Drone Records

ZENIAL - Foil Punk

Format: CD

Label & Cat.Number: Zoharum - ZOHAR 337-2

Release Year: 2025

Note: a tribute to the CYBERPUNK-culture, the characteristics, philosophy, forms... and new developments with A.I, using sounds created with CHAT GPT ; "an album forged in the unsettling hum of machines, where each track feels like a sonic fragment from a fractured, possibly doomed, future." [Chain D.L.K]

Price (incl. 19% VAT): €13.00

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The new album by Łukasz Szałankiewicz aka ZENIAL contains a total of eight tracks, ranging from broadly understood experimental electronics, which is the result of his experience gained in numerous musical projects. You can hear here echoes of previous achievements under ZENIAL, but with the influence of music previously known from, among others, Angst’78, NOR_POL or Aabzu. The subsequent issues close with a clasp outlined by the topic, which is also a tribute to cyberpunk culture, with all its character, philosophy and formula, often drawing a dystopian, slightly post-apocalyptic vision of the future, but also engaging in a discourse on issues related to conspiracy theories arising from in a wide stream, as a reflection of the fears that consume communities in the face of the unknown. The musician does not provide answers, but invites us to a discussion about AI and the dangers lurking in the near future, in which scenarios caused by fears and ignorance are to be realized, while presenting the point of view of a person who is more aware of the futuristic model in which humans are only the mode of the great dehumanized wave of the universe.
The material was recorded at the French institute Center National De Création Musicale in Reims.

Music by: Łukasz Szałankiewicz
Mastering by: Rafał Sądej
Front cover by: Łukasz Pazera

"In a world brimming with uncertainty and quickening paranoia, Lukasz Szalankiewicz - known to the realms of experimental electronic enthusiasts as Zenial - has unveiled a dystopian soundtrack for our times, one that smacks of cyberpunk echoes, metallic ghosts, and the palpable tension of a future where humanity grapples with its own obsolescence. "Foil Punk" is an album forged in the unsettling hum of machines, where each track feels like a sonic fragment from a fractured, possibly doomed, future.

Recorded at the prestigious Centre National De Création Musicale in Reims, and heavily influenced by cyberpunk aesthetics and conspiracy theories, "Foil Punk" invites listeners to engage in an uneasy discourse about artificial intelligence, human fear, and the inexorable march of technological dehumanization. The album is an experience where fear is not merely a backdrop - it is the architect, the engine, and the very air we breathe.

From the very first track, "Katedra 2.11" a rapid-fire flurry of glitchy, otherworldly pulses, Zenial doesn't hold back, pulling the listener into a world that is both harsh and hypnotically alluring. There's an overwhelming sense of urgency, as though the machinery of the universe is accelerating past our comprehension, leaving us in a state of perpetual catch-up. The track lasts just over four minutes, but it feels like a condensed eternity - sound unfurling like an unraveling narrative of our technological plight.

"I'm Yours" follows, with its ethereal, almost romantic quality. A deceptive track, it might first sound like a reprieve from the chaos, but in typical Zenial fashion, it quickly becomes disorienting. The melody collapses into a stuttered rhythm, like a heart skipping beats, a metaphor for a world where control is a façade.

Track 3, "Access granted" feels like an invitation - and a warning. Its cold, mechanical voice proclaims permission granted, but the warm rush of relief that accompanies the words soon morphs into something unsettling. The tone suggests that in the near future, our access to everything we desire will come with a price. And who is in charge of granting it? This question lingers, even after the track ends.

And then comes "Deckard" - a sprawling 13-minute epic that calls to mind the towering, sterile landscapes of Ridley Scott's "Blade Runner". The track is built on low, rumbling bass and erratic, fractured rhythms that stretch across the entire piece, as though the machinery of this dystopia is malfunctioning, pushing through systems that were never meant to interact. Zenial’s knack for weaving tension from silence and noise is unmatched here, as the soundscape builds relentlessly, like a machine on the brink of overload.

When you reach "Leon Kowalski, serial number N6MAC41717", the longest track of the album, you're deep in the belly of the beast. This 14-minute piece feels like an odyssey, a journey through the decaying underbelly of a world run by algorithms, surveillance, and a profound sense of human alienation. The name itself - a nod to "Blade Runner" - suggests that this track is more than just a sonic exploration; it's a tribute to the forgotten souls in a post-human landscape. Zenial’s use of sound here is almost cruel, pushing the listener into an emotional corner where the lines between synthetic and organic are no longer distinct.

"Upgrade" follows with its eerily smooth synths and sharp percussion, a soundtrack to an ascension that feels as much like a surrender as it does a technological upgrade. The track flows into "Bialy Szum" - White Noise - which lingers in the air like an afterthought, like the hum of a world that's too saturated with information to ever pause for breath. The rhythm is sparse, minimalistic, as if representing the stillness before a storm of bytes and signals.

Finally, "Event Horizon" closes the album with a slow, creeping dread. The title alone brings to mind the edge of a black hole - the point of no return - and as the track moves through low, vibrating drones and distant metallic rumbles, it’s impossible not to feel a sense of inevitable collapse, as though there’s no way out. Time stretches and warps, much like the concept it’s named after. Here, Zenial pulls no punches, leaving you in a state of suspended finality.

What strikes you as you journey through "Foil Punk" is Zenial’s skillful weaving of sounds that both engage and alienate. He draws from his deep well of experience, particularly from projects like Angst'78, NOR_POL, and Aabzu, but here, he steps into new territory - where cold, analytical sound meets a very human, very emotional landscape of fear, anxiety, and the unknown.

As much as this album is a tribute to the culture and philosophy of cyberpunk, it is also an invitation to discuss the ways in which humanity is at the mercy of the technologies we’ve birthed. But Zenial, like the best experimental musicians, provides no clear answers. Instead, he invites you into the conversation, asking you to reflect on the dangers that lurk just beneath the surface of our ever-connected world.

In a world increasingly defined by machine learning and artificial intelligence, "Foil Punk" is a prophetic soundtrack for the not-so-distant future, where humanity may find itself as mere passengers on a ship piloted by algorithms. What happens when we lose control? What happens when we can no longer distinguish between human and machine? These are the questions "Foil Punk" dares us to consider, all while delivering a listening experience that is as mesmerizing as it is unnerving.

It's a dark, compelling, and, at times, absurd journey - a punk manifesto for a new era, where foil hats and neon-lit streets are as real as the machines that will one day rule them." [CHAIN D.L.K., Vito Camarretta]