Sacred Skin – The Decline Of Pleasure
Favourite album by a country mile is the debut from Sacred Skin. If you’re not a fan of early 80s synthpop and new wave, then this is your worst nightmare: Flock Of Seagulls synthlines, Peter Hook bass lines, touches of Peter Gabriel, and some of the glam of Duran Duran. Lush, romantic, and brilliantly catchy from start to finish; just close your eyes, and you’ll be on a Californian beach watching the sunset and playing air guitar. Guilty pleasure extraordinaire.
Best of the rest:
Pablo Bozzi – Street Reign
Bozzi has released 3 EP’s this year of his italo-influenced techno, and this is my favourite of a really upbeat trio.
Statiqbloom – Threat
Industrial techno. All their previous releases have been straight electro-industrial, but having relocated to Berlin, they’ve taken their pulsating claustrophobic sound into the field of techno.
Forever Grey – Sympathy Garden
Minimal post-punk, with coffin vocals; stoic and depressing.
The Soft Moon – Exister
Abrasive post-punk verging towards industrial in places.
Dodsmaskin – Herremoral Slavemoral
Norwegian death industrial, bits of dark ambient experimental and noise; atmospheric and bludgeoning.
Buzz Kull – Fascination
EBM, new beat, minimal synth.
Of the mainstream stuff, the choice would be Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Cool It Down; the most consistent album they’ve done so far, with a bit more of a mature sound. Suede Autofiction was decent as well, they’ve still got it.
Playlist:
Tracks 1-4: quite poppy, dark-tinged/melancholic
Tracks 5-8: post-punk
Tracks 9-14: techno, goth/industrial dancefloor, EBM
Tracks 15-18: noise, experimental, industrial metal
