CVLT Nation
Deathrock 2013 Mixtape by
Oliver Sheppard

While “legacy” dark bands like Killing Joke and The Damned continue to tour and release new material into 2013, last year saw an upsurge in the number of punk bands reclaiming deathrock’s DIY roots. The newer bands are producing a unique take on the cobwebbed genre that blends elements of 80s peace punk, crust, and old school gothic rock with darker postpunk sounds.

What follows below is a good sampling of bands that have producing newer output in this developing new sonic milieu that has largely grown up inside of the international hardcore punk scene. My previous two deathrock mixtapes included bands like Bellicose Minds and The Estranged; below you will find newer songs by bands like The Spectres and Moral Hex, who continue to represent the West Coast’s strong showing in this genre. Italy’s Horror Vacui and Dystopian Society are included, too, along with Spain’s Belgrado, representing southern Europe’s strong interest in this style of music. For good measure, newer tracks by Killing Joke (2012) and Rudimentary Peni (2008) are put in to tie the newer bands into the old.

In the wake of punk, from about 1978 onwards, dark forms of punk and postpunk flowered internationally, with various regional variations. In Spain, there was the Siniestro style of postpunk pioneered by bands like Paralasis Permanente; in Germany, depro-punk by bands like EA80 and Fliehende Strume (who still exist) came about; England obviously saw postpunk, gothic rock, and so-called :positive punk”; southern California saw the birth of deathrock while the East Coast of the USA bore witness to horror punk (Misfits and The Cramps); and Japan likewise saw the birth of “positive punk” with bands like Auto-Mod and Phaidia.

The following mix is by no means exhaustive — previous mixes have included the Bellicose Minds, whose new LP The Spine is due out any day now; as well as Germany’s Tanzkommando Untergang — but is meant as a starting point for your own exploration.

CVLT Nation Deathrock 2013
1 hr, 23 mins
114 mb
1. ANASAZI – I Saw the Witch Cry (2011)
2. CHRIST VS WARHOL – The End is Nigh (2010)
3. CRIMSON SCARLET – Sanctuary (2011)
4. DEAD CULT – Progression of Fear (2012)
5. MORAL HEX – Love Hurts (2012)
6. POPULATION – Waltzing a War (2011)
7. CEMETERY – State Ward (2011)
8. BLUE CROSS – Disconnect (2011)
9. LOST TRIBE – Lifeless Mind (2011)
10. FUNERAL PARADE – For You (2010)
11. THE SPECTRES – Remote Viewing (2012)
12. DEKODER – Hate Song (2012)
13. INTERNAL AUTONOMY – Only Human (Rudimentary Peni) (2012)
14. RUDIMENTARY PENI – Grave Object (2008)
15. BELGRADO – Clockwise (2011)
16. AGNOSTIC PRAY – Alienation (2010)
17. ATRIARCH – Altars (2012)
18. PINKISH BLACK – Spiritual Cramp (Christian Death) (2012)
19. ALARIC – Assault Memory (2012)
20. KILLING JOKE – Primobile (2012)
21. ARCTIC FLOWERS – Technicolor Haze (2011)
22. CROSS STITCHED EYES – Become Earth (2008)
23. DAILY VOID – Spiral Staircase (2009)
24. DYSTOPIAN SOCIETY – Masquerade (2012)
25. HORROR VACUI – In Darkness You Will Feel Alright (2012)