How cyberpunk influenced Shading's new song The Scent

Italian prog-metallers Shading are premiering their new video for The Scent exclusively with Metal Hammer.

The track is taken from the band's upcoming album The Vanishing Of Our Lore, due for release on October 12.

"Our album embraces a futuristic world that abandons its past and forgets its origins," the band tell Metal Hammer. "The Scent pertains to women’s rights in a futuristic world and our protagonist is torn between her inner beings that fight against each other – a human soul controlled by a robotic side, forced to obey orders.

"We can find grace and beauty in the simple imagery of a flower. But flowers are fragile and can be torn apart and lose their life easily. There is a virus growing within this world based on technology and soulless beings, and it is a battle for our female protagonist to try and win."

Shading take great influence from the world of sci-fi and cyberpunk in their music as well as visual aesthetic. But what on earth is cyberpunk anyway? We asked the band to give their top five cyberpunk soundtracks that inspire them creatively.

Ghost In The Shell (2017)

"Although we’re also inspired by the original movie by Mamoru Oshii, the live action visuals of this movie inspired us during our writing process. The soundtrack is the most modern and cinematic example of a giant cyberpunk environment. Tremolo synths and epic themes made the perfect frame for this film."

Akira (1988)

"Same landscapes, opposite sounds. If we compare Blade Runner’s OST to Akira’s OST it’s pretty obvious that Mr. Shoji Yamashiro has a completely different idea of how a cyberpunk opera sounds. Even if we can clearly find some common points speaking about these two films, the 'tribal' element built up by the percussion and the choirs gives a fresh point of view."

Matrix (1999)

"A classic. Although not strictly cyberpunk opera like we would normally use to interpret the genre, the action, the speed and the suspense are exposed in the best possible way by Matrix’s OST. A collection of tracks by some of the best artists in the electro/rock music scene like The Prodigy, Rage Against The Machine and Massive Attack."

Blade Runner (1982)

"If there’s one film that has inspired us during the creation of our musical and visual concept, it’s Blade Runner. We consider it one of the best examples of how we feel about the context of our music. Giant skyscrapers, holograms, endless night-time and a noire atmosphere. With this soundtrack Mr Vangelis created the best audio representation of how these visuals can sound. We could write countless albums just being inspired by this masterpiece."

Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

"We had the chance to see Hans Zimmer live just before the release of Blade Runner 2049. It was an epiphany and one of the most metal shows we’ve ever seen – and we are not joking! This soundtrack is the final and definitive representation of how we conceive the cyberpunk universe. Tribal percussion pattern, ethereal synths and rough leads. This movie was also what inspired us and our director Filippo Cinotti when we were writing down the visual concept of our video for The Scent."

Luke Morton joined Metal Hammer as Online Editor in 2014, having previously worked as News Editor at popular (but now sadly defunct) alternative lifestyle magazine, Front. As well as helming the Metal Hammer website for the four years that followed, Luke also helped relaunch the Metal Hammer podcast in early 2018, producing, scripting and presenting the relaunched show during its early days. He also wrote regular features for the magazine, including a 2018 cover feature for his very favourite band in the world, Slipknot, discussing their turbulent 2008 album, All Hope Is Gone.