Once upon a time, there was a band called Far. Far would be one of the best bands to come out of the late nineties. Yet they were so honest and original that they fell through the cracks since they did not neatly fit into the popular genres at the time. They were too melodic and introspective for nu-metal kids and too pounding and cathartic for the emo kids. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Exile On Mainstream
Sons Of Alpha Centauri Announce Their New Album Pull, Coming Soon via Exile On Mainstream
Sons of Alpha Centauri return with their upcoming fourth studio album entitled Pull, the follow-up to 2021’s alternative metal album Push. The cult emo icon Jonah Matranga (from post-hardcore legends Far and Gratitude) joins the band once again on vocals. The album is coming 28th of March via Exile On Mainstream. Pre-orders are live at the link below.Continue reading
Conny Ochs Shares a New Single and Video for “Hickhack” – New All-German Sung Album Incoming
German singer/songwriter has dropped a new single and video for the song “Hickhack.” The selection is the new preview of the artist’s impending German-sung Wahn Und Sinn LP and poetry book, nearing release through Exile On Mainstream on October 13th, 2023.
ALBUM REVIEW: Might – Abyss
Based in Hannover, Germany, duo Might was formed in 2020 by Ana Muhi (vocals/bass/piano) and Sven Missullis (vocals/guitar/drums) and are part of the Exile On Mainstream roster which has been/is home to the likes of The Hidden Hand, Trialogos, Gore and Dälek.Continue reading
Enablers – Zones
Most people’s experience of ‘spoken word’ music, outside of the Rap genre, is Jim Morrison‘s ‘American Prayer’. Beat Poetry, for this is essentially the format, is a hugely involving yet highly personal style which often resounds with the listener. This is most definitely the case with Enablers: a San Francisco post-Punk four-piece whose beguiling, occasionally fiery music is set to the poetry and narrative of frontman Pete Simonelli.Continue reading
EXCLUSIVE ALBUM STREAM: Gore – “Revanche”
Reunited Dutch instrumental mathcore forbearers Gore will release their comeback album Revanche from the Exile on Mainstream label tomorrow, the 22nd of March, 2019. The band has reimagined and recreated its 1992 album Lifelong Deadline into Revanche and has reanimated back to life to teach everyone a harsh lesson in heavy, avant-garde, and progressive music. Live dates can be found below and stay tuned for a documentary miniseries as well. Stream all of Revanche here at Ghost Cult now!Continue reading
EXCLUSIVE STREAM: Conny Ochs – “King Of The Dead”
We’ve spent a lot of words here at Ghost Cult discussing “Doom Folk” as one of the strongest sub-genres in music right now. Naturally, like all forward-thinking and risky music, we now see the fans catching up to the visionary artists, not the other way around, One such visionary is singer/songwriter Conny Ochs, who has a legion of admirers and collaborators that reads like an underground music all-star team. We have followed his career closely, and Ochs may be about to reach another creative summit with his new album, the appropriately named Doom Folk, out next week 15th of February from Exile On Mainstream. Ochs will be touring extensively in 2019, celebrating 20 years of Exile on Mainstream, including a highly anticipated return to Roadburn Festival this April. We are honored to share his latest single ‘King Of The Dead’ with our readers! Continue reading
Obelyskkh – The Providence
The Stoner and Doom scene has never been bigger and more vibrant than it is right now. But a plethora of bands means it can be hard to stand out in the crowd. And this is the challenge faced by German doom/sludge quartet Obelyskkh.Continue reading
Wino And Conny Ochs – Freedom Conspiracy
Robert Scott “Wino” Weinrich is the front man for the Doom Metal bands The Obsessed and Saint Vitus, Conny Ochs is a Dark Folk musician, and together they make minimalist bluesy folk. In 2012 they released Heavy Kingdom, and now they came together once again to produce Freedom Conspiracy (both Exile On Mainstream).
While Heavy Kingdom was really raw and unpolished, which had its charms but also lacked in places, Freedom Conspiracy is much more polished. This does not mean they have lost their feeling though. The songs are still simple and effective despite being more complex musically. Many songs on this album combine electric guitar with an acoustic, and the electric sound is sometimes really sludgy. In the title track ‘Freedom Conspiracy’ the electric guitar plays almost the same lines as the acoustic, which creates a very deep sound. Interestingly, the guitar in the verse sounds a lot like ‘The Mirror Song’ by Live.
The vocals also have a layer of distortion over them at times, which lends some power to the melancholic lyrics and melodies. I really enjoy the bluesy aspects of this album, such as the slide guitar in ‘Shards’. A real highlight is ‘Foundation Chaos’, which is a blues in 7/8ths in the verses and 4/4ths in the chorus, and as such it has such an unusual groove. ‘Invisible Bullets’ is also a very interesting song, the chords and melodies go in places that you don’t expect, and the chords and solo on electric coupled with primarily high vocals really sets this song apart from the rest from the album. It sounds a little bit messy in places, like they had not played it through a lot before recording it, but it is definitely one of my favourites. The album ends with another melancholic yet sweet song, ‘The Great Destroyer’. It is a great closer for this album about love, loss, and dealing with being human, and leaves you with a kind of quiet happiness, as if you grew just a little as a person by listening.
7.5/10
LORRAINE LYSEN
Album Stream: Wino and Conny Ochs – Freedom Conspiracy
Scott “Wino” Weinrich and Conny Ochs’ second collaborative release Freedom Conspiracy is streamed in full here. The album is out March 31, 2015 via Exile On Mainstream and Earsplit Distro on vinyl. Wino will be supporting Black Label Society on an upcoming US Tour run in April, while Ochs has a string of European dates booked.