#POST-PUNK.COM

[music-addiction-disorder]

80s Hair Metal meets Gothic Rock in Sonja’s Video for “Nylon Nights”

The new single from Philadelphia gothic hair metal outfit Sonja, “Nylon Nights,” is a revenge tale for the ages.

It all started in 2017, when Texas black metal musician Melissa Moore came out as transgender to her Absu bandmates and was promptly fired via text message. The betrayal, hurt, and subsequent shunning rocked her to the core. Drummer Grzesiek Czapla and bassist Ben Brand joined forces with her to form her new band Sonja.

Sounding like a heady mix of goth rock and 80s hair metal bands, Sonja blasts powerful hooks that would be right at home opening for the likes of NWOBHM stalwarts, Mötley Crüe, The Cult, and Sisters of Mercy alike, culminating in their first full-length (and Cruz Del Sur Music debut), Loud Arriver. Loud Arriver is Moore’s first full-length album in a decade, marking her debut as lead vocalist. (POST-PUNK.COM)

SONJA

Loud Arriver (2022)

Cruz Del Sur Music

Philedelphia / Pennsylvania / U.S.A. 🇺🇲

ALBUM OF THE YEAR... PERIOD!!!

1. When The Candle Burns Low... 05:28

2. Nylon Nights 04:34

3. Pink Fog 04:18

4. Wanting Me Dead 05:59

5. Fuck, Then Die 04:55

6. Daughter Of The Morning Star 04:03

7. Moans From The Chapel 02:57

8. Loud Arriver 05:39

It is a catharsis: much of the music Melissa Moore wrote during the Absu debacle is now lost due to the adversity surrounding her gender; the pandemic further delayed production. But Sonja forged ahead, creating big, anthemic songs.

As Moore notes on the origin of the band:

“We actually started in 2014 and were active under the radar while Absu still existed. When Absu collapsed in 2017, Sonja went into full focus, and I was a shattered person. Its output couldn’t be rushed because the stakes were so high now.”

On songwriting for Sonja’s debut album, she adds:

“Interestingly, the lyrics were written in a time of fear and darkness for me. Right up until the moment I sang them in the studio. I was existing in a numb void. I really had to acknowledge that I was cut off from the light. I can only delve deeper or wait in place for nothing. The performance of these songs demands a power that only came to me recently, and I descend into my surroundings more intentionally now.

The video for the lead single ‘Nylon Nighs”, directed and edited by Geneva Jacuzzi collaborator Zev Deans, depicts a sex worker who seeks revenge on a betrayal from a John. It’s a metaphor for oh, so much – yet the emotionally charged video ultimately shows her getting the upper hand, so to speak.

On working on the video, Zev Deans comments:

“It is not often that I see this deeply eye-to-eye with a collaborator. I’ve done a great deal of surreal and fantastical work with bands that want to keep things on the lighter side of the spectrum. I rarely get to tell a story that is this personal, especially a story that is so grounded in reality in terms of set and setting. Sonja presented a challenge that I was all too excited to meet.”

(POST-PUNK.COM)

Loud Arriver was recorded in 2019 at Creep Recording Studio in Philadelphia with Dan Kishbaugh. Its vocals were tracked with acclaimed producer Arthur Rizk (Cavalera Conspiracy, Enforced, Kreator). (POST-PUNK.COM)

Ben Brand - Bass / Backing Vocals

Melissa Moore - Guitar / Vocals

Grzesiek Czapla - Drums

At the first hint of dusk a primal terror awakens inside me

Ruinous desire swirling in the air

Unpredictable strangers on the hunt to fulfill their darkest fantasies

I know they're all coming for me again tonight

A pack of wolves coming to devour

And they might get me this time...

But I'll take a piece of every one of their souls as payment

@beardedguy1369 @wolfofodin-scotland-edinburgh @boundandbimba @gloria-glitter @x-heesy @goblinkleaver @maidenintexas1 @bonedaddy-13 @moonstar-magic @twinqlinglights ...

[bellheadband]

Thanks Post-Punk.com  for the review on our EP that just came out this morning. We put a lot of love into this EP, and it's pretty awesome to be described as "Genre-Defying" as our music really embraces so many different music styles. "Akin to the sardonic lyricism of The Magnetic Fields, the song is imbued with the playful ennui of mid-2000s indie, evoking the likes of Peter, Bjorn and John. In this sonic tapestry, Bellhead not only weaves the threads of the past but also shapes the fabric of the present, entwining the listener in a hypnotic embrace."

[numinous-queer]

Cinamon Hadley - the Inspiration for Death of the Endless

Cinamon Hadley, the inspiration for the character design of Neil Gaiman’s Death of The Endless featured in his Sandman comics, passed away in 2018. Hadley’s influence on goth fashion and culture cannot be overstated.

“Death is the only major character whose visuals didn’t spring from me; that credit goes to Mike Dringenberg. In my original Sandman outline, I suggested Death look like rock star Nico in 1968, with the perfect cheekbones and perfect face she has on the cover of her Chelsea Girl album.

But Mike Dringenberg had his own ideas, so he sent me a drawing based on a woman he knew named Cinamon Hadley — the drawing that was later printed in Sandman 11 — and I looked at it and had the immediate reaction of, “Wow. That’s really cool.” Later that day, Dave McKean and I went to dinner in Chelsea at the My Old Dutch Pancake House and the waitress who served us was a kind of vision. She was American, had long black hair, was dressed entirely in black — black jeans, T-shirt, etc. — and wore a big silver ankh on a silver necklace. And she looked exactly like Mike Dringenberg’s drawing of Death.” - Neil Gaiman

In an interview originally published in part in her book Some Wear Leather, Some Wear Lace: The Worldwide Compendium of Postpunk and Goth in the 1980s, Andi Harriman interviewed Cinamon on what her style inspirations were, and on how Mike Dringenberg utilized her for his design of Death:

When did you first enter the scene? What attracted you to it?

“I was a ballerina and grew up on the stage. What attracted me to the deathrock scene was, it was like theatre – make-up, costumes... oh and dancing! You could be so creative with hair, makeup and clothes. And I’m a very creative individual. I designed and made most of my clothes-not only was I poor, but I had specific ideas of what I wanted to wear. I didn’t enter the scene until late ’87. I was 18. I dyed my hair black, bought black liquid eye liner, and bought my first pack of cigarettes-camel lights hard pack. Lol. I heard about a dance club in Salt Lake called the Palladium. I put my ballet stage make-up on, my little black outfit and teased my hair as big as I could get it and went to the club. I was in awe. I felt so at home, everyone was nice to me and I thought everyone was so “cool”. I decided this was the world I wanted to be in. I copied Patricia Morrison’s hair from Sisters of Mercy!”

Who inspired your look? Was there a specific person?

“I wasn’t really influenced by any specific person-except my big hair-it was more; I saw people in lots of black and lots of eyeliner. I would just start out with my Maybeline liquid eye liner and just start drawing. I often didn’t know what I was going to do. I really like the Egyptian makeup, I guess actually I was influenced by King Tutankhamen -a photo used in the comic has this makeup. But, there really isn’t anything original- someone somewhere has done it or thought about doing it. I thought I was so creative, drawing a big spiderweb on my face and gluing a little plastic spider in the center—yeah-well, it had already been done. Now for the infamous swirl under Death’s eye. That was a result of one of my little drawing sessions on my face. Now I see it everywhere. It’s kind of neat.”

How did you get involved with Neil Gaiman?

“Mike Dringenberg, the original artist for the Sandman, was a good friend of mine. He asked me one day if he could use me as a character for a comic book. I said sure. I didn’t know anything about comics and I didn’t know it was even anything special. I certainly had no idea it would be what it is now. Funny story... About three years after Mike asked me if he could use my likeness, I was living in Houston, having moved from Salt Lake City, and I was at a friend’s house. My friend told me his favorite comic was the Sandman and showed me an issue. When I opened it I saw a picture of myself staring back at me. (It was one of the 2 photographs actually used and just inked over). I said ”oh my God, that’s me!” I had no idea I was in the Sandman, and I had even forgotten about being asked by Mike to use me as the model.”

MORE PICTURES HERE!

[theunderestimator-2]

Daniel Ash of Bauhaus, Tones on Tail, Love and Rockets, Poptone & Bubblemen, here as captured in 2001 for a promo pic by Chris Jensen.

"Post-Punk.com: Do you think the whole association with Bauhaus being Goth is ridiculous? Daniel Ash: It’s a weird one. To me, the whole Goth thing is very one dimensional. It’s sort of cloak and dagger. It’s ok, it has its place, it’s fun, but we just find it funny that we’re thought of as that (…) I think a lot of it is the imagery, but we never actually spoke about what we looked like when we started out. We never mentioned wearing black, never mentioned makeup or any of it. I know for Peter and myself, we were pretty obsessed with the whole Bowie thing, and the visuals were really important to us, so without even saying anything it was like, “Damn right I’m gonna wear eyeshadow and have a funny haircut because that’s where I come from and that’s what I feel like.” …Ironically, we’re just like the original Bauhaus movement, which is art for function, the opposite of gothic. It was about art being very simple and functional, which is just like the music that we made. However, we were very flamboyant visually, so we had those two juxtapositions going on. It’s almost like a contradiction between the visual side and the musical side. I’ve got to be honest. We find the whole Goth thing a joke, really, we sort of laugh about it. We were an art band. We all went to art school. We were like an experimental art band. I think that’s accurate to say that."

(via)

[suckedin]

Listen to "One Way," One of Two Lost Michael Hutchence Solo Songs to be Released by Producer Danny Saber — Post-Punk.com

[big-low-t]

Killing Joke - The Wait

R.I.P. - Kevin "Geordie" Walker

No one had a guitar sound quite like his.

[velmatv]

Japanese 80s manga 8 Beat Gag put the stars of New Wave into crazy hijinks.

https://post-punk.com/the-cures-robert-smith-david-sylvian-and-other-new-wave-icons-in-bizarre-japanese-manga

[writing-for-life]

Remembering Cinamon Hadley, who died 5 years ago today, that’s all…

https://post-punk.com/cinamon-hadley-the-inspiration-for-neil-gaimans-death-has-passed-away/

[thedepartmentofdiscoveries]

Posted on 8th Jan 2024 by Post-Punk.com's Facebook page:

27 years ago today, David Bowie celebrated his 50th birthday at Madison Square Garden with a special concert event.

Thurston Moore, Kim Gordon, Lee Ranaldo, Steve Shelley (Sonic Youth), Black Francis (Pixies), Dave Grohl, Pat Smear (Foo Fighters), Robert Smith (The Cure), Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins), Brian Molko (Placebo), Gail Ann Dorsey, Reeves Gabrels, Will Goldsmith (Sunny Day Real Estate and Foo Fighters) and more!

Class of 1997 Photo by Kevin Mazur.

[skellymom]

hello, i noticed you have "elder goth" written in your bio and im like. an infant bat. do you have any tips on anything (music, makeup, clothing, ect?

(srry if this sounds awkward, im just a very nervous person)

Whew! I DIDN'T FORGET YOU!!! It was an INSANE weekend at work...and I'm burnt. Plus, I like to write my fics and answer asks at my desktop computer and not my phone (fat fingers are clumsy).

Ahem...ok for the Goth Thing:

It's really just about the music. That's it. I mean SO MUCH has evolved and developed since the first wave of that "genre" music appeared on the scene back in the 1970's (Post Punk) underground. Even some bands labeled as Goth now didn't see themselves as such back in the day.

This next list has a lot of good Goth music, with some songs not necessarily in that genre, but close enough that MANY in the community love them. And, some of them showed up before the movement even started (a few after to help with it's evolution), but definitely helped to establish the genre later on (ahem...David Bowie). Btw Marilyn Manson is NOT Goth. However, a LOT of us still love his music as it fits with our dark aesthetic...and remember when I mentioned David Bowie? Well, I am quite sure he helped inspired Marilyn Manson. His Mechanical Animals album certainly looks as it was influenced by Bowie. But, I digress, again... This is just a start on your musical journey...a stepping stone.

People will tell you that if you don't dress or present physically a certain way that you aren't Goth. NOPE. You can dress dark and spooky and edgy but not be Goth. You can dress like a pink princess or "normie" and be Goth at heart. When us older Children of the Night were coming up we did a LOT of DIY (do it yourself) and wore a lot of things you might not consider even Goth. There wasn't the depth, breadth, and easy access of things available on the market like today. We were poor, felt different, non conformist, and just looking for community. That's another hallmark of being a Goth: community. Because back in the day someone might do a violence on you for looking weird (Wearing all black back in the day was seen as extremely socially deviant. ESPECIALLY in small town US or conservative UK/England. People literally were afraid of or hated us. Our brethren: The Punks, Rastafarians, Metal Heads, Rappers, New Wavers (prejudice was doubled if you were a person of color, a different sexuality/gender, poor, etc.) experienced the same thing in society. Then came along The Satanic Panic and OH SHIT what a pain in the ass that was! And The "Moral" Majority crap...) I digress: we were looking for people like us, BUT THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO LOOK EXACTLY LIKE US. Just a bunch of nice, supportive people who got together to listen to music, dance, support the local bands/talent, and try to make it another day. You will find this in the FANDOM, LGBTQ+, and Communities of Color as well...and they overlap.

The presentation is secondary and up to you on how you want to look. You can do it up the max or just be simple in black. My favorite person from back in the day, who really doesn't specifically identify as Goth, but hung heavily in the scene back in the day: Neil Gaiman. The guy who gave us the character of Death from The Sandman Series, published as I was coming into my own Baby Bat phase (based on a real person named "Cinnamon"). Yeah...the character everyone aspires to look like (next to Siouxsie Sioux). He wears just plain black clothes and a long black coat. (Pic of him as a youngin')

Me, I go for "Lazy Goth". Everything black (even at work-black scrubs) with occasionally printed tee or a dark jewel toned piece of clothing. Usually I also mix in the Punk aesthetic too (I love the music and put patches on every damned thing). Punk is scruffy and imperfect, not fussy. I like comfort and ease of dressing. Especially in hot weather. And, I don't do a lot of face makeup, especially being older. Plus, I rather like my olive toned skin. Not every Goth needs to be pale. Google Goth People of Color. Beautiful and amazing looks.

Beware of Gatekeepers. Gothier Than Thou's. Don't let them crush your spirit. There is room in this subculture for everyone. If a particular club, group, or individual sets that tone, just move on. That shit ain't worth it.

Dropping a quote from my (sort of) GothFather creative Neil Gaiman:

"Go and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here. Make. Good. Art."

This can also be read as the journey to "create" yourself. You are on a journey, my sweet Child of the Night. It will take a while to find your stride, whatever that is, and that's totally ok. Spread your bat wings and FLY!

Leaving you with one of my favorite songs:

[luca-ercolani]

Barbie vs Oppenheimer 😄

(Via Post-Punk.com on Facebook)

[secretmeaningofthings]

Black Cat Friday: A Feline-Themed Dark Dance Party & Holiday Market

Join us for a purrfectly wicked night of dancing at Underbelly, 1st Avenue South, Seattle (Pioneer Square). Get ready to unleash your inner cat and dance the night away post-Thanksgiving feast.

Put on your most mesmerizing black outfit and get ready to prowl the dance floor. Cat-themed looks highly encouraged. Expect a mix of darkwave, EBM/industrial, and dark techno that will make your whiskers twitch with excitement.

Get your paws on tickets now and secure your spot at the hottest feline-themed dance party in town. Get ready for a night filled with dark vibes, electrifying music, and a whole lot of feline fun. See you there!

spooky vendors and tarot readings in Underbelly's 2nd room +

8:00 PM doors 9:00 PM music starts

Readers & vendors (more TBA)

Ritual PNW - Ritual oils, herbs and candles + Hybrid crystal/tarot readings - https://www.buyritual.com/ https://www.instagram.com/ritualpnw/

Almost Potions (Carrie Stafford she/they) - Offers intuitive and compassionate tarot readings, blending the mystical with art therapy, come ready to see your reflection inside the cards. https://www.instagram.com/kyachuu_potions

Saltwater Tears - Hybrid divination readings of astrology and the i-ching - https://msha.ke/saltwater.tears

sounds selected by DJ Vox Sinistra Vox Sinistra is a Seattle-based DJ exploring the synthesis of dark underground electronic sounds with retro and modern inspiration, ranging from old-school EBM, industrial and New Beat to minimal and cold waves, forward-thinking electro and techno, and '80s synth music such as Italo disco, acid house, synth-pop, new wave and more. With a background in post-punk, no wave and related '80s alternative and DIY punk movements, she combines sounds with rebellious spirit, nostalgic melodies, and avant-garde genre-mashing that stimulates bodies into movement.

She is currently host of dark dance club night Strict Tempo, where she books an international selection of dark electronic artists, and is also known for her post-punk/obscure '80s wave radio show Secret Meaning of Things at KHUH 104.9 FM since 2011, shortlisted for Best Music Show - Alternative in the 2018 Mixcloud Online Radio Awards. She has also been featured in Mixcloud's 'One to Watch' series as a "post-punk extraordinaire" with chart-topping mixes in over 20 genres. Vox is also a former music columnist for Seattle alt weekly the Stranger, and current contributor to Post-Punk.com.

https://linktr.ee/VoxSinistra https://linktr.ee/StrictTempo

[ourladyofomega]

📸 source: Post-Punk.com

[ridenwithbiden]

Post-Punk.com

Happy Spooky Season!

"Witches too and goblins too and speckled sills

Lament repent oh mortal you..."

[myfavoriteforever]

We're really excited to share our new video/short film for 'Dean's 7th Dream.' What starts off as an homage to Jonathan Demme's video for New Order's 'Perfect Kiss,' diverges into liminal spaces of color and memory— a lonely laboratory of signs.

"An epic eight-minute synth pop-infused track that recalls early New Order, Chic, and The Field Mice all in one fell swoop. Chock full of romantic, nostalgic imagery..." — Post-Punk.com

With Love Despite Fierce Resistance since 1994.