We Have A Technical

We're getting into the weeds of US industrial this week, discussing a record that captures a very specific early 90s moment, along with some formal experimentation in D.D.T.'s Discomedia, and one which consolidates the strength and range of cyberpunk stalwarts Cyanotic, The Trigger Effect. We're also looking over the solid lineup and new location for this year's Subtance Festival.

How does community lead to the discovery of new music? How do changes in the circles we run in or means through which we communicate lead to changes in our musical diets? How do modern algorithms interrupt or aid those musical flows? These are questions probably best left to serious sociological researchers, but instead you’ve got us two chuckleheads talking about the subject on this week’s We Have a Technical! 

We're offering up one of classic, easy going Pick Five episodes this week folks, as we each look back at some underrated singles. Which tunes came out too early or too late to hit the spotlight? Which hinted at roads less travelled by established bands? And which tickled the fancies of the Senior Staff just because? 

We’re going hard in the powernoise paint this week, as we look back on records from very different periods in the history of the subgenre, Tarmvred’s Subfusc and Iszoloscope’s The Edge Of Certainty. There’s a lot of lateral discussion about the genre on the whole, in addition to consideration of what stands out about these records so many years on from their release. We’re also breaking down the recently announced line-up for the thirteenth instalment of the Cold Waves Fest. 

On this month's commentary we look at a nearly 40 year old classic which feels as though it could have been released in response to the world at large today: Test Dept.'s The Unacceptable Face Of Freedom. In addition to the record's searing indictment of the intertwining of capitalism and fascism at the expense of the working class, it marks a turning point for the band, with their classic industrial percussive sound now being tempered with an increased focus on sampling and programming, pointing the way forward for post-industrial music.

We're reaching just across some borders this week, talking about a pair of records which abut upon the industrial and goth worlds but aren't entirely part and parcel of them. First up is the latest and very cyperpunk-themed record from the industrial-tinged hip-hop trio Clipping. Next, we're talking about Chicago experimentalist Circuit Des Yeux's new dark art rock opus, which lifts from the same ur-sources as goth.

It's our sesexacentennial anniversary here at We Have A Technical, and no, that's not a mispronunciation of some oddly named aggrotech album, but cod-Latin for our 550th episode. We like to do something special every fifty episodes, and this is no different, with the Senior Staff casting their eyes and ears back to some club hits which didn't exactly curry favour with them upon release, and reappraising them. Has the music changed, or have we? We're also giving some immediate reactions to the newly rerecorded "Every Day Is Halloween" (just be thankful we're not really on Youtube with soyjak reaction faces).

We’re joined by a pair of Patreon backers, Gustav of Sturm Café and Eric of Everything Goes Cold, to talk about a pair of records: the throwback, funk-inflected synthpop of Berndsen’s Planet Earth and Babyland’s electronic junk punk swan song Cavecraft, respectively. We’re also chatting about a recent show by Vancouver’s own Devours.

On this week's podcast, we're talking about an everything and the kitchen sink industrial crossover record reflective of its late 90s era in Pail's Epidemic, and the now decade-old statement of arrival from Finland's Vancouver-school electro-industrial act Cardinal Noire. We're also running through the just announced line-up of this year's Terminus Festival.

Ottawa’s Encephalon join the podcast for the first time in nearly a decade to discuss the Ottawa act’s latest high-concept, high-def electro-industrial LP, Automaton All Along. Alis and Matt chat with us about process, influences, and all of the various post-human and philosophical threads to be found in the record. We’re also discussing the news of Mentallo & The Fixer returning to live touring. 

We're breaking from the usual LP format of our commentary episodes to bring you a discussion of a label compilation, specifically the first volume of Nightbreed's infamous "Gothic Sounds" samplers. We're using tunes from the likes of Suspiria, Nekromantik, and Faithful Dawn as an opportunity to discuss the ins and outs of mid 90s UK goth, and specifically the tantalizing electrogoth sound which has always been closely tied to Nightbreed.

It's a two albums formatted podcast this week folks, and one of a decidedly industrial cast. Up first, we're talking about X-Marks The Pedwalk side-project PAX's second LP, the hi-def and ambient/techno inflected High Speed Digital Spirit Processing. Next, it's the acidic, 90s throwback dark electro of Qual's Cyber Care EP. 

It's time for a Pick Five episode, dear listener, and as luck would have it it's also time for a particular time, or at least records suited specifically to 3am (eternal). What is a 3am record? We have a few different reads on that as you'll find out, as well as some comments on Ministry and And One tour news.

It’s a classic two records formatted episode of the podcast this week, folks. The first full length record from Informatik and the sole release from electro-punk supergroup Error don’t have a whole lot in common sonically or aesthetically, but as we explore on this episode they’re each the product of a very precise and specific set of sounds, influences, and trends which would have only been accessible or pertinent precisely at the time they were released. 

Hot on the heels of a fantastic retirement concert from Front 242, the Senior Staff are discussing the ins and outs of legacy bands' retirements. When's the right time to pack it in, and who's to say? How does a band's aesthetic or style affect their longevity? We're taking up these and other questions, as well as talking about this week's Nine Inch Nails ticket sales.

This month's commentary podcast has Bruce and Alex ripping through Cubanate's unrelenting "Cyberia", a combination of industrial guitars and contemporary electronic production that's just as furious and engaging as it was in 1994. We're talking Phil Barry's guitar technique, the holy terror of Marc Heal's voice, and how the record manages to deliver a constant stream of tight club tracks while never falling prey to the chaos it rides the edge of.

The thorny issue of requests and how they do and don’t fit into goth-industrial club formats is the subject of this week’s podcast, with Alex and Bruce talking about the issues that come with ‘big tent’ club formats, how patrons expectations have shifted in the streaming era, and do their level best (but occasionally fail) to avoid turning into bitter middle-aged DJs griping about their lots.

The first classic, two albums formatted episode of the new year has us looking at the finely balanced ethereal darkwave of Double Echo, and the immediate and genre-hopping techno-EBM work of Alen Skanner. We're also talking Terminus, the passing of Manufacture's Brian Bothwell, and the prospect of a new NIN tour.

We're jumping into the new year with a podcast previewing forthcoming releases we expect to come in 2025 from a slew of our favourite artists: Encephalon, Spark!, Devours, and more. We're also talking about the passing of Chemlab's Dylan Thomas More, news regarding Ghost Twin and Kindest Cuts, and this year's iteration of Cold Waves. 

Our still recently minted annual tradition of the off-topic commentary is back! After records by Little Boots and GZA in previous years, we're once again wandering away from Our Thing for our final We Have A Commentary of the year. As voted on by our patrons, we're discussing an Iron Maiden record, 1986's Somewhere In Time in particular! From the band's emerging structural experimentation to its classic galloping metal to the increasingly adventurous themes and topics they were taking on, we have a blast discussing one of our mutual favourite metal bands of all time.