Niki N. Phaser

           Ladytron are one of those bands that seem to engage in a world of their own, that have such a well-defined sound that it’s impossible for their music to ever be outdated. Sure, we can call them synthpop or new wave or synth punk or whatever, but we all (those familiar with the band) know that labeling them is nothing but a convention. Any of Ladytron’s albums could testify for that, but I have to admit that Witching Hour has something slightly more mythical to it, maybe because you can find the band’s best stuff on it. Destroy Everything You Touch is, of course, the first to come to mind, but you can’t leave out Beauty *2 or the eerie good mood of White Light Generator.

             International Dateline has an unique sense of immediacy, while being as melancholic as lovers saying goodbye in the wintertime. The punkish beat will make you expect someone singing “Here comes Johnny, he’s gonna do another striptease”, but that’s just one of Ladytron’s area of expertise: raw energy administrated through delicate means. This track will make you think of endings, but endings you don’t want to end. Facing the silence at the end of these four minutes is always desolating.

LET’S END IT HERE

             Massive Attack are continuing the proccess of unleashing their new album Heligoland. The latest step is the video for Paradise Circus, a track which features vocals by Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star fame. The song feels a lot like a departure for the trip hop masters, sounding quite minimal and classic, except for the claps-filled beat. Nevertheless, it’s tragic cross-bearing aura will take its toll on the listener. It certainly creates an unique product, when combined with the video, which is comprised of an interview of former porn star, Georgina Spelvin, as well as uncensored scenes of her most well-known movie, The Devil in Miss Jones. It is an interesting and original work and it’ll be no wonder if more bands start digging up aging porn stars from the 70′s for their videos. On the other hand, this lady does come off as some kind of tragic figure, philosophizing about making ‘fuck movies’ and concluding that “We are our own devils”. After all, these are just some porn scenes in slow-motion. But, maybe, this one is NOT for over analyzing. If you are +18, see for yourself:

PARADISE CIRCUS

Depeche Mode are greeting the holiday season with two new singles released as a Double A side. The two songs in question are Hole to Feed and Fragile Tension, lifted from their spring-born album, Sounds of the Universe. The single will be released on December 7th and the full tracklisting includes an impressive batch of remixes, not just of the two songs, but also of previous single, Peace, and of other tracks from the new album (Come Home and Perfect).

There is also a video to help promote, but only Hole to Feed, unfortunately. In more than one way, Fragile Tension would have deserved the extra attention. On the other hand, the strange video for the aforementioned song doesn’t really do it justice,  Eric Wareheim’s vision, while bound to spark some reaction, being a bit too… 90′s in its attention craving direction. The band members are not in the video, but we all got used to that by now.

This is the second single in the history of Depeche Mode to be written by singer Dave Gahan and collaborators, Christian Eigner and Andrew Phillpott and one of the three songs authored by the trio to feature on Sounds of the Universe. Depeche Mode are currently continuing their seemingly ill-fated  Tour of the Universe, marked by a number of cancellations caused by Gahan’s health problems: doctor’s orders for vocal rest, a leg injury and gastroenteritis in the tour’s debut days. It seems that despite his… devotion, the universe is not on his side…

UPDATE: Depeche Mode have indeed released a video for the other single involved, Fragile Tension, on November 20.

HOLE TO FEED video                     FRAGILE TENSION video