Elkapath are Synthetic Gothic Rock band from Gloucester. Their new single, Synthetic Ecstasy, is heavy goth rock, hugely influenced by the likes of Nine Inch Nails, the Prodigy, Birthday Massacre and Korn (according to their blurb) but you will certainly pick up on an Evanescence flavour to the vocals as well a strong Sisters of Mercy vibe too. To be honest this is a sure hit with goths, metalers, grungey types and classic rockers as well. Dad rocker’s might find it a bit of stretch though. Neil Young it isn’t.
The track starts with a punch, a dread feeling of calamaity ensuing in the way only industrial goth rock can deliver. Chunky guitar chords, dark synth bass sounds, pounding drums. Ace! The vocal comes in with a drop in severity of the tune but quite quickly builds back up again so you won’t get much time to rest before the next mosh pit. The vocal from Carla Elkpath is down beat to start with, a little ominous and forboding, but it soon increases in intensity and ferocity, which follows the music well and there are some great vocal FX used to create a sort of demonic sound at points too. She has some strong Portishead vibes in her softer tones, but stands up against her peers on the scene when she needs to.
Production on the track is of a very high standard, balanced and mixed perfectly. The guitar and bass riffs are heavy but not on top of everything else, The synths sounds are clear and defined, a real sense of warmth to some of the bass tones, and loads of punch! Towards the end of the track you can appreciate out some clever percussive synth drum processing going on, reminiscient of the Broken EP from Nine Inch Nails, which was a winner for me.
Overall this a great track with the pomp and flair that goth rock is known for with the dark undercurrents of industrial metal driving it along. I would imagine that these guys will do very well on the scene and I’m looking forward to their next release. I imagine their live gigs will be pretty hairy too. Take a couple of ibuprofen before you go, and wear two pairs of socks.
Check out the track on YouTube, the video is great, and then check out their website where you can find more videos and links their social media!
By: Stu McGoo (Flam and Flange)