Well, another year has come to an end. A year stuffed with a tsunami of striking tunes
and stunning albums, as TUTV already displayed on its 2023 best-tracks and best-albums lists.
But that was just a fraction of this past year’s superb music extravaganza. Let’s go out with
a big bang. 20 Top Tunes from 20 Top Albums that made our ears go bonkers in 2023.
They’re young, still students, they have a new socialist revolution vision and
they embed their power to the people views in swirling, energetic dance pop
tunes as they did again with their new, 3rd album DISMANTLE!. They operate
artistically under the moniker of CAMLANN.
It’s 2023, but history keeps on repeating itself. Intolerance, governmental oppression, belligerent world leaders dominate our world again and again, the poor getting poorer
and the rich getting richer. It all sounds like we’re talking about the past. Unfortunately,
it’s today’s reality and there’s not a light shining at the end of the tunnel so far.
Therefore, we need young people to get up, stand up and fight for their right to have a peaceful future. That’s what Calmann is about as human beings and outspoken musicians.
It’s great to have Ony Godfrey and Fauzan Pratama for a chat about it all.
Hello Ony, hello Fauzan,
Welcome,
What/who inspired you to start your musical journey?
“We were 15 when we started Camlann, we used to idolize a lot of goth bands
both from the modern times and from the 80’s. Sisters of Mercy, Joy Division, and Drab Majesty were the first bands that inspired us to start our journey.”
Which track would you play to people who never heard of you?
“Definitely “Your Death Is My Glory”, “The Sacred Sacrifice”, and “Charming Deceiver”.
You’re pretty productive. Every year since 2020 you released an album.
Definitely no writer’s block. Do you write songs that easily?
“Thankfully, we never really experienced writer’s blog and new ideas are always coming into our minds all the time. It’s probably because we’re still university students and have no other job but studying. It definitely gives us more time to explore our music.”
Your 2023 album is named DISMANTLE! What do you want to express with it?
“Through this album, we are contributing to the liberation of the proletariat class by releasing songs that talk about the struggles that the proletariat endures. Songs like “False Consciousness”, “Proletariat Wishes”, and “Alienated” showcase the proletariat’s hopes and struggles through a Marxist perspective. Not only that, this album is also our weapon on critisizing the hypocrisy of some high ranked politicians both from the present and the past.
Songs like “Your Death Is My Glory” and “Politician Superstar” are full of satire on the lyrics, mocking and exposing the bourgeoisie class that has been oppressing the working class for centuries. “DISMANTLE!” is our first step in using music and visual art as a weapon to express our socialist ideas to the world. Like it or not, we won’t stop voicing the working class through our art.
This album is just the beginning of our journey as a dark disco Marxist duo, we will
keep serving you revolutionary tunes in the future! POWER TO THE PEOPLE!”
The album’s artwork is quite intriguing. What’s the story behind it?
“We were thinking of making an artwork that has soviet poster elements to it.
So we communicated our ideas with the artist who’s working with our current
label, Oberwave Records.
We showed them the references we have, mostly inspired by early soviet constructivism art and also vintage soviet posters, and the result of the artwork really matches our vision.”
I discovered you with this year’s fantastic single YOUR DEATH IS MY GLORY.
What is it about and how did the song came together?
“As we previously briefly explained, this song is a mockery of the hypocrisy
of the bourgeoisie politicians who rule with manipulation, lies, and hunger
for power.
This song tells you a story of a power-hungry bourgeoisie dictator who arranged the assassination of the former president of a fictional country we made for this song.
If you watch the music video (definitely check it out, since the audience will understand the whole message through the storyline of the music video), the bourgeoisie dictator, played by Ony), got what he deserved and got assassinated by the people and the country is finally back under the control of the proletariat of the country.
The former president’s legacy, played by Fauzan), remains in the people’s hearts and they continue to build their country by following in his footsteps. This song serves you an aggressive satire of the ruling class but also empowers the working class by reminding them that even if you are currently suffering under oppression, remember that there’s always hope for the future. Things will get better and keep fighting for your rights as a human being and as a citizen of your country.”
Are you playing the music yourself and/or do
you work with other musicians in the studio?
“We recorded, wrote, and composed our music by ourselves, but we have been
working with a Czech producer and musician, David Novotny since our 3rd album,
“Train To 86th Street”. We are currently working with him on our upcoming
5th album that will be released at the beginning of 2025.
Both “Train to 86th Street” and “DISMANTLE!” are all produced, mixed, and mastered
by David. Aside from the production and musical engineering, we do everything by ourselves.”
.
Suppose DISMANTLE! Is the soundtrack for a movie, which one would it be?
“DISMANTLE!” would be a great soundtrack for a historical biopic, especially biopics
or documentary films related to the struggle of the working class, Marxist or Socialist revolution, etc. Movies like Che (2008), biopic of Che Guevara, or Stalingrad (2013) would
be a great fit for this album.
The past decade Indonesian rock/pop really boomed?
What made that happen ?
“It seems that the youth has become more enthusiastic about music, especially the ones that are influenced by western indie and alternative music. Many indie and alternative bands from Indonesia have reached international attention since the late 2010’s.
And lately, it seems that Darkwave and Post-Punk have reached the interest of Indonesian youths too. A lot of Darkwave and Post-Punk influenced bands have been appearing in the scene lately, which is amazing.”
What do you think about AI? Good or bad for music?
“AI can be very useful for us, but AI music is definitely harmful for music. We see a lot
of AI cover of songs that are currently trending and the sad thing is, the AI cover got more attention than the original song which is very sad and disrespectful for the artist of the song.
Take example Mitski’s song “My Love Is Mine All Mine”, the AI cover of the song
got famous and some people who didn’t know that it was made by Mitski, thought
that it was made by another more popular artist that is created by the AI.
As we said before, AI can be very helpful in various aspects
but not in music, since it causes more harm than good.”
What was for you the most important event of the year?
“The release day of our 4th album “Dismantle!” will be our most
important event of this year. Our first mini-tour would be the second
most memorable and important event of 2023.”
Which song will/would you play at midnight on 31 December?
“This will definitely be “Your Death Is My Glory”
What musical and or personal plans do you have for 2024?
“We will be releasing the remix of “Dismantle!” on February 2024 via Oberwave Records.
And we will be releasing some music videos from the album, continue
the Indonesian tour, and release a new single at the end of 2024 as a sign
of our next era.”
Thank you for this interview, Ony and Fauzan.
Have a fantastic 2024.
Time flies. We already have six months of 2023 behind us.
Six months of listening every day to music, bad/good, very good and 24 Carat Gold.
It was hard to make a selection of the 25 most impressive pieces. But we did it.
These Brighton punk feminists are MENTAL and AWESOME.
They released Turn Up The Volume‘s best EP of 2023 (so far), named You’re Welcome
a couple of weeks ago. And one of the 6 Molotov cocktails on it is this in your-macho-face sucker-punch. The Lambrini girls race faster than a Ferrari bolide. Best band in the world!
A vigorous young trio from the UK. On this turbulent ripsnorter, it’s full tilt ahead
from the get-go. No brakes, no breaks, no mistakes. A whirlwind of scorching guitars,
pounding drumming, a revolving bass line somewhere in the middle, go-getting vocals
and a dynamite refrain. This is gonna be the year for 32 TENS.
This brand-new supergroup features Shaun Ryder & Bez (Happy Mondays/Black Grape), Andy Bell (Ride/Oasis) and drummer Zak Starkey, yes Ringo’s son, who played with Oasis and The Who among others and who actually came up with this project’s idea and describes it as “a fantastic psychedelic groove from a band of misfits, outsiders and innovators.”
It’s an incredible shame that women still have to fight for so many fundamental rights.
It’s bloody 2023 and so much female injustice is still a reality. So, it’s great that female artists get up, stand up and fight for their right to tackle this human disease.
Chic Choc do it right away on their fantastic debut single. An electronic-booming EBM knockout to fill dance floors with. Boosting beats, catching chorus, sensuous vocals and
a protesting choir, lead to a sassy stunner. Bang-on. Le freak, c’est chic choc.
This 4-piece post-punk from London launched their
kick-ass debut LP Metaphysical earlier this year.
Beefcake Doctrine is driven by repetitive Krautrock dynamics.
Its trance-inducing beats create a hypnotic and puzzling razzmatazz
you can’t and you won’t escape from.
After scoring the best debut LP – to TUTV’s ears – of 2023 The Great Regression, followed by a live album, they just
dropped this brain-frying hammer blow.
It’s a liberating, drum-backed anthem that allows the band to break free from any stress
or obligations in pursuit of a good night. Good times or bad times, it’s always (in)sane to lose your marbles while diving into a hot let’s have a ball night, now and then. And ‘Lose Your Mind‘ is the matching master blaster to double your adrenalin production.
On this slam hip-hop dunk the duo condemn the US’s mass shootings of late in a cynical loud-and-clear way The rip-roaring rappers pretend to be murderous shooters firing at everyone and everything. Bulletman is a devastating drill, a boiling burst that cuts like a first-class Swiss knife.
10. ‘Set Yourself On Fire’ by ULTRA SUNN (Brussels, Belgium)
Once again this cold/darkwave duo – Sam Huge and Gaelle Souflet – shine in the darkness. The rapturous chorus hits you from the first spin. Resounding beats, entranced synths, and echoing vocals combine for another triumph.
11. ‘Your Death Is My Glory’ by CAMLANN (Indonesia)
A human-caring dark-disco duo Ony Godfrey and Fauzan Pratama from Indonesia.
Their newest single is a catchy-as-hell injection that accelerates your bloodstream.
An irresistible stomper to jump up and down like crazy while giving the middle
finger to all power-greedy politicians.
What a way to debut! Expect a glorious nightclub gem with a synth-tantalizing vibe reminiscent of the starry-eyed sparks of British electro-pop heroes New Order. Lipstick
is both a sensuous and affectional tune with gripping vocals up front and melancholic
ones in the back.
Their new single is a flabbergasting metallic corker. It goes forth and back, left and
right, slow and fast as if Casablancas and his misfits put several snippets of several
songs together and puzzled them into one stupendous stroke of a track.
This noizzzz jackhammer from their self-titled debut LP rocks and rolls with panache. Expect ablaze guitars buzzing in a slow/fast mode and turning up the volume, especially
on the yell-along refrain. Legends Hüsker Dü come to mind. Say no more.
It’s the second single off of the upcoming debut album World’s End of this cyber-synth duo.
Heart On is an arousing mid-tempo groover. Both spicy and funky, shadowy and seductive, lustful and provocative with hypnotizing vocals. Its slow-mo synth-bass beat crawls under your skin from the kick-off and progresses steadily towards your restlessly pounding heart.
Night Time is an ecstatic, awe-inspiring, and anthemic thrill. It has that engrossing and
afire rock swagger of Bruce Springsteen‘s melancholic Americana exploits, it’s infused with The Edge-like guitar sparks and frontman Sutherland‘s ardent signing is a perfect match for this soul-stirring pearl.
18. ‘Cars’ by Artists: LUNAR TWIN (Hawai/Salt Lake City)
This electro-pop duo scored an excellent album with Aurora last April.
A 30-minute sonic trip, an ambient fantasy with trancy vibrations, ataractic
effects, and near-whispering vocals.
Cars is my favorite piece. Electrifying dream pop
at its mesmerizing best with sparkling guitar play.
This colorful collective criticize the disastrous state of health care, with the government ignoring the life-risking problems, in England with a sickly sticky riot grrrl pop tune that activates your limbs instantly.
Think Debbie Harry and Blondie playing around on their debut LP. Vibey and briskly. Frolicsome 60s organ touches, lively guitars here and there, and avid vocals.
The band’s new punchy stroke jumps up and down in your head and elevates your mood from the start. It’s a contagious foot-stamper with a poppy chorus vibe inviting you to play air guitar and sing along with all the force your lungs can come up with.
The first new music in three years from the post-punk-rock project of singer-songwriter-guitarist Laura Lee Schultz. The composition captures the raw emotions of sadness, frustration, and anxiety that permeated throughout the years since the pandemic began.
The track’s ominous mid-tempo progression and swelling structure advancing over
an ongoing hypnotic guitar riff send shivers down your spine. Second by second, like
a nervously ticking clock, the sonic poignancy and heartfelt fervidness grow with exuberance and magnitude until Schutlz’s monumental vocals go through the roof.
This is an emotive post-break-up pearl. Heartfelt reflections embedded in
a goosebump musing that resonates like a bittersweet symphony. This British
singer-songwriter’s highly passionate vox reminds me of Antony Hegarty‘s sensitive ardency. The whole-souled tristesse and mixed emotions at play here make you
silent.
This is the artistic moniker of Canadian songsmith Miles Evans-Branagh. He signed for
one of this year’s best albums, so far, with Slow Down. Eight musings. Eight engrossing compositions with one and the same message: get high on life with love. Craftily written, subtly arranged, and graciously orchestrated with intimate, soulful charm and stylish elegance that moves and touches.
Opener A Little Bit is one of those 8 affecting reveries.
Chum are a pretty kooky combo that got my ears trembling with joy with their
grooves-filled debut LP a few weeks ago. Its lead single Beefake Doctrine is a
manic mind-twister with its trancy beats creating a mesmeric and puzzling
razzmatazz you can’t and you won’t run from.
With 1:18 these post-punk-rock misfits dropped a neurotic caterwaul that goes forth and back with burning pzazz. Monomaniacal vocalist Angus Rogers gets worked up to an almost hysterical level and sounds like a tormented and obsessed soul and the band’s horn duo blow their lungs out with nerve-racking urgency. Blimey!
My Illusion is a head-banging and riff-crushing jackhammer that makes
your fists pump in the air, makes your legs shake, and triggers you to check out
your vocal cords’ potential. Ignore your illusions, just get real and get out to party.
For those about to rock Electric Circus salute you.
DTL’s mastermind LL Schultz‘s expresses her frustration and stressful state of mind
caused by those two claustrophobic pandemic years with this high-strung cry out. Its ominous mid-tempo progression, its swelling intensity advancing over an ongoing
hypnotic guitar riff and her sky-scraping send shivers down your spine.
Lockdown threw Schultz to the mat, but it couldn’t
knock her out and she’s back stronger than ever.
London‘s up-and-coming young dogs DEADLETTER rattle on repeat
on this rad ripper spiced with relentless vocality, a sensuous saxophone,
a pumping bass and a sickly sticky chorus. 5-star punk funk.
With Sub these Chicago dudes sound like a cross between legends Gang Of Four and Parquet Courts. It’s a riff motherrocker making your head spin uncontrollably. On top of it comes the singer’s highly tense vocal performance. Don’t miss this holy smoke cracker.
These noisy indies from Bristol, UK Post-punk at its sharp-cutting best. Neurotic guitars and frenetic drums alternated with freaked-out vocals, rhythm changes that drive you nuts, an instrumental Devo-esque intermezzo and a mind-boggling climax. I have nothing whatsoever to complain about.
Who? A socially caring dark disco duo featuring Ony Godfrey and Fauzan Pratama from Indonesia.
Your Death Is My Glory is about political hypocrisy
that suppresses the common people for their own
benefit.
It’s a steamed-up disco corker. A catchy-as-hell boomer that
accelerates your bloodstream. An irresistible tune to jump up
and down to like mad while giving the middle finger to all
power-greedy politicians.
The video is a DIY rapid-eye-movement tour de force.
All Of A Sudden is a B-side that easily could be an A-side. It features on the 12″ of
the previous single No Reason It’s a rotating beats-banger to start and end all
(il)legal raves with. It’ll make your adrenalin production go through the roof.
Lunar Twin‘s new full-length opus Aurora is an ideal
companion to relax with when the twilight sets.
One of the highlights and my favorite track Cars is a trippy dreamwave
with tingling guitars, scintillating synths, and near-whispering voice
combining for a top-notch vibration.
This masked Italian dance act describe themselves as “losers on a planet
where nobody really wins. He who has nothing to lose cannot lose anything.”
They recently released a must-hear 5-track EP with Juicy Lips as one of the 5 highlights.
A capricious crackerjack for nightclubs where misfits, dropouts, eccentrics and other related outsiders have a ball. Wicked music for wicked people by wicked madcaps.
They decided to invite an impressive cast of musical friends to remix songs
from that album. The collection is namedSee Trough You: Rerealized. You
can buy it here. The digital version will be available from June 2.
Andy Bell of legendary shoegaze band Ride operating under the moniker
of GLOK is one of the remixes. He picked the psych-mind-bending piece I’m Hurt and turned it into an ambient techno stunner with Kraut-rock-like
synth rhythms and chainsaw guitar fragments. Score!
Who? A British quartet inspired by a mutual passion for the sights,
sounds and creative experimentation of the mid to late 1960s with
its unique blend of garage rock, psychedelia and acid folk.
A 60s colored psych-pop gem that could be written by Californian legends
The Mamas & Papas. Layered vocals, jangly guitars (playing backward at
one point. Remember The Beatles‘ Tomorrow Never Knows song?), and an
infectious chorus. Play it 81 times.
“A song inspired by my walks to coffee shops, my friends,
the band TOPS, and the scotch I like to drink!”
Easy-going tunes you can hum and whistle like this one are always welcome on my headphones after having too much noizz buzzing in my ears. Scotch is a laid-back, jaunty, and happy-go-lucky melody enriched with sunlit guitar play. Perfect for a walk in the city on a lazy Spring day. Kelly‘s mellow voice sounds like it was meant to sing devil-may-care songs like this one. Canadacana at its strolling best. Bottoms up!
To celebrate the first anniversary of their debut album 10 MinutesGmbtLife decided to cover a Pixies classic.
They picked one of their best-known songs, Monkey Gone To Heaven from 1989. Their take is pretty special and surprising. They decelerated it and added subtle piano play, distorted guitars, and low-pitched vocals.
The song is about political hypocrisy that suppresses the common people
for their own benefit. Its story is fictional, yet inspired by real events and
reflects the band’s caring commitment to the socialist cause.
The impressive single artwork
TUTV: What a dark disco stomper this is. A catchy-as-hell injection that
accelerates your bloodstream. An irresistible and barbed wire banger to jump
up and down to like crazy while giving the middle finger to all power-greedy
politicians.
No rest for the manipulative wicked, they should be tackled every single day.
And Your Death Is My Glory is the amazeballs anthem that goes with it.
The video is a DIY rapid-eye-movement tour de force.
