Well, Hallowe’en is firmly in the rearview, which means it’s time for us to kick back, relax, and listen to some not-at-all-gothy music for a while. Which is what we would be doing, if not for the small complication that Bobby Smith gone and released a new Cure album and uh, yeah, we’re gonna have to listen to and talk about that. Tune in to We Have a Technical this week to hear us discuss it, presumably at length, but until then why not enjoy some selections from this week’s Tracks?
The New Unit 187
Unit 187, “Dick”
Vancouver’s American-style coldwave act Unit 187 returns unexpectedly, and we’re both surprised and very happy. The death of vocalist Tod Law in 2015 left us assuming that the band was no more, but 2024 brings us a reformed lineup, featuring founding member John Morgan, along with familiar faces Chris Peterson (Decree, Front Line Assembly), Ross Redhead (Decree), and Kerry Vink-Peterson (Stiff Valentine). New LP KillCure will feature songs written with Law before his passing along with brand new material. The first taste of the new Unit 187 is a re-recording of the classic “Dick”, from their stone-classic Loaded. Welcome back, we missed you.
Front Line Assembly feat. Cardinal Noire, “Heatmap”
Keeping on the Vancouver industrial tip, we’ve been lucky enough to hear some behind the scenes previews of the new Front Line Assembly remix record, featuring a slew of younger bands working with material from their AirMech soundtracks, but the first public taste of Mechviruses is here. Finnish electro-industrial heavyweights Cardinal Noire (whose new Vitriol LP will be seeing release in a month) have made no secret of their appreciation for the likes of Puppy and FLA, and they sound right at home adding some caustic stabs and growls to “Heatmap”.
Kælan Mikla, “Stjörnuljós”
Iceland’s ethereal darkwave witches Kælan Mikla return with the mournful “Stjörnuljós”, a different if no less powerful kind of song. Anybody who has seen them live or spent time listening to their records won’t be surprised by the intensity and emotion of the track, especially the deliberate way it builds from it’s minimal beginnings to a lush, funereal climax, the perfect music to listen to as Fall transitions to Winter.
Encephalon, “Illusions”
Encephalon is one of the bands that inspired us to start I Die: You Die, and in the time since the release of their debut LP The Transhuman Condition, they’ve never let us down. Each and every album has been a different experience, with their ambitious themes, songwriting and programming becoming more baroque and powerful, yet, when called upon they can still deliver a straight up club track. Hence “Illusions”, the second taste of what the forthcoming Automation All Along brings. Insistent and instantaneous, with hints of some of the record’s thematics, this is exactly what we want from Ottawa’s finest.
Mosquito, “Prince Of Immortality”
Here’s some right down the pipe continental goth rock brought to us by the fine folks at Swiss Dark Nights. Greece’s Mosquito went to ground shortly after their 2017 debut, but new LP Deep Slumber doesn’t have any rust on it, and delivers the sort of chilly and uber-dramatic goth rock that’s meant to be listened to in cold November winds. This might be a bit much for those who prefer their goth to have a bit of restraint, but if you still have your crimpers and winklepickers at hand, Mosquito will scratch an itch.
Strange Boutique, “The Night Birds”
With some autumnal goth in a very different vein, the slow reactivation of DC post-punk act Strange Boutique continues with this charming new single. We imagine many folks (like ourselves) were introduced to Strange Boutique after Monica Richards co-founded Faith & The Muse after the band’s mid-90s dissolution, but the space and style of Strange Boutique is a whole other world, and this tune has the sort of languid darkwave jangle that Richards’ voice suits to a tee.
