07 December 2023 - 0 Comments

Australian-based industrial synth crust artist Schkeuditzer Kreuz, alias Aotearoa punk veteran Kieren Hills (S*M*U*T, Dark Horse, Murder Disco X, Death Church, Vae Victus, Septic Noise Grinder), has just released Second Life: No Life Left Remixed.

The release comes ahead of NZ tour dates for January 2024 in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland.

The new remix collection features five tracks from the latest Schkeuditzer Kreuz LP, No Life Left (August 2023), reworked by Distruster (US), Max Rael (UK), Creassault (NZ), Non-Bio (UK), and Crash-Scan (NZ). Described by Undertheradar as “Roaming from ear-scraping breakbeat-scapes reminiscent of Tetsuo: The Iron Man to pulse-pounding EBM to skull-trepanning powernoise to mind-mashing doom,” Second Life: No Life Left Remixed can be downloaded from Bandcamp now, or ordered as part of a limited Double CD-set, coupled with the original No Life Left album.

Speaking to Undertheradar, Kieren described some of the inspirations behind the remix collection and Double CD:

“(I was) thinking back to the ‘90s – like when Insurge released Power to the Poison People as a double CD with a disc of remixes created by artists from Ollie Olsen to Nasenbluten; to a band like Fear Factory doing the Remanufacture thing and inviting crazy, fucked up electronica into the traditional guitar world of metal; or Consolidated getting the mass-remix treatment on the This Is Fascism tribute comp. It was stuff like this that first got my interest in the idea of remixes – where it was reworking of music to totally alter the genre, the feel – everything – and create something completely new.”

Second Life: No Life Left Remixed opens with Dead Alive, given a glitched-out breakcore overhaul from San Francisco industrial punk outfit Distruster. In stark contrast, UK electronic artist and producer Max Rael (also of Decommissioned Forests, History of Guns) follows with a mellow, melodic, synth-driven dance take on the earlier single and current title-track, Second Life. Max explains:

“Because there's so much power and energy in Schkeuditzer Kreuz’s original, my remix of Second Life kind of went in the opposite direction, to slow things down and add space, to let things breathe and really give the vocals and lyrics a chance to shine.”

Tāmaki Makaurau-based dark-electro stalwart Creassault (Drew Lyon), who joins Schkeuditzer Kreuz and friends Malevolence and Vihil at Whammy’s Backroom on Auckland Anniversary Weekend, meanwhile takes on the original album’s first single, Joy, bringing the gothic-industrial element to the featured remixes. Drew comments:

“I really enjoyed the process of cutting out the metallic hits and creating a drumkit for my hardware sampler, then re-sequencing and re-pitching other sounds from the stems, as there was an awesome pallet of sounds from the song to work with. The highlight of the remix for me was creating a cinematic introduction, with the use of Kieren’s powerful vocals.”

South London-based industrial powernoise project Non-Bio, alias Howard Gardner (also of Decommissioned Forests, alongside Max Rael, and The Pillars of Golden Misery), provides one the collection’s noisiest tracks, in the form of No Redemption (Non-Bio Remix):

“I really enjoy the whole ethos and aesthetic of Schkeuditzer Kreuz’s music, and I feel we have much in common anyway, so this remix seemed like a very natural thing for me to be doing. I was excited to run this awesome stompy SK song through my own production process and see what the result would be!”

Second Life: No Life Left Remixed closes with the Crash-Scan remix of ‘Three Inch Scar’: a crushing mix of sludge, doom, and industrial influences, complete with heavily detuned bass and howling guitar feedback. Based in Pōneke, Crash-Scan is led by Ron Nobbs, whose noise project Narrow Utility Function also joins Schkeuditzer Kreuz at Valhalla Tavern in January, along with Forced Starvation and FOG.

Reflecting on other artists’ reinterpretations of Schkeuditzer Kreuz, Kieren continued:

“I spend a lot of time working on my songs, structure, sound, arrangement – it takes a million listens and once it’s done it’s a complete thing in my head –no longer a conglomeration of parts. So, to hear people strip it down to its barest components and then build it back up into something new, in their own image – this is awesome to me. I love it when they’re ruthless and pay no heed to the original at all. And the sonic diversity of it! Fuck, but I could not be happier – from crazy glitched out breakcore weirdness to oozing, sludgy heavy doom stuff to dancey as fuck 80s synth goth. It’s amazing what people have made. I’ve done remixes of other people, and I know a lot of work and mental energy goes in to create this stuff, and I am stoked with the result.”

Download Second Life: No Life Left Remixed, or order the 2-CD set, from Bandcamp: here

Friday 26th January - darkroom, Christchurch w/ Placenta Cookbook, Wilieu

Saturday 27th January - Valhalla, Wellington w/ Forced Starvation, Fog, Narrow Utility Function

Sunday 28th January - Whammy Backroom, Auckland w/ Malevolence, Creassault, Vihil

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