Waterflower : HONESTY : 7.5 out of 10
If this project doesn’t coin the term PLANTDUSTRIAL to describe their music then they’re gonna disappoint me. A quick little explanation of the project is that they use the electrical impulses of plants and mushrooms and translate them into a fusion of digital hardcore, glitch, and industrial mechanics. Like most projects there’s a deeper meaning behind it all including critiquing capitalism, exploitation, self-commodification, and so much more. But the music, at least this debut single, is pretty damned good too. Noisy industrial techno with big beats and gritty vox. The noise within, as scratchy and high-pitched as it gets, is mixed nice enough that it doesn’t bog down the experience but adds to it. I’m interested to see where the project goes next. But this is a good start. Music video below; find them on Spotify and all that.
Anthony Baldino : For Death to Come : 9 out of 10
When I was reading through the press release for this dude I was almost certain that he wasn’t going to be featured on the site; works for film such as The Odyssey and Wakanda Forever and remixes for Travis Scott and the Weeknd. An impressive resume but nothing that would be found on the site. But that changed when I gave his most recent single a listen; I was sent into a beautifully crafted and submerged world of cinematic IDM, glitchy atmospheres, and something that sounds like it could be the soundtrack to the next great sci-fi movie a la Blade Runner 2049 or Dune. Goosebumps is what this single gave me. Now I’m anticipating his full-length album when that releases in September.
Leda Inferi : Selene : 8 out of 10
I see hate for the algorithm a LOT and I understand that. On one side it’s infuriating seeing a bunch of content you could care less for. On the other, it’s been helping me discover a bunch of bands I might not have otherwise discovered on my own. Case in point we have Leda Inferi, a Sicilian pagan artist exploring Mediterranean deities and cults through ritualistic latin chants and ambient music. Her debut single Selene just released and it combines all that wonderfully. Great voice, great music, minimalistic to a point, well done. A bit too long, maybe, coulda probably been four-minutes and had the same effect, but I love it nonetheless. Direct support via Bandcamp and can be streamed on Spotify.
GODFLESH : Decay : 8.5 out of 10
There are times where I feel like I’m not qualified to be writing about a band and in this instance that band is GODFLESH. A revered and worshipped industrial metal project for all that they’ve given to the industrial scene at large, but one that I haven’t quite dipped my toes into. Better late than never, right? Right. Although some elitists would be having a shit-fit-and-a-half about that right about now. ANYWAY. Living/Ending is the first single off of their forthcoming (final?) album Decay. And it has everything that you’d be expecting from a Godflesh single; heavy guitars, bitterly crunchy kick drums, and heavy metal grunts that will probably fuel my next workout. Full album is out September 25th so be prepared for that.
