Lyle Hysen talks about his current band The Royal Arctic Institute, working with Arthur Lee of Love, the decline of the Hoboken music scene and career in music licensing. Having initially played noisy rock with The Misguided and Das Damen, drummer Lyle Hysen has strived to challenge himself by adopting a more low-key playing style … Read more
Crisis Actor may be the debut album from Florida-based indie rock band Sandman Sleeps, but it represents a musical history that spans more than a decade. Sisters singer/guitarist Cristina Peck and bassist Alex Peck initially formed the group in 2009 and reconvened with a new passion in 2019. They made Sandman Sleeps a proper four-piece … Read more
Since 2001, Dawn of Ashes has been fusing metal with dark electronic music into a unique, constantly evolving sound. The latest Dawn of Ashes release, Scars of the Broken, represents one of the most emotionally difficult albums frontman Kristof Bathory has made. In an email interview, Bathory discussed the band and the new release. I’ve … Read more
Having released her debut EP, Eternity, in 2020, LA-based artist YAZ is back with her first full-length album, Inferno (out 2/18). Inspired by Dante Alighieri’s Inferno, from the Divine Comedy, the project is “an exploration of the idea of sin, and a rallying cry against the demonization of women and empowered female sexuality that is … Read more
Having played multiple instruments since childhood and drummed with bands, in 2016 Rona Rougeheart launched her own dark electronic/rock project, SINE. Now signed to Austin-based label eMERGENCY heARTS, SINE has released Desire, Denial and Paramania, an 11-track collection of select material from the previous INSOMNIÆ and Injected albums. The album features collaborations with Curse Mackey … Read more
Best known for his work as part of Front Line Assembly and Delerium, Rhys Fulber has in recent years put out dark, techno-based music under his own name. His most recent album, Brutal Nature, was heavily shaped by the pandemic leaving him with more time to focus but access to less equipment with which to … Read more
Comprised of Alexander Hacke (Einsturzende Neubauten) and Danielle de Picciotto (Crime & The City Solution, co-founder of the Berlin Love Parade), hackedepicciotto have generally followed a nomadic lifestyle and created music wherever they happened to be. But with COVID-19 keeping them in Berlin, they made the best of the situation and took a different approach … Read more
Having worked together previously in a cover band, bassist MJ Phoenix and vocalist Stephanie Stryker used downtime during the pandemic to launch their own original dark rock band, Amulet. Their debut album, House of Black + White, showcases a tightly arranged bass-driven sound with strong melodic parts and powerful vocals. In an email interview, the … Read more
Atlanta’s Flood Twin is a trio creating dark, visceral post-punk music that draws power from minimalism. Fronted and produced by bassist/vocalist Grant W. Curry (Pleasure Club), the group recently released their self-titled debut album. Curry formed Flood Twin after relocating from Louisiana, initially collaborating with guitarist J. Leslie Hedberg and then bringing in drummer Sterling. … Read more
DARK MARK vs. SKELETON JOE is a new experimental electronic project from Mark Lanegan (Screaming Trees) and Joe Cardamone (The Icarus Line). Their newly-released self-titled album clocks in at over an hour and presents a pretty varied selection of tracks. Some are driven by dance beats and have a somewhat industrial edge, while others are … Read more