“I don’t like country & western, I don’t like rock music… I don’t like rockabilly! I don’t like much really do I? But what I do like, I love passionately!!”: CHRIS LOWE
LLOYD COLE & THE COMMOTIONS were the kings of Glum Rock.
But for a 2015 German tour, Lloyd Cole announced: “I’m calling these shows LIVE ELECTRONICS, and I should be clear here – there will be none of my songs performed, I will not be singing at all, or playing guitar. My instrument will be my modular synthesizer, along with some effects units and maybe a keyboard.”
Despite being a purveyor of jangling poetic indie tunes like ‘Perfect Skin’, ‘Rattlesnakes’, ‘Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?’ and ‘Brand New Friend’, Cole had actually been experimenting with electronics since 2001’s ‘Plastic Wood’ and recorded an album ‘Selected Studies Vol 1’ with Hans-Joachim Roedelius of CLUSTER in 2013. Released by Bureau B, custodians of the Sky Records back catalogue including works by Michael Rother, Conny Plank and Harald Grosskopf amongst others, there was also a solo instrumental collection entitled ‘1D Electronics 2012-2014’.
But Cole has been putting that modular knowhow into a song based format with a charming new synthy single ‘Violins’ in which he seems to have turned into OMD! However, not totally alienating his main fan base, guitars make their presence felt amongst all the machinery about two thirds of the way through.
‘Violins’ is from Lloyd Cole’s new album ‘Guesswork’ which has been self-produced in Massachusetts and mixed by German producer Olaf Opal. Despite reuniting with two former bandmates Neil Clark and Blair Cowan for the first time since 1987’s ‘Mainstream’ long player, ‘Guesswork’ credits ‘synthesizers’ and ‘programming’ rather a lot while the man himself has recently talked of his guitar as “going, going but not quite gone”.
As well as referencing CHINA CRISIS and PREFAB SPROUT, Cole has also expressed a love of SUICIDE, ULTRAVOX, PET SHOP BOYS and LCD SOUNDSYSYTEM, while stating that ‘Guesswork’ is predominantly an electronic album, fashioned from classic and modern keyboard, modular and drum synthesizers with occasional guitar.
Asked whether the remaining songs on ‘Guesswork’ would be of a similar vein to ‘Violins’, he replied on Twitter: “No. The instrumentation is similar. Hopefully the songs go together nicely.”
While some will not necessarily appreciate Cole’s new direction, he has no qualms about the joy of his artistic diversion: “When I was 27, the concept of the washed up older guy seemed very entertaining. Now I’m starting to think that old age could be a lot more fun. Because really what have we got to lose?”
‘Violins’ is from the new album ‘Guesswork’ released on 26th July 2019 by earMUSIC in CD, vinyl LP and digital formats
With ‘The Silence’, Karin My released the first truly great song of 2019.
Swathed in beautiful synths and embroiled in wonderful melancholy, her gorgeous vocals evoked a forlorn abandonment like a Nordic Mary Hopkin.
For the follow-up, the tearful double-header ‘Time To Go’ and ‘Voices In The Wall’ dealt with personal loss and touched the heartstrings. The latest in her series of acoustically derived electronic songs is the dreamy observation of ‘World From Orbit’.
Stating that “From a distance, I see it all, I’m everywhere. I’m not a part of anything. Just an observer”, Karin My is an experienced self-taught musician who has largely remained in the background for most of her career. The Swedish chanteuse kindly spoke about the making of her singles quadrilogy and much more…
You have a comparatively traditional music background, so how did you first become interested in electronic music and who are your favourite artists of this type in particular?
I have as far I can remember always been fascinated by the sound of electronic devices, but it wasn’t until I was about eleven years old that I got my first “electronic experience” so to speak. A friend of my mother’s gave me five KRAFTWERK LPs (from ‘Autobahn’ to ‘Computer World’) and l remember the moment I first listened to them, sitting on the floor listening to something that took me to another world. I was deeply touched and scared at the same time, to me the music sounded almost like it wasn’t created by humans.
Shortly after that, bands like TANGERINE DREAM and DEPECHE MODE came into my life. The electronic snowball effect rolled on after that and filled my life with beautiful and inspiring music from bands like ELEGANT MACHINERY, DIVE, DE/VISION, APOPTYGMA BERZERK, VNV NATION, IRIS and KITE just to mention a few.
The quality of electronic music appears to be very strong in Sweden at the moment, why do you think that might be?
I’m wildly guessing here, but maybe it’s the fact that since the 90s, we’ve had a lot of talented artists in the electronic music scene, who over time have evolved and fine-tuned their skills. Maybe right now they’ve all reached a point of maturity which makes both the productions and the performances stronger. Because we´ve been doing this side by side throughout the years, we have been ageing together to reach this point. Or maybe it’s just something in the water.
ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK first spotted you doing backing vocals on ‘High In The Clouds’ by TWICE A MAN, how did this collaboration come about?
I was doing a small gig with my guitar, playing some electronic covers in a basement café in Gothenburg, I came in directly from the streets where I used to busk for surviving. Dan Söderqvist was in the audience that evening and after the gig, he asked me if he could use my voice for the next TWICE A MAN album. We gave it a try and liked what we heard, so we decided to continue working together, both in studio and live on stage where I’ve had the honour of being their guest voice on several occasions.
Your time in music goes back further than that in the band NEMO, whose song ‘Voices In The Wall’ you revived for a solo single?
Yes that’s very true. My interest in music started early. I sang Dan Andersson and other folk songs as soon as I was old enough to talk. Later on, as the restless teenager I became, I played every instrument I could lay my hands on, often terribly, but I had fun and learned a lot.
From the money I got picking strawberries, I bought my first piano. Then I found a drum kit in a garage, got it for free and spent one year torturing the neighbours, but at least I got good enough to play drums and sing in a jazz n’ blues band, with some good old silver foxes. I then bought my first cello, learned how to use it and that was a long-time dream coming true.
At this time, I also wrote my first Swedish lyrics which I many years later translated to English and used for my music. Then I met Carl Lundgren, became the female voice of NEMO and finally started to learn about the process of creating the electronic music that I loved so much.
You twinned ‘Voices In The Wall’ with ‘Time To Go’ in a rather emotive video presentation, was this two party story based on personal experiences?
Every story I tell has a grain or a mountain of truth to it. I was surprised though, how hard it was to watch the video. I didn’t expect that. I watched it three times, first to celebrate that we were done, then to see our work and to focus on the details, and then once again just to watch it. I think it’s really well made and I’m so grateful to the girl who acted the young part in the video, but I prefer not to watch it again.
The quadrilogy started with ‘The Silence’, a truly striking song and video.
Thank you, it makes me really glad that you think it is!
How would you describe your creative process, from composition, arrangement, production and visuals?
I’ll try to describe the creative process as briefly as I can, or this will be a never ending story. The visuals for this song started as a dream, literally. I saw what later became the video when I was sleeping and made some sketches of it. When I wrote ‘The Silence’ on my acoustic guitar, we realised that the dream and the song belonged together. We spent the spring and summer building the abandoned winter city which serves as the setting in the video.
I was then filmed on a huge white fabric, dragging the sack back and forth for days, with a person standing on a ladder throwing fake snow at me. This was the hottest summer in Stockholm since forever, so me struggling in the video in that winter outfit is not fake. Then I was super imposed into the city.
Creating the musical part of ‘The Silence’ can best be described as a constant search for the most beautiful and mood setting sounds that were hiding inside the machines, to match the sounds of the acoustic instruments.
It would be fair to say that your music has a very melancholic tone, does that reflect you as a person, where your life is your art?
Yes, in some way. The music reflects one part of me that I most of the time carry on the inside, but in the name of art, I have all the freedom I can wish for to let it out, without it being a heavy burden for anyone else. At the same time, I’m genuinely happy for all the beautiful things out there and I easily get emotionally touched in a good way as well.
The new single is called ‘World From Orbit’, what is that about?
As I see it, it’s about someone’s silent wishes, to exist just as a floating thought, far from the difficulties that we for some reason choose to live with. To see it all from a distance and dream about making it better. Even though it’s sad to have to live with such wishes, I think this is also a song about hope.
The monochromatic video for ‘World From Orbit’ is very Olympian, what does the burning star symbolise?
We did that scene by illustrating the lyrics literally, (“…a star, shining down on all the children”) so that’s what it is, a shining star. But I’m sure there can be many more fantastic interpretations of that, it’s up to each and every one. I have to mention I was surprised afterwards when I was looking at the video and got especially touched by that scene, seeing it as a mother’s warm and safe utero carrying a new life, and got a bit emotional.
For many years, you have been in the background doing backing vocals or cello for acts like MACHINISTA, CARBON BASED LIFEFORMS and FAKE MOSS, so how does it feel to be at the front? Are you enjoying the experience with all the attention that entails?
Thank you, it feels very good, like a piece of a puzzle that falls into its place. I am very grateful for all the artists I’ve had the honour of working with during all these years, amazing people and musicians each and every one, and it’s exciting to finally release something of my own.
The attention generated so far is both heartwarming and inspiring. Some people seem to have been touched by the songs and sometimes share their own stories with me and tell me I am brave; I wasn’t expecting a response like that.
You are getting to work with a lot of great equipment of all vintages for your music, so what is your favourite synth and why?
This was a really difficult question and I hope I don’t make all the other synths sad by choosing only one. But using the Korg PS3200 is like opening a door to another world and I feel honoured to have some of her sounds on my album. The special one I’m referring to here is called “Bettan” (short for Beatrice) so I guess she’s a lady model.
What’s next for you?
I’m continuing the work on the album which hopefully will be released in late 2019. Prior to that a digital EP featuring remixes by different artists will also be released. I’m also doing a wedding concert for Gasleben of TWICE A MAN and Anna Öberg who are getting married this summer. Recently I also got a request from a legend about working together on his next project, to which I of course responded “yes”.
ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Karin My
‘World From Orbit’ is available on most digital platforms via Ad Inexplorata
Jonna Lee aka IONNALEE aka IAMAMIWHOAMI has made a curious comeback with a follow up to her first solo outing of ‘Everyone Afraid To Be Forgotten’.
Unlike her works with IAMAMIWHOAMI, which were mysteriously messy and unsettling, the music of IONNALEE simplified matters, adding a romantic feel to her otherwise unusual disposition and ‘Remember The Future’ maintains that minimal approach.
“What will the future bring?” has been the most commonly asked question amongst electronic artists of today. But Jonna Lee’s take on things is most likely to be compared to her Swedish compatriots of THE KNIFE or KITE, only far more musical. The album cover sees Lee and her own metal creation of a “retro space-age symbol” lurking amongst not the most comfortable of landscapes, illustrating the inhospitable feel of the opus.
Whether or not the ‘Open Sea’ has the power to suck one in with its powerful waves, Lee is prepared to fight using the medium of melodic pop, building up into an explosion of newly found positivity in the otherwise gloomy outlook. Perhaps becoming somewhat delirious, raising up to higher heights is induced by the “meds (that are) wearing off” on ‘Wipe It Off’, where the scratch is only bleeding and bleeding.
The break comes on ‘Some Body’, which stands out as an irregular synthwave track, a true example of Novelty Synthpop. The “good times” are wholesome and things are looking up, forgetting the threats and dropping the otherwise dystopian themes.
The lofty mood is brought down on ‘Matters’, a noteworthy collaboration with Zola Jesus. This lengthy track calls for unity against the impending disaster, floatingly leading into the heart of what’s important, gathering allies and warning against narrowmindedness. Lee’s voice plays around Zola Jesus’ powerful vocal bringing deeper meaning to the lyric “raise our voices”.
The eponymous track represents the easier listening qualities of IONNALEE’s propositions bridging the romantic past with uncertain future, while ‘Race Against’ stacks the Tetris gravitating between the gentile and harsh, outwardly and terrifying.
Jennie Abrahamson joins Lee on ‘Crystal’, a punctuated romance in a bottle, where the slower pace strokes senses with delicate rhythms like vintage Janet Jackson ballads. ‘Silence My Drum’ with its Celtic qualities graduates into a blistering extravaganza of pure pop, while ‘I Keep’ distorts with sci-fi elements and futuristic plug-ins.
The biggest surprise comes in the form of the cover of ‘Mysteries Of Love’, the iconic Angelo Badalamenti ‘Blue Velvet’ song with lyrics penned by David Lynch, originally performed by Julee Cruise and later brought back to life by Kid Moxie. Supported by RÖYKSOPP, Lee shows off a different side of her femininity, stealing the moment with angelic voices and big synth leads.
Jonna Lee has made herself a little masterpiece: “It’s a hopeful visionary album of daring to dream, and shooting for the stars, despite the paradoxical underlying chafing knowledge that we are destroying our planet. To me, the album has a kinetic energy. I felt much more confident and free when producing it, both as an artist, person and a producer.”
‘Remember The Future’ is released by To Whom It May Concern in CD, vinyl LP and digital formats
With no publicity photos, no gigs, and only one interview, the mysteriously anonymous combo GIRL ONE & THE GREASE GUNS provoked intrigue and head scratching in equal measures.
Were they a collaboration between LUSH and SLEAFORD MODS or actually NEW ORDER offshoots THE OTHER TWO doing Spector-flavoured post-punk instead of electronic disco? Whatever, since 2013, GIRL ONE & THE GREASE GUNS have issued a sporadic number of singles as collected on ‘The Strange Little Lines That Humans Draw In the Dust’ and even released a full length album ‘Night Of The Living Electrical Appliances’ in 2017.
In 2018, their most powerfully overt electronic pop single yet in ‘Good Morning, Mr X’ signalled a planned series of limited edition, white label, hand-stamped, one side only releases under the concept of ‘Transmissions From The Glass Factory’. But in 2019 with nothing left to say or do, the remaining recordings from the sessions have now been issued as a six track mini-album as an adieu to GIRL ONE & THE GREASE GUNS.
Best of the bunch are the unorthodox ‘(It’s A) Warning Sign (Blue Lights)’ and the more immediate ‘Noise & Fury’, both epitomising what has been great about GIRL ONE & THE GREASE GUNS. The former is a brilliant squelching electronic number, while the latter is a cover of THE BLANCHE HUDSON WEEKEND sounding like THE PIPETTES doing NEW ORDER’s ‘The Age Of Consent’; both delightfully equal GIRL ONE & THE GREASE GUNS’ best singles like ‘Jessica 6’ and ‘No Longer Spellbound’.
Continuing with that classic but spacey girl group vibe with chills that are multiplying, ‘The Multiplex (Is No Good For Me)’ and ‘Turn It Around Again’ transport the Wall Of Sound into the winter of discontent.
Meanwhile ‘Destination Yesterday’ exploits metallic sequencers, detuned synths and those characteristic nonchalant off-key female vocals.
Less successful though is ‘Run Scared From Eyeballs’ with an over-complex drum mantra that smothers a song that doesn’t quite hit the spot.
So farewell Sissy Space Echo, Warren Betamax, Charles Bronson Burner and Bruce LeeFax, you really did “thrive on causing confusion with a mixture of pure synthpop and more experimental electronic sounds” and shared some dysfunctional fun in the process.
‘Transmissions From The Glass Factory’ is released by Next Phase: Normal Records as a CD, available from Rough Trade in London, Jumbo Records and Norman Records in Leeds, as well as the Squirrel Records website at http://www.squirrelrecords.co.uk/girl-one-and-the-grease-guns/
Like a cross between THE CURE and ALPHAVILLE, Swedish duo MACHINISTA are back with their third full-length album ‘Anthropocene’.
Vocalist John Lindqwister and instrumentalist Richard Flow have taken their time with this record and it’s all the better with a refinement of their anthemic signature sound plus the addition of some conventionally flavoured twists. In the album’s opening statement, ‘Seconds Minutes Hours’ offers a Eurodance triplet beefed up with guitars by BRD for more of that synthpop with a rock n roll edge which MACHINISTA have always prided themselves in.
Featuring a guest vocal appearance from PROJECT PITCHFORK’s Scheuber, ‘Let Darkness In’ is brilliant, taking its leaf from the dark electronic pop of Norway’s APOPTYGMA BERZERK; their main man Stephan Groth happily remixed 2015’s ‘Dark Heart Of Me’ and the APOP force looms even stronger on the album’s glorious ‘Anthropocene’ title song which owes more than a debt to the haunting riff of ‘Burning Heretic’ in the ultimate sorcerer’s apprentice spell.
‘Angel’ takes things down to scarf waving pace and adds piano to the counter melodies but it suddenly speeds up, aesthetic reinforced by percussive six string for some chantalong gothic disco. ‘Black Tide’ continues the mood but with a solemn disposition as per the title with Lindqwister giving his all with the Robert Smith stakes.
Singing of “darkness, despairs” and a “child of the golden age”, the chilling orchestrated cinematics of ‘Astrid’ are authentically supported by Karin My on cello while on ‘Universe Is Here’, the aesthetics can’t but help recall ‘The Policy Of Truth’ from the days when DEPECHE MODE combined their darkness with tuneful instrumental elements.
A stark observation on the human condition, ‘Pain Of Every Day’ with its poignant lyrics like “dying is certain… we die the same death” is probably one of the most poetically unsettling if danceable tracks of recent years, a sentiment also expressed in ‘The Scare’.
Back in 2013, MACHINISTA opened their account with a rousing cover of Bowie’s “Heroes”; and it is back to the Thin White Duke with a cover of THE BEATLES ‘Across The Universe’ which was covered on the ‘Young Americans’ album for the closer; it does sound exactly how you might imagine, like ALPHAVILLE doing John Lennon.
On ‘Anthropocene’, MACHINISTA have successfully integrated more traditional elements like guitar, piano and cello without throwing away their gloomy but club-friendly template. Their past EPs and albums have always had terrific highlights, but ‘Anthropocene’ is their most consistent body of work to date.
Reflecting darker times, listeners will however need to choose which songs to hear carefully dependent on their moods as much of the personal expression on this album is very heavy if realistic.
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and 
dealt with personal loss and touched the heartstrings. The latest in her series of acoustically derived electronic songs is the dreamy observation of 
.
can best be described as a constant search for the most beautiful and mood setting sounds that were hiding inside the machines, to match the sounds of the acoustic instruments.
maintains that minimal approach.
is released by Infacted Recordings on 7th June 2019, pre-order CD from Poponaut at
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