Review: Ombra International is a Berlin based indie-dance label run by Luca Venezia aka Curses (formerly Drop The Lime) featuring artists from around the globe sharing a mutual love for post-punk, new wave and other weird guitar and synth sounds. What's more, they're united by lust and fury and alone.. together! Commencing with the hazy and slow-burning cosmo-psychedelia of Bordeaux based enfant terribles Bagarre Perdue with "Cowboy", Sutja Gutierrez' "Great Chain Of Being" will take you deep into the exotic with its enchanting west Asian musical aesthetics. On the flip, more cosmic rock for fans of legends like Can courtesy of Frenchman Mondowski while Russian act Seven Knives channel the early '80s vibes of Neue Deutsche Welle on "Wires Go Golden".
Review: Following on from the ninth spilt release earlier this year, Ombra Intl 010 sees this Berlin label offer up more distinctive sounds. Cornelius Doctor's "Soft Rocket" revolves around a throbbing groove that's shot through with spiky percussion and post-punk shrieks. Meanwhile, Mufti's "Control" is somewhat more upbeat, but here too rough guitars and breathy vocals cut through the shiny rhythm. On Sebastian Voigt's "EX2", the mood turns bleak, with dubbed out drums supporting a murky bass and razor sharp percussion, while for its finale, the tenth volume in the series sees Colossio drop the hypnotic post-punk meets disco of "Eco".
Review: Ombra International is inviting artists from different cities from around the globe to contribute their rock and roll or post-punk influenced grooves via slo-mo disco and cold wave sonics. OMBRA INTL 002 is four tracks bringing together Cannibal Ink (Madrid) with the sleazy psych rock of "La Haine", Dawn Again from Sydney, K-effect (Toledo) and Curses in Berlin. Curses is the dark and romantic moniker from New York City native Luca Venezia aka Trouble & Bass main man Drop The Lime who serves up the awesome "Neu Dimension".
Review: Next up on Ombra International is Theus Mago, a DJ and producer from Mexico as well as co-founder of the Duro label. From the grinding, neon-lit synthpop of "Ella" (feat Doog) which is followed by some sombre minimal synth journeys - such as the remix up next by Il Est Vilaine and the haunting "Smokey Red Lights" again featuring the nonchalant vocals of Doog. Belgian Arthur Russell (La Dame Noir) delivers a punk-funk rendition up next and label head honcho Curses delivers a cheeky indie-dance version -which also will appeal to fans of the Tel Aviv sound - popularised by the likes of Red Axes and Autarkic.
Review: Like the label's previous release, Ombra International's third EP is an all-star affair featuring contributions from a quartet of artists. Veneno kicks things off with the clandestine, post-punk dub-disco trip "Attencion Especial", before Teniente Castillo blasts off into space via the psychedelic synthesizer arpeggio lines, undulating acid flashes and extended guitar solos of EP highlight "Not That Way". Perel's "Hildegard" does a fine job in straddling the thin line between mind-altering acid house and quirky, off-kilter nu-disco, while former Nein and Magic Feet duo Roe Deers steal the show via the wonderfully weird, loose and eccentric closer "Metal Ants", a track that defies any attempts at categorization.
