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Athens-based dark electronic/minimal synth duo Incirrina take the idea of self-reinvention out of the seminar room and drag it into the club with Mutate, where identity gets rewritten the proper way: through movement, nerve, costume, chemistry, and the sudden blessed shock of seeing yourself from a new angle.

What the duo are after here is plain in the best sense. Mutate is “the celebration of self expression, the overcoming of conformity, the playful search of personal and social identity.” Sure, those are some big stakes, but the song opens like a dare thrown across the dance floor and carries them with real force instead of puffed-up importance. The beat has that lean, nocturnal drive that minimal synth does so well, while the arrangement keeps tightening and opening like a body trying out fresh language. There is pleasure in it, some bite too, and the whole thing gives off the charge of a person trying on a truer self and liking the fit.

Self-construction is never some sterile philosophical exercise. It is social. It is physical. It happens in public sometimes, under lights, among strangers and future friends, with the old codes still barking from the curb. Incirina’s description of the track gets to the heart of it: “A night out becomes the occasion to explore one’s own individuality and uniqueness. There is no pretentious humility, just raw energy on the dance floor. Revelation: we have the right to reconstruct ourselves and also to choose our peers. Transformation and self confirmation is a reality.”

Directed by Alexis Falantas and Fani Maria Chatzi, the video for Mutate keeps the concept clean and sharp. “The protagonist is presented with a choice: holding on to familiarity or indulging his curiosity, opening a door to self-rediscovery. From idly letting days pass by to letting go.”

Beautifully simple, and smart enough to leave room for the viewer’s own history to creep in. A door opens, a life tilts, and suddenly habit looks like a bad landlord.

Watch the video for “Mutate” below:

Together with the single, Incirrina have put their third album Trace up for preorder, and if Mutate points the way forward, then they are making a record about change from the standpoint of hard-earned wisdom. “We celebrate diversity, we work together,” they say. “Not artists but against the odds, artisans and friends. We make music, we share it and reinvent ourselves.”

That’s the spirit, and here it comes with style, muscle, and a little midnight magic.

The album, out 29 May, will be available in two LP versions (black and crystal clear), on CD, a limited cassette and in digital format. Listen to Trace below and pre-order the album here.

Catch Incirrina live:

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The post “Erupt, Transform, Amaze!” — Athens Dark Synth Duo Incirrina Ignite the Self in Video for “Mutate” appeared first on Post-Punk.com.

Every Single Muscle is the latest dispatch from the prolific and energetic Welsh duo the Bug Club. We heard about it last month when they released lead single “Watching The Omnibus,” and we’re hearing about it again today. There’s another Bug Club single, you see, one that finds them raucously rocking out and harmonizing like…

The post The Bug Club – “Yours (If You Want Me)” appeared first on Stereogum.

Fans of the Alan Parsons Project are getting a wealth of solid audiophile-friendly half-speed sounds and a few extra goodies on the 2026 reissues of three of the band’s most popular albums — The Turn Of A Friendly Card (1980), Eye In The Sky (1982) and Ammonia Avenue (1984).

The Turn Of A Friendly Card is a concept album based on themes of gambling and risk. Across the 10 songs of the original release, we get lead vocalists Chris Rainbow, Lenny Zakatek, Elmer Gantry, with session musicians, guitarists Ian Bairnson and David Paton, and drummer Stuart Elliott. Plus, Alan Parson’s project partner, vocalist and keyboardist Eric Woolfson.

After an anthemic keyboard opening, the disco beat of “May Be A Nice Game To Play,” turns the cards here face up to start the proceedings. The unmistakable arpeggiating keys of “Games People Play,” and another solid beat follows for that hit. Then what is my most favorite of all APP songs: the hit ballad “Time,” sung with perfect breathy aplomb by Woolfson. Two parts of the part-part title-track suite provides a nice palette cleaner to the pop and semi-dance attempts.

This expanded, remastered deluxe edition includes four bonus tracks: a rough mix of “Games People Play,” the arpeggiated keys and great opening harmonies present even in this demo, an early studio attempt at “Time,” a single edit version of “Turn Of A Friendly Card” and an early version of the song “Snake Eyes.” The 12-page booklet included here contains lyrics and sleeve notes featuring quotes from Parsons and Woolfson.

The concept behind Eye In The Sky is related to belief systems. This concept surely informs the album’s hit title track, APP’S biggest hit to date, of somebody looking down at us all. The instrumental ‘Sirius,’ following as the second song, became one of the most used sports intro songs in music history. Musicians here familiar APP alums, lead vocalists Chris Rainbow, The Zombies’ Colin Blunstone, Lenny Zakatek, Elmer Gantry and APP partner Eric Wolfson, with APP stalwarts Ian Bairnson and David Paton and again, drummer Stuart Elliott. Songs like “You’re Gonna Get Your Fingers Burned,” a rare full-out rocker from the project and “Psychobabble” surely move along, with the great piano ballad “Old and Wise” ending the ten. As with The Turn Of A Friendly Card, we get four extra tunes here, including a demo version of ‘Sirius,’ plus again, a “Eye In The Sky,” single edit, and again, a 12-page booklet containing lyrics and sleeve notes featuring quotes from Parsons.

Ammonia Avenue focuses on the public misunderstanding of industrial scientific developments. Starting with semi-hit, mid-tempo flumpy mover of “Prime Time” into another unusual rocker for APP “Let Me Go Home,” players and singers again here include vocalists Chris Rainbow, Colin Blunstone, Lenny Zakatek and Eric Woolfson who sings on four of the tracks, including the mega MTV hit, “Don’t Answer Me.” Session musicians include guitarists Ian Bairnson and David Paton and drummer Stuart Elliott with arrangements by Andrew Powell. And a turn by legend Mel Collins playing sax on “Don’t Answer Me.”

“Dancing on a High Wire,” informed by David Paton’s economical perfectly placed electric bass and Colin Blunstone’s vocal, is a highlight. As are the grand strings, what might be some of Ian Bairson’s best acoustic and electric guitar playing (although he kills throughout here), and another wonderful Woolfson vocal ending the album on its brash title track.

The expanded version includes four bonus tracks including an early rough mix of “Don’t Answer Me,” as well as demo vocals mixes of “One Good Reason,” “Prime Time,” and “Since The Last Goodbye,” alongside a 12-page booklet containing lyrics and sleeve notes with quotes Parsons. Hearing these 80s APP records again reminds me of how powerful and pervasive this unit was, when in actuality, this was less a band and surely always a project that never toured but gave us some great songs.

~ Ralph Greco, Jr.

Purchase
The Turn Of A Friendly Card,
Eye In The Sky &
Ammonia Avenue  

As a wise advertising creative once put it, life comes at you fast. For instance: Ever since I heard about this new Red Xerox compilation, I had plannied to post it on Stereogum on its release date. That day came and went a week ago, and somehow it completely slipped past me. But I get…

The post The New <em>Red Xerox</em> Comp Is Like A High School Yearbook For Chicago’s Young Indie Rock Scene appeared first on Stereogum.

It seems like we’ve got another somewhat anti-consumer thing that people have to consider when buying anything they enjoy, as Black Label Society becomes another band with an anticipated album that’s offering a limited digital bonus track. You may recall that Lamb Of God did this with Into Oblivion and the bonus track “Wire” earlier this month and it’s looking like BLS’ Engines Of Demolition will follow suit.

According to the band, the digital deluxe edition of the forthcoming album will feature two exclusive tracks: “Broken Pieces (Unblackened)” and “Back To Me (Unblackened)”. The catch, however, is that the digital deluxe edition is only available for pre-order until midnight tomorrow. After that, you’re shit outta luck.

It’s very similar to the situation with Lamb Of God’s Into Oblivion, which confused fans so much that the band had to issue a statement explaining what was going on with the bonus track.

With this Black Label Society release, fans are vacillating between frustration, anger, and confusion over the bonus track situation. Some are complaining that they only buy physical media so they were screwed from the start, while othesssady preordered the standard edition because it was the only one available at the time feel like they were duped. It’s not a good look, really.

For the longest time, bonus tracks were used as a way to incentivize people to buy the physical version. Now, it’s just an attempt for bands and record labels to tap into consumers’ sense of FOMO and pushing them into preordering a more expensive version of the album.

And though Black Label Society is also offering some cool physical versions of the album, including a limited edition vinyl that includes even more unique bonus tracks in “Name In Blood (Unblackened)” and “Lord Humungus (Unblackened)”, it might have soured some people to the entire situation.

In a time when people are getting pinched financially, it’s totally reasonable to see why people would be frustrated by this whole ordeal.

The post Black Label Society’s New Album To Offer A Limited Digital Bonus Track That You Could Miss Out On appeared first on MetalSucks.

“…I could do that with this band. I couldn’t do that with Tool.”

The post Maynard James Keenan Explains Why He Can’t Actually Hear The Audience At Live Shows & Which Puscifer Song He Couldn’t Perform With Tool appeared first on Theprp.com.

Since their last release, "Burnout" received playtime on SiriusXM Octane, THE UNRTN is continuing their momentum with new track, "Reverse" that features alternative artist Nowhere Left.

The track starts with ambient pads and emphasized pop vocals as electronic beats fill in the atmosphere. Soon, metal elements are brought into the mix as hard-hitting guitar leads join the fray. Suddenly, the band launches into an addictively catchy chorus as vocalist Sonia Rose's melodies are met by slamming guitar and booming drum impacts. The song's calmer verses do an excellent job of contrasting the high-octane chorus and creating a dynamic sense of contrast. After the second chorus, featured artist Nowhere Left is introduced in a bridge as energetic singing soon turns to harsh screams. The two vocalists sing a final chorus together as singing and screaming soon lead into an explosively heavy breakdown outro.

Produced by Nor Omar and Ricky Armellino (Ice Nine Kills and Hawk), The UNCRTN deliver an exceedingly polished sound that blends pop melodies, electronic elements, and modern metalcore into a mainstream-ready sound. You can stream "Reverse" available everywhere now.

Find Them Here: Spotify | Instagram

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