Oklahoma-based Sludge band “Chat Pile” are set to drop their third album Who Loves The Sun on September 3rd, and following their absolute ripper of a track “Deep Blue,” the band have released another track off the upcoming album that might be their heaviest yet. The track is titled “PEN I S MALL.” Yes, you read that correctly. Despite the title sounding like something you’d write on your buddy’s face with a sharpie while he’s passed out drunk, the name is actually taken from a broken sign in the maintenance tunnels of “Penn Square Mall” in Oklahoma City, where the remaining letters spell out “PEN I S MALL.” About the track, lead singer Raygun Busch says “If survival wasn’t so brutal in the United States, a maintenance job at a local mall could in theory be a fun gig…Of course, the awful beast known as Capitalism is extremely rickety with not enough to truly go around in fair share as those in the lower and even middle positions know all to well.” This track is a necessary reaction to capitalism and the exploitation of workers, and will resonate with most of us who are fed up with this system where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Watch the music video for “PEN I S MALL” below:
England-based artist Jake Sinetos’ last release under his “Mazmere” project dropped 6 years ago. It was an E.P. titled Mbjdebnrbm, and it was an uncompromising release that tackled such topics as mental illness and recovery, while the instrumentation featured noise-driven Post-Punk that perfectly provided a backdrop for the unsettling but honest lyrical themes. Now, “Mazmere” has returned with a new E.P. titled David. This one is very personal. This release is about his cousin David who has passed away, and it’s a touching tribute. “I’ve worked on the song on and off since he died a few years ago, never really feeling I’d got it where it needed to be. Every time I thought it was finished, I’d end up pulling it apart again. This version is the closest I’ve come to getting it right. The track was produced by H.A. Eugene of Brooklyn glitch duo Business 80, whose ideas and patience helped shape it into what it eventually became. It also features beautiful acoustic guitar and bass from Amyas Varcoe and electric guitar from Ian Evans, both of whom brought something special to the recording.” This release also features the track “I Can’t Hear You,” and it’s an Avant-garde wall of sound that’s as soothing as it is discombobulating. “Run” is a live track that features Rob James on drums, who has sadly passed, and it provides a glimpse into what Mazmere’s live shows must be like. This release closes with a remix of “David,” which is a beautifully bizarre reimagining that is both dreamy and nightmarish. According to Sinetos, he hadn’t planned on releasing these songs together, but upon realizing they’re all connected to the same thing, it just felt right. It’s a beautiful tribute to those who are no longer with us, and that’s something we can all relate to.
It’s been 9 years since the last “Downtown Boys” album Cost of Living was released, and 11 years since the band released their groundbreaking debut Full Communism, an album that made waves in the Punk scene and rallied against capitalism, sexism, homophobia, and exploitative labor conditions. That’s right, they’re as Punk as Punk gets, and 11 years later these things are still being fought by those who are tired of oppression, so a new “Downtown Boys” album is completely necessary. Their new album is titled Public Luxury, and according to the band, the title means “everything for everyone,” reminding us that we as the people have the power, and in a time where things seem hopeless for many of us, it’s important for artists to provide a sense of beauty and hope to prevent us from falling down the rabbit hole of nihilism. Musically this album is business as usual, which isn’t a bad thing by any means. Lead singer Victoria Marie’s raucous bilingual vocals that jump from Spanish to English are as sharp as ever and bring to mind Punk legends like Poly Styrene or Kathleen Hanna, the music still features frantic guitars and saxophone lines, but this is the most polished the band have sounded, without sacrificing the band’s signature rawness. However, there are some tracks on this album that depart from their usual sound a bit, and these tracks are where the band sound truly rejuvenated. “Yellow Sun” is a New Wave-tinged vibraphone-filled track that has a bit of a Post-Punk Revival sound, “You’re a Ghost” is a hard-hitting Industrial track that speaks out against ICE, and the album’s closing title track features a dreamy mix of synths and piano, creating ethereal atmospherics that reflect the optimistic theme of the lyrics. Though the band have solidified their status as Punk’s most relevant and exciting acts, I hope they continue to experiment like this in the future, because I feel like this is a natural progression for the band. A lot of us identify with the band and their anger toward all the things that keep us oppressed, but it’s hard to stay optimistic in these dire times, but the band’s message of hope is refreshing and we need more protest music like this that has a perfect balance of pointing out corruption and hopeful optimism.
I want to start this review off by admitting I knew absolutely nothing about the liminal space aesthetic online, or that people even found liminal spaces creepy, I never frequented “4chan,” and I barely even know what a creepypasta is, so it should come as no surprise that I was not aware of Kane Parsons’ Backrooms web series prior to the release of his feature film of the same name, but of course I made sure to delve into the origins of Backrooms to help myself prepare for my viewing of the feature film, and I must say, I do find it fascinating. Fascinating because we’re reaching a revolutionary moment in cinema where young online content creators are being taken more seriously by Hollywood and are given the opportunity to fully realize their vision, and considering how Backrooms and Curry Barker’s Obsession are both killing it in the box office, and given that these films are actually good, it’s safe to say the kids are alright. Taking the surreal and eerie aesthetics of the web series and amplifying them for the feature film, Kane Parsons and co. translate the series quite well to the big screen. The set design is beautifully unsettling with it’s piss-colored yellow, the “found footage” scenes are perfectly executed and suspenseful, which helps revitalize a genre that has become stale, and the surrealistic nature of the film brings to mind David Lynch, and with the help of screenwriter Will Soodik, characters with traumatic backstories are incorporated into this world, but therein lies the problem. The characters we’re supposed to care about are frustratingly underdeveloped. It’s like the film is a battle between Backrooms’ signature eerie aesthetic and the character driven screenplay, and the former wins. This unfortunately makes the characters unimportant or hard to sympathize with. At the beginning we get a glimpse into our protagonist Clark’s mind as he attempts to cope with his alcoholism and failed marriage, and his therapist Mary Kline is also working through trauma related to the demolition of her childhood home and her mother’s institutionalization. We’re led to believe these characters will have a fleshed-out arc, but unfortunately there’s no payoff as the film spends more time focusing on aesthetics and long drawn out scenes to immerse you into the world of the Backrooms, and not enough time investing us into the characters emotionally, so any kind of tension or suspense that’s supposed to be there when these characters interact is non-existent. Which leaves this film a great looking surrealistic nightmare devoid of emotional weight. However, there’s enough disturbing and deeply unsettling visuals and horrifying moments to prevent this film from falling flat, and had they just focused on “Async’s” research on the Backrooms instead of a shoehorned plot of a man who discovers the Backrooms inside his furniture store, this film would’ve been a lot better. They should’ve stripped the film of its traditional narratives and turned it into a series of avant-garde atmospherics à la Skinamarink, but hey, this film was a fun watch nonetheless. Though this film is far from perfect, Kane Parsons has my attention, and I’m excited to see what he does next.
Oklahoma City-based quartet “Chat Pile” have unveiled details of their upcoming third album Who Loves The Sun. The album will be released September 4th via “The Flenser,” and today the band have shared the track “Deep Blue” off the upcoming album. You can listen to the track, as well as pre-order the album below:
Hype can be very annoying. The flavor of the month movies or TV shows start to plague your feed on social media platforms while fans won’t shut up about them or make exaggerated statements like “best movie I’ve ever seen.” More often than not I find myself giving in to the hype, only to be underwhelmed, and that isn’t contrarianism, it’s just that I’m either too picky, too critical, or just have shit taste. The most recent example of that is how I was the only person on the planet who didn’t like Weapons, but every once in a while a movie comes along that lives up to the hype, and proves itself to be something more than just the flavor of the month, and right now that movie is Obsession. OH.MY.GOD. Taking a familiar and rather outdated monkey’s paw trope, but elevating it to its most visceral heights, 26 year old director Curry Barker has struck gold with Obsession. This movie is terrifying, emotional, funny, unsettling, gross, anxiety-inducing, and will evoke just about every emotion known to man, and that’s due to impeccable direction, perfectly timed scares, phenomenal acting, and subject matter that looks surface level on paper, but executed in a way that provokes much thought and discussion. If you’re reading this, chances are you already know the premise. Our protagonist Baron “Bear” Bailey has feelings for his friend Nikki Freeman, but doesn’t have the courage to express his feelings to her, so when he buys a “One Wish Willow” novelty toy that claims to grant one wish per person, he breaks the toy wishing for Nikki to love him more than anyone in the world, and that wish comes true, but backfires very horribly sparking a chain of horrifying acts committed by his now obsessed girlfriend Nikki. Now, I’m sure every possible interpretation of this film has already been expressed through countless reviews or think pieces, but allow me to express my interpretation. Underneath the truly unnerving and uncomfortable Horror scenes, this film comments on the problematic nature of how men view and pursue women. Bear starts off as a pitiful, but likeable guy. You want him to gain confidence and find true love, but when Nikki makes it perfectly clear she’s not into him, instead of moving on, he makes the wish out of frustration, and when he finally gets what he’s always wanted, it’s clear from the start that something isn’t quite right with Nikki. It’s clear she’s being controlled by some sort of outside force. Bear recognizes this, and even expresses how he’s worried about this to his best friend, but instead of taking that opportunity to help her in some way, he lets his personal desires get the better of him and takes advantage of this new version of Nikki who would do absolutely anything for him. This new version of Nikki isn’t the real Nikki he fell in love with, but she’s attached to him and she gives him the love he’s always yearned for. Who’s the real villain here? Is it Nikki, or the guy too cowardly and impatient to let things happen organically? It’s most certainly the latter. This raises the question, if given the opportunity would a lot of men skip the time and effort it takes to truly get to know their love interest and prove themselves to be a worthy partner, just to get what they truly want, sex and their own personal cheerleader? It’s almost as if Bear didn’t really love who Nikki was as a person, but was in love with the idea of being loved by her to fill an empty void. How well did he know her? Did he just love her because she was nice to him? When he realizes the new Nikki isn’t the Nikki he once knew, it’s too late, and now he’s suffering the consequences of his selfishness, because what ensues is some of the most horrifying events I’ve seen in a film in a very long time. Brilliantly portrayed by actress Inde Navarrette, Nikki is terrifying but far from being the villain, because she can’t control it, and though she commits many vicious acts, the fault isn’t hers, it’s Bear’s. That’s what this movie is about at its core, and those themes combined with some very grizzly images and Oscar-worthy acting from Navarrette makes for a Horror masterpiece. Every second of this film is captivating. I’ve seen just about every fucked up Horror film there is to see, so I’m desensitized, but this film truly gave me anxiety and made me jump a few times. That never happens to me. I haven’t been this impacted by a Horror film since 2018 when I watched Hereditary in theaters. Obsession is that damn good. I can’t recommend this movie enough.
Boards of Canada having a large gap in between albums isn’t exactly out of the ordinary, but 13 years? That’s a long time. A lot of us were starting to wonder if we were going to hear from the Scottish duo again, and if so, would it be necessary? Do we need a new Boards of Canada album? Considering their impressive discography of music laced with nostalgia, soaked in retro synths, and rich in ambient atmospherics, the two already have an iconic body of work under their belts. The already mysterious and reclusive duo could have disappeared from the music world completely, which would have added to their mystique, and even though most of us would want to hear new music from the two, this would have been a fitting bow out, but 13 years after their album Tomorrow’s Harvest, it’s evident the duo have more to give, and my God they’ve gifted us with one of their most captivating, hypnotic, and thematically dense albums yet. The album is titled Inferno, and opens with the track “Introit,” which takes its name from the opening of a worship service that’s usually a psalm, hymn, or chant, and the familiar synth arpeggio featured on the track immediately transports us to a world we’ve missed. I liken it to the feeling I had when I saw the opening crawl to Star Wars: The Force Awakens in theaters, but unlike The Force Awakens, what follows this intro is enthralling content. After the familiar sound in “Introit” fades away, we’re immediately introduced to a reinvented Boards of Canada. Sure their signature style is still there, but that sense of childlike wonder and dreamy Retro-futurism takes a back seat while eerie soundscapes, moodiness, and haunting vocal samples are front and center, and I mean it when I say these vocal samples are haunting. Packed with themes such as religion, religious cults, existentialism, and biology, this album perfectly utilizes vocal samples taken from documentaries about the effects of PCP, a conversation between a father and his son who has cut off his entire family to join the “Children of God” cult, Aleister Crowley quotes, a documentary about the development of a chicken embryo, and references to Nostradamus, and this all perfectly gets the duo’s point across without them having to say a word. However, is their point really that clear? Sure they want us to take something away from this album, or else they wouldn’t have made this thing so dense, but I’ve seen countless heady reviews of this album from people claiming with certainty that this album is a critique of religion and religious cult leaders who prey on the vulnerable, or that this is their way of commenting on how our uncertainty on the meaning of life and why we’re here has spawned so many philosophers and religions who try to give us answers on why we’re here and what happens after we die, and the dangers that come with certain religions, and though this is likely what they’re getting at, there’s one thing a lot of people are neglecting to mention when describing this album, and that’s nostalgia. Nostalgia is a word often associated with Boards of Canada. From the children’s TV show and speak and spell samples on Music Has the Right to Children, to the capturing of the feeling you get when you watch your favorite video nasty on Tomorrow’s Harvest, it’s been very clear that retro media has made a lasting impact on the duo, and contrary to popular belief, I don’t think that nostalgia is absent on Inferno. Remember those televangelists your grandparents used to watch? Those frightening red-faced crazy-eyed men who would yell at you through the TV screen? Remember those old documentaries about morbid cult tragedies? Remember all the history we’ve learned about violence and unnecessary wars that were brought on by fundamental religious beliefs? Remember satanic panic? These are all things that are engraved in the history of humanity, and one of the most popular mediums used to teach this history is media, so I don’t think it’s a stretch to say the boys from BOC have nostalgia for these things. That love for retro media is perfectly combined with the overall themes of this record. There’s no telling if there’s going to be another Boards of Canada record after this one, and when that’ll be if there is, but if this is their final album it’s an interesting album to end on, considering it’s their darkest work by far. Maybe that’s where they’re at mentally when viewing the current state of the world, because these are truly frightening times. Christian fundamentalists and conspiracy theorists are currently in the White House, educational programming has been replaced with short-form content online spreading misinformation, and all of these current wars have left many of us anxious and frightened, so it’s no surprise that an album like this would be released in this day and age, but a common theme that prevents this album from being complete doom and gloom is the theme of life itself. From the EKG machine sounds on “Memory Death,” to the heartbeat on the closing track “I Saw Through Platonia,” the preciousness of life is beautifully symbolized, and this reminds us to value life while we can, and though it may seem impossible at times, it’s important to find beauty in the chaos.
Five albums deep in their discography, and New York-based band “Deli Girls” still continue to reinvent themselves sonically. On their new album Losing State, it’s hard not to get the feeling that the band are embarking on a new chapter of their sound. This chapter is a departure from their previous self-titled album, an album that found the band trade in their usual Nu-Metal-tinged Digital Hardcore in favor of an abrasive yet dancey mix of Hardstyle and Rave Punk. Losing State harkens back to the anxiety-ridden heaviness of their early records, music that featured pure unadulterated anger toward the establishment, capitalism, and all forms of bigotry, but this time around the band cranks up the Industrial elements with rapid fire percussion, and lead singer Danny Orlowski’s anger is directed at even more specific realities that are a result of this country’s consumer culture, love for war, and reliance on technology. “If you’re gonna sell me, then pay me,” screams Danny on the track “Location,” a song that progressively gets more and more chaotic and sounds like the soundtrack to the end times. That viciousness in the music and vocals is carried throughout the album and never lets up, sounding like a constant state of Hell. However, with how deeply unsettling this album is musically, not once does it come across as pessimistic. This is protest music. This is fight music, and it faces our anxiety-ridden reality head on in an attempt to reach a point of catharsis. This is “Punk” in the modern age, and Deli Girls are the perfect band to lead the charge.
Due to loss, grief, and immense focus on perfectionism, New York-based act “Bustié’s” sophomore album Throb faced many delays, but now 7 years after their debut Birds of Paradise, the album has finally arrived at the perfect time. Living in the U.S. right now is frightening if you’re a person of color, LGBTQ+, or just simply don’t support a fascist regime, so now more than ever we need music that comes from people of said communities to inspire, provide hope, raise awareness, and provide a dance party of escapism, and Bustié does just that. Combining genres such as Hi-NRG, Synth Pop, EBM, and Freestyle, Throb celebrates the elements that make these genres so undeniable and infectious. Topped with lead member Angelika Padilla’s chant-like vocals that provide another layer of rhythm on top of the already entrancing beats, this music will make anyone want to move. Whether you’re the type to cut up a rug on the dance floor, or the type to stand back and bob your head to the beat, this music is for you. Thematically this album deals with lust, loss, and sexuality, and though it’s often dark sonically, it’s perfectly contrasted with heavy elements of 80’s-styled Pop which helps prevent the album from diving into doom and gloom. It’s Janet Jackson at a Nitzer Ebb concert, and it’s fantastic.
If JPEGMAFIA’s mission was to solidify his status as the torchbearer for Experimental Hip Hop with his new album Experimental Rap, then mission accomplished. In a world where the majority of current Hip Hop is stale and predictable, Peggy champions the idea of being different musically and pushing the envelope, but being six albums in now, his unconventional approach is to be expected, which deems his music predictable. However, that predictability isn’t necessarily a bad thing, because the music market isn’t exactly saturated with people making the same kind of discombobulating noisily radical music he makes, which makes him one of a kind. Peggy is aware of his status as the face of Experimental Hip Hop, and he embraces it, but that embracement is a detriment to this album. These songs sound more caught up in the idea of being experimental and unconventional to the point where much of the interesting instrumental ideas sound unfinished and not fully fleshed out. It’s just a bunch of ideas thrown together to sound as abrasive as possible, and normally that sort of thing sounds incredibly innovative in Peggy’s music, but unfortunately this comes across as a gimmick at this point. A lot of songs have an underwhelming beat switch, Brostep elements that are 15 years too late, and the same rapid-fire flow in damn near every song which gets boring very quickly. Which is a shame because there was a time when every word Peggy spit cut like a knife and you truly felt the aggression, jabs at internet culture, and shots at racist conservatives and performative liberals alike. Those lyrical themes have not left his music, but they unfortunately take a back seat to overly messy directionless instrumentals. JPEGMAFIA is capable of creating some truly inspired and unique music, but when the alternative to predictable music becomes predictable itself, then it’s time to switch things up.
