Sardinian producer CONFRONTATIONAL is returning Oct. 28 with new covers album Under Cover of Darkness, featuring stalwart collaborators Cody Carpenter and Tobias Bernstrup, along with new collaborators such as Carpenter Brut’s Adrien Grousset and Amedeo. Together they cover numbers from Goblin, Yazoo, John Carpenter, and more. Today, Vehlinggo brings you the premiere of “Future Brain,” a cover of a 1985 song by Italo Disco stars Den Harrow (which had Tom Hooker).
“Future Brain” features the eminently talented Cody Carpenter and offers up a darker take on the boisterous original.
Here’s what CONFRONTATIONAL mastermind Massimo Usai had to say about the track:
The track is one of four Italian cuts on the album, as I really wanted to bring attention to an era in which Italy was at the forefront of electronic music production, a time that shaped and informed much of my musical journey.
A version of “Future Brain” charted on Billboard in late May 1986, peaking at #50, and the song has been an Italo Disco stalwart since its release. Cody’s lead synth defines my intention to showcase the song’s bleak and harrowing potential.
The origin story of Den Harrow is an intense mind-trip and you can check it out in this GQ article. (I just stumbled upon this documentary myself and just catching up. I really want to get in touch with its author).
Written in 1985, the song’s lyrics appear to describe the way social media and tech giants are currently ruling our everyday lives, in such a prescient way that it’s personally unnerving.
Lyrics were a decisive factor in the selection process while making up the tracklisting for Under Cover of Darkness.
SIDE A tracks are all about painting the broad picture that the main characters inhabit, a description of their outside world; SIDE B tracks explore the inner turmoil, the dark passions that drive this ride into the night to its final outcome.
About Under Cover of Darkness
According to Usai: There is a thick red line that binds together the worlds of darkness and disco — a line that can be traced through some of the tracks that unsuspectingly topped international charts between 1975 and 1987, going straight from Goblin’s “Deep Red” to Sabrina Salerno’s “Boys.” A story originated on the dance-floor through lyrics that, when read through a certain peculiar angle, attest to a number of severe implications. A wild ride into the night, ripe with possibilities, fear, and excitement.
Tracklist for Under Cover of Darkness
Side A:
1. “Deep Crimson” (Originally released by Goblin as “Deep Red,” 1975)
2. “Happy Children (Feat. Adrien Grousset)” (Originally released by P. Lion, 1983)
3. “Future Brain (Feat. Cody Carpenter)” (Originally released by Den Harrow, 1985)
4. “Escalator of Life” (Originally released by Robert Hazard, 1982)
Side B:
5. “You’re My Heart (Feat. Amedeo)” (Originally released by Modern Talking as “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul,” 1984)
6. “Stranger Eyes (Feat. Cody Carpenter)” (Originally released by The Cars, 1984)
7. “Animal Machine (Feat. Adrien Grousset)” (Originally released by John Carpenter as “Christine,” 1983)
8. “Don’t Go” (Originally released by Yazoo, 1982)
9. “Summertime Love (Feat. Tobias Bernstrup)” (Originally released by Sabrina as “Boys (Summertime Love),” 1987)
You can pre-order the album digitally (download and CD) and on vinyl now. It releases on Oct. 28.
(Cover art by Branca Studio.)
