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Formed in Vancouver by vocalist and founder Brian Gustavson, SPECTRES is a DIY death-rock outfit that mixes post-punk, the ethic of anarcho-punk, and an incredible knack for writing catchy songs. The band released three independent albums (all reissued by Artoffact Records in 2019) and are ready to stun audiences with their 2020 release Nostalgia. Emerging from the DIY Punk underground, SPECTRES wanted to blend the grassroots and independent ethic of anarcho-punk with the anomie and cold, modulated sounds of 1980’s post-punk and death-rock genres. Though the band’s output has matured with time to embrace a wider range of new-wave and shoegaze influences, their ethos remains rooted in DIY punk. The blending of these influences allows for the curious juxtaposition of 80’s influenced pop sensibilities with lyrics that explore the alienation and cynicism of modern life. On the new album, Nostalgia, these influences are carried even further to create a wonderfully crafted suite of songs that evoke the primal sounds of Beastmilk with the melody of New Order.
Constantly in Love, the second record from Kælan Mikla keyboardist and back-up singer Sólveig Matthildur, is an emotional, poetic, and breathtaking creation. From the light-hearted but dead serious first single and video (“Dystopian Boy”), to the medieval symmetry of the album’s construction (spoiler: it’s a massive envelope poem), Sólveig has, quite possibly, written album for the ages. Channeling influences as varied as trip-hop pioneers Portishead, to black metal band Urfaust, to French post-punk chanteuse Hante, Sólveig’s sophomore album is one part darkwave, one part spoken art-poetry jams, and one part electronic downtempo compositions. Rolling Stone’s David Fricke likely put it best: after seeing Sólveig live, he called her “a tablet-age reincarnation of the post–Velvet Underground Nico.”
Icelandic post-punk trio Kælan Mikla returns for the group’s third album, Nótt eftir nótt. Topping a year that catapulted the band onto stages shared with the likes of The Cure and Placebo, Nótt eftir nótt is Kælan Mikla at their most confident, and their most deadly. It’s been five years since Margrét Rósa, Laufey Soffia, and Sólveig Matthildur formed the band in Reykjavik, and after several tours and high-profiles stages, as well as two critically-acclaimed albums, Kælan Mikla has truly brought their A-game. Starting off quietly with a creepy, gothed-out and ethereal intro, Nótt eftir nótt erupts with post-punk brilliance and synthlines that harken back to the bad old days of the Batcave, big hair, and Egyptian-inspired eye-liner. Tracks like the melancholy “Hvernig kemst ég upp?” are wonderfully delightful, while the band goes for the big goth dance number on “Skuggadans,” succeeding with glorious ease. Near the end of Nótt eftir nótt, when you’ve already ingested a healthy dose of Diamanda Galas meets The Birthday Party, the title track, produced by popular Icelandic electronic wizard Bang Gang, is basically perfect. Hot on the heels of shows at Roadburn, Meltdown, and The Cure’s 40th Anniversary, as well as a Fall tour supporting King Dude, Kælan Mikla are set to take their place as one of darkest aural poets on the world stage.
Tapped by The Cure frontman Robert Smith to play his edition of Meltdown Festival would be a pretty amazing feat, but for Kælan Mikla, it’s just another day. Indeed the death-rock turned post-punk trio from the heart of Reykjavik has been turning heads since they formed five years ago in 2013. It all started after the three (Margrét Rósa Dóru-Harrysdóttir on bass, Laufey Soffia taking lead vocals, screeches, and devastating death-rock laments, and Sólveig Matthildur Kristjánsdóttir on keys) won a poetry slam competition at the City of Reykjavik library, featuring Sólveig’s writing. Then, in the summer of 2014, before synthesizers, before any electronic instruments really, they cranked out a purely raw bass, drum, and vocals session of death rock gems that are electrifying and, frankly, gorgeous. With Alison MacNeil (Kimono) producing, the band completed its first album, Mánadans, only to have it shelved. Since then, Kælan Mikla have been invited to Roadburn and Iceland Airwaves. They will soon embark on their first tour of South America. And they’ve been invited to tour with Drab Majesty and King Dude. And then there’s Robert Smith, who came knocking and extolling the band’s youthful energy and poetic darkness. The band’s long lost death-rock masterpiece Mánadans now gets a deluxe worldwide issue via Toronto-based Artoffact Records. Available on vinyl, CD, and digital formats, the album is fully remastered and includes the bonus track Reykjavík til staðar, as well as the demo version of their hit song Kalt.
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