Browsing Tag

Darkwave Pop

Julia Kahn visualised the divinity of dark feminine energy with her dark pop installation of etherealism, Badlands

Posted on 25 October 2024

With her latest single, Badlands, Nashville’s dark-pop siren Julia Kahn defiantly stepped beyond the conventional boundaries of genre and geography. Born in a city more famed for its twangs of Americana than oscillations of dark cinematic mesmerism, Kahn stridently stepped into her own through the untamed echoes of empowerment and vulnerability in her latest release.

The summons to embrace authenticity, regardless of how messy that reality can be, draws you into a trip-hopped and spiritually awakened vortex of sound where ethereal vocal lines fuse with intricately frenetic drum patterns and strobing synth lines, crafting a soundscape swarming with evocative power and the divinity of dark feminine energy.

Each note demands emotional investment under the duress of Kahn, who has recently stepped off a major international festival tour and amassed a series of accolades that include airplay on BBC Radio and nods from critical platforms like Earmilk and Music Week.

With millions of views on TikTok and skyrocketing streaming numbers, Kahn is at the vanguard of a new movement, one which tempts her cult following into living unapologetically.

Badlands will be available to stream on all major platforms from October 25^th; check out her Spotify and official website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ride the electromagnetic waves in Us or Aliens’ latest industrial pop-rock call into the void, Black Hole

Posted on 22 May 2023

Giving us all the dark industrial rock energy of Celldweller and Zeromancer, with a few sharp pop hooks for impaling measure, Us or Aliens’ latest cry into the void, Black Hole, is an existential tour de force.

While the hollow find it hard to find fulfilment in a disenfranchising reality where ennui is as escapable as the cosmic phenomenon which became the metaphorical focus of the single, the pensive will more than get their resonant fill from Black Hole.

Us or Aliens is the solo project from Shawn Kirkpatrick, who has been writing, composing, recording and producing for himself and other artists for the past two decades. In his impressive by any measure career, he has performed in over 500 venues and found the time to become an accomplished guitar teacher and TV composer.

Delve into Black Hole by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nethermead delivered darkwave decadence in his latest alt-pop hit, Bodysnatcher

Posted on 22 April 2023

Sam Smith’s music video for I’m Not Here to Make Friends has nothing on the latest filmic masterpiece from the alt-electro-pop artist, Nethermead; neither does Eyes Wide Shut, for that matter. The baroquely fetishistic aesthetics in Bodysnatcher amplify the tribally entrancing rhythmics of the track that makes a serpentine meal of carnal pleasure.

South Louisiana has spawned innumerable southern gothic icons, but few pertain the same scintillating allure of the artist and producer who genre-bends industrial, darkwave and alt-pop to set salacious scores that have never been settled before. If you want to empower your libido while feeling the sharp hooks of a catchy chorus, hit play and never look back. Closer by Nine Inch Nails may go down as one of the sexiest singles in history, but Bodysnatcher is hot on its lascivious heels.

The official video for Bodysnatcher is now available to stream on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Dark pop royalty, HVIRESS, cordially invite you to bite into their latest baroque single, Golden Apple

Posted on 19 February 2022

With the baroquely orchestral strings against the cinematically dark electro elements and HVIRESS bringing just as much alchemy to the mix vocally with their gothy occultist harmonies, Golden Apple is a bewitching triumph of a single from the dark pop duo.

If Emilie Autumn broke out of her Victorian anachronistic bubble and entered the realm of demure pop, the results would be equally as indulgent as the darkly imaginative single that also plays with tribal and apocalyptic themes.

You can watch the equally as artistic and obscure Lolita-style music video that premiered on February 11th for yourselves by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Sciarra has released her hauntingly profound cinematic single, Dancing in the Dark.

Posted on 5 October 2021

Dancing in the Dark is the latest cinematic pop single from Sciarra, an artist quickly becoming renowned for her velvet soft vocals, ethereal melodies and dramatic art-pop edge.

Her love for a cinematic sonic palette transpired from her time writing TV and Film music. Her experience truly shines through in Dancing in the Dark, which pulls you in by the sheer artistry and her ability to pull on your heartstrings until they’re as raw as the sentiments explored in her deeply conceptual tracks.

Dancing in the Dark was written post-lockdown, shortly after she lost her mum to cancer and she was diagnosed with skin cancer. After overcoming it, she was left to contend with her grief; music became an avenue of reprieve and Dancing in the Dark was born. The airwaves are infinitely richer for it. We can only hope that there are plenty more emotionally iron-wrought singles in the pipeline.

All proceeds from the single will be donated to the American Cancer Society.

Dancing in the Dark is now available to stream on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Lauren Nikohl brings the ‘Energy’ with her latest synth-pop hit

Posted on 24 September 2021

Indie pop singer-songwriter Lauren Nikohl has released her most commanding synth-pop single to date with ‘Energy‘, which carries the soul of disco and the cold cutting atmosphere of darkwave electronica. It’s an alchemic fusion of creatively contrasting tones, textures and emotions that brings exactly what it says on the tin.

The LA & Minneapolis-based artist has made waves with her introspectively deep lyrics and robust vocal timbre that will be a hit with any progressive pop fan. With a debut album in the works, there has never been a better time to find a spot on your radar for Lauren Nikohl, who has exactly what it takes to reach the same heights as Empathy Test, Mesh, and VNV Nation.

Energy officially released on September 24th; you can check it out for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Post-Punk Goes Pop Niels Bacher – Insecure

Posted on 25 August 2021

Niels Bacher’s latest single, Insecure, exposes his boldly vulnerable songwriting style at its finest. His preceding single, Too Sick to Love, set the bar high; with Insecure, he created a melancholic plateau far above it.

After nods to the Verve in the prelude, the alt-electro pop hit transgresses into an electrifying synth-driven post-punk track with trip-hop beats and Niels Bacher pouring his heart out into clever vocal hooks around the fiery melodies that gear up to the same frenetic momentum that you would find on a Poison Ivy record.

You’d be seriously hard-pressed to find a more honest lyricist; Niels Bacher succeeds not just in exploring a fraught, often stigmatised, emotion and leaving no proverbial stone unturned in Insecure. He also succeeds in creating a sonic experience so chilling that those deliverances of bitter truths hit with maximum evocative impact.

Insecure is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mak London has released her ensnaringly witchy sophomore single, ‘Cut Ya Clean’.

Posted on 6 July 2021

Dark, witchy, and edgy are just a few of the adjectives that first come to mind when listening to Mak London’s sophomore single, Cut Ya Clean. But it is so much more than your average brooding-pop-princess track, which we’ve heard so many times since Eilish declared herself as ‘the bad guy’.

Cut Ya Clean is an artfully decadent track; full of lavish authenticity that will undoubtedly see the Calgary-based singer-songwriter go far on her path to alt-pop royalty. The starkest reminiscences in the soundscape are the ones that bring Lewis Carroll’s The Queen of Hearts to mind.

Cut Ya Clean officially released on July 2nd; you can check it out for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

For more info, head over to her website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Aspen Sawyer has released her apocalyptic love song, ‘When the World is Ending’

Posted on 3 June 2021

Tucson, AZ-hailing pop artist Aspen Sawyer has been pulling the light out of her dark experiences since she made her debut in 2019 with her single, Self-Love. After experiencing serial abuse and homelessness as a teenager and young adult, Sawyer seeks to inspire her listeners by proving past trauma doesn’t need to hold you back or define you.

Her latest single, When the World is Ending, is an intoxicating feat of darkwave electropop that asks the very relatable question, will you still love me when the world is ending? With apocalyptic thought never far from our synapses these days, When the World is Ending is a powerful release that reflects the paradigm shift that love has taken during the pandemic.

When the World is Ending is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

LA indie darkwave duo Darkplay have released their latest single ‘Only You’

Posted on 28 March 2021

Ahead of their forthcoming album, LA indie darkwave duo, Darkplay unleashed their entrancingly atmospheric synthpop single, ‘Only You’ which takes the listener on a trip to the murky depths of 80s post-punk while never sacrificing the melodic gravity of the single.

With a similar revivalist nature to bands such as Spector, Darkplay succeeded in teasing nostalgia while putting a brand-new spin of a familiar sound. Each crescendo comes laden in reverb for the ultimate psychotropic effect, and to sweeten the track, the perfect balance of light affability and dark despondency was found. Just imagine what it would sound like if Joy Division and the Human League had an aural lovechild.

Only You can be heard on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

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