Have you, too, been out too late, partied too hard, and looked up in the preternatural LED club-light glow to meet the eyes on the only other soul on the dance floor—your reflection? Buzz Kull has. Kicking off Levitation this past Thursday, three incredible darkwave artists—Kontravoid, Buzz Kull, and Max Fry—clanged and blanged into the heart of the night at Austin’s local late-light, bat-fright, gothic repose—Elysium. What passion, what darkness, what highly-synthesized augmentations!
I first discovered Kontravoid, a project from Canadian EDM artist Cameron Findlay, about two or so years ago, when a friend showed me his 2012 single, “Native State”. A mix of synthpop, darkwave, and absolute rhythm, his sound immediately hooked me and has been in my rotation of moody low-lit night musings ever since. I was thrilled to see his name on the lineup for this year’s Levitation—and at one of my favorite venues no less! It’s been awhile since I’ve been to Elysium, but considering the fact that the building it’s resided in for the past 25 years just went up on the market, putting the future of the long-loved venue up in the air, I knew I needed to come out and support one of my favorite Austin establishments. (Especially with Valhalla, just across the street, being recently marked for closure. They’re dropping like flies over in the Cultural District. Buzz over and see ‘em while they’re kickin’.)
Kontravoid’s set was absolutely high energy the whole way through, and I was stunned at how much presence he was able to convey with just himself and his deck of effects. I was especially surprised at his paper-mache mask, an iconic countenance with lifted brows, papered-over eyes, and a permanent look of mild unrest; it reminds me so much of the ancient Grecian theater. It’s a good look, it really catches in the mind, but I was wondering the whole time how he was able to see out of it. Nevertheless, through mystic means or pure sensation, Kontravoid’s mix of impassioned and hypnotic live vocals with fast-paced, industrial drum sequencing suited his incredible techno arrangements in a truly sinister way. It was dark. It was lovely.
Following up, a second solo techno act—Australian electro-industrial artist Marcel Whyler’s decade long project, Buzz Kull—took the stage in a sweeping black trenchcoat and mop of equally dark hair. Working in the same vein as Kontravoid, Buzz Kull too was driven by bouncing electric bass and drums, but with a bit of a softer edge, a tad more melodic than the higher energy opener. Again, I was struck by how impressive it was to watch one person take up a whole stage, armed only with a low growling voice and a tableful of experimental effects. Absolutely entrancing.
I also particularly enjoyed the lighting for his set, red-blue-green acid washed static, ever shifting to suit the mood of his melodies. Sometimes spiraling, you could catch glimpses of streets, buildings, matrix-green numbers falling in code, and a myriad of other images all too enmeshed to remember, but nonetheless essential for the tone of the performance. And, to make a wonderful night even better, Buzz Kull played my favorite song of his! “Last In The Club”, which was released in 2019, but grew into a cult classic around those strange years of isolation back in 2020. I actually got the chance to speak with Buzz Kull before the show, and we talked all about this single, as well as other aspects of his music, personal taste, and development of his act over its decade-long progression. You’ll be able to check out the whole thing later this week on our Instagram!
Unfortunately, though I like to pretend to play the part sometimes, I am not a goth-in-earnest, and don’t have the heart to stay up past 2AM these days (twenty-two years wears on the bones). Thus, I missed the last set from Max Fry, but I can only imagine it was as stellar as Kontravoid and Buzz Kull who—starting with Levitation—just began their tour of the US! Overall, it was a wonderful night and a great way to start off Levitation 2026.