Record – Rocknerd

Protodome: 4000AD (2020). A chiptune jazz-funk EP played entirely on a 1-bit square wave.

13 April, 202013 April, 2020 Jazz, Musician, Record 0

Art as a response to limitations.

65daysofstatic: replicr (2019).

13 April, 202013 April, 2020 Prog, Record 1

Dark and morose, ambient and industrial, with occasional contrasts, replicr is an album for particular moods.

Records: This Frilly Ape (2019), Amelia Arsenic (2020).

19 February, 2020 Industrial, Prog, Record 0

Yeah, need more abrasive bleepy shit.

Grum: Deep State (2019).

5 February, 20209 April, 2020 Dance, Record 0

Experientially and holistically, this is a thoroughly enjoyable piece of work of which Grum can be pretty proud of.

2019 in music: your comprehensive and reliable global guide.

13 January, 202014 January, 2020 Industry, Live, Opinion, Record, Theatre 2

The punishment of luxury is in the air for all to see. And it’s ugly now, and it’s getting worse every day. Hey! Hey! Hey!

We Lost The Sea: Triumph & Disaster (2019).

2 December, 20192 December, 2019 Metal, Prog, Record 0

The band started off pretty firmly in the metal genre, but transmogrified into something that is a cross between math rock and metal, like a love-child of 65daysofstatic and Dream Theater.

Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage: “LPs.” I feel seen.

21 September, 20192 December, 2019 Indie, Record, Rock 0

If the year was from the ’80s it was guaranteed to totally suck.

Tears for Fears, Rule The World: Greatest Hits (2017)

9 September, 20199 September, 2019 Pop, Record 0

This eighteen-month late review of Tears for Fears latest compilation, released in November 2017, absolutely has to be done, for reasons of aesthetic duty if nothing else.

Martin Rev on “Suicide” by Suicide.

22 July, 201922 July, 2019 Punk, Record 0

Dangerous Minds interviews Martin Rev, going through the recording process for the first Suicide album.

Record non-reviews: Cloud, Even As We Speak, Frog (2017, 2019).

19 July, 2019 Indie, Record 0

Trying to write sensible things to describe music is way too much like work. Here are things from the pile that I’ve been enjoying. Press the play buttons and make up some adjectives yourself.

Records: Nero Bellum, Am I Dead Yet?, O.R.k. (2019).

12 July, 201924 March, 2020 Industrial, Musician, Prog, Record, Rock 0

Mary Byker being precisely the right amount of too clever for his own good is a pleasing surprise when clearing down the review pile.

Records: Cortez (2018), Statiqbloom, various goths (2019).

8 July, 20198 July, 2019 Goth, Industrial, Metal, Punk, Record 0

The review pile is full of alternative buttrock industrial.

Records: The Be Positives, Boy Harsher (2019).

3 July, 20193 July, 2019 Pop, Record, Rock 0

Some new pre-punk pop-rock, and a remixed favourite.

Severed Heads: If I’ve Told You Once I’ve Told You A 1,000 Times (1987).

16 May, 201917 May, 2019 Industrial, Record, Television 1

From the cellulose nitrate days of music video.

Records: Gang of Four, Lindy Vision (2019).

27 April, 201927 April, 2019 Post-Punk, Record 0

Andy Gill’s Gang of One turns out to be a good band making good records. And new Lindy Vision is always a delight.

Boy Harsher: Careful (2019).

3 February, 20193 February, 2019 Goth, Industrial, Post-Punk, Record 0

Darkwave disco. I’ve been hanging out for this one, and I’m thoroughly delighted. You will be too.

Gary Numan: Savage (Songs from A Broken World) (2017).

7 January, 20198 January, 2019 Goth, Industrial, Post-Punk, Record 1

For those most familiar with the classic synth-pop Gary Numan, this will be quite different. For those who have followed Numan in the past thirty years this is not a surprise.

Mono: Nowhere Now Here (2019).

6 January, 201912 July, 2019 Prog, Record 0

Tell you what I love about Steve Albini recordings: the drums.

Records: Nora Roy, Laibach (2018).

25 November, 201825 November, 2018 Indie, Industrial, Record 1

An indie singer-songwriter and the return of an old favourite with a slab of excellence.

Records: Frog, Keen On Keys, Metal Disco (2018).

15 November, 2018 Audio, Indie, Industrial, Record, Rock 0

Metal Disco is today’s pleasant surprise winner.

Records: Dew, Irk, Transmaniacon featuring Lydia Lunch and Maya Berlin (2018).

6 November, 20187 January, 2019 Indie, Industrial, Metal, Punk, Record, Rock 0

Dew and Irk are both remarkable finds and produce the correct horrible racket, though the loved one compared Irk to a sack of hammers falling down stairs.

Records: Nosound, Trash Deity, a Cabaret Voltaire tribute (2018).

3 November, 20187 January, 2019 Industrial, Prog, Record 3

Popular US industrial music has always tended less Throbbing Gristle and more alternative buttrock.

I ran the Perth indie record charts, from 1989 to 1991. Corruption! Manipulation! Propaganda!

10 September, 20183 November, 2018 Indie, Opinion, Record 1

An excuse to get Perth bands into a published record chart, so they’d get some publicity and could use it in their marketing. And to propagandise Australian indie to the masses. Includes THE HITS OF 1989!

Records: The Rolling Stones, Deerful, Benjamin Shaw (2016, 2018).

7 September, 20181 June, 2019 Esoterica, Indie, Pop, Record, Rock 0

A party that everyone’s been looking forward to for weeks. They seem to be having a wonderful time.

Lords of Acid: Pretty In Kink (2018).

6 September, 20187 September, 2018 Dance, Industrial, Record 0

Everyone’s familiar with Lords of Acid at a basic level, right? Dark electronic erotica? Techno songs about fucking? It’s all very nineties. Pretty in Kink was released in May 2018 but still puts out the oldschool LoA vibe.

Blacklab: Under The Strawberry Moon 2.0 (2018).

5 September, 20185 September, 2018 Record, Rock 0

Hey, are you interested in letting a couple of women from Osaka just completely melt your fucking brain? If so I have found the album for you.

The Twinkles: We Come Along (2018).

4 September, 20185 September, 2018 Pop, Punk, Record 0

A 10 song album that is everything you’ve been looking for if you’re sad that The Vandals haven’t had a full length release since 2004.

Reviews: Aboleth, Zanias (2016, 2018).

23 August, 2018 Goth, Industrial, Metal, Record, Rock 0

Writing about music is the most ridiculous notion, and the review pile is only getting larger. So I’ll give just embedding players and mumbling something a go. This works for me, and that’s the important thing.

Pastoratet: THLM (2018).

10 August, 201810 August, 2018 Punk, Record 0

A nice combo of hardcore and surf punk, it’s got a mellow, melodic feel that edges toward pop-punk but brings in just a tiny bit of metal to keep an edge to the sound.

Reviews: Marsy, Dot Dash (2018).

28 July, 201828 July, 2018 Pop, Punk, Record 0

Yeah, putting a Bandcamp embed into reviews is clearly the right thing.