01 May 2020
Releases:
The Missing Symp.toms (Meta4)

Meta4X. Mental Wreckage – The Missing Symp.toms (Part One)

In the 00s Symp.tom was one of the boldest trailblazers among the industrial hardcore labels. Now, a good decade after its demise, fellow time traveller Meta4 is honoured to release four lost gems by one of Symp.tom’s main artists, Mental Wreckage. Other than the revisited/remixed versions on the 2017 Dark Descent EP, these are lost originals, treasures so far hidden.

One instantly notices how topical these still are: Rough and ready, bustling with noise and layers of atmosphere, well lined up for any contemporary DJ set. Get two relentless and upfront tracks, plus a percussive gem featuring Syndemic (a sadly short-lived production unit) and a bouncing finale by MW alias Empty.Shell.

And where there’s a part 1, one may also hope for part 2, right?

01. Mental Wreckage – Wandering in the Dark
02. Mental Wreckage & Syndemic – Unilluminated
03. Mental Wreckage – Unusual
04. Empty.Shell – Arh+

Now available at the Meta4 Bandcamp page:
https://meta4recordings.bandcamp.com/…/the-missing-symp-tom…

(use code “MAY1” for a 10% discount)

23 Mar 2020
Livesets & Podcasts:
Symp.tom presents: Kapotcast

Symp.tom presents its own line of podcasts: Kapotcast, done by Symp.tom’s own releasing crew but also guest artists. Each edition will showcase the artist’s personal vision and concept of ‘dark & industrial’. As you know, Symp.tom always stood for a specific blend of dark, raw & industrial hardcore techno, and we think it’s important to keep that sound alive!

The first edition kicks off with a DJ-mix of Mental Wreckage, who will share some of his favorite ‘classics’.

– Symp.tom
Authentic. Dark. Industrial.

Links:
https://www.symp-tom.nl/kapotcast
https://soundcloud.com/mental_wreckage/kapotcast-01

24 Sep 2017
Releases:
Lawaai Remixes

After a 5-year recording hiatus, my new release is out.. Grab it now! Press release:
DD16088. Mental Wreckage – Revisited Symp.tom: Lawaai Remixes

Industrial hardcore will never die – Dark. Descent. revisits its own roots with this look back at a track that appeared on a 12″ in 2005 on Symp.tom; which could arguably called the Dark. Descent. predecessor. “Lawaai” (i.e. “Noise”) is a more than appropriate title for this scorching classic with its distinct analogue sound modulation. Of course the original track is included here for good measure, but the excitement is to see how it is revisited a dozen years later: Symp.tom main men Mute. and Mental Wreckage give “Lawaai” a midtempo rhythm noise update, with the latter on a more freeform trip; Embryonic delivers two versions; a majestic doomcore anthem and a speaker-wrecking cacophony of “Lawaai”. Dark. Descent. main man and Symp.tom veteran The Relic infuses the noise with evil kicks in the contemporary industrial hardcore fashion, thus bridging the gap between those days gone by and the enormous momentum that this genre still thrives on. Bring the noise and maybe there will be more of that…

This release is now available at Bandcamp!

07 Apr 2016
Release Facts:
Release Fact #04: Neural Framework

Release Facts is a series of funny stories / anecdotes about some of my released material that I posted on my socials through the years. This one is about Neural Framework, released on Symp.tom 10.

This track was originally planned to be released under the alias ‘Empty Shell‘, since it felt somewhat like a detour from my usual style. By the time the other tracks of Symp.tom 10 were ready, I eventually decided to stick to just one name and put it on the same release as Mental Wreckage.

Years later, Neural Framework would be remixed by a certain American hardcore/techno artist who loved this track (*cough* who likes to Break the Rules *cough*), but those plans were cancelled after the sudden demise of the Symp.tom label in 2011. Since the rights of the entire label’s back-catalogue were sold to another party, all legal stuff regarding any Symp.tom tracks would only give us a major headache. But who knows what the future will bring.

01 Apr 2016
Release Facts:
Release Fact #03: Rawk & Roll

Release Facts is a series of funny stories / anecdotes about some of my released material that I posted on my socials through the years. This one is about Rawk & Roll, released on Symp.tom 13.

Some musicians give their tracks a title based on the movie sample(s) they use in it. Moleculez and I did exactly the opposite here. Bartosz already came up with “Rawk & Roll” as title. But the “this is rock & roll” movie sample was a last-minute addition of mine before we sent the track away for mastering, because I watched ‘The Glimmer Man‘ that week and found that that quote fit in just perfectly!

And yes, even though it’s covered in layers of distortion; that’s Steven Seagal‘s voice. Despite what many people say, I still think he’s a badass.

By the way, this was a very awesome collaboration project to work on – Moleculez and I both enjoyed working on this one a lot!