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[Review] VNV Nation ‘Automatic’

Published

13 years ago

on

I’ve made no attempt to hide my love of VNV Nation. As much as I’m a metal head, I love some good electronica, industrial, EBM, and dark wave. So when Automatic, the new VNV album, was announced, I immediately felt my ears perk and my focus shift. After all, I’ve been listening to this group for years, so a new album is always an exciting moment. But does Automatic hold up? Check after the jump for the answer.

VNV Nation - Automatic

The album kicks off with On-Air, an eerily beautiful instrumental track layered on top of radio/TV static. Sounding like something that would come off a Silent Hill soundtrack, I was already hooked and anticipating each coming track. This paid off immediately with the next track, Space And Time, a mid-tempo track that got my feet tapping and my head bobbing along. 
The production is fantastic. The bass thumps right where it needs to while sparkling synths fill in the top end beautifully. Each song makes use of new patches, pads, and tones, making this an album that audiophiles will love. Singer Ronan Harris mixes himself in perfectly, adding echo and reverb to his voice only when needed and when it serves a purpose. 
Automatic has something for everyone when it comes to electronic and industrial. Control is a hard-hitting track that I guarantee will be remixed and blasted at Factory Monday at Club Necto (my local dance club) in no time. Then, tracks like Goodbye 20th Century or Photon are lush instrumentals, the former being more mellow while the latter is more driving. 
The Final Word: Everything you could expect and want from a VNV Nation album and more, Automatic is beautiful, violent, sublime, fierce, and never once holds back. Perfect for club music or a night at home, I’ll be listening to this album for quite a while.
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Music

“He Walks By Night” – Listen to a Brand New John Carpenter Song NOW!

Published

2 weeks ago

on

April 9, 2024

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John Carpenter music

It’s a new day, and you’ve got new John Carpenter to listen to. John Carpenter, Daniel Davies and Cody Carpenter have released the new track He Walks By Night this morning, the second single off their upcoming album Lost Themes IV: Noir, out May 3 on Sacred Bones Records.

Lost Themes IV: Noir is the latest installment in a series that sees Carpenter releasing new music for John Carpenter movies that don’t actually exist. The first Lost Themes was released in 2015, followed by Lost Themes II in 2016 and Lost Themes III: Alive After Death in 2021.

Sacred Bones previews, “It’s been a decade since John Carpenter recorded the material that would become Lost Themes, his debut album of non-film music and the opening salvo in one of Hollywood’s great second acts. Those vibrant, synth-driven songs, made in collaboration with his son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies, kickstarted a musical renaissance for the pioneering composer and director. With Lost Themes IV: Noir, they’ve struck gold again, this time mining the rich history of the film noir genre for inspiration.

“Since the first Lost Themes, John has referred to these compositions as “soundtracks for the movies in your mind.” On the fourth installment in the series, those movies are noirs. Like the film genre they were influenced by, what makes these songs “noirish” is sometimes slippery and hard to define, and not merely reducible to a collection of tropes. The scores for the great American noir pictures were largely orchestral, while the Carpenters and Davies work off a sturdy synth-and-guitar backbone.

“The trio’s free-flowing chemistry means Lost Themes IV: Noir runs like a well-oiled machine—the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster from Kiss Me Deadly, perhaps, or the 1958 Plymouth Fury from John’s own Christine. It’s a chemistry that’s helped power one of the most productive stretches of John’s creative life, and Noir proves that it’s nowhere near done yielding brilliant results.”

You can pre-save Lost Themes IV: Noir right now! And listen to the new track below…

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