GENRE PEAK is the musical vehicle of Sacramento-based multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Martin Birke who first became known as a member of CASUALTY PARK.
With four albums to his name as GENRE PARK which have featured among others, JAPAN members Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri and the late Mick Karn, Birke’s most recent release was ‘Triptych+’, an Eno & Fripp inspired ambient trip in collaboration with their former guitarist Robert Dean. Birke began as a drummer so it is no surprise that exotically constructed rhythms feature on ‘Psychopathy’, his fifth long player as GENRE PEAK.
Working with former CASUALTY PARK band mate and producer Aaron Kinney who adds his own Moog Modular and fretless bass to proceedings, the resultant album has been self-described as “tracks of dark introspection, self-awareness and transformation”
Opening salvo ‘Deathbed Confession’ brings in synthetic brass and slap bass in that mature rock-oriented manner that was ubiquitous as the CD era took hold. The pulsing backbone of ‘Psychopathy’ plays host to Middle Eastern inflections and intense vocal impressions not unlike ‘Pretty Hate Machine’ era NINE INCH NAILS while the tingling abstraction of ‘Western Lights’ brings in brassy overtones from Tony Passarell over a frantic tablafied percussive template.
With a scratchy rhythmic stutter, ‘The 4th Wall’ channels moods of frustration but the lengthy ‘POV’ utilises a meditative tapped mantra as a setting for slowed reverse effects and jazz-laden trumpet before morphing into something more propulsive while counterpointed by piano and accompanied by a Japanese monologue.
A track with a title like ‘Muzzleloader’ can be expected to sound a bit like NINE INCH NAILS and as one of the album’s highlights, its drum programme maintains the hypnotism while ‘Enjoy The Silence’ as reimagined by Trent Reznor looms in the song’s second phase. Talking of the devil, the brooding ‘Return To Earth’ exudes industrial NIN-flavoured phase Numan but without the goth metal and works well as a slice of doomy electro-rock with the filtered vocals accentuating the sense of unease.
The conceptual ‘Wendigo’ acts as a schizo closer with a variety voices penetrating the head but this proves to not be essential to the ‘Psychopathy’ experience. As a collection of shady electronic rock, ‘Psychopathy’ is likely to appeal to Steven Wilson fans with a penchant for early NIN as a reflection of the disorientation and rage caused by world events over the past few years.
As CIRCUIT3, Dubliner Peter Fitzpatrick mined the classic era of synthpop for his first two long players ‘siliconchipsuperstar’ and ‘The Price Of Nothing & The Value Of Everything’.
But channelling his hopes and dreams through a childhood fascination with space travel as well as Sci-Fi TV shows such as ‘Star Trek’, ‘Space 1999’ and ‘Blakes 7’, Fitzpatrick takes his CIRCUIT3 vehicle on its most ambitious musical mission yet.
‘Technology For The Youth’ is a retro-futuristic narrative on the world before the space shuttle.
While there are past references, these were triggered by a range of extreme events from the last 3 years; the political swipe to the far right, disbelief in the science and denial of the pandemic are the disturbing topics of fear and ignorance that counter the fearless aims to explore space and unite the world.
Recorded over a 2 year period during the pandemic in a home studio that could be compared to sitting in Major Tom’s tin can far above the world, ‘Technology For The Youth’ is a conceptual work that was inspired by Hannah Peel and her space themed musical adventure ‘Mary Casio: Journey To Cassiopeia’. But it could also be compared to ‘Radio-Activity’ by KRAFTWERK or ‘Dazzle Ships’ by OMD which both conjured nostalgia for black-and-white television and short wave radio.
Named after long-running Soviet-era magazine, ‘Technology For The Youth’ is an album where every track has been carefully thought out with a story behind each, whether pop song or instrumental. Capturing a light breeze, opener ‘Ветерок’ gently sweeps and builds for launch, before ‘50 Years Ago’ kicks into action in honour on the first human space travellers Yuri Gagarin, Gherman Titov, Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom and John Glenn with a triumphant middle eight synth solo.
‘Спутник’ offers a drifting orbital interlude before accents on the thirds shape the lively ‘Star City’. The vocodered tone poem ‘Weightless Part 1’ booms but the floating minimal backdrop of ‘Blinded By The Sun’ provides the setting for an observation on the Trump-era of “alternative facts”.
It’s all a sad indictment of how the human race will die out eventually through its own stupidity, akin to Greek God Icarus who was given wings fastened with candle wax by his father Daedalus and told warned him not to fly too close to the sun; but excessive pride saw Icarus ignore him. He floated up until the sun’s heat melted wax and left him falling into the earth, killing him…
‘Луна’ provides a pulsing Luna ambience but the mysterious ‘Transmissions’ speculates at the alleged “Lost Cosmonaut” crews abandoned by The Kremlin as a metaphor for today’s political cover ups. In 1959, a high-ranking Czechoslovakian Communist leaked information about unofficial missions with Alexei Ledovsky, Andrei Mitkov, Sergei Shiborin and Maria Gromova among those said to have perished in service to the Soviet Union. While no evidence came to light, two Italian amateur radio enthusiasts had made audio recordings of a transmission to support the conspiracy theory that these cosmonaut deaths were indeed covered up.
But one very public mission was that of Valentina Tereshkova whose 1963 adventure in Vostok 6 made her the first woman in space. On ‘Valentina Fly’, the minimal structure and string machines of the wonderful piece evoke OMD.
Featuring Fitzpatrick’s Roland Jupiter 4 which was loaned to Martyn Ware for the HEAVEN 17 live presentations of ‘Travelogue’ and ‘Reproduction’ in 2021, the fittingly titled ‘Jupiter City’ makes use of the presets Ware had saved for those shows; with recurring pulses and motifs, it is a delightful homage to those first two seminal albums by THE HUMAN LEAGUE. There are other instrumentals too, such as ‘Laika’ in honour of the first space dog.
With a moody Howard Jones versus Karl Bartos meets ‘Twins Peaks’ vibe, ‘Spacewalking’ tells the story of Ed Dwight, set to be the first African American astronaut but who was failed by the institutional racism within NASA despite having reached Phase II of the Aerospace Research Pilot School.
Not all the material on ‘Technology For The Youth’ is space themed; originally conceived as a homage to THE BUGGLES, ‘Future Radio’ is the bridge to CIRCUIT3’s past synthpop offerings, expressing the joy of the new “here on the radio, receiving in stereo”. Featuring the vocals of Italian singer Alessia Turcato, ‘Overview Effect’ stargazes on two fronts about the life imitating art scenario of William Shatner who played Captain Kirk on ‘Star Trek’ while also becoming the oldest person in space at 90 on board Blue Origin’s New Shepard sub-orbital space rocket.
Fittingly the tranquil ‘In The End (We All Become Closer)’ offers hope as “love is all we need” while using actual communications from the joint Apollo-Soyuz mission of 1975. Reflecting on this handshake in space as a symbol of détente, it is a reminder the world how it has lost its way in recent times and will be set on a disaster course, either through armed conflict or environmental catastrophe unless a united selfless front is actioned… so please LOOK UP!
While not as immediate as ‘siliconchipsuperstar’ and ‘The Price Of Nothing & The Value Of Everything’, ‘Technology For The Youth’ is an intelligent artistic statement on the trials and tribulations of mankind in the context of space travel. Like a musical research paper that draws parallels to today, it prompts a thoughtful mode of listening that encourages further reading.
Just as OMD sang about ‘Tesla Girls’ in 1984 and inadvertently exposed ignorant journalists who thought Messrs McCluskey and Humphreys were making up words, ‘Technology For The Youth’ is a record for the smarter-than-average music enthusiast, not your usual ‘Let’s Rock’ festival frequenter.
‘Technology For The Youth’ is released by AnalogueTrash on 15th July 2022 on digital and vinyl LP formats, pre-order from https://circuit3.bandcamp.com/
Nika Roza Danilova, born Nicole Hummel, is the artist behind the ZOLA JESUS project.
Having debuted in 2009 with grossly underrated ‘The Spoils’ LP, Hummel continued to charm in an almost witchy fashion through her output. At times more poppy like ‘Taiga’ to the dark and hunting ‘Okovi’, her main instrument being the eerie, operatic voice around which she builds her song structures.
With deep admiration of Russian language, culture and landscapes, her productions ooze coldness and depth, showcasing the darkest corners of electronica.
Historically Danilova would prefer to have reins over all aspects of songwriting, production and instrumentation; she would be the one constructing the finished piece. With ‘Arkhon’ however, she hit a wall of not being able to create and desperately felt she needed to bring in new blood.
That led her to sending her demos to Randall Dunn and collaborating with Matt Chamberlain. The latter, who was well known for his work with Bob Dylan and David Bowie, helped to define the sound of ‘Arkhon’. Spurred by others’ contributions, her creative juices started flowing, where she could feel that her ideas expanded “into a sound that (she) never would have been able to think of on (her) own”.
Indeed the opening ‘Lost’ serves as a perfect example, where the layered urgent vocals, sparsely placed over native drums claim the voice of desperation, yet are embroiled in hope. ‘The Fall’ marries vintage Zola and modern pop, meandering between paced and urgent, vocals at times reminiscent of the late Aaliyah and otherwise very Grimes.
The album’s synth marvel comes in next, embodied in the magnificent ’Undertow’, with darker elements meeting a twisted take on synthwave. ‘Into The Wild’ is gentle and innately beautiful, sung from the depths of consciousness while ‘Dead & Gone’ featuring friend and touring violist Louise Woodward is an epiphany of healing amidst gloominess.
The pulsating ‘Sewn’ written in total collaboration with Dunn and Chamberlain is fast paced and native, juxtaposed with the bare ‘Desire’ with its simple piano and palpable pain expressed upon the end of a relationship. Perhaps it wasn’t Danilova’s ‘Fault’ who is “only human and some things don’t make sense”. Possibly the best track on the opus, this gem with cleverly placed electronic elements is reminiscent of instrumental DEPECHE MODE marvels circa ‘Music For The Masses’ and with exhilarating vocals, towers high over many of ZOLA JESUS’ contemporaries.
‘Efemra’ goes back to tribal before the closing ‘Do That Anymore’ is loaded with the feeling of the new found freedom; “There is a moment where you stop fighting with yourself. That’s when things can really happen”. And they did…
Having to change the perspective on music making and allowing others to share in the process, ZOLA JESUS “could enjoy being in the moment, putting that into the music and letting it unravel or evolve in its own way. To let it have its own story that I only had a part in telling”.
‘Arkhon’ doesn’t only mean “power” or “ruler” in Ancient Greek but also translates into a Gnostic idea of power wielded through a flawed god, tarnishing the corrupted humanity with ZOLA JESUS firmly believing to be the sign of modern times.
Perhaps not as accomplished as ‘Okovi’, this latest representation of Danilova’s abilities certainly ushers a new era in her song making. And perhaps having finally shaken the shackles, she will enjoy future collaborations to enhance her enormous talents.
In their earlier incarnation, THE HUMAN LEAGUE had a song called ‘4JG’, that JG being James Graham Ballard, the English Sci-Fi novelist best known for dystopian works such as ‘The Drowned World’, ‘The Atrocity Exhibition’, ‘Crash’ and ‘High-Rise’.
Other post-punk synthesizer exponents such as John Foxx, Daniel Miller and Gary Numan were also inspired by the imagery of JG Ballard’s bleak brutalist backdrops while the short story ‘The Sound-Sweep’ was the inspiration behind THE BUGGLES’ No1 hit ‘Video Killed the Radio Star. The tradition of JG Ballard influenced electronic music continues today.
‘Concrete Island’ takes its name from the 1974 JG Ballard novel; an artistic collaboration between Jonathan Sharpe and James McKeown who make music respectively as THE HEARTWOOD INSTITUTE and HAWKSMOOR, the pair came together remotely to capture the claustrophobia of the worldwide lockdown, soundtracking a Ballardian drama that was actually a stark reality.
Tracks would begin as modular loops, basslines or rhythms which were then exchanged, deconstructed and reworked, with a harsh aesthetic emerging to seed the cohesive theme of escape from a desolate concrete jungle. Initially released a year ago as a cassette, ‘Concrete Island’ now gets the traffic cone orange vinyl treatment by Spun Out Of Control.
With a cold disconnect and gradual build, ‘The Architect (An Arrogant Protagnonist)’ fittingly echoes John Carpenter. But ‘Through The Crash Barrier’ grinds in an industrial swirl of hypnotic noise that is strangely alluring. Just as ‘Crash’ featured a narrative about car crash sexual fetishism, people today still camp out at Die Nordschleife on track days in the hope of seeing car crashes to the point of it being almost primal.
Expanding on the vehicle collision theme, ‘Rainstorm / Burning Car’ brings conventional instrumentation into the mix but ‘Median Strip’ is covered in noise echoes for a mysterious air of unsettlement. Flipping over, ‘Fire Signal’ rises and reverberates with four string bass working in tandem with the repeating electronic variant within an icy cocoon. ‘Beast & Rider’ mind-bendingly throbs in its cosmic undulations but relief comes temporarily with the bass guitar inflected austere of ‘Delirium’.
‘A Pavilion Of Doors’ opens up a menacing spiral of sound while the weirdly danceable bonus track ‘Maitland’ acts as a sharp amalgamation of screech and bubbles. Fittingly dense, the dark moods of the closer ‘Escape’ drone, spike and clatter to recall THE HUMAN LEAGUE’s ‘4JG’ phase but at a much more funereal pace.
An enjoyably tense listen with an anxious Ballardian gloom, the dystopian soundscapes captured on ‘Concrete Island’ tap into the fears of an uncertain futureworld. Things might be bleak but they are real too and in these strange times, reality has shown itself to be merciless.
Accomplished musician Tim Bowness celebrates four decades of playing in bands and working with the likes of Robert Fripp, Phil Manzanera and Richard Barbieri by presenting his seventh solo album ‘Butterfly Mind’.
Co-produced by long-time collaborator Brian Hulse and mixed by NO-MAN bandmate Steven Wilson who he began his recording career with, ‘Butterfly Mind’ has been hailed as Bowness’ most surprising release yet. Eclectic it certainly is and this is not to be unexpected given his vast knowledge of music history as articulated on ‘The Album Years’ podcast with Wilson.
The success of his Burning Shed label and online retail platform has only driven his own artistic integrity even further; Tim Bowness said to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK in 2019: “The good thing about the success of Burning Shed is that it’s meant that I’ve become even more bloody minded and idealistic concerning my own music. I only ever release what I believe in and what I believe deserves to be heard in the wider world.”
After ‘Late Night Laments’, ‘Butterfly Mind’ is not that much more cheerful and begins with ‘Say Your Goodbyes, Pt. 1’, an intense art rock barrage with flute from Ian Anderson of JETHRO TULL and additional vocals from Peter Hammill of VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR. Meanwhile, ‘Always The Stranger’ funks up it with noted bassist Nick Beggs in tow as Bowness comes over vocally like a cross between Thomas Dolby and Paddy McAloon.
‘It’s Easier To Love’ exudes the chill of winter featuring sax from one-time David Sylvian and Harold Budd collaborator Nicola Alesini, but as ‘Lost Player’ offers a haunting atmospheric ballad, ‘Only A Fool’ surprises as a brilliantly feisty synth driven number swathed in a Cold War presence with “so much blood on our hands”.
Continuing that aesthetic theme, ‘Glitter Fades’ crosses forlorn piano with a light but dramatic synthetic rhythm construction while the lengthy ‘Dark Nevada Dream’ imagines THE BLUE NILE meeting TALK TALK with MAGAZINE’s Dave Formula working his magic on a Hammond organ and Ben Coleman providing the solemn violin.
Given the quality of its supporting cast, the musicality of ‘Butterfly Mind’ cannot be faulted while Bowness remains as intense and grumpy as ever. Despite the forlorn melancholy expressed, as with all good popular music, there is some hopefulness too.
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