We Have a Technical

We're joined by a pair of Patreon backers, Gustav of Sturm Café and Eric of Everything Goes Cold, to talk about a pair of records: the throwback, funk-inflected synthpop of Berndsen's  Planet Earth  and Babyland's electronic junk punk swan song  Cavecraft , respectively. We're also chatting about a recent show by Vancouver's own Devours.

On this week's podcast, we're talking about an everything and the kitchen sink industrial crossover record reflective of its late 90s era in Pail's Epidemic , and the now decade-old statement of arrival from Finland's Vancouver-school electro-industrial act Cardinal Noire. We're also running through the just announced line-up of this year's Terminus Festival.

Ottawa's Encephalon join the podcast for the first time in nearly a decade to discuss the Ottawa act's latest high-concept, high-def electro-industrial LP,  Automaton All Along . Alis and Matt chat with us about process, influences, and all of the various post-human and philosophical threads to be found in the record. We're also discussing the news of Mentallo & The Fixer returning to live touring...

We're breaking from the usual LP format of our commentary episodes to bring you a discussion of a label compilation, specifically the first volume of Nightbreed's infamous "Gothic Sounds" samplers. We're using tunes from the likes of Suspiria, Nekromantik, and Faithful Dawn as an opportunity to discuss the ins and outs of mid 90s UK goth, and specifically the tantalizing electrogoth sound which ha...

It's a two albums formatted podcast this week folks, and one of a decidedly industrial cast. Up first, we're talking about X-Marks The Pedwalk side-project PAX's second LP, the hi-def and ambient/techno inflected High Speed Digital Spirit Processing . Next, it's the acidic, 90s throwback dark electro of Qual's Cyber Care EP. 

It's time for a Pick Five episode, dear listener, and as luck would have it it's also time for a particular time, or at least records suited specifically to 3am (eternal). What is a 3am record? We have a few different reads on that as you'll find out, as well as some comments on Ministry and And One tour news.

It's a classic two records formatted episode of the podcast this week, folks. The first full length record from Informatik and the sole release from electro-punk supergroup Error don't have a whole lot in common sonically or aesthetically, but as we explore on this episode they're each the product of a very precise and specific set of sounds, influences, and trends which would have only been acces...

Hot on the heels of a fantastic retirement concert from Front 242, the Senior Staff are discussing the ins and outs of legacy bands' retirements. When's the right time to pack it in, and who's to say? How does a band's aesthetic or style affect their longevity? We're taking up these and other questions, as well as talking about this week's Nine Inch Nails ticket sales.

This month's commentary podcast has Bruce and Alex ripping through Cubanate's unrelenting "Cyberia", a combination of industrial guitars and contemporary electronic production that's just as furious and engaging as it was in 1994. We're talking Phil Barry's guitar technique, the holy terror of Marc Heal's voice, and how the record manages to deliver a constant stream of tight club tracks while nev...

The thorny issue of requests and how they do and don't fit into goth-industrial club formats is the subject of this week's podcast, with Alex and Bruce talking about the issues that come with 'big tent' club formats, how patrons expectations have shifted in the streaming era, and do their level best (but occasionally fail) to avoid turning into bitter middle-aged DJs griping about their lots.

The first classic, two albums formatted episode of the new year has us looking at the finely balanced ethereal darkwave of Double Echo, and the immediate and genre-hopping techno-EBM work of Alen Skanner. We're also talking Terminus, the passing of Manufacture's Brian Bothwell, and the prospect of a new NIN tour.

We're jumping into the new year with a podcast previewing forthcoming releases we expect to come in 2025 from a slew of our favourite artists: Encephalon, Spark!, Devours, and more. We're also talking about the passing of Chemlab's Dylan Thomas More, news regarding Ghost Twin and Kindest Cuts, and this year's iteration of Cold Waves. 

Our still recently minted annual tradition of the off-topic commentary is back! After records by Little Boots and GZA in previous years, we're once again wandering away from Our Thing for our final We Have A Commentary of the year. As voted on by our patrons, we're discussing an Iron Maiden record, 1986's Somewhere In Time in particular! From the band's emerging structural experimentation to its c...

As an addendum to our main roster Year End coverage, we're poking out of our Tofurkey comas to each pick five tracks from the past year which stuck with us. Separate from our records of the year and honorable mentions, these are club-joints, one-offs, or just damn catchy ditties we wanted to throw some roses at before the the ghost of Dick Clark does the countdown. We're also discussing the lineup...

Wrapping up our week of Year End coverage we have an episode of the podcast discussing some common trends and notable factors in our Top 25 records of the year, some statistical number crunching looking back at previous years' lists, and each of the Senior Staff choosing five honourable mention records from the year which didn't quite make the list. Thanks so much for checking the podcast out, whe...

Just ahead of next week's year end coverage, we're playing catch-up on this week's podcast. Four records from Black Nail Cabaret, Orange Sector, Vision Video, and Kite released over the past year which we did not formally write up or discuss but wanted to be on record about before releasing our Top 25 records of the year are taken up here.

The criteria and membership of a (entirely hypothetical) industrial hall of fame is the subject of this week's podcast. What sort of criteria would be used to evaluate a band's legacy? Who's a shoo-in? Which artists' candidacies might inspire screaming matches and bare-knuckle brawls? How might we ensure that the rivethead equivalent of Harold Baines would not end up enshrined within these (again,...

It's a down the pipe two albums episode of the podcast this week, as we discuss the cinematic body disco of Molasar and the late period dark electro/electro-industrial hybrid of Novakill's first record. We're also discussing the Cleopatra Records AI music controversy, plus announcing the Vancouver spot on the  Lana Del Rabies/God Is War tour which we're co-presenting.

The debut LP of Wax Trax sleaze peddlers extraordinaire, My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, is the subject of this month's commentary podcast. Between the duo of Buzz McCoy and Groovie Mann getting in on the 'darkened 60s psychedelia' angle years before it went mainstream, to their placement within Wax Trax and industrial music overall in the late 80s, to the more restrained (and dare we say taste...

In an episode dedicated to splitting the finest of hairs and analyzing the specific dance steps of angels on pinheads, we're each picking five micro-genres for discussion. Do they exist? Are they distinct from neighbouring styles? What can be learn or take from them? We're also discussing  Metropolis Records' recently announced charity initiative and corresponding compilation series

It's a pretty diverse two albums formatted episode this week; we're talking about the freeform, hip-hop and rock tinged EBM chaos of Scapa Flow's final LP Heads Off To Freedom and Marhseaux's big and direct 2013 electro-pop LP Inhale . 

Hey, folks. As we talk about off the top, it's both the larger global news and a much more personal tragedy that we're both wrestling with this week. We're trying not to let that effect the podcast too much, but given the themes and mood of our subject, the first new album from The Cure in sixteen years, a little bit of real life pain is going to sneak its way in. Listening to music we love and ta...

On this week's Halloween-themed episode of the podcast, we're simulating an experience that'll be familiar to all DJs: fielding requests at a Halloween party. What tracks from within and without the boundaries of Our Thing might we be happy to play? Which would be anathema to us? Which might we consider if you greased our palms or plied us with liquor? We're also discussing the passing of Winterkä...

Keeping the momentum going from last week we're sticking with a decidedly industrial pair of records to discuss from Worms Of The Earth and C-Drone Defect. We've also got reactions to the just announced line-ups of next year's Cruel World and Dark Forces festivals. 

The tar-black, mechanically thrashing blast of negativity and angst which is Red Lorry Yellow Lorry's debut LP is the subject of this week's commentary podcast. Talk About The Weather Distilled extant strains of post-punk and goth rock into one of the tightest and noisiest records of its generation, and we're looking at how it fits into the Lorries' own progression as well as the broader musical h...