COMING THIS WEEK: NEW ALBUM FROM THE ANIX: 'GRAPHITE'

PRE-ORDER/BUY IT HERE FROM JUNE 26TH

LIFE IN LOCKDOWN II - THOMAS 'DROP' BETRISEY GETS 'CONFINED'

‘I’VE STARTED A NEW PROGRESSIVE TECH
HOUSE PROJECT CALLED MESSERGEIST’

Future-Rocker talks to cyber-metaller Thomas 'Drop' Betrisey ( Obsydians / Sybreed ) about his new lockdown-inspired music project...

Thomas Betrisey has been a regular feature in Future-Rocker ever since we discovered his former band Sybreed's crushing and anthemic masterpiece 'Antares'. Since that band expired, he has been busy producing other bands, running a studio in Geneva, and performing onstage with veteran Industrial Black Metal band Samael. We caught up with Thomas during Covid-19 lockdown to find out what he was up to.

FUTURE-ROCKER: Thomas, what are you doing during lockdown? Chilling, or working on new music? Any new tracks we can include in the blog?

THOMAS ‘DROP’ BETRISEY: I've been writing lot of music, I've started a new progressive tech house project called Messergeist, and released the Confined EP on May 1st on every streaming platform as well as Bandcamp. And Messergeist is only electronic, no guitar there..!

It's beautifully cinematic..!

Thanks! 

What would be your dream movie, franchise or remake, to score?

The first title that comes to mind would be doing an electronic/dub remake of Monkey Island's soundtrack haha, my favorite game of all time. Seriously, I really think all the movies or games that I like have a perfect soundtrack, and I'd prefer working on something new. Anyway, scoring a game or a movie is definitely something I'm looking for, we will see what happen in the future.

In a previous interview we talked about your fave metal albums. What are your favourite or most influential electronic albums or soundtrack albums?

Five albums that immediately come to mind, and not in a particular order:

Front Line Assembly "Implode"

NIN "The Fragile"

Hans Zimmer "Man Of Steel"

Infected Mushroom "Becoming Insane"

Boris Brejcha "Space Diver"

I absolutely agree with you about Man of Steel. Hans Zimmer is less bombastic than John Williams, but more atmospheric. That was the first film soundtrack I’d bought in ages, and I also bundled it with Batman v Superman as well. Some great cuts on there, too.

Incidentally, the Messergeist track Gloomwash has some nice spooky female vocals on, and it reminds me of a video that blew my mind yesterday - Triptykon doing Celtic Frost’s Rex Irae from Into The Pandemonium...they did it absolutely spot-on. Have you heard it?

Ah yeah, I listened to it yesterday, sounds great! Roadburn concerts are always kinda special!

In Google translate, Messergeist comes out as 'Knife Spirit'. Or I'm assuming it's more like 'Knife Ghost'... is that closer? What's the thinking behind that?

I was browsing some names for that project, looking for some two-words compression word, when GhostKnife popped out my mind, sounded really sharp. Then, one night, a friend just translated that in German, sounded really cool and very "techno" haha. Moreover, it wasn't existing anywhere on Internet, so the choice was made. No special meaning here.

So what else have you been working on?

I've also worked on some Obsydians, one song is at the mixing stage, and the other one is getting vocals on it as we speak.

ABOVE: Kevin, Thomas and Ales of OBSYDIANS

Great, some new Obsydians music to look forward to, it's been a while. Where are you living right now, are they strict or loose with the lockdown?

I'm in Switzerland. We had a half lock down, people were allowed to go outside, respecting social distances as well as not groups of more than 5 people. Now they are slowly releasing the people, everything should get back to "normal" in one week.

When lockdown is over, what do you want to do first?

Actually not much different things, I will continue writing music and recording bands at the studio. I really hope to be able to make some concerts as soon as possible, I miss that a lot. And probably spend some money in my friend's pub as soon as it opens. 

Are you still with Samael or are your contracted duties with them now finished?

Yeah I'm still in Samael, guitar duties now..!

'Guitar duties'... that's more like it! And what about the possibility of you taking over the producer’s chair too?

Haha, Xy is the mastermind! Don't know if I'll produce, but I hope so.

SYBREED: 'YES, WE ARE ON GOOD TERMS'

SYBREED / OBSYDIANS / SHADOW DOMAIN  are some of the most-read articles on Future-Rocker. There's a great picture of you and ( ex-Sybreed vocalist ) Benjamin Nominet from last summer, on Facebook. I know this is a totally obvious thing to ask, but the fans will kill me if I don't: You are clearly on friendly terms with each other... did you chat about doing a music project or perhaps even a proper Sybreed reunion?

Below: For one night only!

Thomas & Benjamin reunite half of Sybreed...for a cold beer!

Photographed in June 2019.

Yes, we are on good terms, we are doing a few music things together but nothing Sybreed-related for now. I've recorded him last week as a guest on the new The Erkonauts record that I'm producing right now, and it reminded me of some great memories. I will also work on his new project, I won't say much for now, won't reveal his new plans yet, keep looking, haha.

Thanks Thomas, good luck with the new projects, and stay safe!

Cheers, man!

LISTEN & BUY THE 'CONFINED EP' HERE:

FOR EXCELLENT MUSIC AND STUDIO UPDATES, THOMAS ON FACEBOOK

OBSYDIANS ON FACEBOOK

MESSERGEIST ON FACEBOOK

WANT THOMAS TO TAKE YOUR BAND TO THE NEXT LEVEL? LINK TO DOWNTONE STUDIO

PREVIEWING SCANDROID'S FORTHCOMING 2-ALBUM CYCLE

LATEST NEWS FROM FIXT

FROM THE PRESS RELEASE: The highly anticipated follow-up to Scandroid’s first two albums is here! The Darkness is Scandroid like you’ve never heard him before, as the artist unleashes his dark side across six brand new tracks. Never content to rest on what he’s already accomplished, Klayton, the mastermind behind the project, has driven his music into uncharted territory on The Darkness and given every song its own distinctive identity. From the old school heavy metal riffs of "Phoenix" to the ominous cybersynth tone of "Red Planet" and "Out of the Darkness," each entry will pull you deeper into Scandroid’s darkly cybernetic world.

In addition to the six original tracks, Scandroid has packed The Darkness with electrifying remixes from some of the most talented and innovative artists in and around synthwave today. Even better, this new release is just the start of Scandroid’s latest creative opus, The Darkness and The Light. Fans will be able to immerse themselves in the second half, The Light, in 2019, with a complete full-length release to follow.

The journey through The Darkness and The Light begins right here.  

READY PLAYER ONE : TRAILER #2 / PLUS MUSIC VIDS!

We're not going to laboriously list all the pop-culture references in this trailer - Ernest Cline's book ( which we know you've read ), did that already. Instead, let's start to enjoy the music that will no doubt contribute to a hugely successful soundtrack album. Scroll down for vids from Depeche Mode, Van Halen and Rush, and also two of the more intriguing paperback cover designs from the book's foreign publishers.

Above: The Israeli paperback edition of READY PLAYER ONE.

...and from the first trailer...Rush!

Above: The French paperback edition of READY PLAYER ONE.

DIRECTED BY SETH ICKERMAN : RETRO-STYLED SYNTH ROCK FROM CARPENTER BRUT

Exactly one year ago FUTURE-ROCKER featured this mind-blowing music video from the French promo whiz-kids known collectively as SETH ICKERMAN. Here, we re-present it to you in case you missed it first time around. Then, below, you will see them talking about fundraising for their new project entitled BLOOD MACHINES / TURBO KILLER 2.

( Apologies for not being able to show the no-ads VIMEO version, will post at a later date if terms and conditions change ).

CAN'T GET ENOUGH? WATCH THE CLIP BELOW AND THEN CONTRIBUTE TO THEIR NEXT COLLABORATION VIA KICKSTARTER!



CLICK HERE FOR THE SETH ICKERMAN & CARPENTER BRUT KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN!

SETH ICKERMAN STUDIO WEBSITE

SETH ICKERMAN ON TWITTER

NEW SCANDROID ALBUM IMMINENT!

The greatest 80s Synth-Rock band that never existed is about to release its debut album!

One of the many brainchildren of production mastermind Klayton ( who is also Circle of Dust, Argyle Park and of course, the legendary Celldweller ), Scandroid are the spiritual gene-splice of New Romantic pop stars Duran Duran and William Gibson's Neuromancer.

The album features 15 tracks of ridiculously catchy cyber-rock, ideal for those late nights when you've got Near Dark, Bladerunner or Akira on subtitles and you want a more rockin' soundtrack to go with the visuals.




''The debut, self-titled Scandroid album features 15 tracks, ranging from the driving instrumental energy of "Destination Unknown," to melodic vocal tracks like "Awakening With You," "Aphelion," and "Neo-Tokyo," rounded out with the cinematic epics "2517" & "Singularity." As a child of the 80's, Klayton has also included a cover of the classic Tears For Fears song "Shout," that he has been patiently waiting to cover since he first heard the song on U.S. radio in 1985. The digital album concludes with a bonus remix from synthwave artist Waveshaper. The 72 minute album depicts themes of a cyberpunk future where humans and sentient robots struggle to find a connection in their dystopian world.''

The album is out on November 11th, with an early-bird release the day before, via the label website ( see below ).

'THE ULTIMATE IN RETRO-TECH'

Yes, for Eighties completists, you can also experience the album via the extremely convenient cassette format!

Available as a strictly limited edition.

This and many other collectables are available at FIXTSTORE.

ELECTRIC DREAMER: SOUNDTRACK TO A FUTURE PAST WITH CODE ELEKTRO!

William Gibson's short story 'The Gernsback Continuum' brilliantly encapsulated what has become common currency in the realm of science fiction and the popular imagination: The idea of a 'future that didn't happen'. In that instance, it recalled the 'art deco futuroids' of a 1920s/30s-envisioned future, like the ones written about in pulp mags such as Thrilling Wonder Stories and Astounding Tales. 

Gibson was again ahead of the curve, because now that we are actually living in a science fiction future, for those creatives who find their own milieu just a tad too dull, they can use their talents to evoke these more romantic 'lost' visions, either in books, films, and more recently, music. Possibly the exemplar of this would be film director Panos Cosmatos ( interviewed here in this blog a while back ), as his visually-stunning film Beyond The Black Rainbow not only looked like a straight-to-VHS sci-fi chiller, but utilized the Sinoia Caves soundtrack to force the effect of a temporal dislocation upon the bewildered viewer.

Alongside Sinoia Caves, other artists such as Pilotpriest, and even the film director and synth maestro John Carpenter himself, have released quasi-soundtrack albums of neon-soaked, rainy eighties fantasias. 
So, with this concept now firmly entrenched in pop culture, Future-Rocker talks to Danish newcomer, Martin Ahm Nielsen - aka CODE ELEKTRO - about his music, and the need to go 'back to the future'. We also debut Cyber Dreams, his stunning promo video, too.

So Martin, who - or what - is 'Code Elektro'..?

Code Elektro is my electronica “band” where I’m the only member. The genre is a mix of synthwave and modern electronica. This year I've released my first album with ten tracks on vinyl, download and stream. The title is Superstrings. And it has been really well received. I didn’t know what to expect before the release, because I started from absolutely nothing. But the reviews have been great – and people from all over the world tell me they like it.

How would you describe your music - futuristic or retro-futuristic?

I would say mainly futuristic. There’s some retro elements, but for the main part, I try to create music that sounds like it’s new. However, I love the synthwave scene and I think there’s a lot of talented artists out there – and it’s great to see how it’s slowly getting more and more attention.

Clearly, your music is very cinematic - do you have visuals in your head when you compose?

Yes. I do that a lot. I find that having a movie or a certain atmosphere in my head can help me create. And I think that you can hear that in my music.

What instruments / technology do you use?

My main digital audio workstation is Cubase Pro 8 on the Mac. It’s the program you record in on your computer, similar to Garage Band and Protools. And for plugins I use U-he, Omnisphere, Retrologue, Padshop, Kontakt, TAL-U-NO-LX and all the synths from Arturia. I also have a few hardware synths – I used the Moog Sub Phatty the most.

What are your favourite albums, books or movies? From your music I can detect certain reference points. 

If I did an all-round science fiction Top 5 list it would be something like this:

1.    The Incal (Jodorowsky/Moebius)

2.    Blade Runner / Vangelis

3.    The Matrix (the first one)

4.    TRON: Legacy / Daft Punk

5.    Neuromancer (William Gibson)

Honorary mentions would have to go to John Carpenter, Alien, Terminator 1+2, Moon, The 5^th Element, Stargate, Philip K Dick, TRON, Starship Troopers, The Cyann Saga, Trent Reznor, Jean Michel Jarre, Deus Ex and many more...

So, given all those influences, what movie would you love to do the soundtrack to?

Blade Runner and TRON: Legacy have fantastic scores – and I would love to have worked on them. But they're awesome because of Vangelis and Daft Punk…and I think they did a great job because they are who they are. Also the movie Beyond the Black Rainbow has an incredible synth score. And of course ( Swedish martial arts and eighties homage movie ) Kung Fury!

What do you see Code Elektro doing in the future? Concerts, movie scores, CD releases..?

Right now there’s a lot of work in promoting the album and the new music video…also I’m sending out vinyl all the time! Which is great fun…but yes…there’s a few new plans taking form. Too early to say more about it..!

Sounds interesting! Until then, check out CODE ELEKTRO's beautiful new promo video:

Web: www.codeelektro.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/codeelektro

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CodeElektro

Instagram: www.instagram.com/code_elektro

SYNTH YOU'VE BEEN GONE: ANTHONY SCOTT BURNS - PILOTPRIEST

Anthony is a movie director ( see his work with TENDRIL, in the recent MONOBLOG, and our BONUS FEATURE, below ), as well as an accomplished musician, and as you may have gathered, since childhood he has been immersed in the polished-chrome ambience of 1980's films and soundtracks.

His beautiful debut album PILOTPRIEST - ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK is available to buy now, and is due out on vinyl shortly. You can hear the whole album on FUTURE-ROCKER right here, while we chat with Anthony:

- How long have you been playing? Has the synth always been your instrument?

I’ve been playing for 20 years. I play drums, bass, guitar,and keys. I started with synth. 

I’ve always been into this sound ever since I was 5. I loved the way it was so odd, yet popular. I have been writing this style since I started... I’m lucky it came back into style.

- Explain the titles - you wrote all the music, so they're not cover versions. Did you watch the films first, then write the music?

I just titled the tracks based on the film from my childhood that the song made me feel the most. ( Cont'd ).

/////////////////

PILOTPRIEST - TOP THREES

ALBUMS 

3. Lou Reed – Transformer

2. Jeff Wayne – War Of The Worlds

1. Michael Jackson – Thriller

SOUNDTRACKS

3. Repo Man – Various

2. The Thing – Ennio Morricone

1. Bladerunner – Vangelis

/////////////////

- Any scoops on the collaboration with artist / designer Ash Thorp?

We are developing numerous films right now... All different types of genre stories. We are really trying to bring back the realism of character, that was in stories put to film before the studios got scared of new untested ideas.

- Apart from that, what's next from you?

I’m always working on new music, and I’m trying to develop the next album as an oculus rift experience [ - meaning a head-mounted, high-field-of-view virtual reality device ].

I'm mostly focusing on directing... This month I’m directing an episode of a new horror anthology series.

Pilotpriest - Bodydouble (Phace Remix) / Neodigital 001