Can the world really stop? Belle and Sebastian have wished for this in their song ‘I Want The World To Stop‘ of course, but they never meant for a killer virus to wipe millions of people off the globe.
REM have famously sung about the end of the world as we know it, but they never predicted or wished for Covid-19 to appear and make this a reality.
Reality often proves our personal predictions wrong, but 2020 threw the whole cookbook of the human experience in an imaginary, intergalactic bin. 2020 restored damaged natural habitats, delayed the expansion of the ozone whole, shifted the collective energy of humanity from a conspicuous consumerism, to something more focused on spirituality and mental wellbeing.
The releases of this year all responded to the shared shock that the world is still experiencing. As this year made everyone reconsider the way they measure time, the way they experience the seasons changing, the days passing, the months coming and going as never before, music and creativity maintained our collective sanity in a truly magical way.
The sonic output of this year was much darker than usual as far as the albums’ concepts were concerned, while we learned to focus on our mobile/desktop/laptop screens even when it came to our entertainment. New DJs emerged on digital platforms, our favourite DJs were quick to respond to the changing environment and keep things ‘real’ for us with amazing online sets, while bands generously offered memorable live streams accessible to everyone on the globe. We want to thank Martin Oldgoth, DJ Blackdeath 1334, Communion After Dark, Obscura Undead, DJ Cavey Nik, Geisterwelt, Red Party NYC, for their beautiful sets on Twitch that kept us good company with a positive energy and great music choices.
We will not forget the summer solstice performance of Hexvessel, the powerful live streams of Diorama and Astari Nite, the great set of Howard Rickard from the Ukraine. There is more to come of course and we will be here to support our scene and our stage.
Our soundtrack for 2020, the best albums of the year that has just ended, are making a dark folk, experimental, post punk, gospel based rock, gothic, punk, IDM, industrial, dynamic, rhythmically attractive sonic trip on an existentially exploratory path. They include the latest releases by Marc Almond, Einstuerzende Neubauten, Marilyn Manson and TRICKY, the impressive debut album by HUMANIST, the poetic sonic summoning by Johny Brown, and the latest sonic offering by ALGIERS among many other amazing releases. Hats off to the most creative of all, Anatoly Tokee Grinberg who released five albums already in 2020, two of which with Mark Spybey and Darren James Holloway who released three albums this year; we know that there is more to come.
We cannot wait for the new music that will be created throughout 2021, we cannot wait to get back to live gigs and clubs and we cannot wait to step into our favourite venues once all this is over. Continue to support your scene, offer your support to bands who generously offer their material and talent for free and acknowledge the exceptional circumstances that we are all facing around the world. So, whether your approach the chaos in your life the way Marc Almond intended, as a dancing star or as Marilyn Manson would have it, raging against the dying of the light, dig into 2021 with passion!
Blaue Rosen 
March was a dark month, especially in the UK as it was the month when the lockdown measures were put in place, creating a new situation even for the reclusive misfits of society. The sonic output of this month was rich but we did not find it as easy, to identify truly exceptional releases. There were many EPs and albums that confused us both with the plurality of their influences and with the fact that the bands seemed to be unable to make sonic sense out of all this. Once again it was the most experimental approaches to sound that fascinated us and a spirit of relentless energy that has been retained and enhanced from all-time favourite bands.
