Album Review : AMUL9 – Elevated Beings

I first became aware of AMUL9 from my good Friend and mastermind of Latex Records Eddie Minzenmayer. After hearing a few tracks off the band’s Myspace page I wanted to hear more from them( and that’s a pretty good thing coming from someone who’s not too huge into the punk rock music scene). It was shortly thereafter Latex Records sent me a press copy of the soon to be released album Elevated Beings for me to review for all of you guys here.

After listening to Elevated Beings in it’s entirety  it became clear to me that AMUL9 offered more then just their punk rock style but they also fell into  that music with a message category. Now by music with a message  I mean it’s that type of speak up/out about something you stand for or believe in message ( a very good example of this would be like  Rage Against The Machine).  It’s messages such as racism, peace and  strengthening ourselves  AMUL9 coveys to the listener in each tracks.  Which I must say that they did an excellent job at getting the messages across with each track.  It wasn’t like it required super deep thought to get the point across (like some bands and artists do when they emulate this style). At the same time though it wasn’t like it didn’t require no thought at all. It really was the happy medium. Of which I’m not to sure about you guys but if more were to get this happy medium down I think I would open my music library to include more similar artists/bands.

Elevated Beings really was a refreshing listening experience (not that I ever get sick of my normal style of music but it’s good to mix things up a bit every now and then). This being AMUL9 ‘s first album release I can say that I for one will be looking forward to checking out future releases from them.

If you guys would like  more info on AMUL9 do check out their website over here. You will be able to find a short biography of the band, a lyrics section, tour dates, album release dates and a behind the scenes video with AMUL9. Which I highly recommend that you do watch as you will get a much deeper feel for the band and the music they have to offer.  I would like to thank Eddie Minzenmayer ( Latex Records) for giving me such an opportunity to hear some pretty great music! For more information on other Latex Records releases you can visit the Latex Records site over here.

please do note that no album artwork was available at this time. When such artwork does become available post will be updated.

Join The Darkside …..

Hey everyone I just wanted to let you guys know that the Msg. boards are open for discussion on DarksideRadio.com So if you haven’t joined the community yet stop by register ( it’s free don’t worry) and introduce yourself.

Freakangel – My Darling Bullet Official Music Video

The Freakangel My Darling Bullet music video hit the interwebs  earlier this month. The track is from the bands most recent album The Faults Of Humanity. If you like what you hear you can purchase the album via the Alfa Matrix Website or right off of Itunes.

DJ Mirage Gives Her Show On Darkside Radio Some Podcast Love !!!

That’s right DJ Mirage has uploaded her live set/show from last week to her personal podcast page! So for all of you that might have missed last weeks show your in luck as you can head over here and check it out! While your there you can also check out older sets she has done live on Darkside Radio!

Don’t forget to tune into DJ Mirage’s show ever Sunday night at 10pm est on my other home away from home Darkside Radio!

Spotlight On: The Aztalan Turf Podcast

So as most of you guys know by now ( from previous spotlight featured here) that I’m always coming across new music, new sites, new people, new podcasts or new artist/photographers on the vast landscape that is the Internet. It’s when one of those above mentioned catches my attention that I feel the need to share with all of you my new findings so you to can enjoy!

Having said that this brings me to this spotlight on the Aztalan Turf podcast. The Aztalan Turf podcast is a bi-weekly well put together music show that’s first episode  graced the waves of the internet on March 2010. The show plays a wide range of music genres such as rock, EBM, synth pop, industrial, electro,  and goth just to name a few.

One of the things that the host and mastermind of  the Aztalan Turf podcast Renee made clear during the show is that she pretty much likes to plays music that she has  encountered and enjoyed or interested her versus music being played for the sake of playing music.  Which for those of you that have read previous spotlight I have done on  some of the other podcasts/shows out there ( for example  Sounds From The Sandbox, Latex Radio, and DJ Mirage’s show every Sunday night on Darkside Radio) you will see that this is a reoccurring theme. It’s this theme in my opinion that you really get to personalize your show/podcast. It becomes almost like an extension of your interests and passions shared with your listeners who have almost similar interests and passions and it really makes for an enjoyable listening experience( like the one I had last week with the Aztalan Turf podcast).

So as an individual with very much similar interests in the music genres played on the show I would highly recommend you guys give it shot! All of the episodes (1-13) are still available on the Aztalan Turf site here. If you like what you hear in episode 13 do go back and give a listen to some of the older episodes as well ( I know I will be).

Album Review : Combichrist’s Making Monsters

(Photo taken From  Combichrist’s Vampire Freaks page)

Yep your eyes do not deceive you! You are seeing an album review for Making Monsters! For those of you that haven’t heard already Making Monsters came out on August 31st as an early digital download release ( the psychical CD will be available on September 23). Now I did spend awhile debating on if I should pick up the digital download as I planned on picking up the actual CD when it came out. One of the deciding factors in me  picking it up (other than it being a new Combichrist album)  was that I got the chance to do the review for all of you before September 23!

Now before I get into my thoughts on this album I want to point out that these reviews I write up are always written in my honest opinion and should be taken that way. What I might enjoy or not enjoy others might or might not. I can give you guys my thoughts and opinions on my personal experience after listening to an album but in the end it really comes down to how well you enjoyed your own experience!

So with that little disclaimer out of the way now I’ll get on with the review. I was really excited for Making Monsters when news of it’s release first broke. Then when the first single from the album Never Surrender hit the internet ( on Vampire Freaks) my excitement grew even more.  So now with the digital download  in my Itunes library I was  all ready to listen to some new Combichrist. After listening to the album I must say honestly I felt a little let down.

Now I’m not saying that it was a horrible album or anything like that.  It’s just to me it felt like this album was a little weaker then previous albums. The best way that I’m finding to describe and back up that last statement  is that with the exception of Never Surrender a lot of the tracks beats and vocals were really less in your face when compared to tracks off of other albums. Which really makes it come off as a very different listening experience. These are just my first thoughts though. Could the album end up growing on me ? It very well could so I’m not counting it out yet as one night I might just say “Hey, let me crank up some Making Monsters.”

So if your a Combichrist fan (I’m sure   this goes with out saying) but most of you will pick this album up regardless as I  myself probably will still pick up the CD when it’s released (band loyalty). However if your new to Combichrist I would highly recommend that you go through some of their older albums before you listen to this one.  It’s just so your more familiar with the sound that made us fall in love with their music!

Album Review : Container ‘s NEO

( Image taken from Container’s Facebook page)

The Before EP (for you new comers to the site you can check out the review of that EP here) was my first listening experience of Container. The EP had left me wanting to hear more from them. So when Latex Records offered me the chance to have an early listen to Container’s upcoming full length album NEO I was all over it! After listening to the album I came to the conclusion that while I really did enjoy the Before EP however NEO really was a much better showcase of what this band is truly capable of!

I must say that one of my biggest enjoyment factors of NEO was the refreshingly unique sound that the band emulated. It’s a very different “all on it’s own” sound then what I’m normally used to listening to. The tracks off of NEO offer a pretty wide scope of  different music styles( i.e.  Darkwave, Goth and Alternative) all while still keeping that same unique sound. With that wide range of styles I have to say that the album is put together very well. You don’t come across that your just getting into the mellow sound feeling then your hit with a track of  a little more harder beat.

Overall this album was a highly enjoyable listening experience and in my opinion is very much worth checking out when it’s released .  In the meantime (to tide you over) if you haven’t downloaded the Before EP yet  you hop over to Container’s website here and do so ( It’s free). For the most up to date information on when NEO will be available for your listening pleasure you can visit Containers website here, Become a fan of theirs on Facebook or you can visit Latex Records here .

Album Review : Mankind Is Obsolete’s Manic Recession

(Picture taken from Mankind Is Obsolete’s bandcamp store)

While Mankind Is Obsolete ( or mkio )  has been around for awhile this album (believe it or not) was my first listening experience to them. Even though this is mainly a remix album it has sold me enough to want to go back and listen to the original tracks these remixes were based off of!

Manic Recession features 15 remixed tracks of past Mankind Is Obsolete tracks. It also features one original song  (Days Gone By) and one cover song ( Merchandise ). While a few of the songs (Awake, Troubled Dreams and Passing Through) do appear a couple of times on this album( as different remixes of course) it doesn’t give you that “oh it’s this song again” feeling as each of the different remixes keep the tracks very fresh sounding.

I’m sure most fans of Mankind Is Obsolete probably already have purchased the album as it was released a few week back. However if your a newbie ( like I was pre this album) I would recommend that you guys do give it a listen to ( you can listen to the tracks over at the bands bandcamp store here). As you do get a just a taste of what Mankind Is Obsolete has to offer your music collection. If you do like what you hear then by all means go back and grab the older releases because I know that I will be!

Album Review : Offscreen – Dragonfly Lingo

(Picture taken from the Dragonfly Lingo bandcamp store)

I’m always on the look out for new music to fill my ever growing library (as I’m sure most of you know by now), Social networking sites (such as Twitter, Facebook and Myspace ) have really helped me accomplish finding that new music. It was off of Twitter that I became first aware of Dragonfly Lingo( @soundfox). Highly interested (not just on my own but also after a high recommendation from a friend on Twitter)  I made a point last night of picking up the Offscreen album from the Dragonfly Lingo’s bandcamp store. After listening to the album I must say that it was a fantastic first introduction to what Dragonfly Lingo had to offer musically!

The concept behind the Offscreen album is to take stand out memorable movie quotes ( such as the exorcist, close encounters and phantasms III to name a few of the movies ) and mix them with music that specifically crafted for each line of dialogue. A concept that was very well executed in my opinion! The harmonically mixed music and sound byte really transformed each of the tracks off this album and gave them that extra level of listening pleasure. By the time the seven tack album comes to an end it really does leave you with that wanting more feeling!Having said that I for one really hope that there will be more releases from Dragonfly Lingo in the near future!

So as it was highly recommended to me I’m passing that recommendation on to all of you as well. You can head over to the Dragonfly Lingo’s bandcamp store ( bandcamp is a direct artist/band to listener  online music store. So this means that your purchase goes to the band and not a middle man such as Itunes or Amazon. Support your favorite artists and buy direct when you can) to get a sampling of all the tracks and if you like what you hear( and I’m sure you all will) you can pick up the album at a really incredible price!

Spotlight on The Sounds From The Sandbox Podcast

In the past few Months I have met a lot of interesting people online whom have the same ( if not more) passion about the music genre we all love.  It’s when they take that burning passion and transfer it into music, writing, a podcast show, a record label or a radio station that it becomes something that really stands out! It becomes something that needs to be shared with others  out there that may have never heard of  the artist, blogger, band, podcast, or radio station before so you can enjoy it as much as I do ( this is why I love doing these spotlights)!

So this brings me to the spotlight on Sounds From The Sandbox! Sounds From The Sandbox is a regularly updated podcast show  that plays a fantastic selection of new and old industrial, EBM, powernoise, aggrotech, coldwave, metal, punk and much more ( so it’s the good stuff ). The podcast is available through Itunes ( leave comments on how well you enjoy the show if your an Itunes user  as everyone love comments) or you can go directly to the Sounds From The Sandbox site here.

I came across the mastermind behind the Sounds From The Sandbox CRY0G3N  on Twitter( a pretty cool dude to follow on Twitter @CRY0G3N)  at first I did not  know that he did these podcast shows so it wasn’t until I saw a tweet about it that put me in the loop finally. So highly interested in it I immediately( after seeing the tweet)  went to download the podcast! After listening to the quality, the energy and how well put together the show was  I knew that I was hooked! So I went back to get the previous episodes that I missed out on( and the previous shows did not disappoint at all)!

So far there has been 6 well crafted episodes released ( number 7 is on the way) all are still available for download! Of which I highly recommend that you guys do check out not only the new episodes but the older episodes as well too!  If you like what you hear you can become a fan of  Sounds From The Sandbox on Facebook here or again follow @CRY0G3N on twitter for up to date news on sounds from the Sandbox and release times for future episodes!