Reviews

Cutting to the very soul of gothic-industrial is Sub Version, the remarkable brainchild of John Koviak. The music is darkly sensuous, mesmerising the listener with deeply sung gothic vocals and delicate whispers that sweep the mind into a casement of dark obsidian glass... Enveloping the vocals in an even darker atmosphere are haunting keyboard passages of menacing and grim proportions one moment, and nearly uplifting the next, rising from the shadows with the grace of a weightless spectre, yet never able to detach itself completely from that dark mourning that permeates Sub Version... epic yet introspective, hypnotic yet engaging... Sub Version's "The Winds of War"... will be the measuring stick against which other gothic releases will, or should, be evaluated...

"The Winds of War" is an absolutely dynamic album by John Koviak that will place him at the forefront of the Gothic/Darkwave music scene. His vocals will charm you and his musical arrangements will leave you spellbound. I can't wait to hear his next release. I highly recommend this album. Buy it now!

(The Winds of War) is a darkwave album, but has less emphasis on synth work as past work has. Instead, dark sounds and creepy samples fill the void of what was once fairly minimal music. The track "Will" is probably the most Goth-club friendly, with its swoony dark vocalizations and triumphant orchestral movements... Whether you are just getting into Goth or are a Grandpa and Grandma bat, check out what Koviak is doing with Sub Version.

"The Winds of War" avoids the staleness so dangerous to practitioners of dark electronic music by its variety... There is a good mix of club-friendly dance songs and dark ambient soundscapes and mid-tempo mope songs not too far removed more recent Depeche Mode.

Through the CD release of Sub Version's "The Winds of War", John Koviak invites the listener into an exquisite world of dark romance. Slip this disc into a CD player and listen as Koviak's provocative vocals and electronic melodies ooze through the speakers... Most notable amongst the tracks is 'Ice Angel.' The music is so sublime that it actually takes a while to realize that the lyrics drip with despair. The effect is such that I can imagine the actual Ice Angel melting into the music.

You kids like gothic music? Then you're sure to dig Sub Version. All the ingredients for a modern darkwave classic are here--emotional instrumentals, dancefloor dirges, the requisite ballad. The vocals are deep and melodic without sounding very similar to Andrew Eldritch (thank heavens) and the music is the sort of dark electronic stuff that the underground kids like so much, with a little guitar thrown in for good measure, and the lyrics are depressing enough for even the most jaded fishnetmongers. It doesn't get much gothier than this...

JOHN KOVIAK: ONE VOICE, MANY TALENTS After spending several unsatisfying years in various bands in the late 80s/early 90s alternative music scene, John Koviak boldly stepped forward in 1992 with a one-man project called Sub Version. Like Android Lust, Nine Inch Nails, and countless industrial, techno, and electronica bands that followed, Sub Version was the product of one person's vision – John alone wrote, performed, and produced a total of three releases as Sub Version: "Metamorphosis" (1992), "Damaged Gods" (1994), and "The Winds Of War" (1996). As Sub Version, he also contributed a cover of Joy Division's "Heart And Soul" to the now out-of-print and highly sought after "Ceremonial: A Tribute To Joy Division" (1995). "Metamorphosis" and "Damaged Gods", released only in cassette format and also long out-of-print, have been highly-sought-after rarities among darkwave music collectors for the past decade. "The Winds Of War", while receiving greater distribution and critical attention (almost overwhelmingly positive), has also been difficult to find.

Until now.

At John's website (http://www.johnkoviak.com), you can now purchase Sub Version's musical legacy in just two must-have CDs. The two ep’s "Metamorphosis" and "Damaged Gods" have been combined and repackaged as one CD (only the songs "Black Rat" and "Memories Remain" are absent from the original releases). This new compilation, entitled "Reflections", replaces those tracks with a pair of remixes made by John in 1999 of the songs "Jezebel" and "The Sound" as well as a rare soundtrack piece. Far too often, remixes are used as filler to pad out CDs - never so in John's case. These remixes, perhaps the last two tracks John will ever release under the "Sub Version" name, stand quite well on their own. Most commonly described as gothic or darkwave electronica, in truth John's music defies easy categorization, shrugging off the clichéd limits of any genre. Without a trace of pretension, self-aware without being self-important, it politely but firmly insists on being defined in its own distinctive terms. At its best, it achieves a quality of timelessness that is rarely found in contemporary music, even more rarely in electronic or techno music.

"Reflections", compiled by John in 2002, brings us a diverse array of songs about the gamut of human issues: life, love, death, and religion, to name a few. The song "Jezebel" presents a complex look into the dynamics of personal relationships, and stands out as one of Sub Version's most memorable tracks. The highly-danceable "Metamorphosize", which reminds me of Yazoo at their best, is pure anarchist philosophy ("This conflict inside/is meant to terrorize/through destruction you will find/a higher state of mind"). And in "Psychokryste", John offers the following sentiments: ("Fear and hysteria are only words/come into to our world, where men are gods/we decide our destiny, only the brave at heart can see/come into our world, follow me, follow me"). Once you've listened to "Reflections", you'll be more than happy to abide by that directive, and follow John - straight into the winds of war.

At least one reviewer called "The Winds Of War" the best gothic CD of the year, and it's not difficult to understand why. In just nine tracks, "The Winds Of War" showcases John's writing and voice at its widest range up to that point, with tracks ranging from the club-friendly "Will" to the haunting, naked emotional poetry of "You Live In My Dreams", which, followed by a hidden instrumental track ("Remembrance Day"), closes out the CD. Yet all the tracks are permeated by a unity of artistic vision, an overall cohesion that balances perfectly upon itself. Put the tracks in any other order, and that balance might be lost. As with a jigsaw puzzle, seemingly unrelated pieces fit together seamlessly in the end. John's lyrics are honest and direct: no word games, no forced rhymes, no insecure attempts at false profundity or cleverness. Falseness is a quality thankfully absent in John's work. And his vocal skills and range are overlooked far too often by reviewers: he is at once tender and strong, melancholy and soaring. There is a poem in the CD's sleeve, written by John in the first person, in which he seemingly speaks of finding his perfect soul mate, then losing them, perhaps to a death, and of his undying commitment to that love. If the poem is autobiography, then kudos to John for laying bare his heart to his audience. In and of itself, that isn't uncommon: what is uncommon is that John has done so without self-pity or messianic posturing. If the poem is fiction, then kudos to John for revitalizing the oldest cliché in the gothic genre and making it fresh, alive, and compelling, because the emotions and thoughts presented here are utterly, painfully genuine. Consider the final words of "You Live In My Dreams": "Of all the things in the World, You can't take away my Dreams. My Memories of You, Your warmth, Your touch, Your scent, Your taste. As much as I hate what You've become, it can't change what's in the past. And as I lay here smiling, dying upon my Grave, It seems some Memories never should fade....."

Either way, that original, romantic gothic soul, Poe, would be proud, and we as listeners are in the hands of an artist at the zenith of his powers. "The Winds Of War" is Sub Version's swan song, and best release. In 1999, after far too few live performances, John closed the book on Sub Version, took a brief pause, and began the next chapter of his career. He continued to write and perform (most visibly as a live musician for Faith and the Muse), and, under his own name, he has released two CDs: 2002's "Heaven" and 2003's "imagination...". Both of these newer releases reveal an artist who continues to evolve and develop his talents. There is a lighter quality to some of these newer songs, even a few careful brushes of humor, yet without any loss of meaning or depth. Happily, John continues to surprise us, pulling new talents out of what seems to be a very deep well of creativity. Simply put, his music just keeps getting better, leaving us with the promise of even greater works to come, a promise I do not doubt John Koviak will fulfill in the very near future. - MDG