one on the German Metal charts. . “For us this is the greatest honor and we are very proud! Thank you so much!" commented guitarist and founding member Michael Weikath. “In my eyes, artists shouldn't look primarily at charts and sales numbers, but of course we're very happy to have such a response for such a special album,” said lead singer Michael Kiske. Watch Skyfall.
Pretty Ugly People | Headspawn: That the northeast of Brazil has been producing great Rock/Metal bands for the last three decades should be no secret, and this power trio from Paraiba is a another example of this. 'Pretty Ugly People', their debut EP, was released on all streaming platforms, featuring 4 vigorous tracks covering themes such as schizophrenia, social degeneration and the chaotic national political scene. Listen to Voices.
Walking Dead 2021 | The Sound Bee HD: The Japanese Gothic Rock band The Sound Bee HD has unleashed the music video for ‘Walking Dead 2021’, a new version of the song released in 2017. Inpired by the TV hit show, ‘Walking Dead’ is definitely the most iconic song from the band, and captivated many fans with its haunting synth intro and high-distorted guitar riffs. This new version presents a more aggressive sound with an exponential industrial influence, showcasing the current style of the quartet. The song is taken from ‘Dead Memories-The Sound Bee HD 20th Anniversary’, a double-disc that compiles 29 tracks, featuring new versions of ‘Walking Dead’, ‘SOU’, ‘doku’, ‘Live’, ‘Maimu’ and their early-stage song ‘Slipping To The Hole’. Watch Walking Dead 2021.
Closed Eyes (Open Mouth Remix) | Permafrost: Permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0°C (32°F) for two or more years. Coming originally from Norway, one might think that the band name is a reference to their homeland, or perhaps a prophecy about the long hibernations the band took, but the truth is that the name was simply taken from a Magazine song, one of the influences, along Joy Division, The Cure, Talking Heads, etc. Alternating briefs revivals and hibernation periods, the band the band released the ‘Permafrost EP’, on vinyl-only, in the spring of 2019, and are now putting the finishing touches on the debut album. The first single, the critically-acclaimed ‘Femme Fatale’, was released on 18th February 2021 and reached #1 on the Indie Disko Top40 chart as well as top 5 on the Deutsche Alternative and Native25 charts. ‘Closed Eyes’ the second single is a fantastic song that feeds the nostalgic hunger for 80s post-punk tunes while still sounding fresh and contemporary to newer generations. New mix keeps the 80s vibe but exchange the post-punk mood to krautrock style. More info.
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Photos:
Caulbearers by Jan Schoof. Collages by James Stirzaker
Emily Wolfe - outlier album art
EDFO by Bruna Fiamenghi
Alien:Nation - Extraterrestrial BIOS Systemshell album art
Mad Monkees - Sem Reação album art
Enslaved - Homebound (live) album art
Enforcer - Kiss Of Death album art
Helloween - Helloweenalbum art
Headspawn - Pretty Ugly People album art
The Sound Bee HD - Walking Dead 2021 album art
Permafrost - Closed Eyes (Open Mouth Remix) album art