Culture Kultür: Electronica For The Mind And The Body

Culture Kultür is a great Electronica trio from Malaga, Spain, whose music is similar to that of Covenant and Pride & Fall, but which stands on its own.

Pride And Fall: Powerful Futurepop

Pride And Fall's sound is both engaging and dramatic. The Norwegian group, formed in 2000, is currently composed of Sigve Monsen, Per Waagen, Svein Johnsen. They have only 4 albuns released to date, but they all have songs with strong beats and thought-provoking lyrics, akin to VNV Nation.

About his lyrics style, Pride And Fall's vocalist Sigve Monsen said, that "I don’t even recognize myself in the 'live and let live thing'... I would rather say live as you live, and take the consequences for your actions." Sigve also said that "in general, I bring to the surface more contents about looking back at one's own life, seeing all the mistakes and shit you’ve done or gone through. And then in the end cope with them all." [1]



Official site: www.prideandfall.com/ | MySpace

Blutengel: Dark Melodies

The German Dark Pop band Blutengel has been around since 1999, and is currently formed by Chris Pohl, Constance Rudert, and Ulrike Goldmann. Their sound is something of a clash between Crüxshadows and Zeraphine with female vocals, melodious and with a hard synthetic beat.

I've chosen a couple of videos as samples of their sound. Check their website for more information.




Official Site: http://www.blutengel.de/

The Covenant: Swedish Synthpop

The Covenant is a Swedish Synthpop band formed in 1986 by Joakim Montelius, Daniel Myer, Eskil Simonsson. Their sound is a mix of Kraftwerk and a light-Front 242. Despite the cold sound of the synthesizers, their songs are melodic, have a strong beat and provocative lyrics. I've selected two videos to display here.





More info: Official Site

VNV Nation: The Power Of Words

VNV Nation (Victory not Vengeance) is an Irish duo, now based in Hamburg, Germany, with a powerful combination of dark synthpop and thought-provoking lyrics. I'm fan of the band, and I'd like to share with you a few lyrics penned by Ronan Harris and Mark Jackson (with their live versions).

In an interview, Ronan Harris commented on one of their albums, the great Praise The Fallen something that, in my opinion, sums up what the VNV Nation's mission is about. He said:

"....the album theme was the battle for the control for one’s own soul and destiny. I used the metaphor of remembrance, not war, and that was the thing that some people mistook very, very much.

"I mean I guess our Teutonic rhythms, as some people call them, on that album, it was very kind of like left, right, left, right, you know, pounding EBM sort of stuff. It gave people a very, very false impression. We didn’t use any military samples or any kind of obvious military music on that, I think it’s just this kind of type of beat and the sort of structure of music that gave people that impression.

"I used the album as a sort of an overlying metaphor for something very spiritual, which is that all through my life I have struggled to be who I am, I’ve struggled to find acceptance or to understand what it means, where I fit in this world, what kind of pigeonhole I’m supposed to fit into.

"The album was actually an attempt by me to document myself at a time in my life when I was struggling to wake up from a sort of monotony, a mediocre lifestyle that I had chosen for myself, thinking it was great without realizing that it was actually harmful and damaging to myself.

"I was playing the image that had been portrayed in black and white movies all my life, and I’d given up on myself and who I’d always been as a teenager and a child and with my defaults or whatever and my deep feelings, and going through the whole teenage thing.

"And I woke up and thought I am so not happy. But I, it was my battle call to actually become myself and to struggle to be what I am, to win control of my soul and my destiny. And that may sound a bit grandiose… " [1]

As their motto goes: One should strive to achieve not sit in bitter regret

For more info: vnvnation.com

Here are the lyrics and the live performances of VNV Nation's Dark Angel, Farthest Star and Testament. Enjoy!

Dark Angel I'd only come here seeking peace. I'd only come here seeking me. It seems I came to leave.

In your dream you see me clear I have no restraint, no fear powerless I watched from faces I'd assumed. My purpose set. My will defined. Caress the air. Embrace the skies. Escape the sorrow and restraint of mortal cities.

Give me time I will be clear. Given time you'll understand. What possesses me to right what you have suffered.

I'm in this mood because of scorn. I'm in a mood for total war. To the darkened skies once more and ever onward.

So many years I stood among the thoughts and tears of those I served. Among my own I was alone through my own doing. All the years I walked unknown behind the faces I assumed. Powerless to clear your mind of what you'd suffered.

They fall again. They fall again.

There is no faith in which to hide. Even truth is filled with lies. Doubting angels fall to walk among the living.

The Farthest Star The will to greatness clouds the mind consumes the senses veils the signs we each are meant to recognize

Redeeming graces cast aside enduring oceans new-found promise that the end will never come

We live in times when all seems lost But time will come when we'll look back upon ourselves and on our feelings

Embrace the void even closer still Erase your doubts as you surrender everything

We possess the power If this should start to fall apart To mend divides to change the world To reach the farthest star

If we should stay silent If fear should win our hearts Our life will have long diminished Before it reaches the farthest star

Wide awake in a world that sleeps Enduring thoughts Enduring scenes The knowledge of what is yet to come

From a time when all seems lost From a dead man to a world without restraint unafraid and free

If we fall and break All the tears in the world Cannot make us whole again

Testament Procrastinating Pretending to worry Solving problems By pushing them aside Wasting time Like we've all the time in the world

Deliberation Instead of solution Another term For blatant lies Biding time Like we've all the time in the world

And I'm not the only one who thinks we're trying to say To the heavens and all who hear us Behold all we have made

We bring destruction We bring war without an end And then we live in hope That tomorrow never comes That it never comes

We conquer paradise Just to burn it to the ground And we build a future To honor paths we've left behind We bring destruction We bring war without an end And then we hope That tomorrow never comes That it never comes

The problems get worse Before they get better We find excuses to divert our eyes Let tomorrow Deal with what we could have done

And if you think we're the future That we build tomorrow When was the last day without a war We speak of quickness That we have never been

It's just you and me now It's just you and me now It's just you and me against the world