#primitive industrial music

[bodhi-ryuchai]

Saturday night at La Zorba in Paris......

Finally, I was able to crawl out of the shed of Reille – without my backpack for once, what a relief – and walked down the street to the metro station on Saturday night before Daylight Saving Time on Sunday – you know longer days & shorter nights – to take a few trains up to Belleville to catch a proper experimental music event. And, this was definitely that type of event to catch!I had the…

[everydaym0nstrosity]

145 Of The Best Avantgarde/Experimental Record Labels Of All Time

  4iB Records

  905 Tapes

  Abandonment

 Abhorrent A.D.

 Aguirre Records

Alchemy Records

American Tapes

Angst

Ant-Zen

Arbor

Artoffact Records

ASRAR

At War With False Noise

Audial Decimation Records

Bacteria Field

Basement Tapes

Beast 666 Tapes

Bizarre Audio Arts

Blackest Ever Black

BloodLust!

Breathing Problem Productions

Broken Flag

Cabin Floor Esoterica

Callow God

((Cave)) Recordings

Chondritic Sound

Cloud Valley

Cloister Recordings

Cold Meat Industry

Cold Spring

Come Organisation

Crucial Blast

Cryo Chamber

Dada Drumming

Dark Vinyl Records

Deadline Recordings

Deathbed Tapes

Depressive Illusions Records

Diseased Audio

Dom/Dom America

Downwards

Drakkar Productions

Drone Records

Editions Mego

Eibon Records

End All Life Productions

Excite Bike

Extreme/Zero Cabal

Fag Tapes

Filth And Violence

Finders Keepers Records

Forced Exposure

Freak Animal Records

Fusty Cunt

Gods Of Tundra

G.R.O.S.S.

Hanson Records

Harbinger Sound

Harsh Head Rituals

Harshnoise

Hooker Vision

Hospital Productions

Housecraft Recordings

Hydra Head Records

iDEAL Recordings

Ipecac Recordings

Infinite Fog Productions

Järtecknet

Less Than Zero

Living Tapes

Loud!

Maggot Valley

Mannequin

Malignant Records

Menstrualrecordings

Monorail Trespassing

Moon Mist Music

Mother Savage Noise Productions

Murder Release

Musica Maxima Magnetica

Mutual Aid Records

Narcolepsia

Nefarious Activities

Night People

No Fun Productions

No Kings

Not Not Fun Records

Nurse Etiquette

Old Europa Cafe

Oxidation

Phantasma Disques

Posh Isolation

Primitive Propaganda

Prophecy Productions

Release The Bats Records

Relapse Records/Release Entertainment

RRRecords

Rotifer Cassettes

Rotorelief

Sacred Bones Records

Satanic Skinhead Propaganda

Segerhuva

Self Abuse Records

Shock

Side Effects

Skam

Skeleton Dust Records

Sky Burial

Slaughter Productions

Sloow Tapes

Smell The Stench

Soffitta Macabre

Sound Of Pig

Southern Lord

Space Slave Editions

Spite

Staalplaat/Nekrophile Rekords

Steinklang Industries

Sterile Records

Susan Lawly

Swampland

Sweat Lodge Guru

Terror

Tesco Organisation

Third Man Records

Thorax Harsh Cassettes

Torso

Total Black

Tranquility Tapes

Trapdoor Tapes

Trash Ritual

Tribe Tapes

Troniks

True Force/Pain Electronics

Turgid Animal

Tzadik

Urashima

Utmarken

Vis A Vis Audio Arts

Wagon

Wax Trax! Records

White Centipede Noise

Weird Input Records

We Release Whatever The Fuck We Want Records

ZSF Produkt/Lowest Music & Arts

[arysguide]

Part 1: Ary's favourite releases of 2023

Before you ask, yes I know that Mitski and Sufjan Stevens released albums this year! I'm gonna go ahead and assume they're already on a lot of other people's lists! However, if you think I'm missing out on YOUR favourite album of 2023, let me know. If you're thinking: "63 albums isn't that many, I wish there were more" - you're in luck because there's a Part 2. Part 2 has a different (more pop? upbeat? accessible?) vibe. Don't think too hard about it...

The chart isn't ranked, just arranged in a way that looked nice to me. Metal, hardcore, rap, emo, skramz, bedroom pop and more!!!

Here are Bandcamp links to all of the albums (for those not on BC there's a YouTube or Spotify link). Honestly I'm never quite sure what genre something is, but there's a lot of metal in any case.

Row 1

Lauren Bousfield - Salesforce [digital hardcore]

Dead Times - Dead Times [harsh noise extreme metal]

Danny Brown - Quaranta [rap/hiphop]

Underdark - Managed Decline [post black metal]

Boris & Uniform - Bright New Disease [psychedelic heavy metal]

PUPIL SLICER - BLOSSOM [blackened mathcore]

Sanguisugabogg - Homicidal Ecstasy [death metal]

Row 2

Full of Hell & Primitive Man - Suffocating Hallucination [death metal/grindcore]

Radeloos//Ziedend - Doodsverachting [blackened crust]

Agriculture - Agriculture [ecstatic black metal]

Victory Over the Sun - Dance You Monster To My Soft Song! [progressive black metal]

fog lake - midnight society [bedroom pop]

Bell Witch - Future's Shadow Part 1: The Clandestine Gate [funeral doom]

Krallice - Mass Cathexis 2 - The Kinetic Infinite [progressive black metal]

Row 3

Svalbard - The Weight Of The Mask [postmetal]

Terzij de Horde & Ggu:ll - Van Grond [vitalistic black metal]

portrayal of guilt - Devil Music [blackened post-hardcore]

SAINT VEHK - Practice​/​Doubt I&II [occult death industrial]

Sightless Pit - Lockstep Bloodwar [dub/power electronics]

Designer Violence - We Gave Peace A Chance [electropunk]

geronimostilton - The Vampyre [skramz]

Row 4

Chat Pile & Nerver - Brothers in Christ [sludgey death metal]

Afsky - Om hundrede år [depressive black metal]

Full of Hell & Gasp - FOH/Gasp (Split) [death metal/grindcore]

Solar Temple - The Great Star Above Provides [blackgaze]

Fluisteraars - De Kronieken Van Het Verdwenen Kasteel - II - Nergena [atmospheric black metal]

Fluisteraars - De Kronieken van het Verdwenen Kasteel - I - Harslo [atmospheric black metal]

Andre 3000 - New Blue Sun [spiritual flute jazz]

Row 5

Aesop Rock - Integrated Tech Solutions [rap/hiphop]

Blood Incantation - Luminescent Bridge [cosmic death metal]

Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter (fka LINGUA IGNOTA) - SAVED! [experimental gospel metal]

Spetterpoep - Stoelgang Van Zaken [coprogrind/grindcore]

Gnaw Their Tongues - The Cessation Of Suffering [blackened drone metal]

JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown - SCARING THE HOES [rap/hiphop]

The Lemon Twigs - Everything Harmony [70s inspired rock]

Row 6

Old Nick - "The Truest Spell" [dungeon synth/raw black metal]

Armand Hammer - We Buy Diabetic Test Strips [rap/hiphop]

Liturgy - 93696 [transcendental black metal]

Helena Hauff - fabric presents Helena Hauff [hardcore techno]

That Same Street ⁻ Electric Angel [skramz]

That Same Street - Endgame [skramz]

the scary jokes - Retinal Bloom [dream pop]

Row 7

Bull of Apis Bull of Bronze - The Fractal Ouroboros [occult black metal]

Katie Dey - never falter hero girl [hyperpop]

Full of Hell & Nothing - When No Birds Sang [grindcore/shoegaze]

All Men Unto Me - Chemical Transit [classical/doom metal]

RXK Nephew - Till I'm Dead [rap/hiphop]

Panopticon - The Rime of Memory [rabm/black metal]

Yaeji - With A Hammer [electronic]

Row 8

DRAIN - LIVING PROOF [punk/hardcore]

909 Worldwide - Hardcore Will Never Die, and Neither Will You [happy hardcore/rave]

lobsterfight, gingerbee, Cicadahead, godfuck - a lobster, bee, & cicada walk into a bar and find god [skramz]

GingerBee - Our Skies Smile [skramz/5th wave emo]

Curta'n Wall - Siege Ubsessed! [dungeon synth/raw black metal]

GEZEBELLE GABURGABLY - Gaburger [alt pop]

crisis sigil - God Cum Poltergeist [cybergrind]

Row 9

Lamp Of Murmuur - Saturnian Bloodstorm [black metal]

Crystalline Thunderbolts - Blessed Hands Touch The Ophanim Under The Golden Rainbows [experimental black metal]

Tomb Mold - The Enduring Spirit [black/death metal]

FIRE TOOLZ - I am upset because I see something that is not there. [electro-industrial/experimental]

Angel Electronics - ULTRA PARADISE [happy post-hardcore]

Vylet Pony - Carousel (An Examination of the Shadow, Creekflow, and its Life as an Afterthought) [electronic]

Ada Rook - Rookie's Bustle [electronic]

This post took forever to make. Again if you have any thoughts on it please tell me!!!! And share widely with your friends :)

Love, Ary

[jclemuss]

Psychoanalysis and Subjectivity

"Thriller" by Michael Jackson, released in 1983, is not just a song but an iconic cultural phenomenon, with its music video setting new standards for the industry. Directed by John Landis, the video is a mini horror film featuring Jackson as a charismatic young man transformed into a werewolf alongside his love interest, played by Ola Ray. The video showcases Jackson's unparalleled talent as a performer, with his electrifying dance moves and mesmerizing presence. Its groundbreaking special effects and narrative storytelling revolutionized the music video medium, becoming an instant classic. "Thriller" remains a timeless masterpiece, captivating audiences with its fusion of music, dance, and cinema, leaving an indelible mark on pop culture for generations to come. 

Sigmund Freud's essay "The Uncanny" explores the concept of the uncanny, or the eerie feeling of discomfort or unease experienced when something seems strangely familiar yet simultaneously foreign or unsettling. Freud delves into various aspects of the uncanny, including its connection to repressed desires, the repetition of specific themes or motifs in literature and art, and its association with the return of the repressed. He ultimately suggests that the uncanny arises from the revival of primitive beliefs and fears, often related to death, castration, or the supernatural, which have been repressed into the unconscious mind. This reminds me of the entire motive of the music video, which is the aspect of death. Sigmund said, “the primitive fear of the dead is still so strong within us and always ready to come to the surface at any opportunity”(Freud, 369). Death is the main factor that spikes an uncanny feeling. Our conscious mind feels eerie when we can not define whether something is animate or inanimate. This can also be viewed through the lens of Fenon’s theory because of the transformation, performance, and cultural appropriation that happens in this video. A transformation can be seen as a metaphor for the way Black individuals have been historically portrayed as "other" or different in Western society, often associated with fear and negativity. However, it also ties into Lacan’s theory of identity and self-representation. The transformation can be interpreted as a commentary on the pressure for Black individuals to conform to white standards of beauty and behavior, which makes them see themselves differently because of social interactions. 

Question: How often do you see the black community transform into something other than being black, and how much of an impact do you think it has?

"Black or White" is a groundbreaking music video by the iconic artist Michael Jackson, released in 1991. Directed by John Landis, the video captivates audiences with its innovative visual effects and powerful message of racial unity. Opening with a diverse array of faces from around the world morphing into one another, the video symbolizes the interconnectedness of humanity. Jackson's electrifying dance moves and charismatic performance are showcased against a backdrop of vibrant sets and dynamic choreography. The video's climax features a montage of people breaking through barriers, emphasizing diversity, acceptance, and equality themes. Through its striking imagery and infectious rhythm, "Black or White" remains a testament to Jackson's unparalleled talent and a timeless anthem for social change and harmony.

Frantz Fanon's essay "The Negro and Psychopathology" delves into the psychological impact of colonialism and racism on Black individuals. Fanon explores how the experience of oppression and discrimination leads to a profound sense of alienation, identity crisis, and psychological trauma among Black people. Frantz Fanon said, “The Negro recognizes the unreality of many of the beliefs that he has adopted with reference to the subjective attitude of the white man”(Fanon, 115). He implies that Black individuals have internalized certain beliefs or attitudes, possibly about themselves or about the world, that are based on the perspective or viewpoint of white people. However, they have come to recognize that some of the beliefs held by white people are not grounded in reality or are false. This means that things that are said about the black community usually is said to make them feel bad. The saddest part is that it is so engraved in our system that naturally, it just reproduces.

One aspect that correlates with Fanon's ideas is Jackson's own experience of racial identity. Throughout his life, Jackson grappled with questions of race and belonging, facing scrutiny and pressure to conform to societal expectations of blackness. His changing appearance, particularly his skin color, sparked speculation and debate about his racial identity and self-image. Fanon would likely view Jackson's transformation as a manifestation of the internalized racism prevalent in societies where lighter skin is often associated with beauty and success. This also makes me think about how his skin transformation can be perceived as uncanny. The transformation can be perceived as uncanny due to its combination of familiarity and strangeness, its psychological implications, the public reaction it elicited, and its broader cultural significance. It made him seem familiar but also unfamiliar. 

This scene of the music video resonates with Jacques Lacan’s “The Mirror Stage as Formative of the Function of the I” through its exploration of identity, diversity, and unity. Just as Lacan explains that the mirror stage marks a pivotal moment in the formation of the self, the video showcases individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds, highlighting the complexity of identity formation in a multicultural world. Lacan said, "Whence it is that the relation of the individual subject to his own images is apprehended, prior to any grasp of it by the self, in a specular relation of the organism to its reality, and that, whatever may be the degree of elaboration of the imaginary function, its mediation is necessarily situated in the intersubjective dialectic"(Lacan). This statement explains that individuals have an inherent, perhaps unconscious, relationship with their mental images or representations, which reflects their perception of reality. This relationship is influenced by interpersonal dynamics and interactions, highlighting the interconnectedness between self-awareness and social experiences. Social interactions really change the way one views oneself, which sadly becomes subconscious critiquing.

Question: Do you guys view transformation as uncanny, and why do you think some people do? Do you think when you first understood your image was the only time you fully saw/respected yourself?

Sources

Freud, Sigmund. "The Uncanny." The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud, edited by James Strachey, vol. 17, Hogarth Press, 1955, pp. 219-256.

Lacan, Jacques. "The Mirror Stage as Formative of the Function of the I." Écrits: A Selection. Translated by Bruce Fink, W.W. Norton & Company, 2002, pp. 75-81.

Fanon, Frantz. "The Negro and Psychopathology." Black Skin, White Masks, translated by Charles Lam Markmann, Grove Press, 2008, pp. 99-127.

[jmdbjk]

Artemis and Apollo

I was working on a post about my thoughts on the relationships between Jimin, Jungkook and Tae before the Tailor of Chaos made his appearance and wrecked my brain. I had a lot written and was trying to edit it down so it wouldn’t be a several-chapter-long study about each of those three’s personalities and why I think they do what they do. I’ll get back to it later maybe.

So I am putting that aside in order to delve into these concepts of Jimin’s. I have to admit, it is intimidating how he comes up with these ideas. I have a lot of thoughts about all this and I am trying to put some order to it but the key word in all of it truly is chaos. The more I see, the more I am in awe and the more confused I am trying to reconcile all the various versions of Jimin.

I am thinking about all the years we had cutie sexy lovely Jimin and Mochi and Chimmie. I am wondering in his WeLive last week when he mentioned that he did some self-reflecting on why he cut his hair short in April (if that translation is indeed accurate and that IS what he meant) if he cut his hair because it was a way to hang on to “youth” one last time? 

And then he drops these heavy ideas on us about id and ego... the inner tug of war between primitive impulses and morality and the rational and controlling mediator that supposedly prevents either from overpowering the other. A inner turmoil of push and pull...

His choice of white: purity, morality .... and black: pleasure, sensuality

And the images of the cracked statues put back together and sealed with gold. Imperfections that have now turned into something beautiful and precious holding it all together. 

Posing with mannequins... living breathing Jimin and some plastic representation... the comparison between real Jimin and idol Jimin?

I mentioned in a post or two ago that I wondered if the Tailor of Chaos concept is what summoned the Black Swan stage outfits with the lack of shirts and the body chains and yes, it was all being created in about the same timeframe. These photos were planned at the end of last year. The teaser video opens with Jimin wearing the same LV hoodie he was wearing for this VLive back on October 20, 2021. ABOUT A YEAR AGO! 

The temporary tattoos: the words tailor of chaos and Artemis and when I flipped the image I see the word Filter. We are seeing Jimin revisiting Filter. Who is Artemis? In Greek mythology, Artemis is goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. Artemis is also associated with the moon. In the myth of Actaeon, when this young hunter sees her bathing naked, he is transformed into a deer by the angered goddess, and is then devoured by his own hunting dogs who do not recognize their own master. THAT is truly conceptual...and is then devoured by his own dogs that don’t recognize their own master.... all kinds of imagery there that can be compared to life as an idol and especially as a member of BTS. Their own industry (dogs) devour them because they don’t recognize them as the one (master) who is bringing them more success than ever... 

Artemis has a twin brother named Apollo. Apollo is the god of music and dance, truth and prophecy, healing and diseases, and is associated with the Sun and light, poetry, and more!!!!!!!

Other aspects of Artemis: In spite of her status as a virgin who avoided potential lovers, there are multiple references to Artemis' beauty and eroticism. 

The stag imagery:

Artemis with her hunting bow drawn and birds and stars:

Jimin says “the original” Jimin... Is he speaking about the evolution of his idol persona? or the real Jimin? because idol Jimin began as manly man Jimin and then idol Jimin became softer and softer and then androgyny (Artemis is female) really entered the chat at some point and has been intermingling with cute bread cheeks Jimin, roundy boba head Jimin, chapter 2 Jimin, etc. Pick your damn Filter. 

Has Jimin been toying with this Artemis concept for a long time now? Maybe we will find out when we see more about his photo folio. 

I am more or less rambling and I really am not well versed on Greek mythology except for what I have researched to talk about this. But I do understand the concepts of psychology that he’s tossing around in these images and I do love how he exposes some of his own personal psyche in his presentation of himself. I flipped these photos around that he was looking at on the table:

Jungkook remarked that he thought out of all the members’ photo folio concepts, his vampire concept was really way out there, but my baby, Jimin’s concept is so out there, it will soar over the intelligence and maturity level of so many and just be pretty pictures to them. Jimin is CHALLENGING OUR INTELLECT with these images and that is a very very unique and sexy concept coming from him. 

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

JAMBOREE THREE -- TAKING PICTURES IN THE BATHROOM SINCE BEFORE YOU WERE BORN.

PIC(S) INFO: Spotlight on Bret, Heather, & Calvin of American indie rock band BEAT HAPPENING, during the band's "Jamboree" era, c. late 1980s/1988. 📸: Anne Culbertson.

"Contrary to the regimented roles in bands of the time, the trio swapped instruments with one another and used primitive techniques to capture their songs. The outcome was shaky, lo-fi recordings with off-key vocals and occasional chatter or tape hiss. They distributed their early recordings via cassette, not only to ensure that the music could be heard easily and affordably but also to confront the mainstream industry. Some have perceived their minimalist approach to making music as a calculated act of defiance to the more aggressive, macho punk that was kicking off at the time by the likes of BLACK FLAG and MINOR THREAT. It was about resourcefulness. "I think it was just doing the best we could with the tools we had," says Lewis."

Sources: K Records (official), The Guardian, & https://twitter.com/echoandthebussy/status/1777014187748630735.

[henryrodhamkissinger]

SOME ADORNO SHIT 😱😱😱

Happy Feodor Friday!

Theodor W. Adorno, praise be his name, quoted in Bürger 🍔, Theory of the Avant-Garde:

Adorno here saying that surrealism is artificial. No dip sure lock! Nah it’s like this. Adorno is a vehement evangelist for the avant garde in the arts; but for Adorno, the avant garde still has to express what is true: in fact, this is why Adorno advocates for the avant garde. For Adorno, the world is one of ‘objective unfreedom’ — more particularly, the crushing and fascistic sameness and fungibility of all things as they must bend to the iron law of exchange value. You might then think that Adorno would hold that only art works which somehow convey or portray that objective unfreedom are ‘true’ in his sense. Yes and no: for if that were only the case, then Adorno would have no problem with pictorial painting that portrays quotidian tyranny and subjugation, or, in music which was his specialty, any schmaltzy gothic or warlike triumphalist music would pass muster. No, for Adorno, somewhat paradoxically and perhaps simply nonsensically on his part, an autonomous art work is itself something of liberation.

An atonal serialist piece of music (Schoenberg, etc) or an expressionist painting (Kandinsky) or avant garde work of literature (Joyce) — these things, for Adorno, mark truth in the sense precisely that they subvert the world of exchange, that they refuse harmony and embrace dissonance and ‘laceration.’ Because what the ‘culture industry’ sells is escape, escape into a comforting and thought terminating sameness, the comfort of representation and repetition. That which is lacerated, dissonant, atonal etc reflects what is wholly ‘true’ in being itself as against being a facsimile of the world sold back to us. This is closely related to Adorno’s critique of Enlightenment modernity’s replacement of the qualitative with the quantitative. From the magisterial essay The Concept of Enlightenment (with M. Horkheimer):

Do you get it? I’ll translate, I’m used to this guy. The illusion of magic he refers to here is the socially inscribed primitive process of endowing some particular thing, like one single tree, with its own essence and quality, or mana. As this vanishes with enlightenment modernity, quantitative repetition reigns: a tree is only a specimen of the scientific object called ‘trees’ (yeah they’re just called trees dude, no Latin.) But note the highlighted section here: very importantly, he emphasizes how this notion of the ‘return of the same’ is already implicit in myth (or in totemic society.) Adorno doesn’t wish, then, to ‘return’ to the animism and ‘essentialism’ (in the sense of ‘an essence’) that came with primitive myth.

So the standard for truthful art can’t be that the work of art answer only to its own qualitative internal logic. Rather, it is ‘mediated,’ a fancy dialectics term that essentially means that the thing in question does not simply stand on its own unmolested by anything—it is always necessarily mediated by social conditions. I think the key to this puzzle is this: an art work cannot help but be mediated. Once a painting hangs in a gallery or a song plays at a concert, it is no longer answering only to itself, rather, it, as a work of art, is changed by the interaction it has with what is not-it, by what is outside of it and helping thereby to constitute it as such. The question then becomes, of course, by what is an art work mediated? By consumer society? So you can see perhaps now how it comes around: an art work which pushes towards subversive form and content, it is thereby far less likely to be effaced by the mediation of Capital or of ‘mass culture.’ Safeguarding against the latter is no easy task (take it from me, I am swamped in interview requests, book deals, and big music label contract offers!) That’s why Adorno is such a snobby bitch with the rigorous twelve-tone atonal music stuff and all that. It resists being…listenable…imagine if Gerwig pitched the Barbie movie where Barbie is an electrical wire hanging out of the dirt and all that happens is that an eyeless medieval police officer shouts “BARB!” into a megaphone. You know

So let’s get to the surrealism thing in brief, from the Peter Bürger 🍔 citation up top. There are radically different modes of surrealism that I believe pass muster varyingly with Adorno’s aesthetico-political concerns. And I’m gonna illustrate that with some pictures.

In my head canon I very reductively sometimes split early 20th century surrealist paintings into the Mexican and the European schools. Just as a shorthand. The two paintings below come from the former school, the first (left) by Max Ernst, who was a part of the Mexican ‘scene’ with his wife Leonora Carrington, Frida Kahlo, and the painter of the second of the ‘Mexican’ pieces here, Remedios Varo.

Now I love this shit, of course, but it’s easy to see why Adorno would not be as enthused about the radical potential in this (very broad) style (that I’m simplifying for brevity and effect.) Ernst portrays two giant beasts, a multiple-eyed chicken-like thing and a frighteningly shrouded Beast Witch; in Varo’s, a solemn sorceress mixes a potion that fuels the rotation of parchment upon which dead faced women servants write incantations, all in a tower looming atop a hilltop village that appears to be waning into the abyss. There’s obviously an element of fantasy, of imagined dream-magic and atavism that one might suspect would fall too easily into the ‘escapist’ sort of category for Adorno.

This next set, the ‘Europeans,’ is two paintings by the classic era surrealist Kay Sage, and the contemporary artist Claire Trotignon (one of my very favorite contemporary visual artists):

Kay Sage, drawing upon de Chirico before her, as well as her husband Yves Tanguy, paints these haunted, uncanny landscapes without determinate objects. The forms and contours of the modern, enlightened built world, stripped of their signification, stripped violently and denuded of their ostensible promise to be a site of human freedom. Trotignon’s pieces simultaneously erect and dismantle structures of ambiguity, emptiness and dissonance — similarly to Sage’s. They harrowingly and somewhat beautifully express Adorno’s “negative” dialectic — wherein, again, “a consciousness of denial” is at issue in the mediate artist-viewer co-constitution. They resist being iterations of something by resisting being something, apart from that lost or negated sense of rational sensibility that recedes into the abyss in capitalist modernity.

[coolclaytony]

I don't know if Jello has ever gotten into the nitty-gritty about the the different countries in Epithet Erased. But here's some headcannons:

Australia

• The southernmost continent. The mysterious Australians are a reclusive people who's homeland is protected from outsiders by a severe storm that surrounds most of their territory, save for a single island which serves as the primary hub through which the country interacts with the rest of the world.

• Few people have gone to the Australian continent and returned; those that have speak of living dinosaurs, impossible weather patterns, animals that defy description, music in the air, and people with unusual anatomies that might not even be human.

• Australia is said to be even bigger than has been explored thus far, but it's natives refuse to give outsiders too much of a glimpse for too long.

• The Australians possess technology seen nowhere else and they horde their advancements agressively.

• Those who have seen the capital of Canada note that it seems paradoxically primitive compared to the rest of the country. But why that is has not been determined.

Deepwood Country

• The Deepwood is not actually a single forest, but several that converge on eachother. The north bordering Taiga country is a open canopy boreal forest; with a closed canopy boreal forest further to the east, the middle-country is composed of a dedicious, coniferous, and temperate forests; the Capital of Bellmouth sits where these three forests touch eachother, the south is has tropical forests of every variety. The areas where different forests overlap have animals seen nowhere else.

• Each forest has it's own tribe that calls it home. They don't get along, but Bellmouth has done a lot of work in last few centuries getting them to cooperate for the country's collective well being.

• Other countries covet the Deepwood's ample and diverse lumber. But while logging does happen in Deepwood, it tightly regulated with sustainability and environmental health held as chief concerns. This results in Deepwood lumber exports being very expensive and leads to resentment from the other countries.

Desert Country

• Tall mountains surround the border of the continent that makes up Desert Country, ensuring the entire area is dry and arid.

• The Desert used to be much smaller, but an old kingdom that used to rule the country over exploited it's natural resources and caused the desert to expand rapidly.

• Consequently, the country is criplingly dependent on foreign imports and many of it's citizens live in poverty. Bandit Clans run nearly unopposed by the government. Many a settlement has dissappeared under devastating and frequent sand storms; thus most people live as nomads.

• Mining has become the chief industry of Desert Country and the Republic of Longshot has not learned from the mistakes of it's predecessor. Mining operations are private institutions who treat their workers virtually like slave labor and little care is made for the already struggling ecosystem.

• The petrified skeletons of the continent's now extinct megafauna litter the landscape of the Desert. Some of the larger ones are used as building material in some settlements.

• Fresh water is so hard to find in Desert Country that it can be bartered and the government is ruthless in it's efforts to control what few remaining natural water sources exist. Purposefully dumping water is considered a crime punishable by death.

Island Country

• The the Coalition of the Islands in Coriolis city manages the most prolific navy in the world and the country's near monopoly on international trade has made it the single wealthiest nation in the world.

• Island country maintains trade ports in most every other country and it has been accused multiple times in history of attempting to colonize and conquer the rest of the world. The Admiral of the Coalition denies this.

• Every island in the country is it's own unique and distinguished culture and as such, trading and naval ships come in a cluttered hodgepodge of designs and functions.

• The Capital of Coriolis is a cluster of barges, rigs, harbors, and anchored ships put in place around a massive unending whirlpool that has deep spiritual significance to adjacent island cultures. Without the barges that anchor the city to the nearby islands, it would be sucked into the vortex.

Ocean Country*

*Read Prison of Plastic, as that book gives us lots of context about what Ocean Country is like.

• Though they are technologically sophisticated enough to compete with Australia, the country's true power lies in it's citizens skill with the mystic arts. Most everyone, even Mundies, possess some talent with magic.

• He Who Hungers, however, will suffer noone in his vicinity who could even 'potentially' rival his power. Thus most government officials are non-magical mundies equipped with mystical gear built by enslaved inscribed.

• All people of the Ocean are expected to prepare for the day when He Who Hungers achieves Proficiency 100 and begins his grand mission of conquest against the surface world.

Taiga Country

• Taiga country used to be a communist republic, but meddling in the country's politics by Island Country lead to a shift towards free-market capitalism.

• Sweet Jazz City is in-fact where Jazz was invented. The city was named after a mundie pirate.

• The country famously has been home to many of the most legendary Inscribed in history and every settlement has at least one Inscribed hero who left a significant impact in the world. As such, the state is even more legally preferential of Inscribed than anywhere else to the point of absurdity.

• Hot Coacoa is a national beverage and traditional Taiga Folk culture is very Christmas-esque.

@dailycharacteroption

[randomvarious]

Today’s compilation:

Tonal Evidence (usa) 1991 Alternative Rock / Alternative Dance / Industrial / Synthpop / Experimental

Folks, I gotta say that I'm pretty beside myself with regards to this album; not because the music's bad—a lot of it's great!—but because I can't find almost any of these highlights on YouTube. And, I mean, we're talking London's Mute Records here, one of the biggest and most successful alternative labels in the world since its early 80s founding. You'd think every song in their catalogue would be up on YouTube by now, but apparently not. Either no one's uploaded any of this good music that's on this album or Mute practices in the dark art of copyright takedowns like nobody else's business. Either way, it's a shame that I can't make most of this stuff easily accessible to you all 😔.

That said, though, this early 90s compilation from Mute is really good. They're known for being on the forefront of alternative rock, alternative dance, industrial music, and synthpop, and with this US-tailored 1991 sampler of theirs, you get a nice taste of all of that stuff 😋.

Plus, a whole bunch of these songs were exclusives when they appeared on this album too. They may have popped up elsewhere since, but back in '91, if you purchased this CD, you were getting a sweet handful of rare goodies. And now that you can't find them anywhere to stream, I guess they're rare once again 😅. Funny how that works, eh?

Anyway, it doesn't always happen with late 80s and early 90s releases, because the music can feel a little bit primitive at times, but I think I'm more partial to the dance music that's on here than the alternative rock. Kris Weston, a guy who goes by Thrash, and who did other remixes for acts like Depeche Mode and U2 around this same time, does a sweet techno remix of Fortran 5's "Love Baby;" John Robie, a close associate of Arthur Baker, and who played synthesizers on Afrika Bambaataa & The Soulsonic Force's "Planet Rock," delivers a wild, cold, and thick electro remix of Cabaret Voltaire's "Yashar;" and there's a dynamite radio mix of "10 X Faster Than the Speed of Love," by Meat Beat Manifesto, one of the most important alt-electronic groups that's ever existed, and whose breakbeat stylings certainly served as an inspiration to the dawnings of trip hop, big beat, and drum n bass—all with an industrial edge too.

Plus, a shoegazey bit of early 90s indie pop from a Swedish band called Easy. They're actually still around after all these years, having released a brand new album just a few weeks ago. But this song, "Cloud Chamber," which is the second song off their 1990 debut album, Magic Seed, catches them in some of their very earliest days. Pleasant jangle-honking indie fare right there.

Awesome sampler with an eclectic slate that reflects all the different types of alternative music that Mute had its hand in shaping, but I've got almost no links to any of it 😞. Oh well.

Feel free to message me directly if you really wanna hear this album!

Highlights:

Fortran 5 - "Love Baby (Electropathy Mix)" Cabaret Voltaire - "Yashar (John Robie Mix)" Meat Beat Manifesto - "10 X Faster Than the Speed of Love (Radio Mix)" Renegade Soundwave - "Biting My Nails (1990 Remix)" The Weathermen - "Freedom Or Slavery (Conclusive Edit)" Easy - "Cloud Chamber"

[cleoselene]

my homeskillet @an-ivy-covered-summer tagged me to spell out my url using song titles, thank u dear, always appreciate music games like this

C - The Calling by The Amazing Devil (this is top three song of theirs for me. Definitely my favorite song from the Ruin album)

L - Linger by The Cranberries (been back on a Cranberries kick lately - what a great 90s band, RIP Dolores <3)

E - Energy by Beyoncé feat. Beam (JUST VIBE, VOTING OUT 45 DON'T GET OUTTA LINE)

O - Over by Portishead (yeah no way was I going to ignore the greatest band of all time here, they've taken me oooooooover)

S - Spark by Tori Amos (From the Choirgirl Hotel turned 25 last year and my obsession with it was, erm, ahem.. sparked anew? What an immaculate album infused with trip-hop and industrial, Tori's piano blended with the best of 90s electronica)

E - Everbody Hurts by REM (aka my theme song for the Cubs this year ;__;)

L - Liquid Diamonds by Tori Amos ("I guess I'm an underwater thing so I guess I can't take it personally. I guess I'm an underwater thing, I guess I'm. Liquid running.")

E - Electric Sun by VNV Nation (been back on my VNV bullshit for about a year. Every few years I get back on my VNV bullshit, usually because I need that sort of humanist optimism Ronan infuses into his music)

N - Nothing New by Taylor Swift & Phoebe Bridgers (guh I love this song. Outside of ATW10, fave vault track hands down. Love Phoebe tremendously, her voice is so soothing)

E - Edge of the Moon by Tori Amos (now I'm going back past that marmalade sky, 'cause you've got me waxing and waning. as primitive goes, you stir the embers of the Lucy inside of my soul)

lol why does my URL have so many E's??? anyway thank you as always I love me some music asks <3

tagging everyone because brain not work good now to think of names

[popmusicu]

And One: The Charm of Underground Electronic Music

There was a class where we discussed the integration of electronic sounds in music and the birth of electro as a music genre. That day, the teacher asked us to think about an electronic pop song released since 2018.

My first thoughts when asked to think about electronic music were of some artists that immediately came to mind, like Crystal Castles, MGMT, ROMANTICA (the Russian artist), Sub Urban, Tokyopill, and many others. Although I’m not really an expert on music (hence my interest in joining this course, haha), many of these artists may not be strictly defined by the ‘electronic’ genre. They fall into subgenres related to electronic music, such as synthpop, new wave, jungle, electroclash, and other uniquely named styles. Reflecting on this family of electro-music and watching the music videos shown in class that day, I realized that electronic elements are deeply integrated into the music I listen to. This brings me to the group I want to talk about today: And One.

Why did I choose And One? Initially, it was one of the names that came to mind when asked about an electro song, but I dismissed it because they hadn’t released anything new since 2014. Also, I wasn’t sure if they could be strictly defined as ‘electronic’, and they didn’t seem to be well-known among my peers despite their great music. Additionally, And One has always given me ‘Depeche Mode-esque’ vibes, which intrigued me to explore their music and history further. This curiosity led me to make this month’s post about them.

The story of And One began when Steve Naghavi and his family emigrated as refugees from Iran to Germany in 1980. Seven years later, Naghavi was fluent in the language, working in computer repair, and absorbing the European aesthetic of those years. He was exposed to Depeche Mode’s ‘I Just Can’t Get Enough’ and became obsessed with their music. This obsession led him to frequent Linientreu, a techno-specialized discotheque in Berlin, where he met Chris Ruiz, another EBM music lover. Together, they founded And One in 1989.

Equipped with only two analog synthesizers and a beatbox, Naghavi and Ruiz worked on their first demos, promoting their songs at many shows and discotheques. In 1991, And One launched its debut album, ‘Anguish’, featuring the heavily Persian-culture-influenced ‘Metalhammer’, which became their first megahit and won them the ‘Best New Artist’ award in Germany that year.

Since then, And One has undergone many changes over the years: the constant leaving and returning of Chris Ruiz and other members to the band, which now still has Naghavi as frontman and three more members. Their music has evolved significantly, shifting from primitive industrial to a calmer sound, as shown in ‘Sometimes’ (1997) or ‘Love You to the End’ (2006). Naghavi’s aesthetic also changed, leaving behind his PVC pants and red-colored hair for a more classy and sober attire. The themes of their lyrics also matured, moving from aggressive (like ‘Second Front’ (1991)) to more mature and romantic discussions of war, youth, and technology topics (‘An Alle Krieg’ (2014)).

Steve Naghavi through the years

Despite being heavily influenced by Depeche Mode over many years, And One has managed to create a unique sound with distinctive keyboard elements. This has resulted in 14 studio albums over more than 30 years, influencing new groups in the synthpop, EBM, and new wave scenes.

From left to right: Steve Naghavi, Gio van Oli y Chris Ruiz

Reflecting on And One’s and, specially, Steve Naghavi’s journey, it's fascinating to see how their music, with its underground roots, continues to captivate me. The blend of EBM, synthpop, and industrial creates a sound that is both edgy and irresistibly danceable. And One's ability to evolve while staying true to their unique style reminds me that music is a constantly changing landscape, shaped by innovation and personal expression. Whether you're drawn in by the beats or the intriguing lyrics, their music invites you to move and explore the depths of this alternative but interesting sound.

I'll leave you two And One's songs so you can give them a try!

Military Fashion Show 

Enjoy the Unknown (my personal fav)

-Francisca Rivera C.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sources: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_One https://www.elconfidencial.com/cultura/2016-10-02/concierto-and-one-steve-naghavi-refugiado-irani-depeche-mode_1266477/ https://rkvradio.com/2021/03/14/and-one/

[lostblognetwork]

@aleprouswitch

With our desire to remain akin to innovation, we extend a deafening welcome to our latest member, @aleprouswitch, a practicing industrial/noise musician and co-owner to the exceptional blog @womenofnoise.

An avid lover and aficionado of various decades and genres concerning underground music, they have nourished their own talents to then boldly externalize them. With a vocal androgyny and lethal vulnerability projected through their lyrics and sound production in unison, its result conjures forth an introspective plunge beneath the surface of one’s primitive emotional core.

[astroartmuse]

Progression Symbols

Gemini 19 Sun A large archaic volume. Keywords: wisdom, experience, lost knowledge, hidden treasures, unexpected help, calm, quiet, peace.

Virgo 11 Rising A boy molded in his mother’s aspiration for him. Keywords: to try to meet the expectations, to become what another person or the society wants for you, even you succeed you may realize that is not what you want, to achieve a good social position.

Pisces 11 Descendant Men seeking illumination. Keywords: spirituality, faith, an inner sense that the material world is not everything, intuition, wisdom.

Taurus 29 Moon Two cobblers working at a table. Keywords: cooperation, work, low social position, good friends, capacity to give and receive help.

Gemini 12 Mercury A Topsy saucily asserting herself Keywords: growth, taking advantage of every new situation, dissatisfaction.

Leo 4 Venus A man formally dressed and a dear with its horns folded. Keywords: formality, play, game, pictures.

Leo 9 Mars Glass blowers. Keywords: skill, creativity, art, performance, work.

Leo 10 Jupiter Early morning dew. Keywords: refreshment, resources, positive attitude, purity, sincerity, optimism.

Venus Mars Jupiter Conjunct

Aquarius 6 Saturn A performer of a mystery play. Keywords: subtlety, occult, to send a message, art.

Capricorn 12 Uranus A student of nature lecturing. Keywords: science, intelligence, study, to communicate, to explain, to think, to be realistic.

Scorpio 18 Pluto A woods rich in autumn coloring. Keywords: fulfillment, success, ideals, achievements, rewards.

Capricorn 5 Lilith Indians rowing a canoe and dancing a war dance. Keywords: action, aggression, courage, mobilization, to try to create an image to impress someone, primitive attitude.

Cancer 25 Chiron A dark shadow or mantle thrown suddenly over the right shoulder. Keywords: destiny, self-expression, leadership, megalomania.

Aquarius 14 Vertex A train entering a tunnel. Keywords: efficiency, development, precision, utilitarianism, evolution.

Gemini 8 MC An industrial strike. Keywords: selfishness, aggression, artificial, performance, progress, war.

Leo 20 Fortune The Zuni sun worshipers. Keywords: spirituality, tradition, faith, to belief in a higher order, naivety.

Gemini 9 Sun/Moon A quiver filled with arrows. Keywords: satisfaction, accomplished work, games, sport, an organised person, preparation, art.

Cancer 24 Asc/MC A woman and two men on a bit of sunlit land facing south. Keywords: inception, an unusual gift for organizing and exploiting the self’s potential.

Googles the James Burgess & John Sandbach version of each degree

Reads all the versions

Cracks codes in time & space

Tropical Symbols

Taurus 18 Sun A woman holding a bag out of a window. Keywords: high personal effectiveness in commandeering the elements of experience for any particular purpose, dissatisfaction with things as they are and complete ineptness in handling them

Leo 16 Rising Sunshine just after a storm. Keywords: hope, confidence, to recover after a difficult situation, to be in a good position after passing a difficult time.

Pisces 19 Moon A master instructing his pupil. Keywords: education, knowledge, help, order, rules, initiation, mentoring, respect.

Cancer 1 Venus A furled and an unfurled flag displayed from a vessel. Keywords: adaptability, uncertainty, duality.

Cancer 20 Mars Gondoliers in a serenade. Keywords: romance, love, feelings, music, relationships, beauty, dreams.

Leo 5 Jupiter Rock formations at the edge of a precipice. Keywords: crisis, challenging situation, energy, endurance, aggression, risks, courage, self-confidence.

Aquarius 6 Saturn A performer of a mystery play. Keyiwords: subtlety, occult, to send a message, art.

Cancer 22 Chiron A woman awaiting a sailboat. Keywords: confidence in love, often bad luck, dreams.

Capricorn 13 Uranus A fire worshiper. Keywords: spirituality, mystery, enthusiasm, to believe in ideas, creativity.

Capricorn 16 Neptune Boys and girls in gymnasium suits. Keywords: friendship, joviality, optimism, loyalty, competition, fair play.

Capricorn 21 NN A relay race. Keywords: teamwork, sport, ambition, determination, cooperation.

Cancer 21 SN A prima donna singing. Keywords: a gifted person, culmination, skill, talent, popularity, charm, artistic abilities.

Cancer 22. A woman awaiting a sailboat. Keywords: confidence in love, often bad luck, dreams.

Scorpio 19 Pluto A parrot listening and them talking. Keywords: education, intelligence, to integrate, to meet the expectations, to try, to use your resources efficiently.

Gemini 29 Chariklo The first mockingbird in spring. Keywords: communication, news, intelligence, quickening.

Cancer 3 Psyche A man all bundled up in fur leading a shaggy dear. Keywords: exploration, seclusion, pioneer work, dealing with difficult conditions, self-reliance, stubbornness.

Gemini 26 Asc/Mc Winter frost in the woods. Keywords: natural state of things, simple attitude, hidden emotions.

Cancer 29 Kleopatra A Muse weighing twins. Keywords: good balance between two situations like reality and over-reality which realizes the integrity of selfhood, equilibrium, intuition.

Aries 19 Sun/Moon The magic carpet. Keywords: freedom of spirit, idealistic possibilities, a panoramic view, a broad mind, a good perspective of the whole situation, an unusual person, jokes, happiness, an immature view of life

Taurus 6 MC A bridge being built across a gorge. Keywords: evolution, progress, courage, intelligence, curiosity, the desire to discover new areas, relations, connections, dangerous life, risk.

Scorpio 4 A gold rush tears men away from their native soil. The passionate quest for universal values, destructive of cultural ease of living. Leaping to opportunity.- Avid seeking.

Aquarius 1 Juno An old adobe mission. Keywords: durability, stability, symbolism, heritage, tradition.

Sagittarius 15 Eros The ground hog looking for its shadow.Keywords: to search, to predict, to foresee, symbolism, intelligence, to try to anticipate, skill. reassurance, timidity.

Libra 29 Aphrodite Humanity seeking to bridge the span of knowledge. Keywords: wisdom, experience, desire for achievements, knowledge, to seek knowledge, knowledge used for the human well – being, global interest.

Libra 22 Ceres A child giving birds a drink at a fountain. Keywords: optimism, friendly relationships, sensible soul, creativity, good intention, naivety.

Virgo 7 Palla A harem. Keywords: fighting with many people for the same objective, sexual desires are strong, jealousy, power, display of power, ambition.

Gemini 20 Vesta A cafeteria. Keywords: living in community, building an efficient system, discipline, organisational skills.

Taurus 1 Hygeia A clear mountain stream. Keywords: freedom, purity of soul, morality, healthy principles, solitude, a clear situation.

Leo 13 White Rabbit An old sea captain rocking. Keywords [seems to be related with Libra 17]: memories, experience, retrospection, maturity, leadership (maybe is not obvious), strength of character, calm, to leave in the past.

Aquarius 16 Descendant A big-business man at his desk. Keywords: chance, fortune, social power, respect, administration, leadership, ambition, efficiency, success.

Gemini 6 Voltaire Drilling for oil. Keywords: achievements, desires, ambition, wealth, money as the most important resource, new experiences, people who likes to explore, discover.

Capricorn 1 Lilith An Indian chief demanding recognition. Keywords: leader, courage, social position, ambition, determination, tenacity, fidelity, a simple world, lack of sophistication

Capricorn 4. A party entering a large canoe. Keywords: unity, friendship, desire to explore, curiosity.

Capricorn 5 Mad Hatter Indians rowing a canoe and dancing a war dance. Keywords: action, aggression, courage, mobilization, to try to create an image to impress someone, primitive attitude

🐇 Conj Rising 🕳 🐇 Mad Hatter 🎩 Conj Vertex & Lilith

[sakshisuma]

Harmonizing Souls: Exploring The Timeless Allure of Music 🎶

Introduction:

Music, a universal language that transcends boundaries and cultures, has been an integral part of human expression for centuries. From the rhythmic beats of ancient drums to the complex compositions of contemporary symphonies, music continues to captivate and connect people worldwide. In this blog, we delve into the multifaceted world of music, exploring its historical roots, emotional impact, and evolving forms.

1. The Evolution of Music:

Take a journey through time as we explore the evolution of music, from the earliest forms of vocalizations and primitive instruments to the sophisticated genres and styles that define today's musical landscape. The rich tapestry of musical history reveals how different cultures and societies have contributed to the diverse array of sounds we cherish today.

2. The Emotional Power of Music:

Why does music have such a profound impact on our emotions? Delve into the psychology of music, understanding how melodies, harmonies, and rhythms can evoke a wide spectrum of feelings. Whether it's the uplifting crescendo of a symphony or the melancholic notes of a blues guitar, music has the power to connect with our innermost emotions in ways that words often cannot.

3. Genre Diversity:

Explore the vast diversity of musical genres, from classical to jazz, rock to hip-hop, and beyond. Each genre brings its own unique flavor, reflecting the cultural, social, and historical contexts that shape its development. Dive into the distinctive characteristics of different genres, appreciating the creativity and innovation that fuel musical evolution.

4. The Influence of Technology:

Examine how advancements in technology have revolutionized the music industry. From the vinyl records of yesteryear to the digital streaming platforms of today, technology has not only changed how we consume music but has also shaped the very sounds and production techniques employed by artists. Explore the pros and cons of these technological shifts in the music landscape.

5. The Artist's Journey:

Step into the shoes of musicians, understanding the creative process, challenges, and inspirations that drive their work. Whether a classical composer, a rock guitarist, or a hip-hop lyricist, each artist contributes a unique voice to the ever-expanding symphony of human creativity. Discover the stories behind iconic compositions and the artists who have left an indelible mark on the world of music.

Conclusion:

As we conclude our exploration of the enchanting world of music, it's evident that this art form holds a timeless allure. From its ancient origins to the cutting-edge sounds of today, music remains a powerful force that transcends boundaries and unites people across the globe. Whether you're a casual listener or a dedicated musician, the beauty of music lies in its ability to inspire, comfort, and connect us in ways that resonate with the very essence of our humanity.

🎼🎶🎶🎶🎼🎶🎶🎶🎼🎶🎶🎶🎼🎶🎶🎶🎼

[mywifeleftme]

189: The Haxan Cloak // Excavation

Excavation The Haxan Cloak 2013, Tri Angle (Bandcamp)

Through his work as the Haxan Cloak and as a film composer (notably on a couple of Ari Aster pictures), Bobby Krlic has helped define the modern aesthetics of what we might call Upsetting Music:

Extremely low frequency synthesized bass with a subliminal roar

Slow, deliberate, violent industrial percussion with a ton of reverb

Creepy whirring noises that simultaneously evoke machinery and insects

Staticky, panned whooshing sounds, that suggest rapid movement captured on degraded video tape

Piercing whines, reminiscent of alarms or the shrill violin notes exploited in scores like Psycho

Snippets of higher pitched noises that sound like muffled or glitched recordings of human cries

Unlike traditional symphonic scores or even the kind of throbbing but ultimately melodic progressive electronic stuff used in ‘80s horror scores, this music largely eschews melody in favour of manipulating sounds to provoke a visceral sense of unease as directly as possible. Electronic music made its initial inroads into horror in the late ‘70s largely because it was cheap to produce, but the runaway success of independent/low-budget films with keyboard-heavy scores like John Carpenter’s Halloween made the aesthetic popular. Since then, genre film has continued to evolve alongside the darker strains of electronic music, from schlocky early ‘90s flicks that incorporate techno and horrorcore rap, to the way industrial became de rigueur for a certain variety of desaturated, nihilistic, almost fetishy brand of cheap ‘00s torture flick.

Independent of this history though, I think there’s something specific about recent horror and thriller filmmakers’ embrace of dark ambient/drone music like Krlic’s that links to Western contemporary anxieties and how these audiences experience fear. I remember many years ago (I’m 51) reading an article in a film theory class about how the rise of automation in the early 20th century kicked off a minor craze in the newspapers of the day for grisly stories about bodies being maimed by trams and the like. The author argued that these sorts of accidents were a new form or vector of terror specific to the industrial age, and that there was a corresponding spike in depictions of these tragedies in contemporaneous films, which tended to pull their subject matter and aesthetics from the well of public worries. Genre music has evolved along parallel lines. Traditional orchestral horror scores derive from ominous motifs found in classical music and opera, which reflect older notions of how evil and despair should be depicted—a Christian understanding of evil, with attendant tropes. A world mediated by religion and versed in devotional music (masses, hymnals, Gregorian chant) would naturally imagine Satanic music as its inversion (dark, baroque renditions of the religious cannon) or opposite (“primitive” tribal music).

By the middle of the century a secularized notion that evil might derive from the personal psychoses of individuals, or (as the tram reading suggested) the indifference of technology and institutions, became widespread, and was duly reflected in the cinema. Today, in the West anyway, our bodies are more insulated than ever before from daily exposure to the sorts of violence depicted in horror films, and our fears have become more secularized and more abstracted still. Our most immediate experiences of dread and bodily harm have tended to come from what we witness on our screens, the fear of seeing something troubling. At the same time, filmmakers have realized that the sonically unsettling aspects of ominous symphonic music (extreme high and low frequencies; disharmony; jerky rhythms) could be divorced from the orchestral context, leaving artists with a set of specific tools for physically startling audiences in tandem with the action onscreen.

Krlic’s music is a product of these parallel processes. As noted, much of his work prioritizes psychological and physiological effect above all, pushing these notions (in his Haxan Cloak work especially) about as far as they can be taken outside of extremist genres like harsh noise and powerviolence. When he makes his synths literally growl, our bodies respond to the perceived threat, even though we know what we’re hearing isn’t produced by a living animal. Some of what he’s exploiting, again, is stuff that goes back to our base threat-detecting instincts, but the overtly technological aspect is also the sound of horrible things both real and simulated we’ve seen through media. Staticky screams and the scrape of metal on concrete summon the spectre of snuff films, hostage videos, extreme BDSM porn, war footage, and all of the movies, video games, and music videos that have adapted their imagery to get a rise out of people. It also, especially to a broad subset of “average” moviegoers, sounds like the type of music people who want to rape and murder your family would listen to for kicks.

There is a good deal more going on in Krlic’s music than simple fearmongering though—we can look at Excavation, his second and final LP to date as the Haxan Cloak,as part of a long lineage stretching from ‘60s experimental electronic music like White Noise through Nurse with Wound, Aphex Twin, and Nine Inch Nails among many others. “The Mirror Reflecting (Part 2)” eventually reveals a sequence of austere, crystalline guitar-like sounds that post-metallers Agalloch might’ve produced; “Dieu” opens with some subterranean breakbeats and chopped up samples that nearly threaten to look in the direction of a dancefloor before a creepy violin quells the thought; the rain-drenched “The Drop” flashes a bit of a Baths-style emo/downtempo vibe when it isn’t trudging past the sounds of dark satanic mills. Just as some people will hear Excavation as sadistic junkie music, others will no doubt find it an exceedingly warm and plush casket to disappear within, the overwhelming weight of its sounds divorced of violent associations, just signals strobing across the darkened hemispheres.

189/365

[omegaplus]

# 4,370

Skinny Puppy: Brap: Back And Forth: Series Two limited edition (1992)

The world of Skinny Puppy is about to implode and come to a cataclysmic close this year. It’s insane to think that some of our favorite industrial bands and figures are still going 40 years after the fact, when it only seemed like yesterday. Their debut record, and their careers, were born from the ashes of synthpop. The product of Nivek Ogre, cEvin Key, (previously) Wilhelm Schroeder / Bill Leeb, and Dwayne Rudolph Goettel started as a deep black shade of horror and evolved into a grotesque hellish chaos. Though their debut record Remission (1984) may have started their exposure with the Nettwerk label, the original Back And Forth demo- tape marked the beginning of industrial music’s most-cherished groups. With fewer than 50 authentic cassettes made and distributed by cEvin Key, Skinny Puppy’s primitive beginnings now fetch quadruple digits. Thankfully, Nettwerk re-released the original tape with bonus material all known as Back And Forth: Series Two. It stands as one of my most listened-to Skinny Puppy releases due to its dreary, eerie, and mysteriously unusual nature. This was where Key’s dream of making music came true, and the former life and output of -Puppy took in the form of highly experimental electro, synthpop, and minimal rhythmic noise so alien from their usual pitch-black monstrosity. Believe me when I say it’s way out there and used to be a totally different being before its bloody horrific mutation. 1,000 of these special edition boxes were made to commemorate their careers during dealing with fall-outs and horrid drug addictions that almost cost their name entirely. Of those 1,000, 194 of these were signed by original members and remaining components Ohgr and cEvin. And now, they’ll have one final round of live tours before their name is laid to rest forever. When it's all over and we think of at their live shows, Last Rights (1992), Too Dark Park (1991), “Dig It”, their internal strife, Cyberaktif, Doubting Thomas, Goettel’s death and everything else, we’ll look to Back And Forth: Series Two as the birthstone of what was once a then-innocent era in the life of a legendary outfit.