Tag: New Year

Bridging Through Music: A New Year’s Reflection and a Look Ahead

31.12.2024

As we stand on the threshold of a brand-new year, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude for your unwavering support. 2024 was a whirlwind of activity for me – a year where I poured countless hours into elevating Darkwave to unprecedented heights. This journey wasn’t just about acquiring new gear and plugins; it meant completely remixing, remastering, and even re-recording my entire discography. It also involved collaborating with incredible artists and creating brand-new original music.

While I’ve already shared a detailed recap of 2024 in a previous post, there’s one thing I want to spotlight above all else: the human connections that make music truly meaningful.

As I often say, music is one of the most intimate forms of communication. It doesn’t just transmit emotions and ideas; it has the profound power to bring people together. This past year, I’ve been blessed to meet extraordinary individuals from all over the globe and collaborate with some phenomenally talented musicians. These connections – both within and beyond the music community – are what truly matter.

Yes, we can write groundbreaking songs, record jaw-dropping albums, and even revolutionize the music scene. But none of these accomplishments hold true significance without the bonds we forge along the way. For me, music is the ultimate bridge – a way to reach out, connect, and bring people closer.

To my friends and fellow musicians: thank you for being part of this journey and for believing in what I do. Your support fuels everything I create. As 2025 unfolds, I can’t wait to embark on new collaborations and share an entirely new Darkwave album with you.

Here’s to another year of connection, creativity, and pushing boundaries. Wishing you all a Happy New Year, my friends!

Rewriting the Past, Composing the Future: My 2024 Recap

10.12.2024

Here we are again – just weeks away from bidding farewell to 2024! And, as usual, I can’t resist the urge to subject you all to my long annual summary. Brace yourselves! 🙂

This year felt different from the last few. Unlike 2021, 2022, and 2023, I didn’t release a new album in 2024 – but I promise, I had a good reason! Instead, I poured my heart and countless hours into refining my past work. I didn’t just remix and remaster all my previous albums – I also re-recorded significant parts, especially basslines. It was a monumental effort, taking months to complete. But the result? A completely revitalized discography. The updated tracks are now live on Spotify, Bandcamp, and Soundcloud, offering a far superior listening experience.

And that’s not all! I also ventured into the physical realm with the release of Thanatology on CD. Some of you may already have that long-awaited tangible piece in your hands! This project wasn’t just about improving sound quality – it was about laying a rock-solid foundation for the future. Like turning the last page of a chapter in a book, it felt essential to close this one properly before moving forward.

2024 was also the year of collaborations for me, and what a ride it’s been! I had the honor of contributing as a guest musician on two Terrorbit releases (first, second), a stellar dubstep/EDM track by Da J, one of the debut songs from the phenomenal Duo Latera metal project, and the latest album from Combstead. Even as I write this, more exciting collaborations are in progress. I can’t share too many details just yet, but trust me – what’s coming is worth the wait!

As for my own music, the past few months have been dedicated to writing and recording new material. While I’m not ready to reveal much, I can tell you that some massive ideas have already taken shape. I’m working hard to turn them into a cohesive string of songs. For me, an album isn’t just a collection of tracks – it’s a unified story, an entity with its own soul. That’s why I’ve resisted the urge to release singles piecemeal. I’d rather present you with something whole, something meaningful. So, thank you for your patience – I promise it will be worth the wait!

Here’s to the journey so far and to the exciting chapters still ahead. See you all in 2025!

The long annual summary post

27.12.2023

I know that nobody reads long posts anymore, but I can’t become a person who I’m not: I am simply unable to put a text together out of five concise sentences. So, please bear with me – my usual long annual summary post will follow.

2023 has been a wild ride to me. I managed to release Thanatology, my third full-lenght album (regardless that Spotify notoriously keeps calling it an EP…). Believe me, I poured all my heart and soul – and also a huge amount of time, practice and effort – into it. I know that I’m some kind of a perfectionist – and perfectionism is often considered to be a two-edged sword. Besides composing, recording and programming all the tracks, I spent countless hours with learning how to mix and master a decent metal album. Not gonna lie, the result turned out much better than I expected – Thanatology sounds clearer and more natural compared to the first two releases. Still, there is always a place for further imporvements (says the perfectionist…) – so I decided to remix all my releases before re-issuing them on physical CDs in the near future. This is the most important activity that keeps me busy these days. So please keep an eye on this website and/or my socials if you’re interested in getting physical Darkwave goodies (CDs and – hopefully – some merch, too).

Thanatology received extremely good feedback: it was favorably reviewed not only by people who listened to it, but also by metal webzines – metalhasnoborders.com even listed it among the best albums of August, 2023! (Just a side note: to tell the truth, this was absolutely unexpected to me! My focus has always been on creating something meaningful and to connect with people who resonate with my musical experimentation. Therefore, the possibility of being mentioned together with important players of the modern metal scene never occured to me. To see Darkwave on the same page with Crypta, Angra or Brujeria is really an amazing honor!). Right now, Thanatology is on the third place in a poll at metalhasnoborders.com for the best metal release of 2023 (the final results will be announced in early January) – who could have imagined such an enormous success a couple of months ago? I certainly didn’t, that’s for sure.

To cut a long story short, it seems that Darkwave finally stepped through the shadow line, if you know what I mean. I could continue writing about the main events of 2023 for hours, but the release and favorable reception of my beloved Thanatology fills my thoughts with pride, joy and thankfulness. I – of course – have plans that will provide me enough work for at least a decade, but I already summarized them elsewhere. Therefore, let me finish this lenghty annual summary post with a word of gratitude. Darkwave is surrounded by the love and support of a circle of good friends and supporters, and I am extremely grateful for each and every one of you for being here and encouraging me! A musician without listeners would be nothing more than a bizarre manifestation of a dead end.

Thank you for being with me in 2023! I just have one simple request: please never forget about me! 2024 will be another fascinating year for Darkwave, and I can’t wait to see, what the future holds for us!

Happy New Year!

30.12.2022

Now when 2022 slowly ends, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the support and love I’ve received from you throughout this year!

2022 was a busy year, full of exciting activities that finally enabled the release of two (well, tbh one and a half lol…) Darkwave albums: the remastered Hexapla* and Missa Innominata. I’m so grateful for each and every one of you who walked with me on this path and helped me to achieve it all by continuously supporting my work! And… although I don’t really like to make big New Year’s resolutions, one thing became absolutely sure by now: 2023 will be dedicated to the release of a brand new album, the third full-length Darkwave release!

Thank you for being here with me. Have a great New Year’s Eve party tomorrow and stay tuned for 2023!

See you in January, friends!

*Removed from the discography, when the remixed/remastered Hexapla was released in 2024.