Note: No AI in any form has been used for writing these reviews!
Update: 5 more reviews:
Hellcreator - Beyond The Gates (Mokum 348)
https://mokumrecords.bandcamp.com/album/mok348-hellcreator-beyond-the-gates
When it comes to the early hardcore / 90s gabber revival, I always considered Hellcreator to be one of the better artists in that field.
He is a little bit less cheesy, the stuff is closer to old underground gabber (think nordcore, lenny dee), or even speedcore
Mokum is one of the few survivors of the original gabber house scene of the 90s. And it's cool and nice, that they now host a few of the (brand new) artists that were inspired by them and the original era, too.
Void Sorcerer - Autumn EP (self-released)
https://voidsorcerer909.bandcamp.com/album/autumn-ep
It's autumn (or close to autumn), and here is an EP for that season, too.
According to void sorcerer himself, he aims to combine dungeon synth with... gabber, speedcore, hardcore techno!
And that's a really unique combination, and I have not seen anything like that yet...
Nice to see there is still some creativity around. And the tracks themselves are quite cool, too!
Ductape - Faded Flowers (self-released)
https://ductape.bandcamp.com/album/faded-flowers
This is a card-carrying goth rock / pop album. There is nothing wrong with that!
Think cure, siouxsie, bauhaus... more modern of course, and more dance centered. and maybe less "rock-y".
the descending melodies and the vocals, that sound quite "haunted", do it for me, on here.
If you want to lament a lost love, or one you never met, i guess this is the right album.
Lord Nap - Alien Dreams (self-released)
https://naprecords.bandcamp.com/album/alien-dreams
i must admit that i am a fan of some lord nap tunes, but barely know anything about them.
maybe it's because the releases are very varied, there are even some hip hop ones, others are closer to synthwave.. even chiptune?
i sense there is also a vapor wave influence somewhere, and the tunes sometimes spell the online world of 2010 (think myspace, post-myspace, ICQ, frutiger aero... that aesthetic), which is not entirely my thing.
this release is top, though. it's a bit like lofi hip hop, but also very interesting, and there are many things that actually made me think of the glam rock / power pop era of the mid 70s!
liars' conspiracy - switches (self-released)
https://liarsconspiracy.bandcamp.com/album/switches
this was actually a reader's submission, a band by one of the readers that read the coverage.
and it's brilliant! it really is!
the music is related to drone and drone rock, i suppose. but the sound itself feels very logical, mathematic, but also very reduced, quite minimal, with lots of tiny modulations. and it's really mesmerizing.
dunno, is this a trend, a genre in music, that evaded my gaze over the years, or maybe is something new that they came up with?
either way, there are two tracks on the release, 8 minute and 14 minute long, and i just kept them running, like i was hypnotized by the sound.
Update: 2 more reviews:
Hellboii - Humanicide (Bunker Records)
https://bunker-panzerkreuz.bandcamp.com/album/humanicide-bunker-4028
The Bunker label from The Hague in the Netherlands seems to appear everytime in my bandcamp friday lists... weird!
"Hellboii" is really old school, I remember first seeing their music, when I browsed soundcloud, like 10 years ago (if i remember correctly).
This was a time when there was a new wave of techno and dance music everywhere (well at least on the internet). It was not as minimal or "detroit-ish" as the years before, but colder and harder again, also with hints of acid and acidcore in many tracks. But not as distorted yet as todays "industrial techno"!
Hellboii somehow did fit in there, and also did not. Because they also sound like 80s ebm, pre-techno detroit releases (hah!)... and, yes, Bunker is known exactly for these type of releases, where you can't really describe what's going on.
Either way, it's quite nice!
Fischer-Z - X-Ray Serenade (Self-Released)
https://fischer-z.bandcamp.com/album/x-ray-serenade
tt seems that some high profile artists want to join Bandcamp Friday! First John Carpenter, now Fischer-Z.
(If you don't know them. They were a charting UK new wave band from the 80s that had top 10 hits around Europe).
Their newer songs are less wave-y or synth pop. More like a guitar centered indie band now... even a bit of folk on here, imho. Especially in the song "suburban cowboy".
There is a bonus, and that's (re-imagined?) re-recordings of their old hits, like "so long" or "marliese".
Future Nobodies - Kiss Me Like You Used To (Self-Released)
https://futurenobodies.bandcamp.com/album/kiss-me-like-you-used-to
If I remember correctly, I became aware of the band "Future Nobodies" because Youtube suggested it to me, which might not be the most professional or classy way to do music research. But, truth is, I learned about some very interesting projects and good music in this way, and multiple times.
As far as I can see, there is a whole bunch of artists (and bands) now that are not exactly within one genre... they're not 100% synthwave, or 100% goth, but they somehow mix up everything that is dark, and also danceable.
Future Nobodies is one of the best bands in that "area", in my opinion.
This album uses a snippet from the original French version of the movie "Alphaville" by Jean Luc Godard, from 1965, and this instantly made it a winner for me.
Something that is also notable for me is that the synths, melody, and even rhythm seems to slightly slide out of tune or sync, but only very slightly, not completely detuned, which feels kinda... cool!
Btw their band info read "we make sad happy music to dance to." which kinda fits to the idea I described above.
John Carpenter - Lost Themes II 10th Anniversary Expanded Edition (Sacred Bones)
https://johncarpentermusic.bandcamp.com/album/lost-themes-ii-10th-anniversary-expanded-edition
Hey, I already had John Carpenter in my list for the last time it was Bandcamp Friday! Now he puts out a new release again. Dunno, is this some kind of... magic thing?
Either way, to make it clear: this is *the* John Carpenter. The director of Halloween, of The Thing, of Escape from New York. And he does not suddenly do music on the side, he has always been a music producer too, next to his Hollywood career, and for fans of electronic music, John Carpenter has been revered as much as Vangelis or Moroder.
According to the text this is a new extended version of a previous release, of "John Carpenter's acclaimed second album of non-soundtrack compositions".
And I will stop right here, because this is really perfect, it describes the music on here so well. A "non-soundtrack composition"... yes, it sounds like you were hearing the score to a typical John Carpenter movie, just that this time, the movie does not exist!
(Okay I know that is a weird way to say it... but listen to it, it makes more sense then... I hope!).
Betty X - Skoochies (Self-Released)
https://bettyx.bandcamp.com/track/skoochies
New single by Betty X. If we trust the info (and lyrics), she did this one for an all-ages dance club that existed in the past. She met her first love at that club, and dedicates this song to them.
The style of the single reminds me of the "rockier" side of synthwave, or maybe the more synth heavy and retro side of indie rock. So maybe it's up to you to decide!
But it's really good, and, yeah, I could imagine dancing at a club while this song plays.
I-f - Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass (Viewlexx V-002)
https://viewlexx.bandcamp.com/album/viewlexx-v-002-space-invaders-are-smoking-grass
According to their own accord, the "bunker" crew were some kind of nerd-squatters in the netherlands, that did those hardcore / acid parties in... well, bunkers and warehouses, with a bunch of weirdos freaks... from all walks of life.
and wouldn't you guess it, one of the DJs and producers associated with that scene, was electro-rocking it on the MTV(*) only a few years later. Because "Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass" was on heavy rotation on the various dance programs of TV and other channels, and I guess a lot of people who came home or came down from hardcore raving and other nastiness on a friday or saturday night, sank down on their couch and turned on the TV... will remember chilling to this track when the very video of it came up.
so, yes, it's a literal underground "hit", and i love it, too. very good electro, cool futuristic lyrics... cool concept... completely the correct thing for cool cats!
CVSY - Writhe (Self-Released)
https://glaring.bandcamp.com/album/writhe
Glaring / Anna Nin is one of the most interesting Dark Ambient producers right now. Or is it really "just" Dark Ambient?
Apart from Industrial and Harsh Noise elements, there has been more and more rhythmic sequences in her music lately... I dare to say "dance" elements!
And it might be a coincidence, but I feel a throwback to the earliest days of Techno, Hardcore, Hard Acid, Doomcore Techno... when I listen to these tracks.
It's released using the aka CVSY. According to the info these were "Recorded live in summer 2026". Quite a feat, because it is still Summer, and it's a 17 track strong album after all, that she apparently finished in a very short amount of time!
I love these tunes very much, there is hardly any filler inbetween, the tracks, the concept are top... even if you are only remotely interested in the mentioned genres, please take a listen!
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