There's eclectic and then there's Blood Music in Finland. Since it's humble beginning in an attic in 2011, there seemingly hasn't been anything too experimental for them to get behind. Death, black, progressive metal, jazz, or avant garde, most of their roster defies typical classification. Which brings us to 2015 and three bands that once again are fresh and unique.
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Apparently synthwave is a "thing" and there is a burgeoning scene to go along with it. But what Gost seem to be doing differently is adding a horror element to its sound. Baalberith, the sole member of Gost, has a history of playing in metal bands, but was always an electronic music fan. So it comes as no small surprise that even though this isn't a metal album, Behemoth, speaks to me. It feels like a soundtrack to all those 80's horror movies I'd watch with friends at sleepovers in my youth. Throw in some evil album art and the package is complete.
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I'm a fan of Gautier Serre and the thoroughly warped, Igorrr, so I anxiously awaited this side project of his, Corpo-Mente. Featuring the lush operatic vocals of Laure Le Prunenec (Öxxö Xööx, Rïcïnn), it's much more, shall we say, "normal", than Igorrr (then again, most bands are by comparison). It's a classical journey of baroque, trip hop & acoustique. But it's also beautifully haunting and mysterious, like some twisted noir. It's by no means aggressive or in your face, but that doesn't stop it from being one hell of a piece of art.
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| Artwork by Luca F. Carey |
Yes, another synthwave band. Although Dan Terminus prefers the term cyberpunk or 'darksynth' (coined by Perturbator, another band of the genre who is also on Blood Music and you can check out here). While it firmly sits in the same genre as it's fellow labelmates, The Wrath of Code has a much more overall sci-fi feel. Think Blade Runner and an the endless amounts of old school video games. For the most part its an uptempo affair, but it does slow down to mix things up on occasion. Perfect cover art really encapsulates the sound and feel of this album.