Juxtaposition to the recent wave of happy-go-lucky surf-rock bands is the slightly scuzzy and darkly haunting vibe of dark pop. One of the most intriguing to emerge on the scene is The Soft Moon. Although they hail from sunny San Francisco, a dark underground feel in the hallmark of their sound. Tracks like When It’s Over begin with a slow and steady one, two drumbeat and are accompanied by a straightforward guitar hook. The vocals receive a heavy dose of reverb as they blend with shadowy instrumentals. Midway through the track the addition of rising and falling feedback comes in and adds a savage vibe until the track fades out with a medley of noise. The song Phantoms supplies a quicker tempo, with Joy Division influenced instrumentals from the continual steady drumbeat. Vocals jump in and out adding to the frenzied build of guitar feedback.

It Came Out The Other Side, Ok: Duzheknew

It’s been awhile since I’ve thought of our counterparts to the North (Canada, not Alaska) but tension, post-punk laced Duzheknew reminded me that Canada has more to offer than poutine and Ellen Page. The group hails from Nova Scotia and mix taut and quick guitar strumming with beautiful crashing drums on their standout track It Came Out The Other Side, Ok. The instrumentals create a building pressure throughout the 3 ½ minute track that calls for jerky body movements a la Ian Curtis as the steady rhythm keeps your foot constantly tapping. The vocals mix the perfect combo of talking with little inclinations of singing. Now gonna go dance in a pub in Manchester (or at least in my head).

Blue Orchids emerged from the rich post-punk scene of Manchester in 1979.  Their second single, titled “Work,” was given plenty of airtime by the famed DJ John Peel and, in ’80 and ’82, they visited his BBC studio twice to record career-boosting “Peel Sessions.”  They also supported both Echo and the Bunnymen and Nico on tour and later acquired ex-Smiths guitarist Craig Gannon.  In other words, Blue Orchids had everything they needed to expect commercial success, but instead they have largely fallen into obscurity.

Theres something bout the crunchy tones of a overdriven guitar backing psychedelic vocals. Tough Troubles is a group slathered in Do It Yourself ethic. The post punk vibrations shaking off these tunes is like a club show in 1980s new york on a fuzzy mescaline trip. Geneva Lake Records is the home to these cyber punk torch bearers. Touches of dark wave electronica tinge these tracks with the Christian Death reverberated vocals culls the inner goth. Yielding sounds of distant future electro no wave punk to come, Tough Trouble tears through these songs savagely.

VOYAGEURS – A MYSTIC

Download Voyageurs Trigrams HERE

It’s rare to find something interesting, so interesting that it actually takes you aback. Red Psalm is both post-punk and ambient, but not the kind of ambience Brian Eno battered through the alternative scene. This is where the post-punk element comes in handy, it forces you to sit and appreciate its mellowness as opposed to simply rinsing your brain as conventional ambience does so well.

Mx-80 sound are the band no one has heard about but everyone rips off–I’m looking at you Sonic Youth. Hailing from the culturally insular area of Indiana in the 70’s, Mx-80 sound created the blue print for the now famous No-Wave scene in new york. For a band from Indiana, one wouldn’t expect all the paranoia and dread that these guys manage to wrangle out of their guitars. Although the vocals are a little flat, often spoken, Mx-80’s start and stop guitars coupled with the occasional skronking sax sounds just as fresh as it did thirty years ago.

A shitload of reverb seems to be a key necessity in alot of music these day. To all the pretentious chillwavers out there here is an example of what you can do without it, throw away the security blanket already. Frouky’s sound is like a hot knife thru butter……..smoooooth. The French band sounds sometimes like a cartoon – as in something you would expect to hear in the background of a main menu screen for an Atari video game.  The band’s Myspace page of comic strip-like drawings doesn’t hurt the comparison either.  The band cranks out dreamy organ and a marching drum machine beat in j’ai reve (“I dreamed”) and a darkwave electro sounding approach in their song j’attendrai (“I shall wait”), all accompanied sultry monotone french-girl-vocals. Très intéressant indeed.

A shitload of reverb seems to be a key necessity in alot of music these day. To all the pretentious chillwavers out there here is an example of what you can do without it, throw away the security blanket already. Frouky’s sound is like a hot knife thru butter……..smoooooth. The French band sounds sometimes like a cartoon – as in something you would expect to hear in the background of a main menu screen for an Atari video game.  The band’s Myspace page of comic strip-like drawings doesn’t hurt the comparison either.  The band cranks out dreamy organ and a marching drum machine beat in j’ai reve (“I dreamed”) and a darkwave electro sounding approach in their song j’attendrai (“I shall wait”), all accompanied sultry monotone french-girl-vocals. Très intéressant indeed.

Fungi Girls say:

Jasmine_Love_Bomb-From_Last_Summer

The Psychedelic post-punk outfit Jasmine Love Bomb formed in the late 80’s (86′-89′) in Lowell, Massachusetts. At their first rehearsal they broke out into a version of Pink Floyd’s “Astronomy Domian” later realizing they had all knew the song prior. They put out a four song tape in 89′ that was somewhat sucessful winning”Tape Of The Year” in The Bob magazine. Their music has also appeared on the compilations ‘A Psychedelic Psauna’ and ‘Fun With Mushrooms’, both on the Uk label Delerium Records.
Open the post to download 4 of their tracks and listen to their take on acid-soaked post-punk.

The Dreams-Rising Son

Beko is a online digital single label based out of France. Their catch phrase is “your weekly popfix-a new single every monday.” They have also started to release  mini compilations and various mixes. Beko would be a great bookmark to visit from time to time since they are constantly releasing  really cool music that you can download for free. Just a few of the artists who have been featured include, Foxes in Fiction, Kiss Kiss Fantastic, Blackbird Blackbird, Wonderwheel, Tan Dollar, The Feeling Of Love, Nazi Dolphins, and a ton more.

Factory Records made a name for itself by promoting some of the most groundbreaking and challenging music of the post-punk era, namely stuff from bands like Joy Division, ESG and, later, New Order.

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MINKS-Witchcraft,funeral song