Electronic and dance music are in a great place right now. DJs and producers are increasingly more eclectic and not afraid to incorporate their wide-ranging musical influences in their sets or productions. One of the frontrunners of this mindset is UK producer and DJ Felix Manuel, aka Djrum, who has never backed himself into a corner stylistically. On Under Tangled Silence, we see him blending folk, IDM, techno and bass music together with his own personal twists. On paper this may sound overwhelming, but Djrum weaves everything together effortlessly with live instrumentation and his signature production style. Take a track like “Let Me”, it begins with an improvised piano jam backed by bubbling synths and breakbeat drums reminiscent of classic IDM before releasing the tension at the halfway mark with an explosive jungle break where you can’t help but nod your head to the combo of percussion and subbass taking over your body. This is just one of many examples of Djrum’s extensive sonic palette on this record. I love that every song on here feels like it has its own identity and despite those differences, the album itself is cohesive in its range of influences and continuity.
“I don’t think I’d be in Skinny Puppy with Ogre if it was based on friendship – I don’t really see eye-to-eye with him all that much; he’s always been on a different plateau to me. He’s gone through his drug addiction and he’s basically put the face of the band as the face of his lyrics, turmoil and troubles, when in actuality, there’s a wide variety of opinions going on in this band.” – cEvin Key, 1992 telephone interview, Minneapolis.
While Skinny Puppy rightfully resides in the pantheon of industrial greats, the band never garnered the success or the same cultural impact as some of their peers. Indeed, Skinny Puppy’s influence, particular in their 80s and early 90s run of records, left an indelible mark on not just heavy and challenging music, but the arts in general. Unfortunately, their demise in the 90s was one of the leading factors in why the band never quite cut through the mainstream membrane, despite riding high during the impetus of the scene’s burgeoning popularity. What caused the band’s implosion in 1995 and subsequently stalled their trajectory? Well, predictably, the first reason was internal strife within the band; the second factor to consider was their unwavering tenacity in wanting to deliver something challenging and different, which ultimately made their appeal extremely limiting and niche. Ironically, as the scene was getting more mainstream attention in the early-to-mid 90s, Skinny Puppy were in the throes of making the most challenging music of their career, before…
What’s up everyone! It’s me again, doing another interview, surprise. I had the chance to sit down and talk with Alex Bacey, the guitarist of Ominous Ruin, this past week and talk about their newest album, Requiem, which came out May 9. Alex was an awesome dude to talk with, and he gave a lot of great insight into how he went about with songwriting and producing the band’s second album. If y’all haven’t checked out Ominous Ruin, definitely give Requiem a spin if you’re a fan of some fun, guitar-focused death metal. But enough about my rambling at the beginning, let’s just right into the interview. You know the drill, click below to listen to the interview, but if you don’t feel like hearing our voices, scroll down and keep reading!
Before we jump into all things Requiem, can you tell a little bit about the band, how you guys started, and how you ended up where you are today?
If you’ve been following us, you probably know it’s not a secret that we’ve been around for a while, but that’s just kind of a product of most of us have never really wanted to be like full time musicians, like full time touring musicians, and really, we care more about like the product; the product is the music more so than it is us. I’ll try to keep it kind of short. I’m technically the only original member left in the band, but our original bass player, his name…
I might still be riding the high the Daoboys provided, but we have yet another week of music ahead of us! Got a wide variety of releases this week, headlined by the MASSIVE return of the hard rock legends… Hinder (or, Skunk Anansie, whaterver you prefer). As always, please feel free to use the comment section to tell us what you’d like to see reviewed, let us know what we missed and/or wear your jams with pride.
What’s up everyone! Welcome back to another Sputnik interview! This week, I had the privilege to talk with Ryan Vail. He is currently the vocalist of Larcenia Roe and Synestia. Larcenia Roe just released their debut album Extraction on Friday, and so I was able to sit down with him on a Zoom call and talk about who Larcenia Roe is and what the album was about. He’s truly an awesome guy, and it was great hearing about his different approaches to vocals and how they influence the way he writes lyrics and vocal segments. So please, sit down, give this a deep and thorough read or listen to my lovely voice below, and show some support for Larcenia Roe. Even if you don’t want to listen to us talk, listen through the first few seconds and listen to my how professional I sound messing up Larcenia Roe’s name in literal seconds of the recording starting (I swear I’ll be better next time).
Just to get started, for people who may not know who you guys are, could you tell a little bit about the band in general and how Larcenia Roe got started?
We’re a five-piece deathcore band from Raleigh, North Carolina. None of us are actually natives of Raleigh, but this is where we all met. We’re all from different places, and somehow we all came together here in Raleigh. The band started with Henry Koster and myself. We decided to kind of put together, almost like a marketing…
Have you recovered from your trip to Arcadia yet? Good. Even on Sputnik, music never stops. This is a Daoboys, Full of Hell and Pelican type week, but we won’t stop you from indulging in some Zorn. As always, please feel free to use the comment section to tell us what you’d like to see reviewed, let us know what we missed and/or wear your jams with pride.
– List of Releases: May 16th, 2025 –
Aminé – 13 Months of Sunshine Genre: Pop Rap / Contemporary R&B Label: CLBN
Arm’s Length – There’s a Whole World Out There Genre: Emo-Pop / Emo Label: Pure Noise
Ben Frost – Under Certain Light and Atmospheric Conditions Genre: Electronic / Post-Industrial Label: Mute
Bury Tomorrow – Will You Haunt Me, With That Same Patience Genre: Melodic Metalcore Label: Music for Nations
The Callous Daoboys – I Don’t Want to See You in Heaven Genre: Mathcore / Alternative Metal Label: MNRK Heavy
Causa Sui – In Flux Genre: Psychedelic Rock / Jam Band / Stoner Rock Label: El Paraiso
Confessions of a Traitor – This Pain Will Serve You Genre: Metalcore Label: Facedown
The Dandy Warhols – Rock Remaker Genre: Alternative Rock / Neo-Psychedelia / Alternative Dance (remixed) Label: Sunset Blvd
Dead Chasm – Spectral Tyranny Genre: Death Metal / Death…
A Greek, an Aussie, a German and a Briton walked into a bar. Said the German, “LFG!”. Voilà, this month’s edition of Extreme Measures was born — this time with more Sput guests, more “makes you scream at your screen” bad takes, more words, more… everything. What will be Night’s final jams before he goes on intermittent hiatus? Who is the handsome fella photobombing our special guest? Will Tool superfan JotW be able to endure the pedestrian guitar music perfidiously thrown at him in an act of backstabbery by people he once considered decent chaps? Who is going to taste the forbidden angular-aural-abrasive-aesthetic fruits first? (Spoiler: It’s gonna be May.) Questions upon questions — let’s get digging for some home truths.
Representing Sput this month are two staffers and a fool:
NightOnDrunkMountain, lo-fi glutton
JohnnyoftheWell, Thesaurus rex
Yours truly, naked host
Oh, you’re here for our surprise guests, aren’t you? That would be…
Brendan Sloan (Convulsing) and some bearded bloke (back to front)
Hi. Did you miss Sputnik? Did you miss music? I missed Sputnik. I missed music. Where are the new artists? Not on Sputnik, at least for the moment. Look forward to the fabled one-entry Weekly post coming soon™. In the meantime, here’s new music — while supplies last.
– List of Releases: May 2nd, 2025 –
A Flock Named Murder – Incendiary Sanctum Genre: Black Metal / Post-Metal Label: Hypaethral
Anthony Naples – Scanners Genre: Tech House / Deep House Label: ANS
Bleed – Bleed Genre: Alternative Metal / Nu Metal Label: 20 Buck Spin
Blondshell – If You Asked For a Picture Genre: Indie Rock / Alternative Rock Label: Partisan
Car Seat Headrest – The Scholars Genre: Indie Rock / Rock Opera Label: Matador
Crematory – Destination Genre: Gothic Metal / Industrial Metal/ Melodic Death Metal Label: Napalm
Eli Keszler – Eli Keszler Genre: Electroacoustic / Nu Jazz / Ambient / Avant-Garde Jazz Label: LuckyMe
Enji – Sonor Genre: Vocal Jazz / Contemporary Folk / Urtiin duu Label: Squama
Esther Rose – Want Genre: Singer-Songwriter / Americana Label: New West
The Flower Kings – Love Genre: Progressive Rock / Symphonic Prog Label: InsideOut
Flume & JPEGMAFIA – We Live in a Society Genre: Future Bass / Hip Hop …
Welcome, denizens of Sputnik, to the seventeenth edition of A diagnosis from a (faux) Doctor, a series where I run through a band or artist’s albums and give a diagnosis on their work. By popular vote, the people of Sputnik wanted the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, on the analysis table, and who am I to refuse them? MJ’s contributions to music are the stuff of legend and see a lot of interesting moments throughout his career, good and.. iffy. So, shamone, let’s grab a white glove and get into this.
Band/Artist: Michael Jackson
Origins: Los Angeles, California, USA
Founded: 1971
Members: Michael Joseph Jackson
Studio albums: 12 (2 posthumous)
Active: No
Got to Be There (1972)
The Doctor’s rating: 3/5
Analysis: While this debut feels a bit Jackson 5 lite at times, Got to Be There is still a solid foundation for Michael Jackson, allowing him to get his foot in the door as a solo artist and build what would become his world-dominating success. It’s pretty staggering how good Michael sounds on this thing when you consider he was only 13/14 years old, but right out of the gate, his impressive talents ooze out of these smooth Motown numbers. Got to Be There is…
Ayup, and welcome to your weekly dose of… ok hold on, let’s address the elephant in the room here first. Provided you have an internet connection fit for the year of our lord 2025, and our server hasn’t crapped itself too badly today, you may have noticed that this page is rather long. That’s because this week we have no less than, read it and weep (I know I did), 70 releases! Mad isn’t it? I don’t want any of you complaining about a lack of good music coming out, because there’s some tasty stuff in here. Sput’s deep house cult hero Stimming has a new one out, Swedish anarcho-conformist pseudo-punks Viagra Boys seem to be going all in on dance-punk revivalism, there’s a surprise Adrianne Lenker live album to have your heart and soul broken to, late ’70s-idolizing soft rock duo Tennis are set to (softly) rock our socks off for one last time, and many, many more. As usual, post below what tickles your fancy this week – and at least something bloody well should, as I make a mental note to trim the list down next time so I’m not two days late again. ‘Til next week!
Fame is a difficult thing to manage. Done wrong, you’re on top of the world and at the bottom of a trench at the exact same time. And a lot of artists did it wrong from the 70s to the 90s. Disillusionment with the rockstar lifestyle, alienation from fans and loved ones, substance abuse, all common stories that we have heard a million times over. And, in many cases, that dissatisfaction has been poured into music. The Wall, In Utero, even Radiohead’s Kid A, to an extent, are all shining examples of that strife turned into art. But there’s one album that stands above them all in terms of its anger and jaded outlook. An album so abrasive, that when its mastermind sent it in, he apologized.
Welcome back to The Look Back, a look at the classic albums of old through modern ears. Today, we’re covering the sophomore album from industrial act Nine Inch Nails, 1994’s The Downward Spiral.
WHY IS THIS A CLASSIC?
Nine Inch Nails, in general, have always flirted with fame throughout their career. Their debut, Pretty Hate Machine, was a breakout hit that seriously helped to bring industrial into the mainstream eye. However, that album was far lighter in tone and sound, more dance-y and poppy, almost like an industrial successor to Depeche Mode. Downward Spiral, on the other hand, was unthinkably abrasive, making heavy use of…
It probably has been dark outside for a couple of hours already. I haven’t really been paying much attention to the outside conditions. Not much daylight filters through the plastic covered windows anyway. The only source of light I have is a construction lamp placed in one corner of the room and the only source of heat available is a small heating fan I’ve placed on the floor on the opposite side of the room. If the frequency with which the fan starts and the prolonged periods it stays on is anything to go by, it’s probably getting below zero (that’s Celsius for ya, you Americans) outside.
I’ve recently bought a house in the middle of nowhere, originally built in 1876 and judging by the state it’s in, that’s about the last time someone took care of it. I have taken two weeks off from work to get some things done around the house. It’s late, I’m tired and this is the last Sunday before I’m supposed to be back at work. I haven’t gotten as much done around the house these past two weeks as I initially hoped I would. But before I call it a day, I’d really like to get the roof painted in the nursery.
I decide it’s time to listen to Goldstar. I’ve been wanting to do that for the last week, but I haven’t really been in the mood for what I imagine is…
Welcome, metal afficionados, inquisitive readers and everyone in between, to the premiere of Extreme Measures, a new monthly format where Sputnik users and artists come together to take a long, hard lo-, ahem, briefly check overlooked (and some overly looked at) extreme metal and adjacent releases that came out in the previous month and offer their thoughts on select songs. This has been a long time in the making, and we’re excited to finally share our findings with you. For this first edition, some very, very special guests did themselves the honor of joining in. We hope you’ll have as much fun jamming and reading as we did crafting this. Let’s dive in.
Sput jammers (spammers?) this month:
evilford, DM hypeman extraordinaire
Yours truly, humble host
And our surprise guests for this episode are:
Vaughn, Jacob, Josh and Lille (Defeated Sanity, left to right)
– Calendar week 10 –
Innermost Intestinal Exposure by Chordoma — Josh’s pick
Easter is right around the corner, and you can finally spend your hard-earned dineros on overpriced molded chocolate to your heart’s content — we won’t judge. Alternatively, here’s some music for your consideration. Wait a second… How did all that exquisite metal get in there? Don’t give me that look! As always, please feel free to use the comment section to request reviews, let us know us what we missed, link to photos of your home-cooked rabbit stew (or plant-based equivalents) and/or tell everyone what you’re hyped for.
– List of Releases: April 18th, 2025 –
Ancient Death – Ego Dissolution Genre: Death Metal / Death Doom / Prog Label: Profound Lore
Beirut – A Study of Losses Genre: Indie Pop / Indie Folk Label: Pompeii
Charles Mingus – In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts Genre: Post-Bop / Avant-Garde Jazz Label: Resonance
Crypts of Despair – We Belong in the Grave Genre: Deathcore / Death Metal Label: Transcending Obscurity
Dormant Ordeal – Tooth and Nail Genre: Death Metal / Black Metal Label: Willowtip
Iron Lung – Adapting // Crawling Genre: Powerviolence Label: Self-released
Julien Baker & TORRES – Send a Prayer My Way Genre: Singer-Songwriter / Indie Rock Label: Matador
Karg – Marodeur Genre: Blackgaze / Atmospheric Black Metal Label: AOP
I hadn’t heard of this band until now, but definitely a strong relative new-comer to the brutal death metal…
