The Shadowpunk Revolution Review – pioneering the Sci-Fi Rock Opera genre
The premise of a “Sci-Fi Rock Opera”, is intriguing, confusing and honestly, a little off- putting. But Dominic Frisby’s and Brendon Connelly’s dystopian tale of county lines, invisible coats and techno anarchists makes a good case for the emergence of such a blended genre.
The Shadowpunk Revolution is set in 2029. Rural towns in Devon are plagued by drug trafficking. A smart, yet humble police officer has devoted his life to trying to save his town from criminal gangs, but he is unknowingly up against science too. A group of physicists who call themselves “shadowpunks” have developed invisibility coats through a system of refraction. The coats, bought on the dark web with bitcoin, were created by these tech-anarchists in protest against state and corporate invasion of privacy. But the coats are soon acquired by criminals, giving them a fail-proof getaway for any situation. When the hero realises the criminals secret weapon, he takes on a rogue mission to discover the truth behind the coats and play the bad guys at their own game.
Bitcoin is the shadowpunk’s currency of choice, but the story also acts as an allegory for the cryptocurrency: an invisible technology promises futuristic innovation but, in the wrong hands, makes crime easy and punishment hard. This is where narrator and producer Dominic Frisby’s background as a financial writer comes into its own, ambitiously interweaving the metaphor into the rock-opera. His co-writer Brendon Connelly spent 20 years working as a film journalist, broadcaster and blogger; their mixed expertise makes them an adventurous creative coupling.
The music, played by Asaf Zohar who has scored productions for the BBC amongst others, is innovative and creative; a welcome change if you have overdone it on the audiobooks and podcasts recently. The opening score immediately transports you to the grimy world of sci-fi films like Strange Days and The Matrix, and there the atmosphere remains. The drama is heightened by the score too, creaky guitar solos and creeping crescendos make distraction impossible.
The Shadowpunk Revolution nails the sci-fi and the music is definitely (electronic) rock, but anyone expecting opera might be a little surprised. That is somewhat the aim though, Frisby and Connelly’s creative pursuits attempt to revitalise the audio form that is ever-growing in popularity. By straddling forms and genres, its ingenuity is merit enough for a listen.
The rock-opera is the perfect accompaniment for a walk or drive (it is about 47 minutes long). The storyline is emotive enough to conjure great works of the imagination and would work exceptionally well as a teaser for a full opera on stage. The ending is where the production falls a little short. Abrupt and a little unsatisfying, there seemed so many loose ends and questions left unanswered. If ever there was an audio-production with space left for a sequel, this is it.