Review by Paul D Houston
80's era goth music hit a nerve in such a way that it still resonates to this day. Very few modern era goth bands have been able to achieve what the goth bands did during the 80's. SECRET SHAME with their new album Dark Synthetics, tries to homage that 80s style goth sound in a way. The bass throughout this album is heavy on the chorus pedal, a staple of 80's goth music. And the vocals on Secret Shame are also drenched in reverb, another staple of 80's goth. The thing is though, this sort of obvious replication wouldn't work if Secret Shame, weren't talented. They are, quite so and when adding in the crisp mastering abilities we are able to achieve with modern technology, Dark Synthetics is a really pleasing homage to "old school" goth music.
I particularly like the song CREATURE.
The thing I like most about this album, is that I can hear a number of influences in a certain sense, but nothing absolutely. I hear the Sisters of Mercy style of bass line and some of Siouxsie Sioux's more ethereal style of vocalization. I can hear some of The Church's style of overall gloss when it comes to song structure. There's moments of The Cult in the energy of some of these songs too. Xmal Deustchland, Clan of Xymox, I can hear them in there too.
I'm not sure how Secret Shame went about in creating this album, wether it was intentional to get all the classic goth sounds into this album or not, but overall this is an interesting album and makes me wonder where the band goes next with their sound.
Check out the full album here https://secretshame.bandcamp.com/album/dark-synthetics
