Archive for the ‘Singles and EPs’ Category

Adios MF is a musical collective spearheaded by Nathan Keeble carving fresh dark wave and electronica sound the underground of Sheffield. Their latest single, ‘They,’ was recorded between Brooklyn and Brixton, serves as a sonic manifesto of what’s to come. Their music defies categorisation, blending elements of post-punk, electronica, and avant-garde into a sonic tapestry that’s uniquely their own.

With sleek production by Nathan Saoudi and Richard Wilson yet coursing with enough detail and character to set it apart, with this impish 80s beat, sinewy guitars, metallic dapping keyboards, and sample loops, it forges a uniquely futuristic sound that’s at once both familiar and yet mirrors the churn of the cityscape.

With a sound that hints at the influence of acts like Human League, Depeche Mode, Kraftwerk and Molly Nilsson, the vocals are addictive and almost mechanical, driven with hooky melodic ticks that sink their nails into and won’t let go, and yet the lyrics reside with a disquiet at the creeping gentrification of urban redevelopment “They built a Starbucks on my street” and reference to shadowy figures who might take you away. It hints at a dark underbelly and Sci-fi dystopia where your every action is being watched.

ADIOS MF say “’They’ is a Kitsch byproduct of existence amid the constant churn of urban development and the persistent buzz of drilling. It was written as a tonic to the realisation that resistance is futile; you must simply acquiesce to the world of urbanism and let it carry you along on its unpredictable journey, set to a naughty 80s beat.”

We dig it here at Aural Aggro, and you can get your lugs round it here…

HIGH DESERT QUEEN celebrate the release of their sophomore full-length Palm Reader with a new video single of the title track. The Texas desert rockers are also streaming their hot new album in full now on all relevant outlets.

“We couldn’t be happier with how this album came together,” vocalist Ryan Garney writes. “Going to YellowDog, and deciding to record the whole thing live without a click track while creating new songs after getting off the road allowed this to be an album that’s helping mold what High Desert Queen is becoming. The title track came together in the studio when Phil started playing the drum beat as a joke. We were all laughing until Rusty ripped into the intro guitar riff, and within an hour we had the music completely written. What you hear on Palm Reader is what we created in real time, and it’s not like anything we’ve written before. We knew right away it needed to make it on the album, and it really showcases the spontaneous creativity behind the entire record.”

Watch the workout video for ‘Palm Reader’ here:

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“Party doom” riff merchants GURT recently announced their return with their latest, crushing-ist opus yet, Satan Etc. Now they have shared new single ‘Appetite for Construction’, with the band commenting,

“It’s no secret that Gareth is a fan of a famous little building brick, and this song started life as an ode to his favourite hobby, what it ended up as was a twisted tale of an unknown evil, building its twisted world around an unsuspecting people, a legacy of pain!’”

Listen to ‘Appetite for Construction’ now:

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thumbnail_Gurt bw-3 credit Mithun Shah

Sweden-based industrial/dark ambient artist ULVTHARM has released his second opus “7 Uthras” on May 3rd via Cyclic Law. The album is available as digisleeve CD (limited to 300 copies), black vinyl (limited to 200 copies), and red & black marbled vinyl (100 copies).

An official video has been released for the song ‘Sinners Will Inherit The Earth’. The video displays a female character – interpreted by the actress Emelina Rosenstielke (Feed) – sitting in a colorless room and in the center of a target painted on the floor. The character, who embodies modern civilization, is apparently afraid of the risks she may incur. Ulvtharm’s arrival on the scene and the subsequent initiation of a ritual reveal the true identity of the character, as well as of our civilization – thirsty for blood and personal success. We are all sinners on this Earth.

Watch it here:

“7 Uthras” is the second release from MZ 412 co-founder Jouni Ollila. Ulvtharm is painting his world as a sprawling, post-apocalyptic industrial wasteland, where humanity clings to survival in the shadows of monolithic factories and decaying cities. Skies choked with ash, and a sun that seldom breaks through the omnipresent smog. Within this landscape, the Seven Uthras exist not as beings of benevolence, but as ancient, god-like entities that emanate from the darkest depths of the earth, commanding forces beyond human comprehension. 7Uthras serves as a sonic gateway to otherworldly realms, offering a glimpse into the abyss that challenges and expands the listener’s perception of the known universe.

The artist masterfully blends the essence of dark industrial soundscapes with layers of mystical ambiance, creating an immersive experience that is both deeply unsettling and profoundly enlightening. This new album is not just an exploration of sound but a journey into the soul of its creator, exploring the chaos and darkness within his imagination. ULVTHARM’s deeper vocal experimentations are weaving a narrative that is both personal and universal. The album’s blend of dark, martial, pulsating rhythms and ambient organic soundscapes invites us to confront the death and ruins of our world. As each track unfolds, we will be drawn deeper into a narrative of chaos and transformation, where the end of one world signifies the birth of another. “7 Uthras” is not just an album; it is a ritualistic journey that seeks to unlock the ancient doors of perception and embrace the darkness as a path to enlightenment. All hail the Serpents, all hail the Seven Uthras!

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Dawn Of Ashes is a Los Angeles-based group whose very name brings to mind ‘the beginning of the end’. Formed in 2001, DOA have broken ground across multiple genres, from aggrotech/terror EBM to industrial/extreme metal, producing a unique hybrid of dark electro and metal styles. This fusion of terrifying soundscapes with brutal, relentless rhythms forms the foundation for the lyrical themes of founder and frontman Kristof Bathory, which explore concepts of horror, anti-monotheistic religion, misanthropy and the negative aspects from emotional abuse.

DOA have recently issued a new album entitled Reopening The Scars that was preceded by the single ‘Anhedonia’, a video for which has just been made available. Bathory describes the song as “a glimpse into the dark abyss of the subconscious. We are explorers into the often unspoken, dark and cruel reality of mental anguish, torment and depression,” adding that “there are various circles of Hell when it comes to emotional suffering. Depression is a place that can cripple the mind in so many different ways. Anhedonia is the state of depression where nothing matters anymore, and you become paralysed by your own self punishment.”

Reopening The Scars is DOA’s first album for Metropolis Records since returning to their former label home in late 2023. “It is a continuation from our previous album, Scars Of The Broken,” Bathory has previously stated. “It goes down a darker hole into a place where each lyrical topic touches on the struggles of self-destructive behaviour. Pain and suffering dictated the writing process and created the sounds of emotional hell.”

As for the music that DOA is now creating, Bathory concludes that “after all these years dabbling in dark electronic music as well as industrial and extreme metal, we have found a unique style that complements each genre as one. DOA is neither one or the other in a separate category. The music and lyrical content speaks for itself under a form of darkness that fits for all people who enjoy various types of aggressive music. Reopening The Scars defines that in a perfect form.”

Watch the video here:

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With yet another 24th May release, Philadelphia-based Cathari has released their EP, It Will Hurt the Entire Time You Are Alive, their first studio offering since transitioning into noisecore from doom metal. The EP is available on cassettes and digital.

Vocalist Magdalena Stephens shares: “‘It Will Hurt The Entire Time You Are Alive’ is like a thesis statement for my own sadness and disappointment into adulthood. Every song is about disappointment in its own way, be it with the music scene, the people I used to call friends, or even myself. Growing older has been a bitter and unforgiving experience and I wanted to capture the rage that percolates beneath the surface of my life as I come to find it’s just all disappointment all the way down.”

Hear the EP in full here:

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Darkwave band, DICHRO has just unveiled their latest single & video, ‘Mercy’ from the forthcoming full-length album due out in August via Distortion Productions. The song carries a message that we should have mercy not just in our every day encounters, but free one another from judgement for choosing how to believe, if we believe, and what we believe. If we can start seeing one another with empathic eyes and hearts, perhaps we can rid our global atmosphere of so much fear and uncertainty. ‘Mercy’ is an outreach piece.

Says vocalist, Charmaine Freemonk: “We are reaching out to ask that everyone calm down a bit, take a breath, and be more conscientious of our actions. It is a heartfelt plea that we consider whether we are helping or harming one another, practice empathy, and if we cannot help, to at least not harm."

Check ‘Mercy’ here:

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WORSHIPPER drop a psychedelic lyric video featuring the super heavy track ‘Heroic Dose’ as the next single taken from the Boston psychedelic hard rockers’ forthcoming third album One Way Trip which is scheduled for release on July 19, 2024.

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WORSHIPPER comment on ‘Heroic Dose’: “This is the final song that we wrote for the record, and probably the most personal for me”, guitarist and singer John Brookhouse reveals. “I lost my dad in 2022, and one of the last conversations that we had was about his time in Vietnam. As I was writing the lyrics for this song, I realized that I had all of these remarkable stories, which he had told me about that period of time. Essentially, he flunked out of college, and in the midst of a ‘spirit journey’ he realized that he needed to enroll in the Army to avoid being drafted. I cannot even imagine being faced with such a grave decision. I made a bunch of war sounds with a Moog and a theremin that my dad gave me and handed them over to our producer, Alec Rodriguez. Alec just nailed the sound design, especially when mixed with all the acid fuzz freakout stuff at the end over Jarvis’ excellent drum fills.”

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Pagan Synth duo, ESOTERIK have just unveiled their new single, ‘Hero’.

For the new single, ESOTERIK explores the beauty in evolution and transformation. The hero’s journey is one of introspection with an effort to shed light on the flaws that stifle forward progress. But this process can also lead to rumination without the balance of right action. There comes a point in every hero’s journey where they feel as though they aren’t ready to take on the momentous call to duty that lies ahead of them. But it soon becomes clear that a path less-followed is the only option left.
The trial by fire truly cleanses the mind of all doubt giving way to an unfounded strength and focus to achieve their purpose.

Diving headfirst into one of the more well know archetypes, the ‘Hero’ is front and center in their new single. The listener will immediately notice a more guitar-oriented arrangement which is a slight departure from recent releases, although still retaining the band’s synthpop formula.  Like a melodic freight train going full throttle, this track is steady in propelling the hero into uncharted territory.

Watch the promo clip – or visualiser, if you will – here:

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Founded in 2013, US Dark Pop outfit, ESOTERIK, have steadily evolved into what fans have lovingly coined as Pagan-Synth. The band, comprised of Allison Eckfeldt and Brady Bledsoe, is known for their heady potion of soundscapes that highlight the melodic side of 80’s synthpop alongside the intensity of rock sensibilities. With lyrical content that explores the human condition and how we experience life with senses known and unknown, each compassion beckons the listener towards deep exploration of shadow and light. Their last release, Alchemy, has been described as ‘an album which has mystical folk tendrils, spliced together with electronic synths and rhythms. It is beautiful and danceable with a spiritual center, calling back to a time when our ancestors were more in-tune to the world they walked in and the earth was far more listened to.’

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Finish purveyors of extreme noise, Vorare, has paired up with Earthflesh to create the abrasive blast of an album which is Rope Tower. We’re on the edge of our seats for the album, and are beyond thrilled to present an exclusive premier of the second track from the album to be unveiled after ‘Seepage’.

On the face of it, a mining disaster in the North of England which occurred way back in 1844 may seem like an unusual choice of subject matter for two artists based in mainland Europe: it’s a pretty niche piece of local history. But it’s also a harrowing historical event that warns of the risk to life the industrial age brought. County Durham had a long mining heritage, and Haswell was one of the county’s largest collieries, employing over 300 men and boys. This single incident – an explosion – caused the deaths of almost a third of the workforce, with the blast itself killing 14, and a further 81 dying by suffocation.

For a moment, just imagine the scene, and the sensation. ‘Haswell’ makes for a fitting soundtrack, with a reflection on not only the how of their deaths, but the why…

Lyrics:

We find ourselves in the mines day in and day out, breaking our bones, shoveling our route to the alluring ore necessary for someone else to thrive off of. The caged canary leads the way deeper and deeper into the uncharted maw of Earth left gaping by bombs built by weak little men far from here. The clangs of pickaxes haunt our dreams while the fetters on our ankles might as well be extensions of our limbs alongside the instruments designed to violate the soil below our homes. As the morning seeps in lightless, we continue our work. Descending to the black hole stretching for miles on end, the explosions seem particularly strong today. We can’t see, but we can hear and feel. The chirp of the canary abates and soon runs out. Is this the smell of profit?

An account of the Haswell Colliery Explosion can be found here.

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