SINE (aka Rona Rougeheart) released the single “Cruel” today April 3 via Metropolis Records. The...

Source: Side Line

(Interview by Janos Janurik) After seven years, The Twilight Sad return with their most personal...

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The 19th Elektrisch Festival will take place on October 24, 2026 at Club Seilerstraße in...

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Divider release the 12-track album “Zero” today, April 3, via Re:Mission Entertainment. The Riverside- and...

Source: Side Line

Portland’s (excellent!) dark alternative trio Darkswoon have shared “Antivenom,” the second single and title track...

Source: Side Line

Das Industrial- / Alternative-Projekt SKYND hat eine weitere Headline-Tournee angekündigt. Unter dem Motto „Dead Serious“ bringt das Duo seine vertonten „True Crime“-Fälle auch nach Deutschland und Österreich. Shows sind in Frankfurt, Oberhausen, Leipzig, Stuttgart, Hamburg, Berlin, München und Wien geplant.

Einen Vorgeschmack auf die Konzerte gibt es jetzt in Form der neuen Single „Tamara Samsonova„.

Außerdem gibt es einen Clip zum Track „Andrei Chikatilo„, der mit der „Bestie von Rostow“ den gleichnamigen russischen Serienmörder zum Thema hat.

Außerdem teilten SKYND den Song „Mary Bell“ als Video bei YouTube.

SKYND Tourdaten 2026

05.04. DE-FRANKFURT
06.04. NL-UTRECHT
07.04. BE-GHENT
08.04. FR-PARIS
10.04. UK-MANCHESTER
11.04. UK-LONDON
13.04. DE-OBERHAUSEN
14.04. DE-LEIPZIG
15.04. DE-STUTTGART
17.04. DE-HAMBURG
18.04. DK-COPENHAGEN
20.04. NO-OSLO
21.04. SE-STOCKHOLM
23.04. FI-TAMPERE
24.04. FI-HELSINKI
25.04. PL-WARSAW
27.04. DE-BERLIN
28.04. CZ-PRAG
29.04. DE-MÜNCHEN
30.04. AT-WIEN

Fotogalerie: SKYND – Technikum, München – 08.11.2023

Source: Vampster

Die schwedische Thrash Metal-Band MEZZROW hat ein neues Label gefunden. Gemeinsam mit Fireflash Records hat man sogleich einen neuen Song herausgebracht: „As The Flames Rise“ ist auf allen gängigen Streaming-Portalen verfügbar. Gitarrist Ronnie Björnström erklärt dazu:

„Dieser Song entstand während der ‚Embrace the Awakening‘-Sessions, schaffte es aber nicht auf das Album. Der Track hat einen typischen Bay-Area-Old-School-Vibe mit einem eingängigen Refrain. Der Text beschreibt ein klassisches Horror-Thema, und vor allem Clive Barker kommt mir als Inspiration in den Sinn. Insgesamt einfach pures Headbangen von Anfang bis Ende, und jetzt ist es an der richtigen Zeit, diesen Thrash-Song zu veröffentlichen!“

Zuletzt erschien das Album „Embrace The Awakening“ (2025).

Source: Vampster

SARCASM veröffentlichen am 29. Mai 2026 ihr neues Album “Lifeforce Omnibound” via Hammerheart Records. Nun haben SARCASM einen weiteren Track daraus veröffentlicht:

Mit der Album-Ankündigung im März teilte die Death Metal-Band auch gleich die erste Single “Altering The Perception”:

Gemischt und gemastert wurde das sechste SARCASM-Album von Lawrence Mackrory.

 

SARCASM “Lifeforce Omnibound”  Tracklist & Cover

1. Essence of Existence
2. Altering the Perception (Audio bei YouTube)
3. The Reward of Adversity
4. Crumbling Mind Edifice
5. Plunged Into a Paradox
6. Wayward Fragments of Infinite Divisibility
7. A Concept Older Than Time
8. Empirical Life Metaphysical

CD bonustracks:
9. Be Dead
10. Onslaught Without Mercy (DAMIEN Cover)

 

SARCASM Line-up:
Heval Bozarslan – Vocals
Peter Laitinen – Guitars
Philip Borg – Bass
Jesper Ojala – Drums

Source: Vampster

Am 29. Mai 2026 bringen GUTRECTOMY ihr neue EP „Slamdown is not a phase, Mom“ raus. Den Opener „Stepdad Slamfight“ gibt es vorab als Video zu sehen:

Live kann man die Band bei ihrer Tour mit IMMORTAL DISFIGUREMENT in Oberhausen und Donaueschingen erleben. Und: Am 2. Mai 2026 findet das zweite „Gutrectology – Freiburg Corefest“ statt, auf der Bühnen stehen insgesamt elf Bands:

ABBIE FALLS (CZ)
DAGGER THREAT (DE)
GUTRECTOMY (DE)
SOULPRISON (DE)
DOGBITE (DE)
RUINS OF PERCEPTION (DE)
XOXO (CH)
EMBRACE YOUR PUNISHMENT (FR)
HATE9TEN (DE)
MUGGESEGGEL (DE)

GUTRECOMY  „Slamdown is not a phase, Mom“ Tracklist & Cover

Stepdad Slamfight (0:53) (Video bei YouTube)
Sledgehammer Dismemberment (1:38)
Forklift Facelift feat. Guttural Slug (2:00)
Cardio Kills Gains (2:02)
Chainsaw Vasectomy feat. No Face No Case and Nekropisser (2:46)
Eating 6 Humans By Daylight (2:12)

 

IMMORTAL DISFIGUREMENT & GUTRECTOMY Tour 2026

GUTRECTOMY Line-up: 
Dennis Schuler – Gesang
Philip Dahlenburg – Gitarre
Louis Weber – Bass
Julien Kuny – Schlagzeug

Source: Vampster

Die multinationale Alternative Metal-Band PLAYGROUNDED hat eine neue Single veröffentlicht. „Counting Embers“ ist als Visualizer-Clip bei YouTube abrufbar.

Der Track ist gleichzeitig ein Vorgeschmack auf das nächste Album der Alternative Metal-Band, das noch 2026 via Pelagic Records erscheinen soll.

Source: Vampster

OH HIROSHIMA haben ein neues Album angekündigt: Erscheinen wird „And The Dead Tree Gives No Shelter“ am 5. Juni 2026 via Pelagic Records. Wie sich das neue Material des Post-Rock-Projekts aus Schweden anhört, verrät die Single „Broken Sunlight„.

Zum Albumtitel äußert sich das Duo wie folgt:

„Der Albumtitel ‚And the Dead Tree Gives No Shelter‘ stammt aus T. S. Eliots epischem Gedicht ‚The Waste Land‘. In diesem Album fungiert der tote Baum als Metapher für Lebensweisen, die der Welt ihren Sinn rauben und keinen wirklichen Weg bieten, die Nöte des Lebens zu meistern. Wir leben in einer Zeit, in der es immer schwieriger wird, sich eine strahlende Zukunft vorzustellen. Das hinterlässt bei vielen von uns ein tiefes Gefühl der Hoffnungslosigkeit, das leicht zu Zynismus und Apathie führt. In diesem Zustand fällt es leicht, die Welt auszublenden und jeden Versuch einer sinnvollen Interaktion mit unserer Umgebung aufzugeben. Es folgt ein destruktiver Kreislauf, da uns dadurch keine Möglichkeit bleibt, uns vor unserer anfänglichen Verzweiflung über den Stand der Dinge zu schützen. Doch diese Lieder zielen auch darauf ab, etwas Sinnvolles und Hoffnungsvolles zu zeichnen. Eine Form der Idealisierung, die nicht in Naivität, sondern im Realismus verwurzelt ist, denn wir brauchen Ideale, um genug Kraft zu sammeln, um die schutzlosen toten Bäume unseres Lebens hinter uns zu lassen.“

Produziert wurde „And The Dead Tree Gives No Shelter“ in Eigenregie, wobei das Rhythmusfundament gemeinsam mit Karl Daniel Lidén aufgenommen wurde. Mix und Mastering übernahm Magnus Lindberg.

OH HIROSHIMA „And The Dead Tree Gives No Shelter“ Tracklist
1. Servant of All
2. Meridian
3. Angelos
4. Skeleton Key
5. Tree of Life
6. Broken Sunlight (Video bei YouTube)
7. Ivory Tower
8. Exit Cloud

OH HIROSHIMA Line-up 2026
Jakob Hemström: Guitar, Bass and Vocals
Oskar Nilsson: Drums and Percussion

Source: Vampster

Ostern, Feiertag, Freitag, Release-Day, und ‘Sine’ liefert trotzdem den passenden Soundtrack für alle, die es gern ein bisschen bissiger mögen: Mit ‘Cruel’ hat Rona Rougeheart...

Source: MedienKonverter

Ich habe mir irgendwann mal geschworen, weniger anstrengende Musik zu hören. Mehr Leichtigkeit, mehr Melodie, mehr „fühlt sich gut an“. Und dann kommt da wieder mal 'Converter'...

Source: MedienKonverter

Die Post- / Sludge Metal-Band IVOIRE hat mit „Uragano“ ein neues Album angekündigt. Es ist das erste Album der von Gitarrist Nicolò Lenoci Ende 2021 gegründeten Band aus Italien und dreht sich um Verfall und die Erforschung der Grenze zwischen Zerstörung und Katharsis.

„Uragano“ wurde von Andrea Lenoci produziert und mit einem Cover-Artwork von Camilla Di Bella Vecchi ausgestattet. Release-Termin ist der 8. Mai 2026.

IVOIRE Line-Up:
Antonio Caggese – Vocals
Nicolò Lenoci – Guitar
Sebastiano Liso – Guitar
Cipo – Drums
Francesco Bizzoca – Bass

IVOIRE „Uragano“ Tracklist
01. Le Catene dell’Estro
02. Vetta (Audio bei YouTube)
03. Tempeste
04. Chimera
05. Sotto La Cenere

Source: Vampster

Die Speed Metal-Band LOUDER hat einen Labeldeal bei Fighter Records unterschrieben. Im Zuge dessen werden die Kolumbianer am 14. Mai 2026 ihr neues Album „Devil’s Night“ veröffentlichen. Es ist das erste Album des Trios aus Medllin. Vorab gibt es den Track „Heavy Metal Nights“ zu hören.

LOUDER Line-Up:
Stiven Arias „Deathströker“ (bass)
José Manuel Cárdenas „Nekro“ (drums/backing vocals)
Juan Camilo Camargo „Hellgröwler“ (vocals/guitars)

LOUDER „Devil’s Night“ Tracklist
1. Speed Junkie
2. Satan’s Bitch
3. Hellish Rock’n’Roll
4. Louder Than Hell
5. Dirty Rocker
6. Heavy Metal Nights (Audio bei YouTube)
7. Metallic Overdose
8. Devil’s Night

Source: Vampster

Die Alternative Rock-Band PLUME hat mit „!REAL SPIRIT! Caught On Tape“ eine neue Single veröffentlicht Schon seit mehreren Monaten ist auch „Digital Waterboarding“ als Musikvideo bei YouTube zu sehen.

Fotogalerie: PLUME – Wisdom Tooth Festival 2025 – 12.07.2025

Source: Vampster

Ein wenig Stirnrunzeln darf erlaubt sein, wenn eine Underground-Formation zum namhaften Label wechselt und plötzlich eine Vorliebe für kompaktere Songstrukturen entwickelt. Wobei selbst das natürlich relativ ist, denn obgleich GRIMA keine neunminütigen Epen mehr bereithalten und nach dem Intro mit dem trottenden „Beyond The Dark Horizon“ gar in airplay-freundlichem Rahmen ins Ziel kommen, gibt sich das sibirische Duo keineswegs kurz angebunden.

Raum für Wiederholungen und schrittweisen Songaufbau sind nach wie vor gegeben; das A und O des Atmospheric Black Metal werfen GRIMA somit ebenso wenig über Bord wie das charakteristische Akkordeon, das die Soundwelt von „Nightside“ in entscheidendem Rahmen prägt. Das mag man Gimmick nennen, ist aber zugleich Alleinstellungsmerkmal und passt hervorragend in die frostigen Soundscapes, indem das Instrument das kalte Fundament mit Leben und damit Wärme füllt.

Für ein Atmospheric Black Metal-Album ist „Nightside“ überaus harmonisch angelegt
Das Grundkonzept bleibt folglich organisch geprägt, was das Album in Zusammenspiel mit dem gestrafften Songwriting greifbarer werden lässt. Ein wenig Andersweltlichkeit erschaffen zudem gelegentliche Ambient-Synths wie im Outro von „Flight Of The Silver Storm“, das als Single ähnlich zugänglich konzipiert ist wie das nachfolgende „Skull Gatherers“. Hier wiegt uns das clean gespielte Intro in Geborgenheit, bevor ein getragenes Akkordeon durch den recht konservativ angelegten Song führt.

Genau das symbolisiert wohl auch die größte Stolperfalle: Selbst für ein Atmospheric Black Metal-Werk ist „Nightside“ überaus harmonisch angelegt. Das minimiert einerseits Berührungsängste, vermeidet aber auch ein gesundes Ringen mit der eigenen Erwartungshaltung. Überraschungen gibt es schlicht nicht, wenn eine Rückkehr des einleitenden Akkordeon-Themas aus „Intro (Cult)“ im Titeltrack den größten Aha-Effekt darstellt.

GRIMA können mit einer dichten, heimeligen Atmosphäre punkten
Zu hoch hängen wollen wir diesen Makel indes nicht, denn im Umkehrschluss gelingt GRIMA ein eingängiges Genre-Werk, das sich wunderbar zu jeder Gelegenheit hören lässt und darüber hinaus mit einer dichten, heimeligen Atmosphäre punkten kann. Ob nun zwischenzeitlich die Folk-Einflüsse in „Impending Death Premonition“ in den Vordergrund treten, „Curse Of The Void“ zwischen galligen Eruptionen und chorgestützten Gesängen wandelt, der Titeltrack phasenweise das Tempo anzieht oder „Mist And Fog“ bedrohlich nach vorne kriecht: „Nightside“ wirkt trotz seiner verschiedenen Gesichter wie aus einem Guss.

Dass oftmals das Akkordeon das verbindende Element darstellt, fällt zunächst gar nicht so sehr auf. Trotz seiner Präsenz ist es doch auf natürliche Weise in die Songs verwoben und wiegt uns ein ums andere Mal in einer freundlichen Umarmung, wodurch unser anfängliches Stirnrunzeln schlussendlich doch entspannter Zufriedenheit weichen darf.

Veröffentlichungstermin: 13.02.2026

Spielzeit: 49:36

Line-Up
Vilhelm – Vocals, Gitarre
Morbius – Gitarre

Gastmusiker:
Serpentum – Gitarre
Vlad – Drums

Produziert von Vladimir Lehtinen

Label: Napalm Records

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grimablackmetal
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grimablackmetal/
Bandcamp: https://grima.bandcamp.com/

GRIMA “Nightside” Tracklist

Intro (Cult)
Beyond the Dark Horizon (Video bei YouTube)
Flight of the Silver Storm (Video bei YouTube)
Skull Gatherers (Video bei YouTube)
Impending Death Premonition
The Nightside
Where We Are Lost
Curse of the Void
Mist and Fog
Outro (Memories of a Forgotten Home)

Source: Vampster

Falls du dachtest, das Jahr 2026 hätte schon genug merkwürdige Momente parat, legen ‘Flint Glass’ und ‘Ah Cama-Sotz’ gleich mal noch eine Schippe oben drauf. Ihr kommendes...

Source: MedienKonverter

Vikowski began as a solo project founded by Italian artist Vincenzo Coppeta and has since...

Source: Side Line

Die Punk / Stoner Rock-Band THE FREQS hat mit „No God On The Gold Coast“ ein neues Album angekündigt. Es ist nach einer Reihe von EPs das erste Album der US-Amerikaner aus Massachusetts und wird am 29. Mai 2026 via Gum Cuzzler Records erscheinen.

„No God On The Gold Coast“ wurde von Alex Allinson bei The Bridge Sound & Stage Music produziert und von Keith Gentile gemastert. Das Cover-Artwork stammt von Ellis Roundy. Vorab gibt es zum Opener „John Travolta“ ein Video.

„‚John Travolta‘ wurde von einem aufkommenden digitalen Zeitalter inspiriert, das von wieder zum Leben erweckten toten Gesichtern überschwemmt wird. Von Hologramm-Konzertreihen über posthume Gastauftritte von Stars mittels KI bis hin zu Facebook-Profilen verstorbener Freunde – es scheint, als würden wir in eine Welt eintreten, in der niemand sterben und ruhen darf, solange sein Bild noch Gewinn abwirft“, sagt Frontmann Seth Crowell.

THE FREQS Line-Up:
Seth Crowell – guitar, vocals, short-wave manipulation
Ian Mandly – bass
Zack Fierman – drums

THE FREQS „No God On The Gold Coast“ Tracklist
1. John Travolta (Video bei YouTube)
2. Chainsawman
3. Low IQ
4. CLEARANCE WRECK
5. It Might Be Rabies
6. Secondhand Jesus
7. Short King
8. Nite Hag

Source: Vampster

Die Thrash / Heavy Metal-Band HERESY hat mit „Caveat Emptor“ einen Video-Clip ihres kommenden Albums „Ordinary Decent Life“ veröffentlicht. Es ist nach „Powered by Anger“ (2013) und „The Dark Shore“ (2019) das dritte Album der Franzosen aus Montpellier und wird am 17. April 2026 via M&O Music erscheinen.

HERESY „Ordinary Decent Life“ Tracklist
1. Dancing Shadows On Burning Grounds
2. Straight To The Wall
3. Caveat Emptor (Video bei YouTube)
4. Locked Inside Your Head
5. Concrete Road
6. 86 Days Without Sun
7. Innersight
8. Between The Lines
9. Stray Dogs

Source: Vampster

Die Brutal Rapcore / Nu Metal-Band SMASH HIT COMBO hat nach „Split (Part 1)“ und „Split (Part 2)“ mit „Tyler“ eine weitere neue Single mitsamt Video-Clip veröffentlicht. Die Songs werden Teil eines neuen Albums der Franzosen sein und wurden von Simon Muller aufgenommen und gemixt.

SMASH HIT COMBO „Split (Part 1)“ (Video bei YouTube)

SMASH HIT COMBO „Split (Part 2)“ (Video bei YouTube)

SMASH HIT COMBO „Tyler“ (Video bei YouTube)

Source: Vampster

Die Epic Medieval Black Metal-Band RIVERFLAME hat nach dem Opener „Riverflame“ mit „Where Dragons Once Ruled“ einen zweiten Track ihres kommenden Albums „Lunar Crusades“ veröffentlicht. Es ist der erste Release der Griechen rund um Gitarrist und Keyboarder Haris (HAIL SPIRIT NOIR, SKINHER) und wird am 24. April 2026 via code666 erscheinen.

„Lunar Crusades“ wurde von Dimitris Douvras gemixt und gemastert und mit einem Cover-Artwork von Mars Triumph ausgestattet.

RIVERFLAME Line-Up:
Haris – guitars, synths
Romain Nobileau – vocals
Abro – bass
Hakon Freyr Gustafsson – drums

RIVERFLAME „Lunar Crusades“ Tracklist
1. Riverflame (8:02) (Audio bei Bandcamp)
2. Where Dragons Once Ruled (7:53) (Audio bei NoCleanSinging)
3. Lunar Crusades (3:42)
4. Through Mistlands of Unearthly Worlds (9:03)
5. Before the Eternal Night (10:08)

Source: Vampster

With “Rain”, Kacey Foxx aka Pinknoise shows another insight into the new EP “Flesh and Bone”, which will be released on April 17, 2026. Pinknoise gets support in the form of Trevor Borg (Wind Walkers). Thematically, “Rain” deals with depression and the inner struggles that come with it. Kacey Foxx describes the song as a […]

Source: Orkus

Die Hardcore / Deathcore-Band MY OWN WILL hat mit „Misery“ eine neue EP angekündigt. Die Scheibe folgt auf das Debütalbum „Left To The Flies“ nach und wurde von Cody Steward und Max Kushner produziert. Release-Termin ist der 4. Juni 2026 via Bleeding Art Collective und Blood Blast Distribution. Vorab gibt es einen Video-Clip zum Titeltrack.

MY OWN WILL „Misery“ Tracklist
1) Misery (Video bei YouTube)
2) Rorshach
3) Forsaken
4) Phobos

Source: Vampster

Die Blackened Thrash Metal-Band IN MALICE’S WAKE hat nach dem Video zu „Numb to Paradise“ mit dem Video zu „Beyond Death“ eine zweite Single von ihrem kommenden Album „The Profound Darkness“ veröffentlicht. Es ist das fünfte Album der Australier aus Melbourne und wird am 1. Mai 2026 erscheinen.

„The Profound Darkness“ wurde von Chris Themelco gemixt und von Plec Johansson. Das Cover-Artwork stammt von Sänger und Gitarrist Shaun Farrugia

IN MALICE’S WAKE Line-Up:
Mark Farrugia – Drums
Shaun Farrugia – Vocals, Guitars
Karl Watterson – Bass
Leigh Bartley – Guitars

IN MALICE’S WAKE „The Profound Darkness“ Tracklist
1) The Profound Darkness
2) Beyond Death (Video bei YouTube)
3) By Tongues of Demons
4) The Last Song
5) Numb to Paradise (Video bei YouTube)
6) Upon My Flesh
7) The Great Purifier
8) Away from the Light
9) The Darkness Below Us

Source: Vampster

Die englische Hard Rock-Band BURNING CIRCUS hat mit „Rodeo“ eine neue Single mitsamt Video-Clip veröffentlicht. Der Song folgt auf die Debüt-EP „No Moment of the Passing Life“ und handelt grob über die Überwindung des Schmerzes nach einer Trennung.

BURNING CIRCUS Line-Up:
Alex De-Gruchy: Vocals, Lyrics
Chris Else: Guitar, Vocals
Tragedy Jones: Bass
Gavin Eaglefield: Drums

BURNING CIRCUS „Rodeo“ (Video bei YouTube)

Source: Vampster

Am 27. März 2026 veröffentlichten BLACK LABEL SOCIETY ihr neues Album „Engines of Demolition“, nach „Name In Blood“ gibt es mit „Ozzy’s Song“ nun ein weiteres Video zu einem Song des Albums:

„‚Engines of Demolition‘ ist eine ehrliche Reise durch die Höhen und Tiefen der letzten vier Jahre, von Anfang bis Ende, mit einigen der höchsten Höhen und tiefsten Tiefen und allem, was dazwischen liegt“, sagt Sänger/Gitarrist Zakk Wylde.

Die Songs des Albums schrieb Zakk Wylde überwiegend 2022 während PANTERAs „Celebration World Tour”, 2025 entstand dann die Ballade„Ozzy’s Song”.

Weitere Songs des Albums hat die Band bereits im vergangenen Jahr veröffentloicxht:

 

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY „Engines of Demolition“ Tracklist
1. Name In Blood (Video bei YouTube)
2. Gatherer of Souls
3. The Hand of Tomorrows Grave
4. Better Days & Wiser Times
5. Broken and Blind (Video bei YouTube)
6. The Gallows (Video bei YouTube)
7. Above & Below
8. Back To Me
9. Lord Humungus
10. Pedal To The Floor
11. Broken Pieces
12. The Stranger
13. Ozzy’s Song (Video bei YouTube)

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY Line-up
Zakk Wylde – vocals, guitar, piano
John (JD) DeServio – bass
Jeff Fabb – drums
Dario Lorina – guitar

Source: Vampster

Die Hard Rock-Band MASHEENA hat mit „Let The Spiders In“ ein neues Album angekündigt. Es ist nach „West Coast Hard Rock“ das zweite Album der Norweger aus Bergen und wurde von Eugene „Machine“ Freeman produziert. Release-Termin ist der 10. April 2026 via Ripple Music und Majestic Mountain Records. Vorab gibt es nach dem Opener „Been Waiting„, „Sara Lost Her Way“ und „Going To The Mountain“ mit „Riffy“ einen weiteren Track zu hören.

MASHEENA Line-Up:
Luis-Alberto Salomon — Guitars
Tarjei A Heggernes — Bass
Bård Heavy Nordvik — Drums and percussion
Luis-Alberto Salomon — Vocals

MASHEENA „Let The Spiders In“ Tracklist
1. Been Waiting (Lyric-Video bei YouTube)
2. Going To The Mountain (Audio bei Outlaws of the Sun)
3. One Eye
4. A Game You Don’t Want To Lose
5. Life Is But A Sin
6. Sara Lost Her Way (Lyric-Video bei YouTube)
7. In Her Eyes
8. Don’t Tell Her
9. Riffy (Video bei YouTube)
10. You Owe Me

Source: Vampster

Die Nu-Metal-Band BLACKMARKET hat mit „Radical Views“ eine neue EP angekündigt. Die neue Scheibe der Briten wird am 29. Mai 2026 erscheinen. Vorab gibt es zum Opener „Asphyxiate“ einen Video-Clip.

BLACKMARKET Line-Up
Fraser Burrow – Vocals
Danny Leigh – Lead Guitar
Scott Turnley – Bass
Hadleigh Wade – Drums
Cary Leigh – Synth

BLACKMARKET „Radical Views“ Tracklist
1. Asphyxiate (Video bei YouTube)
2. Bleed
3. Red on White
4. Radical Views

Source: Vampster

Die Black Metal-Band GRABUNHOLD hat mit „Frostheim“ ein neues Album angekündigt. Es ist nach „Heldentod“ (2021) das zweite Album der Deutschen aus Dortmund rund um Bandleader Matthias „Irrwycht“ Jahn (BAXAXAXA, RUNESPELL). Release-Termin ist der 5. Juni 2026 via Iron Bonehead Productions. Vorab gibt es den Track „Grambergs Fluch“ zu hören.

GRABUNHOLD Line-Up:
Irrwycht – Guitars, Vocals
Morgoth – Bass
Khamûl – Drums

GRABUNHOLD „Frostheim“ Tracklist
1. Der Tod wohnt in Carn Dûm
2. Grambergs Fluch (Audio bei YouTube)
3. Der Mondturm
4. Rerirs blauer Schatten
5. Über Grat und kalten Gipfel
6. Schreckenszauber
7. In Mordor, wo die Schatten drohn
8. Eärnurs Verderben

Source: Vampster

Die Alternative Rock-Band THE LAST VINCI hat mit „Better to Never Know“ eine weitere Single ihres kommenden Albums „15 Minutes at a Time“ als Video-Clip veröffentlicht.

„‚Better to Never Know‘ fängt die Vorstellung ein, dass viele von uns so leben, als säßen wir in einem Hamsterrad fest – sicher, in Monotonie gefangen und ohne zu ahnen, was uns entgeht. Der Song stellt sich den Moment vor, in dem diese Illusion zerbricht, und den Gedanken, dass es vielleicht gnädiger ist, nicht zu erkennen, wie schön das Leben sein könnte, denn dann müsste man sich damit auseinandersetzen, wie viel davon man bereits verloren hat“, sagt Frontmann Alex Vinci.

Wenige Wochen zuvor hat die Band mit dem Video zu „Begging for Some Help“ die zweite Vorab-Single des Albums veröffentlicht.

„Der Track spiegelt den Punkt wider, an dem das Sich-Einwärts-Wenden die Angst nur noch verstärkt und man gezwungen ist, nach etwas außerhalb seiner selbst zu greifen. Es geht darum, sich in der Angst zu verlieren und langsam nach einem Weg zurück zu suchen. Das Video verwandelt Angst in etwas Physisches und untersucht die Idee, dass unsere Dämonen nicht von uns getrennt sind, sondern Teil von uns sind“, sagt Bandleader Alex Vinci.

Im Jänner ist zu „Living Certified Disaster“ die erste Single vom Album erschienen. Es ist nach „The Last Vinci“ (2014) und „The Revolution is Made Together“ (2022) das dritte Album der Iren aus Cork und wird am 17. April 2026 via Narrow Door Records erscheinen.

THE LAST VINCI Line-Up:
Francesco Marietta Odone – Drums
Dylan Scully – Bass guitar
Alex Vinci – guitar and vocal

THE LAST VINCI „15 Minutes at a Time“ Tracklist
1. Come Back Home
2. Living Certified Disaster (Lyric-Video bei YouTube)
3. Begging for Some Help (Video bei YouTube)
4. 15 Minutes at the Time
5. Black Wall
6. Everything Behind
7. Temporary
8. Better to Never Know (Video bei YouTube)
9. The Hollow Show
10. Unbalanced / Unaddressed
11. Moon Lullaby

Source: Vampster

This large format book presents an unforgettable selection of stunning art and fetish photography taken over the last 10+ years. Killer Heels Photography was awarded BEST PHOTOGRAPHER at the UK FETISH AWARDS in 2022 and 2023. Killer Heels Photography has its very own style, an unmistakable look. Specializing in latex fashion and fetish. “Latex is […]

Source: Orkus

Die Death / Groove Metal-Band WITHOUT MERCY hat mit „Infinite Loss“ eine neue EP angekündigt. Die neue Scheibe der Kanadier dreht sich um das Gefühl, immer wieder von wechselnden, modernen Belastungen bedrängt zu werden: wirtschaftliche Zwänge, Identität, Erwartungen, Zeit und das Überleben.

„Infinite Loss“ wurde mit einem Cover-Artwork von Diego Gedoz de Souza ausgestattet und wird am 8. Mai 2026 erscheinen. Vorab gibt es mit „The Saint“ einen Video-Clip.

WITHOUT MERCY Line-Up:
Alex Friis – Vocals
DJ Temple – Guitars
Ryan Loewen – Bass
Matt Helie – Drums

WITHOUT MERCY „Infinite Loss“ Tracklist
1. Infinite Loss – (4:15)
2. The Saint – (3:39) (Video bei YouTube)
3. Glass – (3:16)

Source: Vampster

Die Instrumental Progressive Rock / Metal-Band AZIOLA CRY hat mit „Denial Patterns“ den Opener ihres kommenden Albums „Dysphoria Ritual“ als Video-Clip veröffentlicht. Es ist das vierte Album des US-amerikanischen Trios aus Chicago rund um Warr-Gitarrist JASON BLAKE.

„Dysphoria Ritual“ wurde von Steven Gillis bei Transient Sound aufgenommen und gemixt und von Ted Jensen gemastert. Das Cover-Artwork stammt von Travis Smith. Release-Termin ist der 17. April 2026 via 7D Media. Vorab gibt es auch zu „Pervasive Sameness“ ein Video.

AZIOLA CRY Line-Up:
Jason Blake – Warr guitar
Mike Milaniak – guitar
Tommy Murray – drums

AZIOLA CRY „Dysphoria Ritual“ Tracklist
1. Denial Patterns (Video bei YouTube)
2. Pervasive Sameness (Video bei YouTube)
3. Ephemeral Joy
4. The Delusion Complex
5. Withdrawn And Alone
6. Dysphoria Ritual

Source: Vampster

Surfing through blurred memories
Away from reality
In this void I’m drifting
Our wave crashed at hyperspeed 

After two years off the grid, Covstline returns with a new single, Hyperspeed, diving headfirst into the gleam of old synth-pop machinery, dragging something panicked and personal along with it. The duo out of Portland, producer Evan Kinzer and vocalist Saul Tajonar, lock into a fevered groove here that carries the snap of New Order, the chrome kiss of Depeche Mode, a bit of Billy Idol’s teased-up danger, and the nightclub menace of TR/ST and Ultra Sunn, but they never come off like tourists rummaging through a thrift-store decade.

The beat has that clean, clipped crack that makes your shoulders start moving before your mind can mount a defense, while the synths smear across the background like headlights on wet pavement. You can feel the tension between motion and paralysis.  Kinzer stacks these tones so they feel sleek, and when the track opens up into that larger, heavier descent, it lands with force. There is some EDM in its bloodstream, but it gets folded into the song’s bruised mood instead of treated like a gimmick dropped in to goose the crowd.

Tajonar’s emotive voice has a ragged urgency that keeps the song from becoming a stylish little exercise in retro mood. He sings like a man trying to outrun his own thoughts and discovering they’ve already beaten him to the next town. Hyperspeed is a song about being trapped in the wreckage of old desires, staring at your life like it’s a stalled engine, wondering whether you’re mourning a lost love, a lost self, or simply your nerve. The words circle those questions with a desperate repetition…precisely how dread works when it has you cornered.

Underneath all the gleam, all the club-floor velocity, there’s a minor existential problem chewing through the wires: risk, regret, and the terror of realizing reverse gear is gone. That’s a rich subject for a band newly relocated, newly recommitted, and apparently ready to kick in the door of Portland’s goth scene. Hyperspeed is a dance track with bite in its teeth and bruises on its ribs.

Listen to Hyperspeed below and order the single here.

Hyperspeed by Covstline

Follow Covstline:

Instagram
YouTube
Bandcamp
Spotify

The post “In This Void I’m Drifting” — Los Angeles Synthpop Duo Covstline Return With “Hyperspeed” appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Source: Post-Punk.com

Torn apart by your diseasewith the head in your handsreveal your true beliefyou exist nowhere 

Christine Plays Viola have been at the game long enough to know that gloom is cheap and conviction is rare, and on their latest single Desolate Moments, they walk straight into the chapel of collapse. This band from Abruzzo has spent years building a name across Europe on baritone gravity, hard-edged post-punk motion, and gothic rock, and stage presence that can make a room feel like it has lost its oxygen. Here, though, they pare the drama down to a slow bleed.

Desolate Moments drifts in on Vangelis-like synths and spectral guitar figures, carrying a faint kinship with Joy Division in its emotional weather, though Christine Plays Viola gives the song its own glacial poise. It moves like a slow dance with extinction, tracing a line between regret, spiritual vacancy, and the sickly afterglow of promises already broken. Massimo Ciampani sings as if reading the last decent page from a life already set on fire, his voice holding guilt, illness, and the ache of promises dropped in the dirt with grave conviction. It sounds worn, wounded, and terribly sure of where this story ends.

Behind him, the band keeps the ground shifting. Fabrizio Giampietro’s guitar and synth work stalk the song, letting tones hang in the air like intrusive thoughts. Marco Di Ianni’s bass gives the track its black backbone, while Gianluca Orsini’s drums move with funeral patience, then strike with sudden force when the song needs a crack of lightning. There is real discipline here, the kind that comes from years of touring, years of learning how to hold tension without spilling it.

Instead of presenting the band like heroes posed for adoration, the video turns them into phantoms slipping in and out of sight, as live footage bleeds into abstract overlays and dissolving forms. Faces never settle. Bodies blur. Bright strobe bursts interrupt the slow drift, then vanish into haze. It has the feel of identity breaking apart in real time, as if the song itself were eating the people performing it.

Watch the video for Desolate Moments below:

After nearly twenty years, Christine Plays Viola still knows how to make darkness feel dangerous rather than decorative. “Desolate Moments” is lean, bruised, and grave with purpose, a ballad for anyone who has watched the floor give way beneath love, faith, and the idea of themselves, then stood there listening to the crash. The band has toured extensively across Europe, performing at major festivals and sharing stages with artists such as Das Ich, And Also the Trees, Clan of Xymox, and Chameleons.

Listen to Desolate Moments below and order F.I.V.E., out now via Cleopatra Records, here.

F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions by Christine Plays Viola

With F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions, Christine Plays Viola have built a record that treats fear not as passing atmosphere but as a corrosive force working from the inside out, tightening each song until guilt, dread, desire, and self-division begin to bleed together. We recently took a deeper look at the album track by track and spoke with the band about the long writing process behind the record, the psychological architecture of its songs, and the ideas of identity, confrontation, and collapse that shape its world. Read our full review and interview here.

Follow Christine Plays Viola:

Website
Bandcamp
YouTube
Spotify
Facebook
Instagram

The post “You Exist Nowhere” — Italian Goth Rockers Christine Plays Viola Share Video for “Desolate Moments” appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Source: Post-Punk.com

Was braucht es zum Cool Down nach einem Album wie „An Undying Love For A Burning World“? Ein Waldbad mit leicht ornithologischer Note? JARBOE lädt ein, die Welt des Rotaugenvireos zu betreten, den scheuen Vogel, dessen Blick und Gesang gleichermaßen in den Bann ziehen können. „Sightings“, das neue Album der US-amerikanischen Sängerin und Komponistin orientiert sich am Gesang des Tieres und lässt ihre Musik rundherum entstehen und sich ausdehnen. Dabei passiert viel mehr auf dem Album, als beim ersten Hören wahrzunehmen ist. Schon längst geht JARBOE den leisen Weg, verglichen mit ihrer Vergangenheit bei SWANS, verglichen mit Soloalben wie „Anhedoniac“ und „The Men Album“ oder ihrer Kollaboration mit NEUROSIS.

Apropos NEUROSIS: Es ist natürlich etwas unfair, das neue Werk einer Künstlerin wie JARBOE in den Schatten einer anderen Band zu stellen, wie der Verfasser es eingangs tat, zumal „Sightings“ nur vordergründig beruhigend und entspannend klingt. Das verstörende Element, dass in JARBOEs Musik immer vorhanden war, ist nun subtiler in die Stücke integriert als zuvor. Das wird gleich bei „The Holy Water“ deutlich, das langsam mit JARBOEs beschwörendem, irgendwie abwesend wirkenden Gesang, Drones und Hand Drums eingeleitet wird. Je mehr Instrumente sich darauf legen – Klarinette, Horn, Trompete von Thor Harris, Violine und Cello von Andrea Calderon – umso voller und betörender wird das Stück. Und so dominiert die Schönheit dennoch über weite Teile: Das kürzeste Stück des Albums „Francesca Sun“ schwelgt mit leisem Piano und Streichern, während JARBOE darüber zu schweben scheint.

JARBOE nutzt Drones und Field Recordings als Basis für „Sightings“, ein Album das zwischen Ambient, Neofolk und Minimal pendelt und dabei sogar subtil Jazz integriert.
„Sightings“ ist ein doppelbödiges Album, spätestens „Choir And Night Fox“ lässt das besonders deutlich werden. Als beschwörender Neofolk-Song mit reicher Instrumentierung kommt das nokturne Thema gut zur Geltung, und gerade das Bellen des Fuchses ist zumindest beim ersten Mal fast ein Jump Scare. Obwohl das Stück durch die Repetition keine Längen aufweist, hätten die acht Minuten vielleicht letzten Endes doch ein wenig gestrafft werden dürfen. Mit „Breathe“ geht es weiter hin die Nacht hinein, es scheint zu zerfasern, fließt aber über neun Minuten wie ein Traum durch die Dunkelheit und bleibt so vage, dass selbst JARBOEs Stimme nur selten zu hören ist.

Ab diesem Song wirkt das Album dann etwas zu fragmentarisch, und das, obwohl der offizielle Teil mit der friedvollen, schönen „Vireo Serenade“ endet. Hier taucht JARBOE aus der dunklen Nacht wieder auf. Ein schöner Sommermorgen, der Vireo singt und begrüßt den Tag begrüßt, mit nichts außer verträumtem Klavier und einem Gesang, der von JARBOE ebenso stammen könnte, wie von Field Recordings. Der Bonus-Track der digitalen Version und der CD „The Holy Waters (Sangha Mix)“ dient als instrumentale Alternative zur Eröffnung des Albums und schließt einen der Kreise, die dieses Album darstellt. „Sightings“ ist nebenbei ein sehr depersonalisiertes Album, keines, dass die Künstlerin in den Mittelpunkt stellt. Ihre Kompositionen und ihre Stimme bilden viel mehr die Basis, und erst durch ihre Kollaborationspartner Thor Harris, Andrea Calderon und die Gitarristen Brett Robinson und Freddie Murphy wird „Sightings“, das Anklänge aus Jazz und Minimal in sich vereint, zu einem großen, geheimnisvollen Ganzen.

Mit „Sightings“ zieht JARBOE ihr Publikum in den Bann, so wie es dem Vireo mit seinem Gesang und seinen Augen gelingt.
Am Ende steht mit „Of Ancient Memory“ noch die Neuinterpretation eines Songs von JARBOEs Debütalbum „Thirteen Masks“, das sich völlig homogen in den Rest von „Sightings“ einfügt und praktisch nichts mit dem 35 Jahre altem Song gemein hat. Hier schließt sich ein weiterer Kreis: JARBOE betrachtet ihre Vergangenheit mit den Augen der Frau, die sie heute ist. Das mag den Vireo etwas in den Hintergrund drängen, aber vielleicht ist dieser kleine Vogel auch nur ein Katalysator für das künstlerische Mysterium „Sightings“ geworden. Das verdeutlicht, dass kaum eine Musikerin so eigenwillig und facettenreich ist wie JARBOE, aber auch nur wenige sind so schwer zu fassen. Auch wenn „Sightings“ kein bahnbrechendes, überwältigendes Werk geworden ist, JARBOE hat mit diesem knapp 50-minütigen Album ihrer reichhaltigen Diskografie eine weitere Facette geschenkt.

Wertung: 5 von 7 Birdings

VÖ: 3. April 2026

Spielzeit: 47:51

Line-Up:
JARBOE: Voice, Keyboard, Synth, Field recordings, Words, Concept, Composition architecture
Andrea Calderon: Violin, Cello
Brett Robinson: Guitar, Synth, Field recordings
Chiara Lee: Synth, Electronics
Freddie Murphy: Guitar, Breathing, Field recording
Thor Harris: Bass drum, Hand drum, Gong, Cymbal, Crotales, Clarinet, Baritone horn, Trumpet, Marimba
Fox: Vixen’s screams
Vireo: Vocalizations

Label: Consouling Sounds

JARBOE „Sightings“ Tracklist:
1. The Holy Waters (Official Video bei Youtube)
2. Francesca Sun
3. Choir and Night Fox
4. Breathe
5. Vireo Serenade
6. The Holy Waters (Sangha Mix) [CD & Digital versions only]
7. Of Ancient Memory (Oblivion Mix)

Mehr im Netz:
https://thelivingjarboe.com/
https://jarboe1.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/TheLivingJarboe
https://livingjarboe.tumblr.com/
https://www.instagram.com/jarboeliving/
https://soundcloud.com/jarboe-living

 

Source: Vampster

Torn apart by your diseasewith the head in your handsreveal your true beliefyou exist nowhere 

Christine Plays Viola have been at the game long enough to know that gloom is cheap and conviction is rare, and on their latest single Desolate Moments, they walk straight into the chapel of collapse. This band from Abruzzo has spent years building a name across Europe on baritone gravity, hard-edged post-punk motion, and gothic rock, and stage presence that can make a room feel like it has lost its oxygen. Here, though, they pare the drama down to a slow bleed.

The song moves like a processional for a man who has outlived his own excuses, circling ruin: love spoiled, belief cracked, the body turning traitor, memory becoming a cruel little landlord. There is guilt, sickness, and the ache of promises dropped in the dirt. Massimo Ciampani sings as if he’s reading the last decent page from a life already set on fire, and his voice carries that old gothic ache without puffing itself up into parody. It sounds worn, wounded, and terribly sure of where this story ends.

Behind him, the band keeps the ground shifting. Fabrizio Giampietro’s guitar and synth work stalk the song, letting tones hang in the air like intrusive thoughts. Marco Di Ianni’s bass gives the track its black backbone, while Gianluca Orsini’s drums move with funeral patience, then strike with sudden force when the song needs a crack of lightning. There is real discipline here, the kind that comes from years of touring, years of learning how to hold tension without spilling it.

Instead of presenting the band like heroes posed for adoration, the video turns them into phantoms slipping in and out of sight, as live footage bleeds into abstract overlays and dissolving forms. Faces never settle. Bodies blur. Bright strobe bursts interrupt the slow drift, then vanish into haze. It has the feel of identity breaking apart in real time, as if the song itself were eating the people performing it.

Watch the video for Desolate Moments below:

After nearly twenty years, Christine Plays Viola still knows how to make darkness feel dangerous rather than decorative. “Desolate Moments” is lean, bruised, and grave with purpose, a ballad for anyone who has watched the floor give way beneath love, faith, and the idea of themselves, then stood there listening to the crash. The band has toured extensively across Europe, performing at major festivals and sharing stages with artists such as Das Ich, And Also the Trees, Clan of Xymox, and Chameleons.

Listen to Desolate Moments below and order F.I.V.E., out now via Cleopatra Records, here.

F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions by Christine Plays Viola

With F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions, Christine Plays Viola have built a record that treats fear not as passing atmosphere but as a corrosive force working from the inside out, tightening each song until guilt, dread, desire, and self-division begin to bleed together. We recently took a deeper look at the album track by track and spoke with the band about the long writing process behind the record, the psychological architecture of its songs, and the ideas of identity, confrontation, and collapse that shape its world. Read our full review and interview here.

Follow Christine Plays Viola:

Website
Bandcamp
YouTube
Spotify
Facebook
Instagram

The post ‘Devoured by Your Own Mistake” — Italian Goth Rockers Christine Plays Viola Share Video for “Desolate Moments” appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Source: Post-Punk.com

Fear rarely arrives all at once. More often it creeps in by degrees: a crack in the air, a wrong note in a familiar room, a laugh stretched too long until it starts to sound like a warning. On F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions, Italian goth rockers Christine Plays Viola turn that slow internal corrosion into a full-length fever vision, one where guilt, self-division, dread, desire, and the fantasy of redemption keep changing masks beneath cathedral-sized guitars, ritual drums, metallic synths, and vocals that move between accusation, confession, and collapse. Out now via Cleopatra Records, the band’s fifth album does not present fear as a passing state, but as a force that distorts the mind from within, tightening each song like another turn of the screw.

That idea is not incidental. As the band explains in the interview later in the article, F.I.V.E. began as a marker for their fifth album, then evolved into an acronym: Fear Increases Violent Emotions. What emerged from that long writing process was what they describe as a ‘psychological document’: a sequence of inner thresholds where identity splinters, tension accumulates, and release never comes clean. The album’s architecture matters. Each track feels like another chamber in the same crumbling structure, with different shades of dread gathering in the corners.

Taken song by song, F.I.V.E. reveals just how many forms Christine Plays Viola can give to dread and unease. The band moves from deathrock severity to waltzing despair, from dubby post-punk swerve to slow-burning psychic collapse, always keeping the record’s emotional gravity intact.

The album begins with “Sprout of Disharmony,” opening on dirgeful organ, ghosted voices, and a sense that something has already gone wrong. When the guitars arrive, they do so with a stately gothic sweep, while the vocal carries more bruised humanity than sepulchral bluster. The song introduces the record’s central instability by withholding the obvious. As the band notes in the interview, they wanted this opener to feel like the first hairline fracture, the beginning of awareness before full recognition sets in. It is the seed from which the rest of the album’s psychic damage grows.

“My Redemption” widens the album’s sound, signaling the contrast to come with each track. Metallic textures give way to huge synth chords and late-’80s-style guitar lines that lend the song a cinematic grandeur without sanding down its hostility. Chosen as the lead single, it makes sense as an entry point: it carries enough lift to draw the listener in, while still preserving the record’s ambiguity. The title promises deliverance, but the music keeps that promise at arm’s length. It hangs in suspension, caught between vengeance, self-recognition, and the faint suggestion of escape. One hears why the band describes it as a threshold rather than a resolution.

Factory noise, warped metal, and anxious electronics usher in “You Don’t Fool Me,” before the song kicks into propulsive goth-rock motion with brooding bass and motorik insistence. Lyrically, it is one of the album’s sharpest confrontations, a song of recognition and recoil aimed at duplicity, performance, and manipulation. Musically, it balances menace with momentum as it moves with melodic precision while still sounding spiritually corroded.

One of the album’s strongest turns, “Desolate Moments” drifts in on Vangelis-like synths and guitar figures. There is a faint Joy Division kinship in its emotional weather, but the song has its own glacial poise. It moves like a slow dance with extinction, tracing a line between regret, spiritual vacancy, and the sickly afterglow of promises already broken. The arrangement gives the impression of a world being built and then quietly abandoned within the same five minutes.



“Confession” boasts a deathrock snarl in its guitar work, deep bass movement, and macabre harmonies that lend the whole thing the feel of a vampiric tribunal. Thematically, it sits at the core of the album: guilt, punishment, self-exposure, and self-annihilation all converge here. In the interview, the band describes confession as a stripping away of protection until the self becomes both accused and witness.

With eerie buzzing, whispered invocations, and icy sweeps of batcave guitar, “There’s No Going Back” sounds exactly like its title: a command to shed old restraints and step fully into annihilating self-knowledge; landing with a sense of ceremony.

One of the record’s most striking left turns, “Black Noise” folds dub, ska-inflected post-punk, and sleazy sax into the album’s otherwise severe landscape. The call-and-response structure, the stabbing rhythm guitar, and the sense of bodily dislocation in the lyrics all help the song feel like a manifestation of psychic unrest. Even when the band loosens the groove, they never loosen the vise.

The album’s deepest descent comes with “The Crypt of Misery,” a long, deliberate crawl into shame, chaos, and self-loathing. It opens on resonant synth motion and metallic low-end before sinking into a dark, slow-breathing churn that feels almost progressive in scale. In the interview, the band calls it the deepest point of the record. Everything about it suggests collapse without release. The repeated fall in the lyrics is mirrored by the structure itself, as though the song were spiraling through successive floors of the same nightmare.

“Jackie’s Curse” brings the album’s tension into a more bodily register. The guitars bite harder, the drums hit with greater immediacy, and the vocals lean into a rougher theatricality. Already released ahead of the album cycle, the track was remixed and remastered to sit inside F.I.V.E.’s larger arc, and it earns its place. Where some of the surrounding songs hover in symbolic or interior states, this one feels tactile, fevered, and close to the skin. The band describes it as one of the record’s sharpest edges, where internal pressure takes physical form.

Closing the record, “Blood Calls Blood” sounds like an end procession through smoke and iron. Cathedral drones, martial stops and starts, and an icy guitar line give the song the gait of a war march staged inside a moral reckoning. The vocal carries something of Killing Joke’s incantatory severity, and the lyrics drive home the album’s sense of irreversible consequence. By this point, F.I.V.E. has made its argument in full: fear distorts, guilt accumulates, and the self that emerges on the other side may be too altered to recognize. The album ends with judgment still echoing.



F.I.V.E. has a formidable command of goth, deathrock, and post-punk language, though Christine Plays Viola have that in abundance. If earlier Christine Plays Viola records explored darkness through concept, image, or memory, this one stays inside the chamber and reports from there. That psychological coherence is no accident. In speaking with the band, it becomes clear that F.I.V.E. was shaped as a sustained emotional environment: a place where fear alters identity. Below, Christine Plays Viola discusses the origins of the album’s title, the visual language behind tracks like Confession and Jackie’s Curse, the role of cinema and literature in shaping the record’s uneasy poise, and why this fifth album feels both like a return to their roots and their most inward statement yet.

The title F.I.V.E. – Fear Increases Violent Emotions reads almost like a spiritual maxim or psychological diagnosis. When did that phrase first appear, and how did it come to define the emotional core of the album?

On the surface, the title started from something very concrete: F.I.V.E. is our fifth album, and we wanted to acknowledge that milestone. This record required a long and intense process — almost two years of writing, developing, and recording — so it felt important to mark that effort in a direct way.

At the same time, we didn’t want the title to remain something merely descriptive or literal. Calling the album simply Five would have felt too neutral for music that comes from such a psychologically charged place. So we kept the word FIVE, but transformed it into an acronym — something that could carry a deeper meaning and reflect the conceptual nature of the record.

The phrase appeared quite early during the writing process. At first, it felt like a fragment — almost a sentence overheard inside the mind —, but gradually it became the key to everything.

Fear is not just an emotion; it is a force that reshapes perception. It compresses identity, distorts memory, and pushes emotions toward extremes. The title F.I.V.E. became almost a diagnosis — the point where inner tension transforms into something irreversible.

It is not a slogan or a concept invented afterward — it is the psychological axis around which the entire record turns.

Fear, identity, tension, and redemption run through the record. Do you see these ideas unfolding as a deliberate arc across the album, or as recurring states the songs move in and out of?

In a way, it is both a progression and a return.

There is a subtle narrative arc across the album a movement from the first signs of imbalance toward a deeper confrontation but it is not a linear story with a clear beginning and resolution. It feels more like entering a psychological landscape where different emotional states appear, dissolve, and reappear in new forms.

Each song can be seen as a chapter, but also as a room inside the same structure. The listener moves through different intensities: uncertainty, tension, recognition, resistance, and sometimes a fragile sense of redemption. Yet nothing is ever completely resolved. The emotions remain suspended, influencing one another.

Fear, identity, and redemption are not stages that replace each other; they coexist constantly. Fear reshapes identity, identity seeks meaning, and redemption becomes less a solution than a temporary glimpse of clarity before the tension returns.

That is why F.I.V.E. works less as a traditional narrative and more as a psychological document, the portrait of a mind under pressure rather than a story unfolding. The songs are connected not by events, but by emotional gravity.

You’ve described this album as being written between isolation and confrontation. What did “confrontation” mean for you during the writing process—internally, creatively, or in relation to the outside world?

Isolation was the condition, confrontation was the choice.

After the years surrounding the pandemic, we found ourselves in a quieter place, both publicly and personally. From the outside, it might have looked like a pause, but internally, it was a period of accumulation. We needed time to recover our energy, rediscover our motivation, and understand who we still were as a band and as individuals.

Confrontation began when we realized that returning meant facing those questions honestly. It meant asking ourselves whether we still had something real to say and refusing to move forward until the answer felt true.

Creatively, confrontation meant rejecting comfort. Not repeating what had worked before simply because it was safe. Some songs required time to find their direction, and we allowed that process to unfold without forcing it. If something didn’t feel necessary, we left it behind.

There was also a confrontation between past and present between the band we had been and the band we were becoming. In some ways F.I.V.E. is the result of that tension, a record born from the need to rebuild meaning rather than simply continue.

Sometimes it is better to stop and recover strength than to keep moving without conviction. When we finally decided to return, it had to be with something honest and fully realized.

So isolation shaped the silence, but confrontation gave it a voice.

F.I.V.E. often feels like one continuous psychological space rather than a collection of tracks. Did you approach this as a concept album from the beginning, or did that cohesion emerge later?

It wasn’t conceived as a traditional concept album with a defined storyline. There was no script or predetermined narrative at the beginning.

The cohesion emerged gradually, almost unconsciously. As the songs took shape, we realized they all belonged to the same emotional territory — like different fragments of the same fracture. Each track seemed to illuminate a different angle of the same internal tension.

At a certain point, it became clear that the album could not work as a simple collection of songs. It needed to be experienced as a whole — almost like entering a room and staying inside long enough to understand its atmosphere.

The sequence of the tracks became fundamental. We spent a long time deciding the order because we wanted the tension to grow naturally, almost imperceptibly, until the listener finds themselves completely inside that psychological space.

In that sense, the concept was discovered rather than designed.

F.I.V.E. is not a story with characters and events — it is closer to a mental landscape under pressure, where emotions move in cycles rather than in straight lines.

Each song is a different threshold, but they all lead to the same place.

“Sprout of Disharmony” opens the record at an unhurried pace, gradually building tension. Why was that the right way to introduce the album’s emotional landscape?

Because tension rarely begins with an explosion.

It usually starts as something almost invisible — a slight imbalance, a small shift in perception. Sprout of Disharmony represents that first crack, the moment when something begins to move beneath the surface without being fully understood.

The title itself suggests a beginning — not a collapse, but the quiet birth of instability. A seed of disorder that continues to grow throughout the album.

We wanted the listener to enter F.I.V.E. slowly, almost without realizing it. There is no immediate impact — only a gradual accumulation of weight. By the time the tension becomes visible, the listener is already inside it.

There is also a small detail at the beginning of the track that hints at this idea. The song opens with the sound of people laughing — something that might suggest a moment of lightness or even humor. But the laughter is deliberately artificial. We treated it with long reverbs and ghost-like delays to make it feel distant and unsettling.

The real contrast comes from the synth layer underneath those voices. The two elements together create a subtle sense of unease — a feeling that something is already wrong beneath the surface.

In a way, that atmosphere was inspired by cinema. The opening reminded us of the beginning of The Shining — the aerial shot following Jack Torrance’s car as it moves toward the hotel. At first, it feels like a simple family journey, almost peaceful, but the music already suggests the descent into something darker.

That contrast between apparent calm and hidden tension was exactly what we wanted to evoke.

Cinema has always been inside our music, and in many ways, Sprout of Disharmony is where the visual dimension of F.I.V.E. begins to take shape.

It is the moment before awareness.

The beginning of the fracture.

“My Redemption” was chosen as the lead single to introduce F.I.V.E. Its cinematic, late-’80s new-wave atmosphere feels like a direct gateway into the album’s emotional universe—was that a conscious decision?

Yes, very much.

My Redemption felt like a natural threshold into the world of F.I.V.E. It carries a balance between clarity and depth — a song that opens a door without revealing everything behind it. We felt it could introduce the emotional language of the record in a direct but not simplistic way.

There is something suspended in that song — a tension between fall and release. The title suggests redemption, but the music never offers it as something certain or complete. It feels more like a possibility than a resolution.

Choosing it as the first single was a conscious decision because it represents one of the most accessible entry points into the album’s psychological space, but it still preserves the ambiguity that runs through the entire record.

The late-80s atmosphere wasn’t nostalgic by intention. That period produced music capable of combining darkness and melody in a very human way — something fragile but also expansive. We have always been drawn to that emotional scale, where sound creates space rather than simply impact.

In many ways, My Redemption is like a first light inside a dark room.

That song carries an expansive emotional quality associated with that era. What draws you to that kind of expansive emotional expression, both musically and aesthetically?

We have always been drawn to music that creates space — not only sonic space, but emotional space as well.

An expansive sound allows tension to breathe. It gives emotions time to develop instead of compressing them into immediate impact. We are interested in that slow growth — the feeling that something is forming beneath the surface before it becomes visible.

Many late-80s records had this quality: the sense that sound could open a horizon rather than close a statement. The listener doesn’t simply hear the music — they enter it. This immersive dimension has always been essential for us.

We often think about sound in almost architectural terms — layers, distances, light and shadow. A song is not only a structure of chords and rhythms, but a space where emotional forces move and interact.

Many songs on F.I.V.E., including My Redemption, were born in this way: from long sessions dedicated to building soundscapes. Sometimes we start from synthesizers, other times from heavily processed guitars treated almost like sonic pads. At that stage, we are not yet searching for a song — we are searching for an atmosphere, a moment, a direction.

Only after we have found that emotional space do we begin to build the songwriting: structure, movement, and tension. The final form slowly emerges from that initial atmosphere until it becomes the version that is eventually recorded.

This is probably why the cinematic dimension comes naturally to us.

Before a song becomes music, it often exists as an atmosphere — almost like a suspended scene.

What draws us to this kind of expression is its humanity.

It leaves space for ambiguity, fragility, and silence. It doesn’t try to explain emotions — it allows them to exist.

And within that space, listeners can recognize something of their own inner world.

The video for “Confession” is dense with symbolic imagery—shadowed corridors, fractured mirrors, doubled figures, submerged bodies, and explicit religious references such as a crown of thorns and bleeding eyes. How did these images take shape, and what role does religious symbolism play in expressing themes of guilt, confession, martyrdom, and self-punishment across F.I.V.E.?

The images in Confession were not conceived as illustrations of the lyrics, but as another language telling the same inner story.

Music and visuals grew together, coming from the same emotional territory.

Religious symbolism felt natural because it speaks directly about guilt, sacrifice, and redemption in a very physical way. These are not abstract ideas — they leave marks on the body and on the mind. The crown of thorns, the bleeding eyes, the mirrored figures — they all represent the idea of inner judgment, the feeling of being both the accused and the witness at the same time.

In F.I.V.E., confession is never a clean act. It is not liberation, but exposure. To confess means to remove protection and face what remains underneath.

We were interested in the moment when a person turns inward and becomes their own tribunal — when the voice that judges is the same voice that suffers. That tension between guilt and the desire for redemption runs through the entire album.

The doubled figures and reflections suggest fragmentation — the sense that identity is no longer stable but divided into different selves. The submerged bodies represent emotional suffocation — the weight of things that remain unspoken.

Religious imagery was never used in a literal sense. It functions more like a symbolic vocabulary — a way to express inner struggle through archetypal forms that people instinctively recognize.

In that sense, Confession becomes almost a ritual space — not a narrative, but an emotional state where vulnerability and self-punishment coexist.

Visually, “Confession” avoids linear narrative in favor of repetition, confinement, and distortion. What emotional or psychological state were you hoping to place the viewer in through this visual language?

We wanted the viewer to feel suspended inside a psychological space rather than guided through a story.

David Lynch has been one of the directors who influenced us the most, and in Confession, we tried to approach the visual language in a similar spirit — stimulating the viewer on a psychological and sensory level rather than simply presenting a narrative. We were not interested in telling a clear story. We wanted to lead the viewer toward an emotional abyss, where images sometimes raise questions rather than provide answers.

At times, the viewer might ask: “Why this image?” — and that question is part of the experience. Ideally, the video invites repeated viewing, allowing new details and meanings to emerge each time, as if trying to give shape to a dream — or more precisely, to a nightmare.

Often in dreams, we remember fragments that seem disconnected from each other, yet we instinctively try to build a meaning out of them. Confession works in a similar way. The images are not always logically connected, but they belong to the same emotional current.

In a sense, this video can be seen through the eyes of a dreamer of nightmares — someone trying to reconstruct meaning from unstable memories and inner visions.

The goal was not explanation but immersion. Not certainty, but disturbance.

“The Crypt Of Misery” is the longest track on the album, unfolding with slow, deliberate intensity. It evokes elements of proto-goth and early post-punk—even progressive rock lineage—with powerful vocals and heart-pulsing basslines. What were you aiming to express emotionally with this song, and how did you approach its structure and momentum?

The Crypt Of Misery is probably the deepest descent within F.I.V.E. — the point where the album reaches its darkest core.

Musically, it feels less like a song and more like a journey downward — a slow fall into the pulsating heart of the record. The deep, almost tribal drums and the persistent bass groove create a cavernous structure that holds everything together, like the walls of an underground space. But the song does not remain static — it keeps evolving, searching for different tensions, touching areas close to death rock before descending even further.

The voice changes register several times throughout the track. It becomes more desperate as the song sinks deeper, following the psychological collapse described in the lyrics. Lines like “And so I fall… then I fall” are not only words — they are the movement of the song itself.

The lyrics describe a mind trapped inside its own darkness — a slow acceptance of shame, guilt and inner chaos. The “crypt of misery” is not a physical place but a mental state, a space where memory, fear, and self-destruction merge together.

In the booklet of F.I.V.E., there is an image of a man falling into the void next to the lyrics. That image perfectly represents the spirit of the song. You don’t know if he will hit the ground — or if the fall is actually a passage into another dimension, another self.

If F.I.V.E. is a psychological landscape, The Crypt Of Misery is its deepest point — the moment where resistance disappears and the descent becomes inevitable.

“Jackie’s Curse” existed visually before this album cycle and now appears on F.I.V.E. Did you revisit or recontextualize the song for the album, and what role does it play in the record’s overall psychological arc?

Jackie’s Curse existed before the F.I.V.E. sessions, but emotionally, it already belonged to that world.

When we decided to include it on the album, it didn’t feel like inserting an older track — it felt more like placing an existing fragment into its natural context. The themes of tension, inevitability, and inner pressure were already there, waiting to become part of a larger psychological space.

As mentioned earlier, the path that led F.I.V.E. to its final form was long — almost two years — and during that time, Jackie’s Curse and Blood Calls Blood had already been planned and released in advance. At that stage, we were still deep in the evolution of the other songs, and we knew the album would need more time to be completed. At the same time, we felt the need to share something with our audience — a first sign that the project was alive and moving.

In the end, keeping those tracks on F.I.V.E. was a very natural decision. They were part of the journey from the beginning, and leaving them out would have felt almost disrespectful to the original vision of the record.

The only real change we made was technical: together with our long-time sound engineer and friend Salvatore Carducci, we remixed and remastered the track from scratch so it would sit naturally within the final sonic identity of the album.

There is also a small anecdote behind its release. When we decided to publish Jackie’s Curse, Confession was already completed — in fact it was the very first track finished during the F.I.V.E. sessions back in 2023. But we chose Jackie’s Curse for the video because we wanted something sharper and more raw — a more physical introduction to the new phase of the band.

Compared to some of the more atmospheric tracks on the record, Jackie’s Curse represents a more physical and instinctive side of Christine Plays Viola. The song grew from rehearsal-room energy, from a direct guitar-driven impulse that developed collectively. There is something raw and immediate in it — less reflective, more visceral.

Within the psychological arc of F.I.V.E., Jackie’s Curse feels like a moment where tension becomes almost tangible — no longer internalized but exposed, almost erupting through the surface.

If the album is a descent into the mind, Jackie’s Curse is one of the points where that tension takes a physical form.

It is not the deepest point — but it is one of the sharpest edges.

The video for “Jackie’s Curse” is intense and intimate—shot in stark black-and-white with close framing and physical tension. Can you talk about the ideas behind its production and how they connect to the song’s themes?

The visual concept for Jackie’s Curse was built around psychological captivity.

The song already described a descent into a private nightmare — a space where desire, guilt, and punishment become indistinguishable. The video translates that inner tension into physical form: a man imprisoned in a dark room, forced to confront images of betrayal and violence while being judged by someone he once loved.

We wanted the camera to feel close and oppressive, almost invasive. The tight framing and stark black and white aesthetic remove any sense of comfort and focus entirely on gestures, faces, and reactions. Everything becomes exposed and unavoidable.

The story unfolds like a nightmare rather than a narrative. The protagonist is captured, beaten, humiliated, and suffocated by the woman he betrayed — only to wake up and believe it was just a dream. But when he finds the same photographs in reality and sees the expression on her face, the boundary between dream and truth collapses.

That ambiguity is essential. The real horror is not the violence itself but the feeling that fate has already been written. The line “You had just drawn my fate” is central to the whole piece.

Emotionally, the video explores guilt and punishment as something intimate and inescapable. The violence is not spectacular — it is personal, almost ritualistic. It is the sense of being trapped inside a consequence that cannot be undone.

Unlike Confession, which moves through symbolic imagery and psychological abstraction, Jackie’s Curse is grounded in a more physical and human nightmare. It is immediate and claustrophobic.

Titles like “Confession,” “There’s No Going Back,” and “Blood Calls Blood” feel like points of no return. Are these songs written from a single narrator’s perspective, multiple characters, or a more abstract voice that moves through different states?

It is closer to an abstract voice than to a single narrator.

We never imagined F.I.V.E. as the story of one character or a sequence of defined roles. The album feels more like a fragmented consciousness — different emotional states speaking from within the same psychological space.

Sometimes the voice sounds personal and intimate, almost confessional. Other times it becomes distant, ritualistic, or even cold, as if observing itself from outside. But beneath these shifts, there is always the sense of a single inner world.

You could say that the album is spoken by one mind seen through different mirrors.

Songs like Confession, There’s No Going Back, and Blood Calls Blood feel like points of no return because they describe moments where something irreversible has already happened — decisions taken, boundaries crossed, identities transformed.

The voice moves through these states without fully explaining them. We are not interested in telling a story step by step, but in capturing the emotional truth of those moments — the instant when a person realizes that there is no way back to who they were before.

In that sense, the narrator is not a character but a condition — a consciousness under pressure.

Several songs deal with confession, guilt, inheritance, and irreversible choices. Are these lyrics rooted in personal experience, imagined characters, or a shifting perspective that travels across the album?

The lyrics are written entirely by Massimo, our singer, and they emerge from fragments of personal experience mixed with dreamlike and nightmarish elements.

Many of the images and situations come from states he has genuinely lived or felt — fears, constraints, inner tensions — but they are never presented as direct autobiography. Instead, they are transformed into symbolic landscapes where reality and imagination merge. There is always a movement between lived experience and inner vision.

Massimo has always brought to the band a rare kind of emotional contribution — the ability to observe life from a perspective that feels almost suspended outside ordinary time. His words often seem to belong to a place where memory, intuition, and subconscious images overlap.

The lyrics become a vehicle to express what human beings usually keep hidden inside themselves. In a way, writing becomes a form of release — almost a form of therapy — a way to give shape to emotions that otherwise would remain unspoken.

So while the perspective shifts across the album, the emotional core remains deeply personal. The songs are not literal confessions, but they are born from real inner experiences.

F.I.V.E. is not a diary — it is a psychological landscape shaped through personal fragments, dreams, and inner tensions.

In past interviews, you’ve described a process that often begins with guitar riffs or synth ideas and avoids canonical song structures. On F.I.V.E., did anything change in arranging, pacing, or the balance between electronics and heavier instrumentation?

On F.I.V.E., the process became more conscious and layered than in the past.

Many songs were born from long sessions of sound exploration — synth soundscapes or heavily effected guitars treated almost like pads. We often started by searching for an atmosphere rather than a structure. Once the emotional tone emerged, the song slowly took shape around it: guitars defining tension, bass and drums building the physical dimension, and finally voice and lyrics completing the emotional direction.

In that sense, the atmosphere came first, and the songwriting followed.

Tracks like Desolate Moments, You Don’t Fool Me, and even My Redemption began from these kinds of sonic environments before evolving into their final form.

At the same time, there were also more instinctive moments. Songs like Jackie’s Curse were born almost in one gesture during rehearsals — starting from a guitar idea and developing organically with the band in the room. Those tracks carry a more direct and physical energy.

Compared to previous albums, we paid much more attention to pacing and transitions. Silence and space became structural elements rather than empty moments.

The balance between electronics and guitars also shifted. Electronics helped shape the atmosphere, but guitars became the main physical voice of the album. We wanted something tactile — something that felt alive and immediate.

Another key element was time.

This album took almost two years to complete, and the time we were able to dedicate to it made a real difference. We never felt forced to close a song before it was ready. When something didn’t work, we stepped back and allowed it to mature.

That patience shaped the final sound of the record.

In a way, F.I.V.E. is the point where atmosphere and instinct finally found a stable equilibrium.

There’s a strong sense of control and patience across the album. Did your approach to editing or refining songs shift compared to earlier releases?

Yes, definitely. The approach to editing and refining songs changed a lot compared to our earlier releases.

In the past, we often worked with a stronger sense of urgency. Songs were captured in the moment, sometimes following instinct more than reflection. That energy was important, but with F.I.V.E., we felt the need for a deeper level of awareness.

This time, we allowed the songs to mature naturally. When something didn’t feel right, we didn’t force a solution — we stepped back and waited until the direction became clear. That patience became part of the creative process itself.

Working with our sound engineer and friend Salvatore Carducci was essential. He gave us the freedom to experiment without pressure, and the studio became a place where ideas could evolve over time rather than being fixed too quickly.

The album took nearly two years to complete, and that time allowed us to refine every detail — not only the sounds, but also the emotional balance between the songs. Editing was no longer just about removing excess, but about revealing what really mattered.

In a way, control on this record does not mean rigidity. It means listening carefully to what each song needed, and respecting its natural development.

That balance between patience and precision is probably one of the defining characteristics of F.I.V.E.

The cover art for F.I.V.E. is stark and symbolic—a suspended crescent form, dripping and weighted, set against emptiness, with the title fractured vertically beside it. How did the collaboration with the artist come together, and what conversations shaped this imagery in relation to the album’s emotional and conceptual themes?

The artwork for F.I.V.E. was conceived as a symbolic image rather than a literal representation of the music.

From the beginning, we wanted something minimal and essential — an image that could exist in silence and still carry emotional weight. The empty space around the central figure was important: it suggests isolation, suspension, and the feeling of being held between states.

The hanging crescent is an ambiguous object. It can be read as a moon, but also as something wounded or unfinished. Suspended in mid-air, it feels trapped between falling and remaining — a visual metaphor for the psychological tension that runs through the album. The dripping shapes suggest erosion and transformation at the same time, as if something solid were slowly dissolving.

The vertical fragmentation of the title reinforces the idea of fracture — which is central to F.I.V.E.. Even the typography feels unstable, like a structure under pressure.

We were interested in creating an image that would function like a symbol rather than an illustration. Something that doesn’t explain the music, but opens a psychological space around it.

In a way, the cover represents the same moment described in the album: suspension before the fall — or perhaps before a transformation.

Do you tend to think visually while writing music, or do images and concepts emerge later once the songs are complete?

Images and music usually grow together.

Very often, we perceive a song first as a place rather than as a composition — a space with its own light, tension, and emotional gravity. While working on F.I.V.E., we often had the sensation of entering different psychological environments and trying to translate their atmosphere into sound.

Cinema has always influenced the way we think about music. We are fascinated by works that suggest rather than explain — where meaning emerges slowly through sensation. That approach shaped not only the music but also the visual language surrounding the album.

Sometimes an image appears before the music, sometimes after, but eventually the two become inseparable. When a piece is finished, we tend to see it almost like a sequence of scenes rather than a series of musical parts.

The artwork of F.I.V.E. follows the same logic: it is not a literal representation of the songs, but another door into the same inner landscape.

For us, music is never only sound. It is always also space, shadow, and movement — something that exists halfway between what you hear and what you imagine.

Christine Plays Viola has existed for many years now. Looking back, how does F.I.V.E. reflect who you are today compared to your earlier releases?

Looking back, F.I.V.E. feels like a point of convergence.

Our earlier records were driven more by instinct — sometimes raw, sometimes impulsive — guided by the urgency of expression. Over the years, we have changed as people before changing as musicians, and the music has grown together with us through long journeys, silences, interruptions, and new beginnings.

With F.I.V.E., we feel we have reached a deeper level of awareness. The emotions are still intense, but they are shaped with greater clarity and intention. Nothing in this record feels accidental — every sound, every silence, every transition belongs to a precise emotional direction.

In some ways, it feels like a return to our origins — the darker and more guitar-driven atmosphere that defined the early days — but it is a return that comes after a long journey. We came back carrying experiences, disappointments, encounters, and personal transformations that inevitably shaped the music.

What remains unchanged is the need to create something honest — something that gives us the same inner shiver that made us start this band in the first place. We have always tried to follow what felt true in that specific moment of our lives, sometimes succeeding more than others, but always without compromise.

If our previous albums explored different territories, F.I.V.E. feels like a place where those paths meet. It is probably our most conscious record — not louder, not more ambitious, but more necessary.

You’ve previously worked with large thematic frameworks—Vacua translating Goya’s Black Paintings, and Spooky Obsessions drawing from end-of-life memories and trauma. Where does F.I.V.E. sit in that lineage: your most inward record, or your most confrontational?

Probably both — inward and confrontational at the same time.

Vacua looked outward through images and symbolism. The inspiration from Goya’s Black Paintings gave that album a strong visual and historical dimension. It was a record built around the idea of observing darkness — almost like standing in front of a painting and trying to understand what lived inside it.

Spooky Obsessions moved closer to memory and disappearance. It was a more fragile and introspective work, rooted in the idea that identity slowly dissolves through time, trauma and loss. That record lived in the territory between presence and absence.

F.I.V.E. is different. It does not observe from a distance — it stays inside.

If previous albums described landscapes, F.I.V.E. describes a mind. It is less narrative and more psychological. The confrontation in this record is not directed toward the outside world first, but toward oneself — toward fear, identity, and the tension between who we were and who we have become.

In that sense, F.I.V.E. may be our most inward record, but also our most direct. There is less metaphor and more exposure. The emotions are not hidden behind images — they are closer to the surface.

It feels like the point where the journey that began with earlier records becomes more personal and more conscious. Not a conclusion, but a moment of clarity along the way.

Are there specific literary, philosophical, or cinematic influences feeding into this album—books, films, or visual worlds that helped shape its tone or emotional vocabulary?

Cinema has always been one of the deepest influences on our music, and F.I.V.E. is probably the album where this connection becomes most evident.

Directors like David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick, Andrei Tarkovsky, and Pascal Laugier shaped our perception of atmosphere and psychological tension. What we admire in their work is the ability to create emotional states rather than simply tell stories. Their films often feel like inner journeys — spaces where time stretches, meanings shift, and images linger long after they disappear.

Lynch especially has been important for us: the idea that a work can operate on a psychological and sensory level rather than through linear explanation resonates deeply with how we think about music. Sometimes what matters is not understanding immediately, but feeling that something is moving underneath the surface.

Kubrick’s sense of cold precision and controlled tension, Tarkovsky’s spiritual stillness and sense of time, and the emotional violence and intimacy found in Pascal Laugier’s cinema all contributed to the emotional vocabulary of the album. Even small details — like the distant sense of unease in The Shining — became part of the atmosphere we were searching for.

Literature has also played a quiet but essential role. Writers like Dostoevsky, Kafka, Camus, and Edgar Allan Poe helped shape the emotional dimension of our work. Their exploration of guilt, identity, alienation, and inner conflict resonates strongly with F.I.V.E.’s themes.

We are drawn to works where beauty and discomfort coexist — where the human mind is not explained but revealed. In that sense, these influences are not references we consciously quote, but landscapes we have lived inside for a long time.

Christine Plays Viola has always balanced intimacy with confrontation. Do you approach songwriting more as self-analysis, storytelling, or emotional release—or does that shift from track to track?

It shifts from track to track, but intimacy and confrontation are always present at the same time.

Songwriting for us is not a single process. Sometimes it feels like self-analysis — an attempt to understand emotions that are difficult to name. Other times, it becomes closer to storytelling, where images and situations take shape almost independently from us.

The emotional core often comes from very personal places, especially through Massimo’s lyrics, but the goal is never simple confession. What begins as something intimate is gradually transformed into a shared emotional space where listeners can recognize something of their own.

In that sense, songwriting is also a form of release. Music allows tensions to surface and find a shape instead of remaining silent. It is a way of translating inner pressure into sound and atmosphere.

Some songs feel like visions, others like fragments of memory, others like states of mind suspended between reality and imagination. The approach changes, but the intention remains the same: to give form to something that would otherwise remain unspoken.

Did the broader social or political climate seep into F.I.V.E. in any way, even indirectly, through mood, tension, or lyrical subtext?

Not in a direct or literal way, but inevitably yes.

Even when we don’t write explicitly about politics or social issues, the emotional climate of the time always finds its way into the music. We live in an era of constant tension — psychological pressure, instability, uncertainty — and these elements naturally become part of the atmosphere we create.

F.I.V.E. reflects a world where the boundary between inner and outer conflict feels increasingly blurred. Personal anxiety and collective unease seem to feed each other. Fear is no longer only individual — it becomes something shared, almost environmental.

In that sense, the album absorbs the mood of the time rather than describing events. It is less a commentary on reality and more a reaction to the invisible pressure people live under today.

Sometimes the violence suggested in the title is not physical but emotional — a slow accumulation of tension that shapes behavior, relationships and identity.

F.I.V.E. is not a political record, but it exists inside this historical moment, and that tension inevitably left its mark on the music.

Fear is framed here as something that escalates into violence. Is that violence inward, outward, or systemic in the world you’re describing?

Primarily inward.

The violence in F.I.V.E. begins inside the individual long before it appears in the outside world. It is a psychological pressure that builds slowly, almost silently, until it becomes something that can no longer be contained.

Fear accumulates tension, and tension inevitably seeks release. Sometimes that energy turns outward, but more often it collapses inward, becoming unrest, obsession, or self-destruction.

We were interested in exploring that suspended moment before the final break — when something inside you is already changing irreversibly but the outside world has not yet noticed.

In this sense, the violence in F.I.V.E. is not necessarily physical. It is mostly psychological and emotional. It is the feeling of living in a permanent state of tension where every choice feels definitive and every mistake leaves a mark.

Perhaps the deepest form of violence is precisely this — the invisible conflict that each person carries within.

With F.I.V.E. marking your release with Cleopatra Records, do you see this as an opportunity to reach broader international audiences, and how do you hope listeners outside your core scene will connect with this album?

Yes, absolutely.

Working with Cleopatra Records represents an important step for us because it allows F.I.V.E. to travel further than before. Cleopatra has a long history within dark and alternative music, and it felt natural for us to align with a label that has supported this kind of sound for decades.

But beyond distribution and visibility, what matters most to us is the kind of connection the record can create with listeners.

We don’t see F.I.V.E. as an album limited to the darkwave or post-punk scene. The themes that run through the record — fear, identity, tension, transformation — belong to the broader human experience. You don’t need to belong to a specific scene to recognize those emotions.

If someone far from our musical world listens to the album and recognizes a part of themselves inside it, then the journey has reached its destination.

For us, music truly works only when it becomes a shared space.

Finally, after someone has lived with F.I.V.E. from beginning to end, what do you hope stays with them—unease, clarity, recognition, or a sense of release?

Perhaps above all, recognition.

The feeling that something inside them has been named — even if only partially. Not necessarily fully understood, but at least recognized.

F.I.V.E. was not created to comfort. It is not nostalgia, and it is not revival. It is a psychological document of where we stand today — as musicians and as human beings.

We hope listeners enter the album the way one enters a room — slowly — and remain there long enough to feel something real.

If, after listening, even a small trace remains — an image, a sensation, an unanswered question — then the music has found its place.§

Christine Plays Viola’s new album, F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions, is out now. Listen to the album below, and order here.

F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions by Christine Plays Viola

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The post The Inevitable Descent — An Interview With Italian Goth Rockers Christine Plays Viola on Their New Album “F.I.V.E. Fear Increases Violent Emotions” appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Source: Post-Punk.com

DOGMA return to Germany for four club shows in 2026. After sold-out concerts in summer 2025, the five musicians will take their “Time to Be Free” European tour to Hamburg, Munich, Lichtenfels and Leipzig in April and May. With their debut album “Dogma” (2023), they stand for rebellious imagery and radical self-determination – live a […]

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MORK HEADLINE EUROPEAN TOUR
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u.a.:
10.10.2026 – Hafenklang, Hamburg, Germany
11.10.2026 – From Hell, Erfurt, Germany
12.10.2026 – Live Club, Bamberg, Germany
14.10.2026 – MTS Records, Oldenburg, Germany
15.10.2026 – Trompete, Bochum, Germany
17.10.2026 – UG Remains, Göttingen, Germany
19.10.2026 – Valhalla Bar, Basel, Switzerland
21.10.2026 – Rockhouse Bar, Salzburg, Austria
23.10.2026 – VAZ, Burglengenfeld, Germany

 

Source: Amboss-Mag.de

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SAMURAI PIZZA CATS: „Wir wollen, dass die Leute den Vibe spüren und alles andere vergessen“

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InterviewsvonChristina Willems25. März 2026

STATEFALL

Den Auftakt des Abends machten STATEFALL, deren Set wir wegen Problemen am Einlass nur teilweise und aus den hinteren Reihen mitbekamen. Die Band, die 2023 aus Mitgliedern von BREATHE ATLANTIS, VITJA und THE LAST ELEMENT gegründet wurde, hatte SAMURAI PIZZA CATS bereits 2024 auf Tour begleitet. Mit ihrem melodischen, modernen Metalcore hob sich die Band musikalisch und auch optisch vom restlichen Line-up des „Samurai Pizza Fest“ ab. Statt Electro-Beats und LED-Show bekam das Publikum hier vor allem Emotionen geboten. Und eine Bühnenshow, die sich auf das Wesentliche reduzierte: die Botschaft hinter den Songs.

STATEFALL – Setlist:

Lunar

I Know You Lie

Dreamstate

Death of Me

Shadows

The Lost

Letdown

STVW

Nach so viel Emotion und Intensität wurde es Zeit, das Kölner Publikum wieder in Partystimmung zu versetzen. Und womit sorgt man bei nostalgischen Millennials immer für gute Laune? Richtig, mit den größten Alternative-Hits der 2000er. Präsentiert von Steve „STVW“ Witzlsperger, der für seinen mitreißenden Mix aus Electro, Emo und Punk bekannt ist. Der Anzinger DJ gehört zu den vielversprechendsten Künstlern der Bigroom-Szene und hatte erst im Februar drei ausverkaufte Shows in Sydney, Melbourne und Brisbane gespielt. Nun nahm er das Publikum in Köln auf eine Zeitreise in die Ära von Y2K, Myspace und Skinny Jeans mit.

DJ und Produzent Steve Witzlsperger coverte in Köln beliebte Emo- und Pop-Punk-Songs.

Gut gelaunt wirbelte STVW zwischen Gitarre und Mischpult über die Bühne und performte Songs wie „All The Small Things“ (BLINK-182), „Mr. Brightside“ (THE KILLERS) und „Sugar, We’re Goin Down“ (FALL OUT BOY). Bunt, laut, energetisch – eine gelungene Abwechslung nach den emotionalen Klängen von STATEFALL. Und ein Beweis dafür, dass sich die PIZZA CATS durchaus Gedanken über das Line-up ihres Festivals gemacht haben. STVW und sein DJ-Set fungierten in Köln nicht als Lückenfüller zwischen zwei Metal-Bands, sondern wärmten die Crowd für die folgenden Acts auf. Der fröhliche Mix aus Punkrock und EDM dürfte auf alteingesessene Metal-Urgesteine überdreht wirken, funktionierte live aber beeindruckend gut.

Und wer weiß, vielleicht vertragen sich Corpsepaint und Neonfarben doch besser als gedacht…

FROM FALL TO SPRING

Und weil Genre-Mix und 2000er-Nostalgie immer gehen, blieb auch die nächste Band des Abends dieser Linie treu. In rotes Licht und atmosphärischen Nebel getaucht, stürmten FROM FALL TO SPRING als letzter Support-Act die Bühne der Live Music Hall. Die Saarländer hatten im letzten Jahr am ESC-Vorentscheid „Chefsache ESC 2025“ teilgenommen, waren jedoch im Halbfinale gescheitert. Dass die Teilnahme der Band dennoch einen ordentlichen Push gegeben hat, zeigte die Begeisterung, die ihnen in Köln entgegenschlug.

Neben Cover-Songs wie „Incomplete“ performten die Jungs aus Neunkirchen auch ihren ESC-Titel „Take The Pain Away“, der von den Fans textsicher mitgebrüllt wurde. Philip und Lukas Wilhelm zeigten sich in Höchstform und forderten die Crowd immer wieder zum Crowdsurfen auf. Diese ließ sich nicht lange bitten und verwandelte die Halle in einen tobenden Hexenkessel. Ein Spektakel, das sicherlich auch beim ESC gut funktioniert hätte … Stattdessen durfte sich nun das Kölner Publikum über die energetische und mitreißende Bühnenshow der Band freuen.

FROM FALL TO SPRING starten im April 2026 ihre erste Headliner-Tour.

Besonders bei Songs wie „Blood“ und „Draw The Line“ war die Menge kaum noch zu halten, hüpfte, tanzte und feierte ausgelassen. Die beiden Sänger badeten in der Begeisterung des Publikums und genossen die Atmosphäre in der Live Music Hall sichtlich. Hier stimmte die Chemie, und man musste kein Fan der Band sein, um sich von der Energie anstecken zu lassen. Die Weichen sind also gelegt, und die erste Headliner-Tour von FROM FALL TO SPRING dürfte ein voller Erfolg werden.

FROM FALL TO SPRING – Setlist:

Intro

Draw The Line

Blood

Take The Pain Away

Incomplete (Backstreet Boys-Cover)

I Won’t Back Down

Destiny

Drum Solo

Simulation.exe

Chasing The High

Control

FROM FALL TO SPRING – Live Music Hall, Köln – 28.03.2026 – Konzertfotos

2026
BildervonChristina Willems28. März 2026

SAMURAI PIZZA CATS

„Same procedure as last year?“ – „The same procedure as every year.“

Das berühmte Zitat aus dem Silvester-Klassiker „Dinner for One“ lässt sich auch auf die meisten SAMURAI PIZZA CATS-Shows übertragen. Zumindest, was das Intro betrifft, denn das hat mittlerweile Wiedererkennungswert. Ein bisschen „My Heart Will Go On“, ein bisschen „Cheri Cheri Lady“, aber vor allem ganz viel „Leb deinen Traum“. Und so kündigte das ikonische Opening der Anime-Serie „Digimon“ auch dieses Mal den Hauptact des Abends an. Nach unserem Interview mit Sebastian waren wir gespannt, welche Überraschungen die Band bei ihrem eigenen Festival aus dem Hut zaubern würde.

Sebastian Fischer (links) und Daniel Haniß (rechts) in der Kölner Live Music Hall.

Wer SAMURAI PIZZA CATS auf ihrer „Superzero Tour 2025“ erlebt und sich auf ein weiteres Pizza-Wettessen gefreut hatte, dürfte ein wenig enttäuscht gewesen sein. Auch auf Auftritte im Tutu oder Panda-Onesie musste das Kölner Publikum diesmal verzichten. Dadurch erreichte die Show in der ausverkauften Live Music Hall nicht ganz die chaotisch-kuschelige Club-Atmosphäre der letzten Tour. Man kann allerdings davon ausgehen, dass sich die Jungs für ihre Headliner-Tour im Oktober noch einmal ein paar besondere Überraschungen einfallen lassen werden.

Mit Glitzer und Konfetti wurde beim „Samurai Pizza Fest“ nicht gespart.

Trotzdem hatte die Band in Köln einige Gimmicks im Gepäck. Ein Außerirdischer verteilte Pizza, und Sebastian verwandelte sich kurzzeitig in einen Lieferfahrer, der ein riesiges, aufblasbares Stück Salamipizza in die Menge warf. Immer wieder regnete es Konfetti, und die Band bedankte sich mit Worten und Herzchen-Gesten bei den Fans für ihren Support. Das Publikum feierte vor allem die älteren Songs, ging aber auch bei den neuen Tracks vom Album „Press Start“ mit. Während der ganzen Show war die enge Bindung zwischen Band und Crowd zu spüren. Ganz im Sinne des „Samurai Pizza Fests“, das vor allem als Dankeschön für die Fans geplant war.

Robin Kemper bei einem seiner ersten Einsätze als neuer Drummer der Band.

Und dafür revanchierte sich das Publikum, indem es die vier Jungs vom ersten bis zum letzten Song feierte. Über weite Strecken fühlte sich die Show wie eine kleine Reise durch die bisherige SAMURAI PIZZA CATS-Diskografie an. Dabei wurden nicht nur frühe Songs gespielt, sondern gemeinsam mit den Fans auch in Erinnerungen an alte Shirt-Designs und vergangene Konzerte geschwelgt. Neben der souveränen Bühnenshow war es vor allem die enge Bindung zwischen Band und Publikum, die den Auftritt trug. Auch Drummer Robin Kemper, der den ausgeschiedenen Stefan Buchwald ersetzt, wurde von den Kölner Zuschauern herzlich aufgenommen.

Ein wilder Ritt auf einem aufblasbaren Stück Pizza? Kein Problem für das Publikum in Köln.

Nach zwei Zugaben und einem weiteren Konfetti-Regen, für den auch die Support-Acts auf die Bühne zurückkehrten, endete das „Samurai Pizza Fest“. Und auch wenn sich die Band bei dieser Show nicht völlig neu erfunden hat, verließen die Fans die Halle lachend, verschwitzt und gut gelaunt. Vielleicht auch deshalb, weil sie sich schon jetzt darauf freuen können, was sich die PIZZA CATS für ihre „Press Start“-Tour im Oktober ausgedacht haben.

SAMURAI PIZZA CATS – Setlist:

Intro

Pandastruck

Outcast

Falling Down

Fear No Slice

Burn

You’re Hellcome

Have A G.O.O.D Day

The Wolf in Me

Ramen-Man

Freakshow

T-Rex(plosion)

Alpha

Super Zero

Pizza Homicide

SAMURAI PIZZA CATS – Live Music Hall, Köln – 28.03.2026 – Konzertfotos

2026
BildervonChristina Willems28. März 2026

Die „Press Start European Tour“ startet am 3. Oktober 2026. Hier geht es zu den Tourdaten.

Source: Vampster

Wer DEPECHE MODE, TEARS FOR FEARS, P.S. BOYS, OMD, HEAVEN 17, KIM WILDE, ANNE CLARK und PROPAGANDA als musikalischen Einfluss benennt, wie WELLE ERDBALL aus Hannover kommt und zudem bei SEA OF SIN als Vorband gespielt hat, erfüllt zumindest bei mir schon mal alle Vorraussetzungen, um sich Zeit für eine Hörprobe zu nehmen. Und es hat sich wahrlich gelohnt, denn wer wie ich auch auf „catchy“ 80s Synth-Pop und eleganten Future/Electro Wave steht, ist hier bei ATLAS – die sich 2023 gegründet hatten – genau richtig. Die moderne elektronische Tanz und Popmusik des Trios, die wie im Track „Chanson D`Amour“ und „Die Reise“ oder im Up Tempo Titel-Track „Noch mehr“ mit melodischen Club Beats und mit reichlich Pop Appeal ausgestattet sind, machen wirklich sehr viel Spaß und garantieren ein fulminantes Klangerlebnis. Man merkt einfach, das die Gruppe ihr ganzes Herzblut in die Produktion ihrer ersten Fulltime Platte „Noch mehr“ gesteckt hat. Die emotionale und tragende Stimme von der aparten und charismatischen Sängerin MELANIE VON HOLTEN und die Klanglandschaften der 14 Tracks – die von PETER MANGOLD und IINGO STEINCKE produziert werden – sind zwischen Dynamik, Gefühl, Ohrwurm und Tanzfläche angesiedelt. Die intelligenten Texte, die gekonnt Alltagsmomente einfangen, werden auch Live mit einer einzigartigen Energie umgesetzt und sind somit nahtlos in die eingängigen Kompositionen integriert. Das ist zum Glück kein synthetischer Einheitsbrei, sondern mal wirklich wieder authentischer und kreativer Elektrosound vom Feinsten und von daher ein großer Tipp für alle Fans von den oben eingangs erwähnten Gruppen. Man darf gespannt sein, was da noch folgen wird.

(S.Erichsen)

Source: BLACK Onlinemagazin

Die Black / Death Metal-Band BRINGERS OF DISEASE hat mit „Sulphur“ ein neues Album angekündigt. Es ist nach zwei EPs das erste Album der US-Amerikaner aus Ohio.

„Im Jahr 2010 verlor ich innerhalb weniger Tage meine Vollzeitband, meine langjährige Beziehung und mein Zuhause, während ich auf Tournee in Europa war…“, erinnert sich Gitarrist Jeff Wilson (CHROME WAVES, ex-NACHTMYSTIUM, ex-WOLVHAMMER). „Jason (Phillips (ACHERON)) war der einzige Mensch, der so freundlich war, mir eine Unterkunft zu geben, bis ich wieder auf die Beine kam. In dieser Zeit nahmen wir das erste Demo von BRINGERS OF DISEASE auf. Ich bin froh, dass ich fünfzehn Jahre später wieder dabei bin und dabei helfen kann, die Band auf ein neues Level zu bringen. Was für eine wilde Reise das gewesen ist.“

„Sulphur“, das von Jeff Wilson gemixt und gemastert wurde, wird am 24. April 2026 via Disorder Recordings und So Below Productions erscheinen. Das Cover-Artwork stammt von Rio Oka. Vorab gibt es nach dem Track „Sacred Heart Of The Abyss“ nun auch den Song „First Born Of The Dead“ zu hören.

BRINGERS OF DISEASE Line-Up:
Logan Madison – vocals
Jason Phillips – guitar, vocals
Zack Simmons – drums
Jeff Wilson – guitar, synth
Jon Woodring – bass

BRINGERS OF DISEASE „Sulphur“ Tracklist
1. Return To Satan
2. The Greatest Heresy
3. First Born Of The Dead (Visualizer bei YouTube)
4. Sacred Heart Of The Abyss (Visualizer bei YouTube)
5. Sulphur
6. Flowers Bloom From The Prophet’s Skull
7. March Of The Burning Tower

Source: Vampster