Published by Davide Pappalardo on May 6, 2018
Lazerpunk is a darksynth/retrowave producer hailing from Budapest, Hungary. While other players in the genre like Perturbator, GosT and Carpenter Brut have achieved a relatively high level of success, especially the former, even attracting the interest of the more open-minded side of metal fans and labels, he stayed in the shadow as an underground name known by the lovers of this kind of music. For sure this is not because of any demerit, actually is take on the genre is one of the most convincing and well crafted, showing during the years a progression toward a darker and harder sound.
He started his journey into the field of retrowave with Game Over (Werkstatt Recordings, 2014), a minimal work in which he already showed the influences of other genres like electro house, disco, EDM and even synthpunk, mixing lighter and darker moments. The second effort Nightcrawler (self-released, 2016) kept this path adding even more pounding rhythms, harsher sounds, taking some notes from techno-industrial and video game soundtracks.
Now he returns with his third album Death & Glory, a glorious cyberpunk-tinged affair with riffing sounds and some brostep/EDM influences incorporated in his darksynth sound with a hard edge. Mid-range melodies, cutting bass-lines, fast and syncopated rhythms, almost industrial brooding moments are the main themes of this work, following the more recent developments of the genre (think of the last EP by Perturbator New Model with its overall darker and harsher sound, or the last album by GosT Possession with its metal-inspired riffs and drums).
Ego death is a perfect incipit for a work like this one: evocative Gregorian chants are soon violated by grinding loops and pounding rhythms, while shrilling sounds ride the music until synth-based pauses are reached. A nervous atmosphere dominates the track, but syncopated EDM movements and the return of the evocative chants slow down the run for some seconds, just in time to prepare us for other electronic assaults.
Speedracer is a collaboration with italo disco producer Quixotic, displaying a club attitude nourished by outrun elements and hard rhythms. It is closer to his past sound, but the overall structure is in line with the other tracks of the album, not forfeiting some harsh refrains and modern production values.
Digital demon sees the help of fellow synthwave artist Daniel Deluxe, a brooding and slower affair with horror atmospheres and straight rhythms completed by dark vocals samples and electronic sounds. The building of the track is seductive and menacing, crawling its way without ever exploding: instead melancholic lines and creepy distortions enhance the enthralling structure during the finale of the track.
Black lambo fuses dark sounds and funky moments in a surprising number with a pounding hip hop rhythm, even descending in acid dance and trap territories. The rules of retrowave are subordinated to a personal sound in which everything is possible, but at the same time you can always recognize the roots of this kind of music in what you hear.
Warmachine starts with a sampled chainsaw, and the like-minded bass sounds keep things hard and cutting. Dubstep rhythms and electro patterns conspire together in order to achieve a sound-vortex of highest magnitude, fast and sharp. One of the track more influenced by the modern kind of darksynth, here the retro sounds are substituted by EDM attacks and hysterical dance movements.
Revenge closes the album with an intro made of almost Gothic undertones, transmuting itself into a dark retowave number with trance melodies and house elements. A sort of return of the older sound of the project, a melodic and melancholic ride with vintage elements and modern session enriched by emotional crescendos.
Overall, Death & Glory is a further evolution of Lazerpunk sound at the same time in line with the recent developments in darksynth and synthwave music and with the personal vision always displayed by the Hungarian artist. Maybe the purist of retrowave will look with disdain to the EDM and dubstep elements, as well as to the harder and darker sound, but truth to be told, Lazerpunk has always used different sounds and atmospheres in his music, confirming himself as more than a copy-cat generic retro musician. Here we have a fast and engaging album with some twists and surprises along the way, and it is time he is finally recognized as one of the more interesting artists in the genre, and know some success. His will to keep things self-produced and stay free from any kind of control requires the full support of his fans, so if you like his music consider help, even by just spreading the word about it.
Label: self-released
Rating: 8