Xmal Deutschland

Xmal Deutschland were at the darker end of Germany's New Deutsche Welle spectrum with cutting guitars, pummeling drums, and foreboding if bewitching vocals. Appearing at the dawn of the '80s, the post-punk band, originally five women, started with a couple singles for the Zickzack label in their native Hamburg before they became only the second European band (after Sort Sol) to record for 4AD. While Xmal Deutschland's sonic and visual presentation -- plus song titles like "Incubus Succubus" -- provoked frequent classification as goth rock, the tag was as misleading for them as...