Category: Audio Content


Despair Rewires its Riot with Remix Release

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Releases, Japan Goth by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
November 13, 2007

Rewired Riot Technology - DespairLocation: Tokyo, Japan – Genre: Heavy Industrial, Electro

On October 3 Despair released its new remix CD, Rewired Riot Technology offering nine tracks from the band. Despair is best described as post-industrial carnage, discarding the traditional instruments for reworked noise and samples backed with a digital keytar. My recent review of the band’s 2006 release of Deserted Technology Riot (DTR) was very positive.

Igor’s final call on DTR is that this is a must-buy album for serious industrial-music lovers. It marks the evolution of Despair from a largely live band (they always drive the crowd nuts!), to a band that can produce high-quality recordings that excite CD listeners in the same way! See my full review here

In truth it took me several listens to reach my decision as DTR was a very tech-heavy piece of work unlike any other CD I had heard (even from Despair itself).

The new CD, Rewired Riot Technology features 9 remixes from DTR totaling nearly 40 minutes. There are three rewired versions of Jarring God and MPD Conflict and one for Mechanical Rabies, Filth Pig and Junk War. I will save judgment for a review when I get a hold of the new CD, but the sample remixes on the site are pointing towards an awesome piece of re-worked music.

Rewired Riot Technology - DespairRewired Riot Technology :: Track List
1. MPD Conflict (A New Model) – Sample
2. Jarring God (Rebel Action Remix) – Sample
3. Mechanical Rabies (No Vaccine For Your Machines) – Sample
4. MPD Conflict (Mind Control Mix) – Sample
5. Jaring God (The Devil Built My Beat Box) – Sample
6. Long Pig – Sample
7. Junk Whore – Sample
8. MPD Conflict (A New Machine) – Sample
9. Becoming God – Sample

The price for this 9 track 39 minute CD is 1,500 yen or 10 Euros. Once I get my hands on a full copy I will do another review!

Despair’s music is available at a number of music stores in Japan, the U.K., France and Australia. Just check out the bottom of the Destore page (that is also where you will find all the samples).

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Garden in Black :: Garden in Black :: Review

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Reviews, Video Content by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
November 12, 2007

Garden in BlackBased in Athens, Greece, Garden in Black released its debut CD on the Dead Scarlet Records label on 13 February 2007. Garden in Black is an interesting mix of digitized music mixed within strong danceable beats with the whispered vocals of fear, loss and pain. While the topics tend towards the darker side of the human psyche, the keyboards, guitar and percussion along with the vocals make for quite an enjoyable listening experience (see links to samples below).

The album starts on the darker side with Help Me!! and Your Hell, which offer dark dance themes for the listener. Help Me!! was, for me, particularly interesting with the female voice that said “Help me, I want you to help me” with the same emotionless delivery of the voice on Depeche Mode’s Photographic song – “I take pictures, photographic pictures.” The rasping vocals of Your Hell makes you truly believe the lead singer is the inflicter of pain and tragedy in your life.

The faster underlying beat in War Dialing is in line with a cyber attack. Hypnotic Touch and Fallen Star offer more mellow soundscapes. Retro 80’s sounds and beats infuse 25th of September and The Haunted Song. Dark Current Noise delivers a harder contemporary noise and electronica sound. In Silence is probably the most melancholic piece of this dark, yet danceable CD.

There are also remixes of Help Me!! and Your Hell on the CD. Help Me!! delivers an extra layer of darkness to the original with screams in the background. Both remixes deliver more power with harder, edgier sounds. There is a final track (not mentioned on the CD) that finishes with an acoustic guitar and a woman’s groaning in ecstasy – a most interesting finish.

Overall I found this CD to be quite a good mix of darkness and light. The raspy vocals blended well with the guitar, keyboards & percussion. If you are looking for something dark, but not too dark, then this would be a good choice. I will certainly continue to listen to this album from time to time.

Garden in BlackGarden in Black :: Track Listing
1. Help Me!! (5:08)
2. Your Hell (3:44)
3. War Dialing (3:56) Sample
4. Hypnotic Touch (4:07) Sample
5. Fallen Star (4:20)
6. 25th of September (6:26)
7. Dark Current Noise (4:25)
8. In Silence (3:31)
9. The Haunted Song (6:07)
10. Help Me!! (fear mix) (3:42)
11. Your Hell (I hunt you remix) (3:38)
12. Untitled (4:48)
Total: (53:12)

Final note: Help Me!! now has a video clip here, and there are four full tracks available for download on Garden in Black’s site.

Available from:
Amazon
iTunes
Garden in Black (Paypal)
Dead Scarlet Records

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Comment

Despair :: Deserted Technology Riot :: Review

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Reviews, Japan Goth by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
November 9, 2007

Despair - Deserted Technology RiotLocation: Tokyo, Japan – Genre: Heavy Industrial, Electro

Nothing compares to Despair live – check my first reaction to Despair at one Tokyo Dark Castle in 2005. All traditional instruments have been thrown on the junk pile with heavy industrial noise tracks and a digital ax-style keyboard being the only thing between you and the stage screamers. Despair has one of the most intense industrial sound in Japan and they ignite the crowd every time with a napalm bomb of noise. Rieu and Ana ride the industrial monster noise and Jude’s keytar in a scream fest that can only be considered industrial opera. Anyone who has seen the band perform live knows what I’m talking about – raw industrial power amped up to the max. Just how the hell they managed to get this experience onto a silver platter is beyond me, but somehow Deserted Technology Riot (DTR) has managed to capture the soul of Despair’s live performance. How the hell they did it, I don’t know – but it has been surgically attached and DTR delivers the full Despair experience to you!

The new CD is a quantum leap ahead of the 2004 CD, Beautiful Japanese Sight. Don’t get me wrong – Beautiful Japanese Sight is a fine example hard-industrial, and I thoroughly recommend getting your hands on a copy – but I found it lacking the violent wall of mashed-up noise that would hit you at a live event. In a way, Beautiful Japanese Sight was too precise and clinical when compared to the madness of the live versions of the songs.

This is where DTR takes Despair to a new level with a sound that grabs your attention like an oncoming tidal wave of noise. The tracks are pure Despair with broken up, smashed industrial, aggressive soundscapes of destruction. DTR takes you screaming down the highway to hell.

The CD starts with Jarring God, an extremely hard, fast-paced track that is just as good as seeing the band live. MPD Conflict plays hard, but a little slower and is one of the few Despair tracks where the vocals overpower the machine noise to stand out clearly. Filth Pig is a ballad by Despair standards but still wrought with post-apocalyptic overtones as the whispered lyrics play sadly over the quieter parts of the song. Junk War starts like a techno track, but steps into extreme rock-industrial with guitar-work giving the track an extra boost of aggressive energy that gives the band an extra dimension beyond the mashed-up, distorted sampled sounds of other tracks. Mechanical Rabies is a brutal final track where the mechanical sounds are once more in a face-off with Ana & Rieu. This thumping track finishes quickly after two minutes – intense, but too short.

Igor’s final call on DTR is that this is a must-buy album for serious industrial-music lovers. It marks the evolution of Despair from a largely live band (they always drive the crowd nuts!), to a band that can produce high-quality recordings that excite CD listeners in the same way!

The samples below and many more can be found on Despair’s Web site.

Despair - Deserted Technology RiotDeserted Technology Riot :: Track List
1. Jarring God (3:45) Sample
2. MPD Conflict (4:08) Sample
3. Filth Pig (5:19) Sample
4. Junk War (4:48) Sample
5. Mechanical Rabies (2:13) Sample
Total time (20:13)
Released: December 2006

Are you excited yet? Good, because the band has a number of distribution arrangements with a number of music stores in Japan, the U.K., France and Australia. Just check out the bottom of Destore on their site.

I cannot wait to write about the remixed version, Rewired Deserted Technology!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

2Bullet :: Democratic Violence :: Review

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Reviews, Japan Goth, Video Content by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
November 5, 2007

2BulletLocation: Tokyo, Japan – Genre: Industrial, Electro, Techno

Combining a unique mix of thumping electronicka with thrashing guitar-led industrial rock makes 2Bullet’s a very addictive and enjoyable record even three years after its initial release. 2Bullet began in 2003 in Tokyo. The term 2Bullet refers to power balance or pointing a gun at each other, a metaphor of MAD (Mutual Assured Destruction). The album, Democratic Violence was released in August 2004. They have uploaded a new EP that is free to download here, but for today I am focusing on their 2004 album Democratic Violence.

The lyrics of most of the songs carry a strong political message against totalitarianism and empire that makes it as relevant today as when it was initially released. Considering the U.S. government’s strategy to subjugate Afghanistan and Iraq (and possibly Iran) through military action, the current monitoring of civil society, rendition programs and the like, this thumping industrial album should connect well with anyone who is against senseless war.

The first track, Democracy starts with an ominous back beat that explodes into a wave of industrial rock. Underneath the powerful electronicka the vocals may have been focused on the rise and fall of South American Junta’s in the 1970’s & 80’s, but has gained even deeper meaning with the controversial U.S.’s engagement of the Middle East:

Is this democracy?
Is this hypocrisy?
Is this your justice?
Is this your business?

Likewise it refers to violent endings of some of the junta’s in the past, but connected with the downfall and ultimate hanging of Saddam in Iraq.

Your time has come
You lost your power
You’re dying lie
Hanging by your tie
Your life has failed
Your rule is dead
Yours is not democracy

This is not to say that the song supports this kind of action – the band is against all forms of totalitarianism and authoritarian control.

The other tracks are carried through with speeding electronicka and heavy guitars from DeeLee (who also does the ax-work for Agent Murder). The only exceptions would be Liquid Seed which is more like an acid trip and the tragic Lost, which focuses on the internal permanent damage of a soldier and the guitar-heavy Tell Me Something, which expresses the pain of killing in war. One of my favorite tracks is Shockwave with its powerful guitars backed by keyboards and percussion with the anthem-esque chorus:

Follow the army, this is reality
Heads up! Wake up! Just become a shockwave!
Follow the government, this is the violence
Heads up! Wake up! Just become a shockwave!

My call on this CD is that it is a MUST HAVE for those interested in Japanese underground music. Whereas many Japanese groups (famous or not) tend to have limited appeal (relying on the “Japanese” tag for selling themselves, 2Bullet’s Democratic Violence stands on its own as part of the international Goth-industrial scene with a sound that is really tuned for an international audience. For 1,500 yen for nearly 50 minutes of quality sound you cannot go wrong!2Bullet Democratic Violence

Democratic Violence :: track list

1. Democracy (5:41) ** +
2. Pray For Me (5:28)
3. Drain People’s Blood (5:38) * +
4. Survivor (5:06) +
5. Liquid Seed (3:44)
6. Tell Me Something (4:23) **
7. Shockwave (3:31)
8. Lost (5:31)
9. Tell Me Something -remix- (4:45)
10. Survivor -remix- (5:24)
Total time (49:01)
* Available on MySpace
** Downoadable remix available on MySpace
+ One-minute samples on 2Bullet’s site

Available on:

Wreckords
iTunes

Finally a few videos for you to check out!

2 Bullet slideshow (Music: Worthless Future)

[youtube 3SSpyO-iwC8]

Humankind (Live)

[youtube 62HQU3zyxrU]

MORE VIDEOS

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Amy’s Arms :: Unfamiliar Landscapes :: Review

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Reviews, Goth/Industrial News, The Americas by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
November 4, 2007

Amy’s ArmsLocation: Canada Ontario – Genre: Gothic Rock/Ambient, New Age, Ambient Mood.

Amy’s Arms is a smooth dark music landscape perfect for those nights you want to alone or mixing with a few friends. Best described as Gothic lounge music it contains a mix of low frequency ballads to more upbeat tracks that could be layered into dance beats by the right DJ.

The band is made of Siren a strong, gorgeous vocalist capable of slow ballads in the title track Amy’s Arms, and more upbeat tracks like Blood on the Rocks. You can even catch an impish playfulness in Dark ‘n Cozy. Whether withered sorrow or dark celebration the vocals are crisp. Mr. Ratt does an excellent job with programming and bass keeping the beat inline with the emotion of each track.

The influences for the music range from the darker edge of Japanese Visual Kei to U.S. and European beats. Themes span from love, despair, vampires and a lot more in a dark Victorian Gothic style.

Overall this is a neat mix of very listenable music for those looking for some dark Gothic Victorian with a taste of humor and irony.

Amy’s Arms Unfamiliar LandscapesUnfamiliar Landscapes :: track list
1. Amy’s Arms: 4:10 * +
2. Blood on the Rocks: 5:28 *
3. Dark ‘n Cozy: 5:06 * +
4. Wicked Game: 4:14 +
5. No One Will Know: 2:50 +
6. Sanctus: 4:55
7. Unfamiliar Landscapes: 5:23
Total Playtime: 32:06
* Samples available on CD Baby
+ Samples available on Amy’s Arms in MySpace

You can also catch a few videos online like the ones here.

Available from:
Amazon
CD Baby
iTunes

Sites of interest
Amy’s Arms (Official), but she is a little tired so you might want to try Amy’s Arms in MySpace.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

Agent Murder :: Earth of Hypocrisy :: Review

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Reviews, Japan Goth, Reloaded by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
November 4, 2007

Gizenrou small

Location: Tokyo, Japan – Genre: Metal, Hardcore, Industrial

Gizenrou/Earth of Hypocrisy is a hot dark metal album I picked up from Agent Murder back in March 2006 and at the time decided to write a review of it on the old site. However, it still has the crisp hardness it did when I first reviewed it, so I decided to redo the review for the new JGoth.com site.

Earth of Hypocrisy plays hard and fast with instrumentals loud and crisp and lead singer Awi’s eerie vocals come out nice and strong. This release takes you to the core of Agent Murder and is one of the most satisfying recordings I’ve picked up in the Goth/underground scene.

Right from the start your mind is assaulted by the thrash anthem Imaginary Number “N”. If you like your metal fast and dark, or your Goth hard and fierce, or just something that freaking rocks your ears off then give this album a try. The album consists of seven tracks along with four remixes to give you a good balance of the Agent Murder’s true metal sound and remixed electronic versions.

I liked their first album, a lot, but the new release is a quantum leap – the sounds are more mature, more balanced and focus on the essence of the band. It is just a fantastic piece of dark metallic work.

Production quality is high with everything coming through crisply and having Awi’s voice right at the forefront of the songs gives them a lot more power. The drums, guitar and bass are played with fury and to perfection. The members know where to let rip and when to lay off the rage holding all the songs together well. The move towards more Japanese vocals than seems to have freed Awi up to focus on impaling the lyrics the way they were intended adding more powers to the tracks.

There has been no skimping on the recording, the disc production printed matter and case are all professionally mad. It looks and feels like a bought CD should be. For 2,000 yen Gizenrou is very good value with both production and creative quality kept very high and a sound that has popular appeal.

Igor’s final call: Agent Murder have been the dark princes of the Goth scene for a long time, but this time they have thrown down the gauntlet and emerged as one of the true lords of the realm. Whether you buy the album or not, keep an eye on this band, because with the new sound and focus Agent Murder is looking hot.

But don’t take my word for it. I wouldn’t trust a gaijin as far as I could throw one! Have a listen to a couple of tracks yourself on the Agent Murder Myspace site (Agent of Murder and Lucy’s Blue Birdcage are from the new album).

[Editorial note: due to illness of one of the band members Agent Murder has been out of circulation for a while, but are due to be back and around in November. Their main site is down at the time of writing, but you can hear some of their work through their MySpace account.

Agent Murder偽善楼/Gizenrou/Earth of Hypocrisy Track List
1. nと云う虚数 :: Imaginary Number “N”
2. 姦淫 :: Adultery
3. Lucyの青い籠 :: Lucy’s Blue Birdcage *
4. 卵の殻をつけた愚者の踊り :: Ballet of the Unhatched Fools
5. 身代 ~ :: Agent of Murder *
6. 無言の石 :: At the Edge of Your Death
7. 幻想即興罪 :: My Fantasie Impromptu
= Bonus Remix Trax:
8. 偽善楼 :: Earth of Hypocrisy (Original remix)
9. 姦淫 ~ :: Adultery (2 Bullet remix)
10. nと云う虚数 :: Imaginary Number “N” (Original remix)
11. 幻想即興罪 ~ :: My Fantasie Impromptu (Original remix)

MySpace samples are marked by a * above. There are also two sample from their earlier album

Unlike most releases from Japan’s underground, Agent Murder has got local and overseas mainstream distribution through Amazon in the US and Japan.

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.jp

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

2Bullet’s Free Music Strategy

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Releases, Goth/Industrial News, Japan Goth by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
November 2, 2007

2Bullet[FREE DOWNLOADS!] Totally cool! Tactical industrial with a strong sense of irony – wearing military regalia, with an anti-totalitarianism stance. Their fast, hard-hitting industrial sound packs quite a punch and keeps hitting throughout the trax. But THE BIG NEWS is that the SONGS ARE FREE and you can DOWNLOAD and you can SHARE them. The guys reserve some rights of course (like no re-sale), but the general idea is to get this sound out to as many people as possible. So tell your online and real-life friends about 2Bullet and their downloads!! Get your DJ friends to take a gander. Tell the world! Four full songs are up along with another coming later in the year.

Click here and start downloading!

http://2bullet.net/xoops/modules/contents0/index.php?id=8
The band will also be doing a new live gig on the 25th of November.


Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Comment

EXTRA! 2BULLET video uncovered revealing new strategy of engagement

Filed Under: Audio Content, CD/DVD Releases, Video Content by Igor V. Goth — Leave a comment
May 12, 2007

Tactical industrial outfit 2Bullet, off the frontlines for a number of months, are now back putting their next strategy into action. Rumors of an impending rally at Club Theatic on May 12 have surfaced and authorities suspect 2Bullet will be joining such notorious figures as Awi of Agent Murder, Aural Vampire, Demonoid 13 of the Nagoyan normal resistance and more. At the same time the outfit, led by Lt. DeeLee, have apparently issued a statement of intent for 2007. Although authorities are still determining the authenticity of the recording, sources close to the organization state that the video is indeed from the Lieutenant.

Recorded at an unspecified location in the Tokyo wastelands, the gasmasked figure of Lt. DeeLee outlines the next steps of the 2Bullet insurgency. 2Bullet’s intentions are simple, yet shocking to the establishment. Through the recording of new material and subsequent free release through the Internet, 2Bullet intend to sow the seeds of a new revolution in Japan and extend its influence into Europe, America and beyond.

The video has been made available through JGoth.com and other sites throughout the Gothasphere. To view the video simply click on the image below or access the 2Bullet propoganda machine @ YouTube.

JGoth.com has also obtained copies of previous videos of 2Bullet in live action. We warn that this video may be addictive to viewers.

Comment