The Thermionic Culture Vulture Has Too Many Knobs

It's Funky Goth Shoegaze Thursday, with Trentemøller delivering a 4-song session for KEXP, recorded 11th February 2025, part way through a US tour to promote current album Dreamweavers.

I loved Trentemøller's previous album Memoria and previously enthused about the band and artist in September 2021 and February 2022. I even wrote about the two lead-in singles for Dreamweavers in May 2024, ahead of the album's release on Friday 13th September.

Clearly an unlucky day, as I somehow overlooked buying Dreamweavers, and it was subsequently overtaken by the slew of albums competing for my hard earned readies late last year.

Thank goodness therefore for KEXP providing a prod and reminding me what great music Anders Trentemøller is producing. That is, if you like music that blends elements of Cocteau Twins, Slowdive, The Sisters Of Mercy, Depeche Mode and Tricky with a little bit of New Order thrown in for good measure. 

All of these are influences and hints though, Trentemøller's music is their own and in a live setting, really come alive. Anders Trentemøller has assembled a tight band: Brian Batz (guitar), Jacob Haubjerg (bass, guitar, vocal), Silas Tinglef (drums) and DíSA aka Dísa Jakobs aka Bryndís Jakobsdóttir (vocals, guitar).

1) I Give My Tears   00:41

2) Dreamweavers  06:45

3) Nightfall              12:17

4) Still On Fire         17:51

The session is followed by a 10-minute interview with Anders by KEXP host Troy Nelson, which delves into Trentemøller's 'origin story', including his first album purchase at age 9, bought for the art alone as the artist was wearing red latex trousers. 

As an artist who both loves and is daunted by technology, Anders expresses no regrets at selling his Thermionic Culture Vulture ("too many knobs") and talks about his approach to songwriting. It's a brief but enlightening chat.

I can't profess to being a fan of Trentemøller for 20+ years as Troy Nelson claims, but I have made up for lost time in the last few years. Belated purchase of Dreamweavers now completed!

Everything Is Fine

Celebrating David Lynch, born 20th January 1946, whose death was announced on Thursday, days before what would have been his 79th birthday.

 

This wasn't the Friday post I originally had in mind, and is a hastily cobbled together selection of a dozen of David Lynch songs, remixes (of and by), cover versions and mash-ups. 

 

The collection starts and ends in possibly predictable fashion, Pixies' cover of In Heaven (Lady In The Radiator Song) in 1988 making as much of an impression on my teenage mind as the opening minutes of Lynch's 1987 film Blue Velvet. 

 

And yes, I know it's a cheat including Lana Del Rey's version over Bobby Vinton's cover, which was the inspiration for the film, but the latter makes a cheeky appearance in Voicedude's contribution to the intriguing (and sadly no longer available) 2008 compilation Mashed In Plastic: The David Lynch Mash-Up Album.

I got to see nearly all of David Lynch's films on the big screen, including a re-release of Eraserhead in the early 1990s, and with the exception of Dune (1984) and Inland Empire (2006). And on the small screen, I was left with an agonising wait to complete the Twin Peaks experience, as I headed off to Australia for a year after Season 1's cliffhanger ending on BBC2. 

Edisrehtoehtnoees

 

1) In Heaven (Lady In The Radiator Song): David Lynch & Alan R Splet ft. Peter Ivers (1976)

2) This Is David Lynch: Neiltomo (2008)

3) Pinky's Dream (Trentemøller Remix): David Lynch ft. Karen O (2012)

4) Girl Panic! (Remix By David Lynch & Dean Hurley): Duran Duran (2011)

5) Fuel To Fire (David Lynch Remix): Agnes Obel (2014)

6) I Know (Jon Hopkins Remix): David Lynch (2011)

7) Velvet Dreams: Voicedude (2008)

8) The Big Dream (Moby Reversion): David Lynch ft. Mindy Jones (2014)

9) Rockin' Back Inside My Heart (Tibetan Single Mix By Greg Royal): Julee Cruise (1989)

10) Blue Velvet (Single Version) (Cover of Tony Bennett): Lana Del Rey (2012)

11) Falling (Cover of Julee Cruise): The Wedding Present (1992)

12) In Heaven (Lady In The Radiator Song) (John Peel Session) (Cover of David Lynch & Alan R Splet ft. Peter Ivers): Pixies (1988) 

 

1982: Eraserhead OST: 1

1989: Rockin' Back Inside My Heart EP: 9 

1992: Silver Shorts EP: 11

1998: Pixies At The BBC: 12

2008: Mashed In Plastic: The David Lynch Mashup Album: 2, 7

2011: Girl Panic! EP: 4 

2011: Good Day Today / I Know EP: 6

2012: Pinky's Dream EP: 3 

2012: The Paradise Edition EP: 10

2014: Aventine: 5

2014: The Big Dream Remix EP: 8

Everything Is Fine (46:33) (KF) (Mega)

It's Time To Let It Go

Trentemøller returned with a new single and video at the weekend, the opening track of his forthcoming seventh album, Dreamweaver, out on Friday 13th September.

A Different Light off with acoustic chords, then voice, bass and synths, building up the tension before a brief pause/relief at 1:48 and ramping it up a notch and doing it all again. A second pause at 3:02 before the final lengthiest section, taking it up another level, building to the conclusion at 5:47. The following song on the album is called Nightfall but...you can't hear it just yet.

Dreamweaver also marks the first full-length collaboration with Icelandic singer/songwriter DíSA aka Dísa Jakobs aka Bryndís Jakobsdóttir. Anders Trentemøller first worked in the studio with Disa on the standalone single Into The Silence, released in late 2022.

 

Prior to that, Disa had joined Trentemøller as the singer with his live band, touring previous album (and one of my favourites of 2022), Memoria. Whilst I didn't get to see that, fortunately the band performed a live set on ARTE Concert's Echoes, presented by Jehnny Beth last July. 

The set comprises eight of Memoria's fourteen songs, one from 2019 album Obverse and closing with a cover version of fellow Danes The Raveonettes. A coincidence, yet somehow fitting that the last ARTE Concert/Echoes performance I posted here, last month, was by Slowdive as there's a real connection in the sonic landscapes that the two create. Great stuff.

 

0:35 Veil Of White 6:31 No More Kissing In The Rain

10:43 Anders Chats With Jehnny #1

12:02 Darklands 17:18 Glow

24:26 Anders Chats With Jehnny #2

25:40 In The Gloaming 30:52 When The Sun Explodes 36:55 Dead Or Alive

41:00 Anders Chats With Jehnny #3

42:07 Like A Daydream 47:32 One Last Kiss To Remember

51:13 Anders Chats With Jehnny #4

52:25 Cops On Our Tail (Cover of The Raveonettes)

Trentemøller and band hit the road again in August, with an extensive European tour to promote Dreamweaver. Just the one UK date - EartH, London, 22nd November - but it promises to be something special.

 

All of the above music is available via Bandcamp and the usual outlets.

Psychedelisize Your Soul

As mentioned in my Sonic Boom post a couple of weeks ago, my quest for all things GLOK/Andy Bell related led me to A Place To Bury Strangers and their current remix collection, See Through You Rerealized, released at the beginning of June.

 

Styled as the "loudest band in New York" on the back of (in their own words) "wild live performances filled with beyond intense visuals and dangerous stage antics", APTBS are described on Discogs as purveyors of noise rock and shoegaze.

 

Whilst that may not be immediately apparent from See Through You Rerealized, most of the remixes are at least in a relatable area and have avoided going into full on, hands in the air, sirens blaring, trance territory. Case in point, the electro two-step of Let's See Each Other by the delightfully named Grimoose, which the band/label evidently liked enough to edit an official video for (actually dating from 2021).

 

Several songs get multiple reworkings, including I'm Hurt which appears in three variations. Two get accompanying 'visualiser' video knock offs (Melting Rust Opera's remix missing out, for some reason), first up a glam rock stomp by Trentemøller, followed by the aforementioned GLOK's audibly restrained bass-heavy synth-stabber.

 

The official video for I'm Hurt is the first in a series (of two, to date) created by horror film directors, not a genre I've kept up to speed with to be honest. This one is the handiwork of Chad Crawford Kinkle, whose CV includes Organ Grinder (2011), Jug Face (2013) and Dementer (2019).

 

The second, I Disappear (When You're Near), is directed by Keith Thomas, who debuted with The Vigil in 2019 and followed up in 2022 with a remake of Stephen King's Firestarter, starring Zac Efron no less. 

If anything, the remix of I Disappear (When You're Near) by "art damaged" Detroit duo The Bodies Obtained ups the chill(er) factor and comes with it's own minimalistic video.

In complete contrast to yesterday's Deee-Lite post, none of these songs (or indeed the entirety of the See Through You Rerealized album) would be obvious choices to uplift or get your day off to an optimistic start, but they have a place. Whether that's to bury strangers or not is entirely up to you.

 

Acts Of God And Politics Collide

Continuing with my pick of 2022's musical highlights, here is a selection of my most played songs of the year so far. 

 

Generally speaking, anything released post-September should be at a disadvantage simply because they've been available for repeated listens for relatively less time. Emily Breeze's single Ordinary Life was released at the end of September, which indicates how much I love this song.

Some rules apply: only one song per artist, to avoid the final selection being limited to two or three albums (if you're asking, that would be Andy Bell, Confidence Man and Katy J Pearson). Last year, I struggled to whittle down the selection to an even dozen, so I've avoided that altogether and gone for 18 songs, coming in at just under an hour and a half.

 

The selection is loosely divided into two halves: the first is a bit indie/pop; the second detours to the dance and chillout tents.

Aside from the artists mentioned above Momus, Andres Y Xavi and Mr. Oizo & Phra make a return visit, whilst Ibibio Sound Machine, The Anchoress and Trentemøller finally get a look in. Some of my favourite remixes of the year (and not featured on Tuesday) reappear by Max Essa, Cosmosolar, Horse Meat Disco and Lee 'Scratch' Perry (RIP). There's a nod to Paisley Dark Records' superb Shelter Me compilation via Richard Sen and in a year of top notch releases with Darren Bell as Jezebell, Jesse Fahnestock also found the time to share new music as 10:40.

 

And then there is Hifi Sean and David McAlmont. Although I've not gone with scores and ranking for my selections, The Skin I'm In is something else altogether. A perfect combination of words and music, pop and politics from two artists at the very top of their game. Single of the year for me.

We've reached the penultimate day of 2022 and my penultimate highlights selection. To pinch the album title of today's opening artist Los Bitchos, Let The Festivities Begin! Well, from 7.00pm onwards, when I get home from work...!

 

(One) more tomorrow.

 

1) Pista (Fresh Start): Los Bitchos (Let The Festivities Begin!)

2) Ordinary Life (Radio Edit): Emily Breeze (Ordinary Life EP / Rapture)

3) Sidewinder (Album Version): Andy Bell (Flicker)

4) The Skin I'm In: Hifi Sean & David McAlmont (The Skin I'm In EP / Happy Ending)

5) Stop The Body: Momus (Smudger)

6) Sweetness Follows (Cover of R.E.M.): The Anchoress (Versions/EP 2)

7) Freedom: Ibibio Sound Machine (Electricity)

8) Alligator: Katy J Pearson (Sound Of The Morning)

9) Love Died In Our Arms (Lee 'Scratch' Perry Remix): Dot Allison (The Entangled Remix EP)

10) Lata Mangeshkar: Richard Sen (Shelter Me: various artists)

11) Fight Your Enemy (Cosmosolar Remix By Alejandro Gamba): Mundo D (Your Enemy EP)

12) Hits Me (Album Version): Mr. Oizo & Phra (Voilá)

13) Luvin U Is Easy (Album Version): Confidence Man (Tilt)

14) What Do You See In Me (Max Essa Extended Vocal Mix): Andres Y Xavi ft. Rolo McGinty (What Do You See In Me EP)

15) Adama (Yuksek Remix): Omri Smadar (Phase Of Motion EP)

16) Iz Um: 10:40 (Iz Um EP / 10:40's Advent Calendar)

17) Mother's Been A Bad Girl (Horse Meat Disco Remix): Unloved (Mother's Been A Bad Girl EP)

18) Glow: Trentemøller (Memoria)

Acts Of God And Politics Collide (1:29:10) (Box) (Mega)

Waves Out Of Phase

Another dive into the music that I've been enjoying so far in 2022. The selection has a slightly more melancholy edge than I was intending, but otherwise just a sample of the outstanding sounds that have emerged over the past six months.

 

No surprise to see Andy Bell, Trentemøller and Momus, whose albums have been highlights for quite some time. Telefís (aka Cathal Coughlan and Jacknife Lee) and Katy J Pearson are relatively new acquaintances, whilst the prolific Dan Wainwright has released not one but two albums so far, the latest with his partner Elle Redding. 

 

Enjoy!

 

1) Adar Newlan: Imarhan ft. Gruff Rhys

2) Thickener (Full Fat Original): 10:40

3) Bowroux (Ed Mahon Remix): Pete Callard

4) Totentanz: Momus

5) Cue The Tears (Anton Newcombe Remix): Dot Allison

6) All Too Soon: Trentemøller ft. Lisbet Fritze

7) Bright Star: Anaïs Mitchell

8) Talk Over Town: Katy J Pearson

9) Sing The Blues: Dan Wainwright

10) The Kindness Of Others (Concretism Remix By Chris Sharp): Dohnavùr

11) We No Normal (Anger Management): Sherwood & Pinch ft. Daddy Freddy, Ghetto Priest & Jen Jen

12) Archbishop Beardmouth At The ChemOlympics (Radio Edit): Telefís

13) Mother Oak: Dan Wainwright & Elle Redding

14) Holiday In The Sun: Andy Bell

Waves Out Of Phase (1:08:40)

Waiting For My Life To Change

Another Bandcamp Friday, another clutch of new songs to add an already impressive 2022. Ten random selections of highlights from the year so far, some so newly purchased that I listened to them for the first time whilst compiling this playlist.

Catherine Anne Davies aka The Anchoress delivers another beautifully balanced cover of a song that Jackson Browne wrote when he was 16 and Nico recorded for her debut solo album, Chelsea Girl, in 1967. In between, a smattering of songs from albums that set the bar high early from Andy Bell, Dan Wainwright, Mr. Oizo & Phra and Trentemøller. Momus' latest album officially dropped on 1st April and I wrote about it here. Confidence Man have also released their latest, Tilt, and on a single play so far, it's enormous fun.

 

David Holmes & Raven Violet have followed up last year's superb Hope Is The Last Thing To Die with the equally brilliant It's Over, If We Run Out Of Love. The song was initially released on Valentine's Day and a clutch of remixes have just dropped. Darren Emerson and Hardway Bros aka Sean Johnston deliver superb mixes, but they're all good, as this one (of two remixes) by Lovefingers & Heidi Lawden amply demonstrates.

 

I knew absolutely nothing about Jeshi, being drawn in by the flurry of label and artist mail drops that come in prior to Bandcamp Friday. A quick Google search reveals that Jeshi is from East London, has previously worked with slowthai and Vegyn and "turns the richness of British culture in swerving, genre-moulding rap". Ross From Friends, better known to his chums as Felix James Clary Weatherall, "provides his own compressed, fidgety interpretation of techno/house". It's a good combination.

 

Closing the selection and quite rightly celebrated on Bagging Area yesterday, is a track from the latest EP by Jesse Fahnestock aka 10:40. The lead track is a 2021 highlight, Kissed Again, originally appearing on the excellent Higher Love Vol. 1 compilation and deservedly getting a release in its own right. Its accompanied by two new songs, Coat Check and Fin, the latter described as "a haunting blissed out beauty tailor made for the majesty of a warm summer sunset". I can vouch for the fact that it works equally well on a dark, cold spring night and a bright, frosty April morning. What better way to finish the playlist, before hitting replay again?

1) These Days (Cover of Nico): The Anchoress

2) Riverside: Andy Bell

3) Relieve The Pressure: Confidence Man

4) Ruin From The Flood: Dan Wainwright

5) It's Over, If We Run Out Of Love (Lovefingers & Heidi Lawden Low Tide Mix): David Holmes ft. Raven Violet

6) 3210 (Ross From Friends Remix): Jeshi

7) Influencer Village: Momus

8) Hits Me (Instrumental): Mr. Oizo & Phra

9) Glow: Trentemøller

10) Fin: 10:40

Waiting For My Life To Change (49:48)

Can Anyone Ever Really Get The Chemistry, You Know?

This selection has been done completely on the fly this morning and entirely made up of new digital purchases in the past couple of days, mostly via Bandcamp Friday. It's a reasonably relaxed affair, with occasional musical prods to get your attention.

Swiss Adam introduced me to Andres Y Xavi last year and their collaborations with Rolo McGinty (The Woodentops) were fantastic. What Do You See In Me originally appeared as a dub and it's just been released as an EP, with two further Xavi dubs and a trio of excellent Balearic remixes from Max Essa. I've gone for the full vocal to start things off, Rolo in fine form against a gentle acoustic backdrop and the promise of a beautiful summer to come.

 

Dan Wainwright, another Bagging Area recommendation, released his latest album From The Ground Up in January. Two listens in and I'm loving it. In the promo info Dan describes this as a very personal record that "tells a story through metaphor about being neurodiverse and learning to accept and love [himself] as being unique". If you've enjoyed Dan's music as I have, then this album takes it to whole other level.

 

I stumbled across Ribas Abbas whilst down a Bandcamp rabbit hole, and I'm glad I did. Based in Amsterdam, Ribas' music appears to be a mix of originals and re-edits, all available as a free/name your price download. I've started with two re-edits, one by Christine & The Queens and the other, featured here, a re-edit of Pilooski's 2015 song Completely Sun, featuring Jarvis Cocker.

 

In fact, you get three divine JCs for your trouble (though sadly not this one). Aside from Jarvis Cocker, Julian Cope and John Cale both get the re-edit/remix treatment, courtesy of Paisley Dark Records and their excellent Edits Box series. As is there weren't reason enough to buy, on Bandcamp Friday all of the artists agreed to donate every penny spent on releases to the fund raiser United Help Ukraine, with the label match funding donations up to £100. 

 

I enthused about the new Trentemøller album, Memoria, last month but after streaming it for the last couple of weeks, I have finally got around to buying it. Lisbet Fritze is the perfect choice of vocalist for the album, as evidenced in current single, No More Kissing In The Rain. 

 

On a similar retro vibe, I belated picked up The Divine Comedy's most recent album, Office Politics. Not what I expected - in a good way - with Neil Hannon channeling his inner Goldfrapp on this song. This is preceded by Sleaford Mods, remixed by the Hartnoll brothers to great effect. Parental advisory: you might want to skip this one as, true to form, there's a lot of effin' and jeffin' going on.

 

Xan Tyler makes a welcome return to these pages, following 2021's collaboration with Mad Professor, Clarion Call, which I loved. Whilst I'm looking forward to a new Xan Tyler album this year, this selection steps back to 2020 and Let It Come Down, essentially a solo project by legendary producer Kramer. So far, just the one album - Songs We Sang in Our Dreams - predominantly instrumentals with Xan providing vocals on a couple of tracks, including this beauty.

 

Closing the selection is the wonderful Dnipro by Ukrainian duo Ptakh_Jung, which I discovered earlier this week, and the brilliant Catherine Anne Davies aka The Anchoress. Following last month's cover of R.E.M., here is a wonderful version of The Tradition by Halsey, Davies accompanied by Charlie Cawood to haunting effect. 

 

A perfect way to close the selection, and a prompt to further explore the vast musical soundscapes these artists have created. Buy now.

 

1) What Do You See In Me (Max Essa Extended Vocal Mix): Andres Y Xavi ft. Rolo McGinty (2022)

2) Underwater Cities: Dan Wainwright (2022)

3) Completely Sun (Ribas Abbas Remix): Pilooski ft. Jarvis Cocker (2020)

4) I Don't Rate You (Orbital Remix): Sleaford Mods (2021)

5) Infernal Machines (Album Version): The Divine Comedy (2019)

6) No More Kissing In The Rain: Trentemøller ft. Lisbet Fritze (2022)

7) They Were On Hard Drugs (Matt Gunn Edit): Julian Cope (2022)

8) Hush Hush: Horton Jupiter vs. John Cale (2021)

9) Don't Let It Go To Your Head: Cleo Sol (2021)

10) Pennies: Let It Come Down (Kramer & Xan Tyler) (2020)

11) Dnipro: Ptakh_Jung (2020)

12) The Tradition (Cover of Halsey): The Anchoress (2022)

 

Can Anyone Ever Really Get The Chemistry, You Know? (1:02:34)

Maybe It's Time To Tear It All Apart

I posted about Trentemøller last September, having been switched onto his run of new singles and promise of a new album. Since then, Trentemøller has dropped three further tracks and, to close this week, fifth single Like A Daydream and sixth album Memoria.

Continuing the musical style of the last 12 months, Like A Daydream is like one of the great lost Slowdive singles, whilst the parent album plays like an indie/goth/shoegaze treasure trove of undiscovered gems. This is the first time that Trentemøller has written all the lyrics and vocal melodies and he does a good job, and Lisbet Fritze really brings the songs to life.

I received a digital copy of Andy Bell's new album Flicker yesterday which, on first play, is already a contender for a 2022 highlight (but that's for another post). Trentemøller's Memoria is right up there too and I'm looking forward to immersing myself in the sounds of the album in its entirety this weekend.

 

Like A Daydream

No More Kissing In The Rain

Dead Or Alive

All Too Soon

In The Gloaming

Buy Memoria on Bandcamp

I Guess God Made A Plan I Don’t Understand

I hadn't really been paying attention to what Anders Trentemøller had been up to for the past few years, until a post back in April over at the ever-excellent Bagging Area piqued my curiosity and a further post in June had me hooked. Trentemøller has released three singles so far in 2021 and has just announced a new album, Memoria, to come in February 2022. Echoing Swiss Adam's comments, Trentemøller's music evokes and updates the ethereal, transformative - let's be honest, goth-tinged - elements that I loved so much about indie/alternative music in the 1980s and 1990s. At various times, the spirit of Cocteau Twins, Joy Division, The Cure, The Jesus & Mary Chain, Dead Can Dance et al sends shivers down the spine. Ulrich Schnauss ploughed a similar furrow in the early 2000s, but Trentemøller takes the concept in a compelling direction. Memoria is available for pre-order and you can buy the three singles (and previous releases) via Bandcamp.

 

Trentemøller's latest single, In The Gloaming, was released on 9th September. Previous singles Golden Sun / Shaded Moon and No One Quite Like You, featuring Tricky / Vespertine came out in June and July respectively, and don't feature on the upcoming album.

 

In The Gloaming: Trentemøller ft. Lisbet Fritze (2021)

Golden Sun (Single Version): Trentemøller (2021)

Shaded Moon: Trentemøller (2021)

No One Quite Like You: Trentemøller ft. Tricky (2021)

Vespertine: Trentemøller (2021)

 

Today's post title is a lyric from No One Quite Like You.