A new "dangerous" release by the US label BLC Productions of the highly acclaimed Interbreeding compilation series and this is without any doubt again the must-have buy for all you addicted rivetheads. BLC shows no tiredness and announces already two follow-up companion single CD releases, "Interbreeding V: Terrorland" and "Interbreeding VI: Subhuman: The Alien Agenda" out NOW while you read this!!! But with this current DCD you have enough new and interesting stuff of dark and harsh EBM/Electro/Industrial music produced by veteran and well-known, as well as new and never heard before acts from the whole world. Please forgive me that it would take days of my rare time and too much space on our website to go into a completely detailed review of all 34 tracks here. I will name here only the most outstanding pieces to my poor and subjective opinion. But believe me – this whole DCD set features strong and excellent stuff on almost all 34 tracks and it is worth your money. CD X-1 starts with the Opener THE RETROSIC with an enhanced version of their track "The Storm". If you think that :WUMPSCUT: has lost a lot of his aggression you must check out this, "The Storm" is pretty much along the line where Rudy’s "Embryodead" finally ended. Another remarkable pieces are offered here by STARK from Australia. Often compared with big ones like :W: or HOCICO this solo project by Lee Bulig has finally arrived its own unique style caused through several distorted sound in higher frequencies. Their new CD should come out soon. Also outstanding and maybe one of the best tracks I have ever heard from this swedish duo is "Massive Democratic Maintenance (Remix by Soren Jensen)" by SEVERE ILLUSION. This track combines monotonous bass lines with distorted rhythms, a cool amount of voice samples and a strong disturbed vocal performance. It doesn’t follow any similar line and has surprising ideas and noises, great done here. Also a newcomer, but maybe one of the most talented ones is FRACTURED from Canada. Their track "She" taken from their almost sold out CD-R "Contami-Nation" shows well that there is no need to have a rich studio gear, the bass line sequences are the most outstanding part of this track here. ALASKA HIGHWAY surprises pretty much with a very melodic track, strong lyrics and (luckily) without any guitar sounds – well done! SCHATTENSCHLAG offer an energetic piece, rough distorted vocals and nice sounds. Maybe a bit in some HOCICO lines, but still unique enough to grab attention. ENDIF surprises with some dark German lyrics ("Totenplatz") and musically with some strange frequented noises. The best surprise is finally the comeback of a French Electro/EBM legend, K-BEREIT (remember the old days of the German Machinery label with their debut MCD "A Forest" back 1992???) presenting us an energetic and harsh EBM track full of tempo variations which left me breathless. Then let’s take a listen to CD X-2 which has also some fine pieces on board. The already veteran duo BRAINCLAW, musically active since almost 15 years, give as usual an excellent track between decent Electronics and classic US-like Industrial music, recommended as ever! Canadian shooting-star Justin Tripp alias RE_AGENT comes next and gives the audience a new track named "In Your Eyes" which dwells pretty much in his very own music style between Dark Electro combined with Powernoise elements – this time maybe a bit more melodic than on previous works. PROSPERO made a co-operative track with Metropolis recording artist BATTERY CAGE and features an excellent vocal performance by Tyler Newman woven in Powernoise-like music. RETRACTOR offer a floor-filling Dark Electro piece hellish distorted vocals in style of AMGOD, unfortunately with retarded lyrics, while SIN make with a new track with Spanish lyrics the better input. Tremendous and surprising is also the new THIRTEENTH EXILE track "Generation Hate". I have never heard them that strong before! Also TYPE001 are well known guests on this comp series here and give the audience an unreleased track dwelling in Dark Electro with a surprising danceable attitude in a kind which is almost missed on their still refreshing debut "Multi-Track Alignment". I have to mention again that this comp series is one of the best, if not THE BEST series in our life time. Also graphically here is a lot of eye-catching stuff, the inlay features "The story so far" of this Alien inspired story right in a comic drawn by the talented Stephane Dumais, www.raisinlove.com, as well as again a perfect sleeve design by the BLC artwork guy Wilhelm "Deaddreamer", www.deaddreamer.com. Hurry up and get it – get all volumes of the legendary Interbreeding series!!! New stuff is on the trail!!!

After having heard a few compilation appearances of this German Electro/Industrial formation I expected to get a full-length debut album filled with Dark Electro music combined with some Powernoise elements plus a huge amount of German voice samples. Well, it is all here – but there is more – much more! AUTO AGGRESSION is the solo effort by Lukas Schneider, a student at the Institute for Computer Music and Electronic Media in Essen/Germany (WOW, to study there must be an unfilled dream for a lot artists...) and this "Geräuschinformatik" can be described as a kind of exam. True, this album differs a lot in kind and idea from comparable releases and expectations. The mentioned dancefloor oriented stuff a lot of you have already heard on three parts of the well-recognized "Septic" compilation series is not the only kind how Lukas is able to squeeze out of his machinery. I have noticed a lot of strange ideas in sounds, arrangements and kind of composing which break with all conventions of this music genre. Take some pieces like "Aufwärtsrosten", the strange rhythmic works on "Kubus" or his masterpiece "City of I.C.E.", which features some nice female vocals, and you have the strongest pieces here which try to break out from the death valley in which this music genre drowns. I am sure that Lukas did create and program every single sound here on his very own – nothing sounds here like heard before. Also the whole kind of this release breaks with expectations, here are no "Pain-Sick-Worlds end" - rambles, and here are no cheap effects on stolen drum loops – everything sounds clear and very well thought out. "Intellectual Industrial" is a catchword in the info sheet – well, this release is not far away from this. What you have to investigate to enter this music is a fair amount of a some more rotations than usually. You will be rewarded with a well produced Electro/Industrial album which is able to show hints and ways to avoid the lack of new ideas. It is also a brave release for the rising German label Dependent and it will be very interesting to see, how the audience will react on this. Give it a try – you won’t regret it!

We have here a long awaited follow-up CDEP of LETHARGY’s impressive debut "In-Macula", out somewhere at the fall of 2003. But to tell you the truth, and maybe you have heard or read about it in online forums: this EP will maybe never officially released because the band and their label Black Flames ended up all co-operations in some bad terms. The whole situation seems very unclear and difficult for outsiders, so I advise you to make your contact to the band, the management Hellcity or the German distributor E-Noxe who could help here. To the music: LETHARGY do present us here a long 10 track EP which features several remix works by more (both Alfa Matrix recording acts IMPLANT and NEIKKA RPM...) or less known names (ISENNGARD from Mexico, MORPH UNKOWN from the USA...). This release was designed to bring some more danceable attitudes to the usually more melancholic stuff of this band. Some of the presented remix works can easily used to keep the dancefloors of all dark halls burning ("The Golden Light" and "Emotion" remixed by LETHARGY themselves, "Future Time" remixed by IMPLANT...). Most outstanding piece is the remix work on "Nothing to Hide" done by the French Electronica act OIL 10. Clear and marvelous female vocal performances done by Mayte Cruz and a rich melodic musically content make an impressive effort both enjoyable at home as well as useable on the dancefloors. Strong diversity is present here through the musically very different directions of the chosen remix bands although the whole atmospheric content get lost. Impressive release of a talented band hailing from Spain. It is a pity that their situation is currently very difficult and I wish them the very best that they will soon find a way to be present with new stuff for the audience.

Second volume of a CD compilation series which is designed for promotional use only and cost-free but hard to get for a normal consumer. Released again as co-operation between both labels Dungeon-Recordings and Backscatter with the distribution help of the infamous DSBP label this new comp brings us the newest efforts and appetizers directly taken from the upcoming new full-length releases by DIVERJE, LEXINCRYPT, BOUNDLESS, LITTLE SAP DUNGEON or P.C.P. to name a few. The skill and diversity is richly present here and I personally can’t await the release of the newest pieces. This remarkable comp starts with a dark gloomy co-operation project between P.C.P. and the new Dungeon signing IN’VEKTIV. Musically almost based on some dark and spooky LITTLE SAP DUNGEON efforts this track has still enough own identity to give fully satisfaction. Comes next a more traditional dark Electro smasher by LEXINCRYPT. Harsh distorted vocals, pounding rhythms, wide melodic layers – so are the trademarks of this solo project of Wrythe (SYMBIONT) – maybe a bit influenced by some harsh SUICIDE COMMANDO classics, but still with a stand-out in quality. BOUNDLESS is of course also present here and give us a new "Mechanos Failed" pretty much in their already known lighter Electro style. Xon offers with this track some nice varied vocal progression and the sequences sound more trendy than ever before. Follows then one of the main DSBP acts, DIVERJE, leaded by the very own label chief Tommy T. I have never heard and expected such a great evolution in complexity and production by this project with this track "Your Pleasure (Harsh)". It sounds and reminds me a bit on some works done by the great French act E.S.R. and maybe Vince Pujol of this band has put a helping hand on this track. But again – DIVERJE has never been so strong, so rich in composition and sequencing like on this marvelous dark Electro track. A must! Then I must admit that I have never heard a full length CD by CARPHAX FILES, a band recording for COP International. Uuuhm, big mistake, shame on me – they offer a decent and danceable Electro track with some angry vocals. Strong enough done to grab your attention, go and check it out. ROSES AND EXILE offer us a dark and weird piece with a harsh edge. Vocals are here destroyed through the use of some guitar effect machines and the globally structure of their piece is a bit chaotic. Follows then a marvelous and gloomy Electro dark piece by CIRCUIT SURGEON which offers here one of the biggest surprises with well worked out synth layers and Alien-like vocals. LITTLE SAP DUNGEON finally give us here the revamped version of their classic "Ask Alice (Acidland 25 Mix)" which I could already check out on their split-CD with BOUNDLESS, "Geist". It sounds almost like a new track and nothing remembers on the original version. Lately after this track this comp turned into some more or less weird and experimental music stuff which do not fit my personal preferences. Take some Rap (!!!) from FIXX & THE INSUFFERABLE NOISE MACHINE, some abstract experiments with strange sounds by SAVANT GARDE, Powernoise-efforts by SONIC DISORDER, TWILLIGHT TRANSMISSION's Dark Techno experiments and finally SCAPEGOAT’s dark Ambient-like piece you have an idea how diverse and mixed this comp went. Backscatter and Dungeon-Recordings in collaboration offer again a fine compilation which is worth to be a regular release. Highly recommend, try to get it!

A new band on a new label but if you take a look on the names of the band members you get it that this is not an amateurish output of just one new dark Electro/Industrial band. Ladies and Gentlemen, here we have the legitimate follow-up project of the two French legends of this music genre, STIGMA (was signed to Daft and Ant-Zen) and AXONAL WARFARE (Celtic Circle Prod.). After hearing this whole album I cannot believe that this should really be a debut – but so it is and it left me breathless! I am pretty much impressed how much ideas and different influences this talented band is able to handle After the excellent Powernoise starter "First" I expected an album very close to that old STIGMA sound but then the directory changes into a globally dark Electro sound with some similarities to SKINNY PUPPY (a strong influence of these Canadian masters can be heard especially on "Final Vision" with some "Worlock"-like vocals under a heavy use of a vocoder...). The track "Sharpest Tool" reminds me a bit on the latest angry INTERLACE output while tracks like "Our Judgement" and "We Two Are One" seem to be designed to feed that need to enter the dancefloors with some more genre-like sounds. To make the diversity of the tracks nearly perfect, both tracks "Surrender" and "Breaking Machines" feature some sampled guitar sounds. Also remarkable is the excellent vocal input of Laurent K. who doesn’t need a huge machinery to bring an excellent vocal performance. We have here a remarkable output full of diverse styles and very well worked-out sounds and ideas. Don’t hesitate to make your contact with the label and order this nice Electro/Industrial album! Great stuff here!