Progressive ALT Rock band Porter from Germany introduced us to a ficticious city called “Genosha” (a tip of the hat to a place by the same name in the Marvel Comic universe) with their single “Tax Free Hollows” last November. They set the stage, as it were, for things to come in the band’s much anticipated third album, also titled “Genosha.” Shortly thereafter, in late December the band released a follow up single from the album, and their latest single (as of the time of this review) “Behind the Banlieue.”
It’s a song that carries on what was conceptually conveyed in the first single, more specifically what the band refers to as a “thematic focus” on their “critical view of an increasingly divergent society…” Banlieue is a French word for “suberb” in English. The band’s sound is a melting pot of guitar-oriented, rock influenced music with each member of the band possessing distinct and varying influences that span the spectrum of metal, punk, indie, and singer/songwriter genres. Bandcamper alert! Porter’s music is also on Bandcamp, which is a great way to support independent artists.
ORDER “BEHIND THE BANLIEUE” ON BANDCAMP NOW!
Within the first minute of listening to “Behind the Banlieue” you are introduced to several rock genre elements. The opening riff struck me as almost Glam/ Power Metal and by the time it transitioned to verse, the arrangement had dispursed into a part shoegaze, part 90’s Alternative like Stone Temple Pilots vibe.
The song increasingly pulsates dynamically, with polyphonic lead guitar licks seasoning the track with elements of progressive rock. The vocals are expressively poignant yet edgy and impassioned. According to Porter’s press release, the lyrical statement is one against totalitarian and facist ideas. The music compliments the lyricist’s sentiments of social unrest very well.
The band has also released an Official Music Video for “Behind the Banlieue,” check it out here:
I had the awesome opportunity to catch up with Porter for a Q&A and learn more about the band:
LT1KF: Your music demonstrates a various number of influences, what top three artists that you would credit as sources of inspiration?
Porter: Oh, we can’t possibly pin that down to 3 artists. We are a gang of 6 very different members, and we all have extremely different influences. Of course, the basis is somehow always guitar-based music. Some of us are clearly influenced by the more extreme genres like metal, punk and hardcore, so bands like Mastodon and Opeth are definitely important, but also Boysetsfire and Iron Maiden.
On the other hand, there are other influences from the indie and singer-songwriter scene, but also wave and post-punk, which certainly contribute a lot to Porter’s pronounced penchant for melody. The Chamaeleons were definitely an early influence here, but also Joy Divison. So, if you were to ask me about the top 300 artists, I could perhaps give you an adequate answer.
LT1KF: How would you describe the music scene where you are from? Are there things you’d like to see change?
Porter: In Germany, you’re only really part of a music scene regionally. It’s almost less about genres and more about the city or region you come from. People know and support each other there. This also means that you can experience a really wide range of bands at smaller festivals. But as a band, we’ve never really felt part of a scene anyway, we’re probably too interested in too many different things. And of course, you can and should always change things.
When you’re on the road as an independent artist, you quickly notice that concerts are generally always organised by great people with unshakeable idealism. Support from local authorities or cultural offices, which we also have, tends to be lacking. There is still a lot of room for improvement. But we’ve been musically active for so long, sometimes as organisers, that it’s obvious that funding tends to flow into classical concerts rather than rock music.
LT1KF: Your latest single seems to be a social commentary about society at large. Is there any particular underlying message or ethos that inspired you to write the song?
Porter: The song is one of 10 songs on the upcoming album “Genosha” and the basic concept that underlies the lyrical work here connects all the songs. We are currently seeing very clearly how totalitarian and fascist structures seem to be consolidating worldwide, even here in Germany. As a band, we can’t just bang out some fantasy lyrics, we want to set an example for tolerance and democracy.
That has always been the basic note in our lyrics, but on “Genosha” everything is now more concrete and conceptual than before. Our core questions are “what kind of world do we want to live in”, “how much freedom is enough to feel truly free” and “how much coercion leads to a life determined by others”.
In the new single, we specifically address the obvious unwillingness of an inert mass of society to recognise that they are part of the world’s problems and that they need to get off their arses if they want to continue to enjoy what they know as freedom and democracy. Fortunately, this is currently happening in the microcosm of Germany, which is manifesting itself in massive protests against the fascist AfD party.
LT1KF: The cover art is very interesting, is there a background story to what is being expressed?
Porter: I got to know the Berlin street photographer Jürgen Bürgin on Twitter in 2015 and was immediately fascinated by his photos. I was particularly taken with his New York series, which he also depicted in his book “Urban Fever”. Jürgen is always very interested in the story behind the people in his pictures and you can sense these stories very clearly in the photos.
In fact, in this case it was the pictures that inspired me to write the texts for “Genosha”, so it quickly became clear that we had to ask him about a collaboration. And Jürgen immediately said yes without any conditions or ifs or buts. A great stroke of luck for us! Together with the lyrics, the characters in our artwork take on a new, fictional role in the “Genosha” cosmos and each get their very own story.
LT1KF: Who are the band members and what role do they play in the band? How long have you guys been together?
Porter: Oh, we’ve been together for quite a while. The two guitarists Lars and Frank and drummer Markus played together in a wave punk band back in their school days and have been making music together in various constellations ever since. Among others with bassist Volker, who originally played speed metal. At the start of Porter, singer and multi-instrumentalist Christian joined us, until he unfortunately developed problems with his voice a few years ago and we now have a new singer in Raimund. Since then there have been six of us, which of course expands the musical possibilities.
The songwriting process is always pretty much the same. One of the guitarists, usually Lars, or sometimes our singer, comes into the rehearsal room with a rough song idea and plays it to the rest of us. Then we jam to it and shape the song piece by piece, each with our own ideas, until at some point it’s simply a Porter song.
So, we still work in a very analogue way, all together in the rehearsal room. That’s no longer a matter of course these days. But we just enjoy it, that’s what a band is for. Our drummer Markus writes the lyrics and always has a bunch of lyrics ready. That’s how the musical idea and the lyrical inspiration come together to form a great whole.
Q&A with @PORTER_original – A Dystopian look “Behind the Banlieue”
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— Jpgchief (@Jpgchief) January 30, 2024
Don’t forget to support this project and follow Porter on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, SoundCloud, YouTube, Apple Music, and Spotify. You can also visit their official website. If you enjoy their music and can provide monetary support, you might consider downloading it on Bandcamp.
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