Encephalon - Psychogenesis 2CD

Encephalon - Psychogenesis (Infinity Edition) 2CD
2015 Dependent

I've had all sorts of troubles with this release. First off, I did get my Infinity Edition box almost on release day, but it was one CD short. I got the bonus CD and a couple of postcards (why are we getting postcards in almost all limited releases nowadays? It's not like there's a specific use for them, is it? Am I going to write to my mum from Ibiza on an Encephalon postcard?). The actual "Psychogenesis" CD arrived a week later. I had then listen quite a lot to the bonus CD, and I liked it a lot. The hype was on! These circumstances made the original CD a big let down. It seems that all the good songs were already on the bonus CD, and the actual album contained all the fillers... I hope my opinion will change, giving this album a bit more time.

Neuroticfish - A Sign Of Life

Neuroticfish - A Sign Of Life
(2015) Non Ordinary Records

A real gem, this, the first album in ten years from futurepop stars Neuroticfish. Non Ordinary Records is a fitting label name. This record is both a brilliant comeback album as well as 15-tracker without obvious fillers. If you like the lighter side of futurepop this album is a must. One of the best releaseses of 2015! EBM is not dead!

Ghost Dance ‎- Stop The World

Ghost Dance ‎- Stop The World 2CD
(1989/2013) Cherry Red

I wasn't aware of this fabolous re-release of my favourite Sisters Of Mercy spin-off project. It's basically the 1989 CD plus a second CD collecting the b-sides and single versions of the songs released in 1989. There's still no CD release of the 1987 "A Word To The Wise" EP that I'm aware of. Where do I send my complaints?

Near Earth Orbit - End Of All Existence

Near Earth Orbit - End Of All Existence
(2015) Solar Lodge

Near Earth Orbit, or NEO, is a brand new collaboration between Artaud from Merciful Nuns and Ashley from Whispers In The Shadow. I don't think this first NEO CD is anywhere near the musical quality of Merciful Nuns nor Aeon Sable, but it's an interesting project! The background story is something about radio-transmissions from the year 2034, warning us about the end of all existence. I think the album is supposed to be a (fake?) soundtrack to a movie. We'll have to see about that. Atmospheric goth rock with a strange theme and uninspired musical ideas. At least I got a t-shirt!

The Montecristos - Born To Rock 'n' Roll

The Montecristos - Born To Rock 'n' Roll
(2015) Easy Action

I Kickstarted this album as soon as I heared about it. A kinda 50's rockabilly & rock'n'roll album by Neal X of Sigue Sigue Sputnik, what could go wrong? Nothing! There's a lot of covers on the album, and that's not really a big surprise. What's more surprising is the fact that they've included two of Sigue Sigue Sputnik's best songs, "Love Missile F1-11" and "Jayne Mansfield", and actually improved them.
Great stuff!

Frozen Plasma ‎- Dekadenz

Frozen Plasma ‎- Dekadenz
(2015) Infacted

I've waited for this album since the autumn of 2013, when the "Herz" single was released. Then, almost a year later, there were another teaser single, "Crazy". I'm sorry to say that I'm a bit disappointed by this new album. But I'm usually sceptical to new Frozen Plasma songs. I'll be waiting for some more remixes to be released and showing the true potential of the songs.

VA - Dependence 2015

VA - Dependence 2015
(2015) Dependent

A new sampler CD from Dependent records is one of my personal highlights each year. It's been two years since the last Dependence CD and three years since Septic X was released. As usual with the Dependence series, there's a lot of unreleased or exclusive tracks from the Dependent roster on this CD. The stand-out tracks for me are the new Encephalon and Edge Of Dawn songs plus, of course, the Pride And Fall Immortal-cover "Norden On Fire". There's not a bad song here. All top notch Dependent quality!