Really Digging System Syn Right Now

Not sure why, but I'm really digging System Syn right now, not only their recent album "Once Upon A Second Act...", but also their older stuff too! I'm really enjoying the production values on each album, and the sound design! For some reason the music is really resonating with me right now, maybe not even the lyrical content so much... but I just love the way everything sounds, and the way the songs are constructed... the music seems to be helping me get through this period right now... and I'm actually finding it really inspirational! I feel the majority of his music, is very clear sounding... like there's a level of clarity in the mixing on the albums... and everything, all the different sounds and instruments really stand out!  

I will be honest, the first time I came across System Syn was at a gig here in Calgary, at a now long lost club from the days of yore... they played that night, as well as Imperative Reaction... I actually really liked Clint's performance... and it wasn't until many years later, that I actually ended up seeing a video of them performing their song "Abrasion Collar"... and I think out of all the stuff that they've put out, that has to be one of my most favorite songs by them... but, a little while later, I ended up finding out about Clint's side-project Fake... and I really dug the only album that came out from that project, and I think if I remember correctly... I actually purchased the Fake album, before I picked up System Syn's debut release "Premeditated"! A short while later I did end up picking up System Syn's debut album and I've picked up every subsequent album after that! I'm pretty sure I have every System Syn album and release (outside of compilations, and remixes they've done for other artists)... although, I don't think I have all of them in physical form...

(Clint Carney of System Syn)

...I know I mentioned this in the blog about System Syn's new album "Once Upon A Second Act..." here, that I think the production team of Ted Phelps and Clint Carney... have really made these albums stand out... I think Ted has had production credits on every System Syn release if I'm not mistaken... and I think that they make an amazing team... every System Syn album has been solid!

I know Clint doesn't really reveal too much about his lyrical content on the albums, in interviews he typically let's the listener decide what it means to them... but I am curious what his lyrics are truly about, and too be honest, I would kinda like to get into his mind to understand what he sings about... I honestly think it would be really cool to have a chat with him about his inspirations and even his other creative and artistic endeavors!

To me it's really interesting hearing the directions an artist or musician goes on their albums, and to be honest, when I listen to albums... I listen to the sound design and the sampling and the way things have been produced, cause I'm quite interested in what were the artists/musician thinking when they were writing these albums. What are they trying to evoke in their expressions on these songs... sound-wise and even lyrically. The thing that I get from Clint's albums is that... there is a level of maybe, well... I would call it experimentation... cause his songs tend to be dancey, in some instances, but in others some of the way things are sequenced and programmed they certainly seem to be in an experimental fashion, cause they may not be entirely dancey in their production.

I guess the important thing, is that these albums and songs are really getting me through the whole situation right now... and I'm finding them inspiring... maybe not so much in the musical style aspect of my own endeavor, but definitely they are keeping me going and motivated in my own endeavor!

I hope this blog finds you folks doing well, and I hope that you may find inspiration in this stuff too!

Stay positive,

Shayne "Daemon_w60" Lawrence | Twitch | Trippingonacable Records

Industrial Accident: The Story of Wax Trax! Records CD

("Industrial Accident: The Story of Wax Trax! Records" Compilation)

Well, I went and purchased a new CD at a store here in Calgary called SAN K JTURI BUKS! Great little spot for books, comics, industrial music (If I'm not mistaken, they are official Wax Trax! Records dealers), all kinds of movies... and just rare stuff (they are in Eau Claire Mall, if you a curious to go check them out)! I initially went to this store to hang out with a friend who works there and just chat for a little bit, but I ended up picking up this "Industrial Accident: The Story of Wax Trax! Records" compilation CD! I had already ordered the Documentary, and I figured being that I had done that, I might as well pick up the compilation CD that goes along with the film! So, what is on this CD... My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, Revolting Cocks, Ministry, KMFDM, Front 242, Chris Connelly... and a bunch of other stuff!

(Interior)

Being that I wasn't old enough to really appreciate what was on the Wax Trax! roster when I was younger and when these songs and bands were coming out (I was waaaay too young, and industrial music wasn't really on my periphery at this point in time), I will say for what is on this compilation, and knowing the bands now, I would say this is an excellent collection of songs and definitely displays the major bands and some of their pioneering and most iconic sounds that were on the label!! This also reminds me of my baby bat or young years as a goth... and being at events in my young adult years in my home city, and being exposed to these bands for the first time... and really loving this stuff!

(Tray Art)

It wasn't until many, many years later that I really started to appreciate what came off this label, and even really start to dig into some of the music off this label! If you watched this video here, you would know that... I would say, yes all the bands definitely sound different, but I will also say, a lot of the bands that came off this label... there was a similarity in the sound quality of the music, maybe not so much in sound design, but definitely in the way it was mixed and mastered! I also think another reason why there was a similarity in that aspect, was because Al Jourgensen had a big hand in a lot of the bands that rolled off that label, and quite frankly, a lot of the bands were side-projects of Al (Revolting Cocks, Pailhead, 1000 Homo DJ's, etc)...

(Back Cover)

So, yeah... listening to this CD, there is definitely almost a nostalgia, when hearing this kind of stuff in my early baby bat days and being at goth/industrial events in my home city, but there's also appreciation for this stuff that I hadn't had in the past, because I was too young to really appreciate it! There's also a lot of inspiration, and a lot of almost "wonder", as too be honest, some of this stuff... this is the first time hearing it! So, yes!! If you are into industrial music and don't know who Wax Trax! Records is or know of the bands on this label, or just haven't heard these particular tracks that are on this compilation... pick it up! There is a lot of history here... and if you have watched my video regarding the documentary "Industrial Accident: The Story of Wax Trax! Records" I will say it again here... watch the documentary!! You will not regret it, you will learn more about this transgressive genre and where it came from, and you will learn about this pioneering record label that spawned the careers of many of today's well known industrial bands!!

Book: Electri_City by Rudi Esch

Finished reading the book "Electri_City" by Rudi Esch... took me a while to get through it, I've been slowly reading it since well... quite some time! "Electri_City" is about the history and birth of electronic music... where it all started and how it shaped future music including techno, electronic music and maybe even industrial, and pop. The book primarily centers around the city Dusseldorf... where Kraftwerk and other bands were birthed, like Neu!, La Dusseldorf, OMD, Propaganda... and all sort of other bands, including a very well known industrial band Die Krupps... which, one of the members (Rudi Esch) actually put together this book! It was very interesting reading it... to find out where electronic music was birthed... and how it evolved... the story is also slightly sad... even though electronic music was birthed in Dusseldorf... it seemed very bleak, and there were a lot of missteps by the bands involved. Granted they came to shape the beginnings of electronic music... but too be quite honest, the impression I got was, there actually wasn't a lot going on in the city... like, yes, very well known bands had came out of that city, but I kinda felt like it was one stumble to the next. I will say though, it was very interesting reading about the gear that these bands had been utilizing, and actually creating on their own, because what was out there, wasn't meeting their needs, so typically bands like Kraftwerk created their own instruments and pieces, or they and other bands modified commercial gear to work with other pieces of gear, so they could get the result they wanted! The book is written in interview style... Rudi Esch recorded interviews with various artists to tell the story of Dusseldorf and how electronic music came to be... then transcribed the audio into text and there you have it. You get to see the story through the eyes of each artist, that was a pioneer in the scene... and it is very conversational! I highly recommend picking up this book to read the history of electronic music, and if you read through to the end, they get into some of the key gear that was used to make the sounds and music of these pioneers! Anyway, as I said... I highly recommend this book! It's interesting to see bands that have had an influence on pop, synthpop, techno... and even industrial!!

Assemblage 23 and Their Influence on Twitch

Here we are listening to Assemblage 23, and I thought why not write something about how they influenced us in the early days of Twitch. So, back sometime in 2002 I started to write Twitch's 3rd album "TCP/IP", and it was heavily inspired and influenced by Futurepop and EBM... it was definitely a departure from what Twitch normally does (quite frankly after releasing it in 2003, I thought it was a mistake), but while writing the album, I had been listening to Assemblage 23 around the time, and I really loved Tom Shear's lyrical and vocal style, and the rhyming schemes... I loved the way the lyrics rolled out of his mouth in the songs 'Anthem' and 'Sun' off the album "Contempt", I would almost say they were hypnotic.

(Anthem)

(Sun)

(If you don't know who Assemblage 23 is, here is the wiki)

So, I started to write my lyrics a little differently, with similar rhyming structures. I would also say, some of Tom's programming is excellent, and some of that has influenced us a little tiny bit as well... especially some of the drum patterns and such, how they are sequenced and such. Granted, not all of our songs are influenced by Assemblage 23, but I will say, they definitely have had their influence on us!

Here's a couple of songs off of the album "TCP/IP" by Twitch:






After I released this album, it wasn't truly the direction that I wanted to go, and I kinda felt like I was wandering off the beaten path at least for Twitch, but... Assemblage 23 has continued to influence us over the years... and I won't be surprised if they continue to influence us!

Keluar... My Current Music Obsession...

Well, as of the last couple of days, I've been listening to the band Keluar! Keluar was the project of Zoe Zanias (vocals, lyrics) and Sid Lamar (music composition, and production)... I guess lately, it's been my current obsession... I'll turn it on at work, I'll listen to it at home... and I can't seem to get enough of it! I just love the way it sounds... I've been pretty much having it on repeat the last couple of days! I'll even turn on their live performance videos and such (I prefer live performances over just studio produced stuff... Aaaand, out of all honesty, I'm really curious what gear they used for their live shows, as it looks quite minimal [Lot’s of live inspiration! We are retiring some pieces and trying to pair down our live kit... to something small and really quick to set-up, but also fun and interesting to play with live too])!

(You can see some of their gear here... so I guess my above question was answered, lol!)

I'm not really sure how to describe their sound, it's definitely darkwave(ish), with elements of EBM and minimal synth, and maybe some industrial elements thrown in there as well! Whenever I hear the various songs, it kind of reminds me of old 80's television... there's an aesthetic to the way it sounds, and the way it is presented... and whenever I listen to it, for some reason I feel like I'm looking at an old 80's TV show or something... not sure if that really describes it very well, but that is what the music evokes in me. Like, a distant memory, but I can't quite place it for some reason... I love their sound because of that! Whenever I see their live performance videos I'm trying to understand what they are getting across, and I feel kinda like they are trying to drive that "distant memory, old 80's TV show" aesthetic... I will be honest, I almost feel they are living in the past, but it's modern times... and maybe that is the point of what they were trying to get across in their videos and performances, they loved that older sound and aesthetic... and that they were trying to live in it... but that's what I get from it, it's not a criticism, just an observation of what I see... Like I said, I love their sound because of the images it evokes in me! I think my favorite song of theirs is "Instinct" off their EP "Panguna", don't know why... just love this song! Love the way it sounds, love the "distant memory that I can't place" feeling I get from it!

(Instinct)

(Surface)

What do you folks think of Keluar? What images and feelings does the music evoke in you?

Record Labels That I'm a Big Fan of:

There are a lot of record labels that I'm fan of, but are my three top labels that I'm a really big fan of... So, let's just get to it... here are three labels I'm a really big fan of:

1. Metropolis Records:

Now I've been a fan of Metropolis since the early 2000's I think my first purchase of a band on their roster was Covenant "Dreams of A Cryotank"... now there is sooo many memories associated with this particular album (I first saw them when I was living in London, England), and after I had returned to Canada from England, it was shortly afterward that I picked up their album! Love that album, it's probably one of my favorite Covenant albums! After Covenant it was, if I'm not mistaken Assemblage 23 "[contempt]" still love that album, then Wumpscut's "The Dried Blood of Gomorrah"... and then it just spiraled after that... first of all, there are sooo many great bands on Metropolis... and Metropolis broke a lot of new bands or picked up bands right when they were breaking into the scene! Metropolis's roster is massive... not only do they have a lot of the major modern electro/industrial/ebm bands on their roster, they also had or still have some of the major bands that pioneered the scene way back in the day, that they eventually signed to their label, including: KMFDM, Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly... and countless other acts! 

If you'd like to know more about the history of Metropolis Records, here's the Wikipedia article!

Here's Covenant's "Theremin":

 2. Wax Trax! Records:

If you've read any of my blogs lately, you would know, I'm a huge fan of Wax Trax! Records, simply for the fact that sooo many industrial bands that were pioneers in the industrial scene came off this label; KMFDM, Revolting Cocks (and countless other side-projects of Al Jourgensen), Chris Connelly, Front 242, VNV Nation, Front Line Assembly, Chris & Cosey, Lead Into Gold... sooo fuckin many bands! Now, Wax Trax! Records sort of has an afterlife, Julia Nash (daughter of Jim Nash), has made a documentary about the label and her father (Jim Nash) and fathers partner (Dannie Flesher), and they've had a couple of one off releases (Cocksure 12-inch single, as well as a Front 242 7-inch), and they've done a pop-up store and such... but as far as activity goes, not a whole lot... but that is ok, I still expect there to be stuff coming in the future, just kinda... here or there!

If you'd like to know more about the history of Wax Trax! Records... here is the Wikipedia article!

Here's is 1000 Homo DJ's "Supernaut":

3. Null Corporation:

Now this isn't a label per se, but it is what Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails has been releasing stuff under for his various endeavors. As far as I know, he hasn't released any other bands on this new imprint, but it's Nine Inch Nails...soo, being that they are my favorite band of all time... that's why it makes it on this list!

If you would like to know a little bit more about the Null Corporation... here is the NINWiki!

Here's Nine Inch Nails "Less Than":

That's it... these are the three core labels that I'm a fan of... obviously there's a lot of other labels that I do enjoy, but I thought I would list the top three, what are your folks favorite labels? Leave them in the comments, and maybe a little bit as to why they are your favorite label!

Industrial Music Monday - Years of Denial

Haven't done one of these in a while, due to being very busy the last few weeks... but we won't let that get in the way! So... it's Monday, and you know what that means... Industrial!! This week we have a band that doesn't claim to be associated with any particular region of the world, other than the world itself. Their music is in the vein of EBM/Techno/Industrial. The project consists of two members: Barkosina Hanusova and Jerome Tcherneyan. They are called: Years Of Denial! Check them out!!




yearsofdenial Facebook

Years Of Denial on Pinkman Records

Years Of Denial on veyl records

Wax Trax! Records and My Current Obsession

Well, lately I've been really digging the Wax Trax! back-catalog... I've been trying to listen to as much of it as possible lately, scouring YouTube and various other sites for playlists of old Wax Trax! era albums and bands signed to that label. I'm not even sure why I've been sooo obsessed with finding that stuff... I think it might be because I was too young to appreciate the music that came off that label, and now when I find stuff (in particular the industrial music related stuff), I love listening to it and can't seem to get enough... it evokes a certain feeling in me, like I'm almost living in that time and experiencing the music that was being put out in that time... but with the added aspect of also appreciating the bands that were on that label, that still exist today... and really enjoying it, cause a lot of them were my heroes (Al Jourgenson; Ministry and Revolting Cocks, Chris Connelly, Front Line Assembly, C-Tec, KMFDM, Cubanate... and others). I think the other thing is, being that the Wax Trax! documentary came out... it is really interesting to see how that label brought industrial to the Westerner (American) masses, and also helped spawn countless industrial side-projects (a lot of them with Al Jourgenson), and brought the "Ultra-Heavy Beat" (KMFDM) here, as well as several others (EBM pioneers Front 242, anyone?)! If it wasn't for Wax Trax! a lot of the music in the goth/industrial scene wouldn't exist, and industrial wouldn't have evolved the way it did... they were truly pioneers when it came to bringing that kind of music here! I will also say it's really great to see these bands nowadays, and seeing these fucking legends in industrial music... Like when Paul Barker (Lead Into Gold) rolled through here... it was sooo amazing! I got to see a part of industrial music history that, I never thought I would experience... seeing this legend and pioneer! I've also seen Ministry roll through here a couple of times as well, as well as Cubanate, and KMFDM... and also saw Chris Connelly in his project Cocksure (I realize that's not Wax Trax!, but just seeing him is fuckin amazing... as I never thought I would see one of the legends of industrial music history)! Yeah, I don't know how much more I can gush here... but it's just amazing to hear and see these legends and really appreciate the history that they created and the music that is associated with that... I love industrial music, and the scene... and I love digging into the history, and listening and reading about it... I really can't get enough... I'm sure as time passes I'll move onto something else that will interest me musically... like Skinny Puppy's back catalogue or even recent releases... I find that fascinating as well... same time, different place!

Here's some videos for you to enjoy!!

What industrial music are you obsessing over right now? I would like to hear your thoughts... there's sooo much good shit out there!

Industrial Music Monday - Deader

It's that day, and you know what that means... Industrial!!! This week we have a band out of Melbourne, Australia. The music is in the vein of electro-industrial/EBM. This endeavor is the creation of: Scud (synths, sequencing, drum programming, guitar, vocals, samples), and Lou (vocals, lyrics, live drums, and synths). They are called: Deader! Check them out!!






deaderindustrial.bandcamp.com

deader Facebook

Industrial Music Monday - Silence In Machine

Well, it's Monday, and you know what that means... Industrial!! This week we have a band out of Sylacauga, Alabama. The music is in the vein of harsh industrial/ebm. The projects members are Wess Apocalypse, and Cecyx. They are called: Silence In Machine! Check them out!!!






silenceinmachine bandcamp

silenceinmachine Soundcloud

silenceinmachine Facebook

Silence In Machine Youtube