Single Review: AUSTRALASIA "Mercurio • Argento" (Independent) by Dave Wolff

Project: AUSTRALASIA

Country: Italy

Genre: Blackened post rock/electronica

Single: Mercurio • Argento

Label: Independent

Format: Vinyl, digital

Release date: November 5, 2019

Since 2012 Australasia has existed on the outer fringes of black metal, post-rock and synth/electronica, shaping them into something exclusively its own, adding piano, strings, female vocals and other sounds. When Frank Garcia reviewed Australasia’s 2013 full length “Vertebra” (released on Immortal Frost Productions), he commented on its striking balance between clear instrumentation and clear production. I’ve been listening to each of Australasia’s releases to get a broader picture of this project, and found their albums to be theatrical (“Sin4tr4”), futuristic and atmospheric (“Vertebra”), and mournfully contemplative (“Notturno”). Australasia’s latest single from last November, “Mercurio • Argento” is a departure of sorts from those albums. While the sounds still vary greatly, they’re mostly based on keyboards and synthesizers. There are guitar and drum sounds added, but their function is to complement the keys and synths when keys and synths usually complement the guitars. There are also no strings or vocals of any kind. This approach turns Australasia’s electronic themes to a multi-faceted soundscape you can’t tell is the ethereal plane or virtual reality. It allows you to decide for yourself where you are, how long you want to remain there and how far you want to travel. The music is smooth, distorted, stark, cold and dark without lacking vibrancy. The greys, maroons and dark blues you experience here are neither depressive or overly abstract but rather profound and dramatic. I see a lot of artistic devotion without the snobbery. I thought I may have been reading too much into this; but after reading fan feedback on Australasia’s Bandcamp profile I realized other listeners reached similar conclusions. While listening to this single I was reminded of the writings of Sylvia Plath, and the paintings of Giger and Goya. Whatever you perceive of this single, you’ll be exercising your imagination to its limits. -Dave Wolff

Track list:

1. Mercurio

2. Argento

Flash fiction: NOXIOUS LOVE by Devin Joseph Meaney

NOXIOUS LOVE

Flash fiction by Devin Joseph Meaney

One eye of newt, the tears of three virgins, and the tail of a spotted salamander. These were the main components necessary for the noxious brew that Evanora was concocting within her pewter cauldron. She added the blood of a love once lost to the mix, to help ensure that her spell would ensnare the target her cold black heart so desired.

The gruesome mixture began to bubble and froth, changing colors as she whisked the foul contents with her bare hands. Evanora's heart danced in her chest as she pondered over her lust for a muse that rejected her longing. Evanora was a fetching beauty, but her love was as vile as the deeds she committed to quench her yearning for intimacy.

The woman she adored had a heart of gold, and her embrace felt like woven silk on Evanora's icy skin. Sadly, that heart of gold cherished another, and rage now consumed Evanora's body and mind. There was no true love for the wretched. There would be no soothing touch for the loathsome. Only by the power of strong magic would the pure relish the damned. But only by the light of the pure would the damned ever be saved.

Single Review: WILLOW WYNTRE "This Day" (Independent) by Dave Wolff

Singer: WILLOW WYNTRE

Location: Richmond, Virginia

Country: USA

Genre: Eclectic Vampire Metal

Single: This Day

Label: Independent

Format: Digital

Mixed by: Greyson "Queen Gene" Goodenow, Sound Of Music studios

Mastered by: William Bruce Smith, Sound Of Music studios

Release date: October 31, 2019

If you reside in New York City or Los Angeles and think your hometown has a monopoly on eclectic music, there is a solo artist from Richmond, Virginia who will explode and fragment your perceptions. I’ve read a little about this city and the local entertainment mostly ranges from rap to country to DJs. There’s also an underground scene giving more opportunities for DIY artists (rap and punk bands) to be heard. There are bound to be musicians in cities like this whose mode of thought and expression is far removed from everyone’s, and Willow Wyntre who breaks every mold imaginable is among them.

Having worked with the experimental project Nekrotrampz with Paul Munster, Wyntre (aka Danielle D. Everett) recently went solo and released a number of singles and covers streaming on Soundcloud (including She Wants Revenge’s “Tear You Apart” and Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love”). She has been promoting her new single “This Day” just about everywhere online since it came out in October 2019, just in time for Halloween. Given what compels her songwriting, it’s anyone’s guess what incorporeal nocturnal beings would be summoned if you listened late at night… but I can imagine.

How to describe this and Wynter’s music in general? If you have an equal appreciation for musical theater, spirituality, vampire legends, occultism, horror literature, goth, hip hop, symphonic metal, synthpop and classical with touches of opera and commerciality, Wynter is worth noticing. On Facebook, she defines her music as “eclectic vampire metal”. This description may sum it up on a basic level but for a full understanding of what she means you have to immerse yourself in it.

“This Day” opens with a glacial mood, with keyboards, haunting background vocals, and a piano-driven gothic feel. A beat is suddenly added to generate an effect best described as trippy. It’s likened to hip hop, but not your usual hip hop. It’s slightly distorted with more percussive notes and additional effects. I consider it safe to say it goes far beyond anything Linkin Park has done crossing metal and rap over. I think both “camps” are going to be confounded hearing it for the first time. And this just the first thirty seconds or so.

Wynter’s vocals are ethereal and seductive as she alternates between rap flow, a melodic style likened to Tarja Turunen and Cristina Scabbia and agonized near-screeching. This is a riveting vehicle to describe a troubled childhood in which existence is the result of a drug-addled “momentary lapse of reason.” From there she describes being the odd girl out in school with angst that would have made Kurt Cobain swell with pride. Her intonation suggests the brutal honesty of daily existence.

As the song continues its gothic premise with its myriad of instruments from her backup band (including emotional violin passages) Wyntre relates how her salvation was found in occultism and dark magic. She does so in a way that makes her journey into darkness sound convincing and beautiful until she finally finds her heaven in the darkest afterlife. She now fears no evil as she passes into the realms of shadow and death. She has already experienced the hell of human existence, and has made peace with her demons within and without. She is now a succubus of medieval legend, reappearing on earth to inspire others on society’s outer fringes.

“This Day” is an exquisitely crafted tale in which alienation is a badge of courage and every night creature is welcomed as a personal friend. There’s no need to sell one’s soul since it has already found its home… in the shade of twilight. -Dave Wolff

Lineup:
Willow Wyntre: Vocals
Gabriela Midday: Violin
Eliza Vaughan: Piano
Geoff Vaughan: Lyrics
Emmanuel Artis: Drums
Andrew Halligan: Drums

Full Length Review: REVERORUM IB MALACHT "Im Ra Distare Summum Soveris Seris Vas Innoble" (Annapuma Productions) by Reggae

Band: REVERORUM IB MALACHT

Location: Uppsala

Country: Sweden

Genre: Experimental black metal/dark ambient

Full Length: Im Ra Distare Summum Soveris Seris Vas Innoble

Label: Annapuma Productions

Format: Vinyl, CD, digital

Release date: May 11, 2018 (World), June 15, 2018 (USA)

This is some bizarre shit.... this would fit into the black metal niche but to me fits a more experimental / dark / doomy vibe. This is not going to be for everyone. Some will like it, many will not. The rather grim production values displayed on this recording serves to keep the whole thing underground, the guitars are barely audible in some of the tracks, more a buzz and texture in many places, but when you can hear them it’s obvious these guys are good and the guitar player shows off some extreme shred skills in the vein of Sadistik Exekution or Blasphemy. I'm not sure how to feel about this, as it would be good to hear more of the guitars, but the production does give the band an identity and sound of its own.

The songs are lengthy and uncompromising, the drums are relentless (not sure if a human or machine) but they are punishing, the vocals fit squarely into black metal territory utilizing some gut-wrenching screams, chants and growls and throat singing. The songs tend to be underpinned by keyboard / organ sounds and some creepy gongs and other percussive instruments. The whole concoction fits together rather well in my opinion (despite the lo-fi production) In between the songs there's some kind of ritual church type sounds which give the whole affair some rather sinister overtones. This is EVIL nightmarish stuff. Soundscapes that musically really seem to re-create hell. Here-in lies the problem the band describe themselves as ”Roman Catholic Black Metal” and while I don't have a copy of the lyrics (all the titles would appear to be in Latin anyway) it’s hard to picture something as sinister sounding as this band producing anything that has any roots in Christianity.

I know a lot of metal elitists will dismiss this upon hearing they have Catholic undertones to the music but if you give them a chance this is some of the most hateful and evil-sounding music to be spewed from the underbelly of the black metal genre. And hey, at least the band are doing something original both sound wise and theistically, they deserve major kudos for that. -Reggae

Track list:

1. Intro

2. Where Escapism Ends

3. Incompatible Molokh

4. Cloud of Unknowing

5. E va um da

6. Etia si omnes, ego non

7. Skin Without Skin

8. (Natten inuti) en tagg som sticke

9. Outro

This review is also uploaded at Reggae's blog Metal Mixtape. -DW

Single Review: 6HOST WITHASIX "Sleep Intoxication" (Independent) by Devin Joseph Meaney

Artist: 6HOST WITHASIX

Location: Cape Breton Island

Country: Canada

Genre: Hip hop

Single: Sleep Intoxication

Label: Independent

Format: Streaming

Release date: December 6, 2019

It has been a while since I spoke on the topic of 6host WithaSix, but today 6host has sent me another vicious banger. Personally, I think this new track ''Sleep Intoxication'' is one of 6host's best tracks to date, which is a lot to say, as the majority of his previous tracks are top tier quality. I highly encourage everyone to give this new track a listen! Remove the wires from the back of your brain stem, awaken your third eye, and swim in the lyrical flow that is emitted from 6host! -Devin Joseph Meaney

Single Review: AYUMI ANIME "Get Me High" (Bong Mines Entertainment) by Tony Sokol

Vocalist: AYUMI ANIME

Location: Los Angeles, California

Country: USA

Genre: Urban pop, R&B

Single: Get Me High

Label: Bong Mines Entertainment

Format: Digital

Release date: November 1, 2019

Ayumi Anime's smoking debut single “Get Me High” is sure to put you in the zone. Co-written by Alexander Frazier and Olena Kim (Anime's real name), the song is pinch of urban pop, a bowl of contemporary R&B, and totally chill. Director Togeze inspires some mad love for Anime in the accompanying “Get Me High” music video. "Let's fall for each other, in deep conversation," Anime sings in "Let's Get High." Autoeroticasphyxium zine had a light chat with the singer-songwriter after the song dropped a few days ago, and we fell into deep trance.

Ayumi says she "didn't want any heavy lyrics in 'Get Me High.' This song aims to let people chill, relax and stay positive, because this is so important nowadays." She told us she was inspired to write about "getting high in L.A." when she "first got the joint just to get rid of the stress and got flown into the universe."

The mesmerizing musician found a muse in marijuana, but not pure nirvana. "I think the only mystical property that it can have is relaxing your mind," she told us. "So when you're totally relaxed, you forget about all your problems and just focus on yourself or the things you really love and that make you happy."

Keeping us very happy, Ayumi also discussed her next moves. She revealed exclusively to us the she will release her second single, "Everything I Need," in mid-January.

Anime is probably best known as Penthouse magazine's Pet of the Month for October, 2017. Captivating as she is, the performer, who was born and raised in Kheron, Ukraine, is no mere eye candy. She says songwriting was always her "ultimate and planned goal."

Ayumi was 15 when she when got hit one too many times by the sounds of Britney Spears. When she was 20 she moved to Russia, but don't worry, she's not a sleeper agent. Her only K.G.B. connection is Killer Green Bud. According to what you can find online, Ayumi speaks our language, and many others. She graduated from Shevchenko Media Television High School in Kiev as a TV reporter with a degree in Philology.

The charismatic Korean who has appeared in shoots Nike, Armani, and Chanel, "strives to empower women and the Asian community to break the glass ceiling, become leaders and overcome any obstacles they may face."

And what better way to relax while pursuing lofty ambitions? Musicians have been separating stems from seeds since the Ink Spots' "That Cat Is High" came out in 1938. Even Woody Guthrie, the guy who wrote This Land is Your Land" invited the world to “Take a Whiff on Me.” So hotbox the room and play some music. Roll it up, burn it up, smoke it up. All night.

"Get me high" is available on Spotify and Apple music. -Tony Sokol

Full Length Review: HHOOGG "Earthling, Go Home!" (Crystal Space Bricks) by Dave Wolff

Band: HHOOGG

Location: Boston, Massachusetts

Country: USA

Genre: Psychedelic space rock, jam

Full Length: Earthling, Go Home!

Label: Crystal Space Bricks

Format: Digital

Release date: February 25, 2019

Frazer Jones of Desert Psychlist recently made a loose comparison between Hhoogg’s “Earthling, Go Home!” and classic Star Trek. As much as I prefer avoiding comparisons, this one seems to fit, if it was an episode of Star Trek as seen from the perspective of the Doors or Pink Floyd who were given free reign writing the soundtrack. I also thought of Forbidden Planet and 2001: A Space Odyssey with special effects made under the orchestration of hallucinogenics. Forget CGI and massive explosions; what’s wrong with science fiction movies that look like an acid user who just graduated from art school remade Méliès’ A Trip to the Moon with psychedelic stoner rock that’s completely improvised. Improvisation is strictly trial and error; it either works or it doesn’t. But if it does work it comes from a place that’s timeless and unrestricted by money, genre or popular opinion. Many bands looked into this place and that’s exactly why they’re remembered years later while trends die and are forgotten. What Hhoogg bring back from the ether is a piece of that universe as cold and strange as it is monumental and eternal. The smallest piece can irrevocably change the way you look at music. That void is the canvas on which they painted, and even the brightest and most reassuring colors are distorted and warped beyond imagination. Yet you seem to anticipate where they’re going next if you’re attuned to their sudden impulses. I got that feeling more than once, for example, when listening to the first track and those that came after with their narrative overtones, repetitive bass lines, opiate guitars, frenetic percussion and astral keyboards. Whether the mood is euphonious, pensive, probing, uninhibited or seething, the personalities represented by each instrument piece together to create a whole that towers far above what would have been expected from a psych-rock band. Hhoogg sounds like they can only become more profound with each album they come out with. -Dave Wolff

Lineup:

Yig Narub: Synthesizer

Paul Yu: Guitar

Xtina Porcupine: Bass

Tom the Ninth Universe: Drums

Track list:

1. Ccoossmmooss

2. Rustic Alien Living

3. Journey to the Dying Place

4. Star Wizard, Headless and Awake

5. Eaten on the Frontier

6. Recalled to the Pyramids

7. Infinitely Gone

Full Length Review: CINEMA CINEMA "CCXMD" (Nefarious Industries) by Dave Wolff

Band: CINEMA CINEMA

Location: Brooklyn, New York

Country: USA

Genre: Art punk

Full Length: CCXMD

Label: Nefarious Industries

Format: CD, digital, streaming

Release date: November 1, 2019

It may be a rare occurrence for a punk or post-punk band to cross the line and venture outside their boundaries (and I don’t mean the kind of mainstreamized, reconstituted pop punk we hear too often). But when a band comes along and does so, the same motivation exists and it usually becomes something memorable. “CCXMD”, the sixth release from Brooklyn’s Cinema Cinema, crawls from the begrimed, trash littered streets of the five boroughs to contend with the experimental jazz/noise of the early 2000s. While checking it out I was engrossed enough to check out the band’s discography all the way back to their early releases. From “57” and “Shoot The Freak” to their 2017 full length “Man Bites Dog” the band investigated many different auditory impressions looking for what would eventually set them apart from their Sonic Youth/Clash/PJ Harvey-inspired provenance. It sounds like it was a measured, deliberate process of trying different ambient sounds to settle into the freeform avant-garde jazz, seemingly incoherent musicianship and premelting noise of their new album (“A Night at the Fights” and “Man Bites Dog” were particularly crucial to their growth). Those ambient sounds, or rather the sum total of those ambient sounds, play a part in how “CCXMD” turned out. Their hard work is apparently paying off as “CCXMD” has been recognized by Big Takeover, Invisible Oranges, Brooklyn Vegan, Pop Matters, Aural Aggravation and The Village Voice among other publications. Pop Matters said Cinema Cinema are torchbearers for the part of NYC’s music scene populated by unsigned bands who mix urban frustration with intellectual experimenting. The band says their disjointed song structure with its shrieking saxophones, wandering guitars, scrambled percussion and manic vocals (as well as some Doors and Jethro Tull influence) resulted from learning to play in an improvisational style and listening to bands like Mahavishnu Orchestra. Going into the studio and improvising as they went along, having come to know each other’s playing inside and out, is the only way they could make “CCXMD” sound spontaneous and voluntary. What’s more, the band’s arrangemernts leave it a mystery as to the direction they’ll decide to take on their next release. -Dave Wolff

Lineup:

Ev Gold: Guitars, vocals

Paul Claro: Drums, percussion:

Matt Darriau: Wind, loops, vocals:

Track list:

1. Collective Outpoint

2. Cyclops

3. Revealed

4. Colors

5. Radio Ready

6. Ode to a Gowanus Flower

7. Cloud 3

Interview with Andrew MacDonald of GET REAL! by Devin Joseph Meaney

Interview with Andrew MacDonald of GET REAL!

Devin Meaney: Hey Andrew! Please take a minute or two to introduce yourself and your band!

Andrew MacDonald: My name is Andrew MacDonald and I sing and play guitar in a three-piece alternative rock band called Get Real! (note the fancy exclamation mark). Drew Hawboldt plays drums and Jeremy Devoe plays bass. Fun fact, those two cats have the same birthday. Different years though.

DM: How long has Get Real! been a band? And what are some of the inspirations behind the music?

AM: We’ve actually been a band for a pretty short time. Drew and I started playing music together about a year ago. I met Jeremy when he started working at the same company I work for, and he joined on bass shortly after. This would’ve been around June of 2019.

DM: How did you guys come up with the name ''Get Real!''?

AM: Drew and I went through a few different iterations before deciding we liked the name “get real” the best. We were originally going to go by “Backseat Driver”, or “Social Divide”, both of which I still kind of like, to be honest.

Just around the time we started the band, the two of us had both had a falling out with a mutual friend. I think one of the last things that was said in this dialogue was “get real, dude” or something to that effect. Drew brought it up as a potential band name. He also was the one who came up with the idea for the exclamation mark. It’s kind of cheesy, but I like to think of it as the icing on the cake. Hey, that’s one of our lyrics!

DM: How many shows have you played? Any plans on touring, within Nova Scotia or elsewhere?

AM: We’ve played an average of around 2 to 3 shows per month since we started. They’ve been smaller shows for sure, bar shows mostly. We put our all into it. It’s been harder to schedule shows lately since Drew moved to another province temporarily. We still make it work though. As for shows out of province, we may be looking to do some shows in New Brunswick in the coming year.

DM: You informed me over Facebook you record your own music. How long have you been dabbling in sound engineering?

AM: I’ve been recording my own music almost as long as I’ve been playing guitar. I record pretty much everything I play, because I’m too nervous that I’ll improvise a cool guitar riff or a catchy vocal melody and then forget it five minutes later.

I really got into the thick of the whole recording process when I was in high school, making music for my project “Every Other Aspect”. I did a lot of the recording myself, but always had a revolving set of members. A lot of those guys are currently playing in bands around the Halifax area, namely Cyrus Robertson-Orkish (Cyrus R.O Quartet) and Jesse Macleod (Electric Spoonful/Matt Steele and the Corvette Sunset/Rudy & The Pacé Family Orchestra). Taking the stage with those guys was real fun.

DM: How much is it for a copy of your latest EP, and where can a person purchase one?

AM: Right now our EP is on Bandcamp for $3. You can also stream all the tracks on services like Spotify and Apple Music. We’re also working on some physical copies of the EP as well, made DIY style just like every other aspect or our music (I did the self-reference thing again). They’re pretty modest but they do the job well. Because they’re so simple and affordable to make up, we’ll be able to sell them for $3 as well.

For now, there isn’t anywhere online that you can buy the physical copies, but we will be selling them on our site at https://getreal.band once they’re ready. You could also send us an email if you would like to be notified when they’re available!

DM: If given the choice of having two giant penises for arms, or a giant third arm for a penis, which would you choose?

AM: This was a hard one. Really coming in hot with the phrasing here. Anyway, after consulting with my bandmates: all of us, collectively and as separate human beings with our own ideas, thoughts and desires — the third arm option is the way to go. We gotta play our instruments somehow, and I have a feeling that penis arms are not the way to do that. Plus, a third arm lets you have an arm that is always making a fist, ready to take out your enemies. Perfect level, too. Get ’em where it counts.

DM: Any final comments?

AM: I’d have to say thanks for doing this interview with me and the GR! crew. We’ve got a short history but it’s great to have the opportunity to lay out the details of what we’ve been working on.

To the reader, thanks for tuning in! To learn more about the band and what we’re up to, you can check out our website at https://getreal.band, where we just launched a blog to give “updates from the attic”: a glimpse into the recording process of our second EP!

DM: Thanks for talking with me, Andrew!

-Devin Joseph Meaney

This interview is also being published in issue #73 of Lights Go Out zine. -DW

Band Review: OLIGARKII by Kelly Tee

Band: OLIGARKII

Location: Newcastle

Country: Australia

Genre: Black metal

I'm discovering some absolute gems from my home town of Newcastle, Australia. Keep your ears to the ground for Oligarkii, blackened extreme metal band who are set for big things in 2020.

To date they have released two unique, weighted, menacingly dark and eerie tracks and here are my thoughts:

Let's start with Plague Masked Reaper. As I listened loud with my headphones on, this track truly engulfed me with its largely grim and malevolent sound. The vocal style projected here is extremely low, guttural and fucking beastly. It's impossible not to screw your face up to this sound with sheer heavy metal delight. The bass is absolutely off its face, prominent and opaque to a backdrop of ominous symphonic elements, drum tracks causing chaos and haunting lyrics around death, decay, and delightful darkness of course! Riffage is deliciously intense, creative and attention-grabbing. This entire composition excites me! The mash-up of tempo changes throughout this track worked so well creating good suspense and surprise, with striking movements of guitar solos and soundscapes crafting an unearthly and haunting ambiance.

Forest Of Ancient Graves is equally as prophetic, yet offers a difference from the track before, with the musicianship leaning toward even more doom, showcasing a tight and heavy groove flow of callousness with hymns void of any light and vocals that growl, spit and hiss across this track in a ritualistic manner. This number spirals deep down into an abyss of heavy as hell riffs, gothic sounding synth, thumping big drum tracks with an overall stunningly intense atmosphere. Oh, this is dark, this is very dark, carrying foreboding and emotive melody and a powerful metal injection as it ramps up to hectic and fast from time to time. That bass... that bass... so intrusive and threatening. A killer listen.

Both tracks are blackened, deathly and immaculately executed with a very crisp production and if this is a sign of what is to come from Oligarkii, well, then shit... I can't wait.

Guys, take a listen - these two tracks are on Spotify and please share your thoughts. -Kelly Tee