Maskinpop – Gothic Vampire Chick (2021)
Maskinpop has taken on a gargantuan task with his single ‘Gothic Vampire Chick’. This task was to create the gothiest song ever and he has achieved an admirable result. While the melody was stuck in his head during isolation, it was an old Peter Murphy song that set him on the path of goth musical goodness. With references to the video game Castlevania packed into the lyrics and a music video full of silent horror movie clips, the track is definitely one everyone should take some time to listen to.
Bob Nimbe, the man behind the mask, dropped some of the synth tones of his previous releases for this one. This musical project came to life after he accidentally won the four-channel combo for Amiga-music with a synth-pop song. Since then, he bought a real synth and started making music with two or three releases each year.
‘Gothic Vampire Chick’ opens with a mournful yet slightly creepy violin line. The haunting tones make you think of old horror movies where the mists swirl around the characters ankles as they walk through empty streets. As the violin drops, a dark electronic sound takes over and gets your heart racing. There is an aggressive touch to the music that pushes against you. Woven into this is a slightly panicked violin line that only enhances the heart racing vibes of the music. Throughout the single, there is a build-up of tension, fear and a creeping sense that something is watching you.
As the melody gets your heart racing, Nimbe’s vocals add to your panicked feeling. The darkness of his vocals works so perfectly with the dark feeling of the song. The lyrics are wonderfully storytelling and you can easily see the story play out against your eyelids. His performance is a mixture of gothic tones and alternative rock as you expect him to scream at any time. There is this depth to his performance that sinks into your soul.
While we can’t say if this is the gothiest song ever, Maskinpop has achieved an extremely engaging electronic gothic track that you can listen to endlessly. With music that has your heart racing and vocals unveiling a story of epic proportions, this is a track everyone needs to listen to.
