Ramos Dual & Yul Navarro – Igual mi corazón puede volverse Oscuro [Soil Records]

Soil Records is currently one of the most reliable sources for an important part of the current of dark electronic music, of the scene that derives from post-punk and that has been sectioned into many different musical styles. There is nothing to object about the evolution of this label, in its usual way of operating we distinguish that it values established artists and new projects with hardly any projection in the same way, and many of us take advantage of this philosophy, from media like this one to other labels that are looking for new talents. It is also worth noting that the label’s record has expanded during these 5 years, as shown in the commemorative album of this fifth anniversary.

Soil Records celebrates five years of history with a big bet. We already know the magnitude of the Spanish label’s anniversary, this time they have prepared a massive album with 50 tracks from different authors divided into five CDs of 10 tracks each. In this post we explore the tracks from the first CD.

The first CD opens with Besiegers by Be the Hammer & John 3:16, an alliance we already enjoyed last year with Swarm, an album released on the Industrial Complexx label, and who return again with a track that, as they themselves express, is a sonic nightmare, the score of a horror film that doesn’t exist. Ih Tu mir Was is the work of Cosey Mueller, post punk and synthwave by a new generation artist who also forms, or has formed part of, Glaas and Das Das, two bands with a somewhat harder oriented sound. Ramos Dual & Yul Navarro are two Spanish artists who have been connected for some years now and have a great stage presence to back them up, and they prove it with a kind of turn towards electronic punk with “Igual mi corazón puede volverse Oscuro”. Alexander Leonard Donat is a consolidated artist and also very committed to multiple projects, each one specialising in a very specific sound, with Vlimmer he develops post-punk and darkwave, and good proof of this is Rückflut, a track that perfectly exemplifies this mixture of styles and also places the listener in an organic world in which the use of electronic textures is more discreet. EGZOTIKKA is the solo project of Lithuanian artist Osvaldas Bertašius, Kad Nesinoretu is his contribution to this album, a track that well defines his inclination towards musical genres such as coldwave.

From Mexico, El Ojo y La Navaja explores with Repulsión the minimalist sound that brings a simple rhythmic structure, an unvarying bass sequence, two simple melodies and a voice with a lo-fi treatment. Seven Sins is the first project from this roster of artists that we have no information about, however, his contribution to this album is formidable, Breaking is a groovy track with a well-developed rhythmic design, multiple vocals and unique charisma. Facets is a short lived but experienced artist currently based in New York and his track Astrology is an amalgamation of influences, although it can be defined as slow techno with an expansive rhythmic feel. Flashes of Darkness is the track by Spanish producer Asymetric80, a work with a dense harmonic sound in which the synthesised lines become more prominent. The cut that closes the first CD is the work of Ukrainian Ginger Snap5, Whitey shows an unusual energy, explosive synthesizers that accompany the vocals of Roman Soroka, the only current member of this project.

Release date: July 4th, 2023.