The two albums format has us shifting from an Oz goth debut in Ikon's In The Shadow Of The Angel to a US electro swansong in Alter Der Ruine's I Will Remember It All Differently. We'e also talking about the just announced line-up for next year's Verboden Fest, and catching SRSQ live.

This iteration of our ever popular Pick Five format has us casting our minds back to the days before we were the worldly and jaded connoisseurs of all things goth and industrial we are today. We’re each picking five ‘precursor’ experiences; points of contact with various elements of what would go on to be Our Thing before we truly understood or recognized it.

As selected by our Patreon backers, this month’s commentary subject is Re-constriction Records’ 1993 covers comp Shut Up Kitty. A document of both the emerging US coldwave sound as well as larger trends in 90s alt music, it’s a mixed bag in terms of quality, but as we hope this discussion shows, holds real value to those fascinated by the evolution of industrial sub-genres and themes. 

This week's episode of We Have A Technical features an interview with none other than London After Midnight mastermind and all around goth icon Sean Brennan, who's joining us to discuss the band's new Oddities Too compilation, as well as the band's different eras and aesthetic dimensions over the years. We're also discussing Synth Kids, Thomas Z Westerberg's graphic novel about coming of age in Sweden's late 80s synth scene. 

We're joined on the podcast by Jill Sheridan and Eric Oehler of long-running midwest synthpop act Null Device to discuss their new record, The Emerald Age. Between broader world events and shifts in the band's philosophy, Null Device's sound has changed and matured a great deal in recent years, and we were keen to get Eric and Jill's sense of the band's relation to the nebulous notion of synthpop itself, as well as the particular themes the record explores. All that plus BS about Cure Funko Pops, apparently.

It doesn't get much more broad or accessible than a discussion of records by Joy Division and The Cure, but to put a particular spin on this episode we're each discussing our favourite live record by our favourite band. There's also some discussion of the peculiar and hotly discussed Sick New World festival line-up on this week's podcast.

On the occasion of this past week's Kanga/Kaelan Mikla show, we're using this podcast as an opportunity to discuss the experience of watching bands change and grow over the course of multiple live performances. Does a band become more loose or more theatrical over time? How does a band's live evolution differ from their discography's? Do you "owe" an act a second chance after a mediocre show? All that, plus some discussion of friend of the site Andi Harriman's just published "50 Best Goth Songs" article at Rolling Stone. 

This month’s We Have A Commentary has the Senior Staff flipping back through musty old scrapbooks both personal and historical, as they discuss Rasputina’s debut LP, Thanks For The Ether. It’s a rich record both capturing and countering the 90s alternative zeitgest, which touches on the lives of working class women, the horrors of fame, and the most peculiar corners of history. 

On this week's podcast we're joined by Jack Armondo to talk about Psychogoria, the big and sweeping new record of darkwave and goth from Panic Priest. It's a record marked as much by AM radio hooks as it is darkwave atmosphere, and Jack had plenty of thoughtful insight about his influences, the malleability of Panic Priest, and the very serious business of fun during lockdown. We're also chatting a bit about the Minuit Machine tour and Substance LA FOMO. 

It's a two albums episode this week, with FLA's forays into game soundtracking and the high-modernist deathrock of Cinema Strange up for discussion. We're also recapping set we caught from the likes of Front 242, New Order, and Pet Shop Boys.