An Easter weekend which featured a papal death, a John Cena title win, and 4:20 is certainly one for the books. We’re hoping you’re navigating the day to day surreal nightmare that is 2025 as best as can be hoped, dear reader. We’re trying to stay grounded by looking forward not just to the festivals we’ve been discussing on the podcast, but a few high profile upcoming releases by the likes of Bootblacks, General Dynamics, and Lead Into Gold, all of which we’ll be discussing right here, alongside Tracks posts like this one.

Skren
Youth Code, “In Search of Tomorrow”
We’re thankful as fuck that Youth Code are back after a few years absence, and with the release of the second teaser for the forthcoming Yours With Malice, we’re equally thankful that the LA duo are doing something we’ve never heard them do before. There have been YC songs we found personally inspirational, invigorating, and even hopeful, but rarely has the band leaned in on that sound in a melodic fashion as on “In Search of Tomorrow”. And they pull it off without sacrificing the scathing anger and energy that has always been what set them apart from the rest. Hit play below, and see what we’re talking about.
Skren, “Fragment”Do you, dear reader, ever feel nostalgic for X-Fusion, Xotox, [X]-Rx, and a whole mess of other German acts beginning with X from a couple of decades back? Düsseldorf’s Skren certainly do from the sound of their new EP Fragment, and whether you call it aggro, cyber, or Pro Noize you know it when you hear it, and boy howdy do you ever hear it on the title cut. Timed and executed just right, a joint like this is almost strong enough to make one forget how much of a stranglehold stuff of this ilk used to have on clubs.
FRAGMENT by SKREN
Spire Circle, “Burning Alive”
The late 90s moment when a whole wave of goth rock bands began to drift from their pure trad roots and began embracing a range of electronics from the broader worlds of darkwave and industrial is a very, very specific time, but it’s one Manchester’s Spire Circle have honed in on quite nicely with their new single. Balancing a thudding goth nod with just enough shiny synth flash, there’s a great machine-rocking drive here…which might even have a whiff of the likes of Gravity Kills around the corners?
Burning Alive by Spire Circle
Ships in the Night, “Blood Harmony”
We admit to not having checked out recent Metropolis records signee Ships in the Night ’til now, and feel bad for not having done so. The low-key, but still engaging energy of the recent singles from Alethea Leventhal’s solo project hit a really nice sweet spot between classic and modern darkwave, with enough pop sensibility to appeal to witchy goths and casual dark synth fans alike. “Blood Harmony” is especially quite nice, on a 90’s soundtrack kinda tip.
Blood Harmony by Ships In The Night
INVA//ID, “Slug (Wetworks Mix)”
INVA//ID started the new year off with an everything and the kitchen sink industrial rock release, The Agony Index. As we noted upon its release, it was the sort of record which felt crammed to the gills with ideas and sketches, some of which simply didn’t have time to stretch out, so a couple of mixes (plus instrumentals) which stretch “Slug” out from its minute and a half LP incarnation makes a lot of sense. The pensive EBM crawl of this one is a reminder of the menace INVA//ID can hold even when not piling on the guitars.
.Slug. by INVA//ID
MMK, “Ilsandra in Ruin”
A tip of the IDUD ballcap to modebionics, who tipped us off to the video for “Ilsandra in Ruins”, from MMK’s EP of the same name that came out in the fall of last year. We generally don’t go this far back for a Tracks post, but we think you’re likely to enjoy this one; it sits right in the early dark electro pocket, where bands were taking influence from the Vancouver sound, but melding it with continental EBM amongst others. Just a great slowburn of a track, with an excellent video to boot!
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