(Actual copy from a Danish hard rock band’s 1-sheet. As far as I can tell this was not done tongue-in-cheek.)
The music reflects states of mind, which are born from the members’ need for
space to express the mellow side of life by loss, forbidden longing and
existential deprivation. It is driven by an ambivalent anxiety of being successful
as well as having success. It is an aggressive, massive and powerful
expression inspired by artful music, which in the bands experience is everything
from Bowie to Nirvana, or from Nick Cave binging with Mastodon and
Soundgarden. The music is the companion of a beautiful and clear lyrical
universe, which is denoted by its clinical honesty while encompassing the less
admirable traits of the ordinary man.
“Red Skies” is the result of an artistic need. The main composers in the band all
have an upbringing denoted by elements of desertion, loss, substance abuse
and melancholia, where music became a necessity to mentally survive.
Although safe, none have come out of this unscathed and today they all have
an innate need to express the painful sensation of the chronic lostness in their
adult existential foregrounds. Creating a new riff, chords and lyrics thus become
a piece of themselves, which they share as a bittersweet gift hoping to touch
upon or even comfort the listener. Trying to let the pain be empowering instead
of debilitating. The music grants the opportunity to say what one is not
otherwise able to say or ashamed of being. Thus “Red Skies” is the child of the
members’ individual histories and addiction to music that investigates and
contains the nuances of existential misery. And this can be heard; they never
stop to strive for purity nor look away when curiously and painfully investigating
themselves as an existential object. It is an album, which has caused a lot of
pain to create and which the band is of course aware of how is received. But
first and foremost: It is a record they have made for their own sake. The
prestige of it is received does not make the artistic process more or less
necessary for the members; it just makes the reception more or less successful,
which is not the most important.
This thread has been amazing for acquainting me with bands I have lost contact with and discovering bands I missed or skimmed over before. So much research to do. [rubs hands together] muh hahaha
Up until 1984 the edgiest thing I had found was commercial metal. And then in '84 on the way far left edge of the radio dial I found a station that barely came in. At first it seemed to come from an alternate dimension. KBVR. College radio. I had no idea this was a thing back then. Every song was amazing, from bands I had never heard of. I kept a notebook by the radio and after every set would frantically write down every band name. Everyday my mom gave me money to buy lunch but I would skip eating and by Friday I would have enough to go to the one cool record shop in town that wasn’t a typical chain that had really knowledgeable employees that would custom order awesome rare and imports for you.
Fast forward to 5 years after high school. I went to my 5 year reunion. A cheerleader that I had known back then came up to me. She was as blunt as she had always been. She said she had to apologize to me. She said “We used to all think you were a freak.” “Ok”, I replied awkwardly. Then she explained that they all thought the music I was always playing was just too weird. Then she and her friends went to college and all the songs I had been repeatedly playing when we hung out were “the” hip songs at her college. She realized I was just so far ahead of them back in high school that it took them several year to catch up. One point for the high school nerdy weirdo’s.
Thank you college radio. You were the pivot in my life that made me the person I am today.
Holy shit, I’ve never seen anyone mention Jlin or Amnesia Scanner, much less at the same time. Going to have to check out the rest of this list, I haven’t heard any else here except Ho99o9.
My current obsessions don’t quite fit this thread, but there is so much good music being thrown around here that I have to share.
Cindy Lee, amazingly sad and beautiful, noisy, drag queen, bedroom pop.
And then this obscure Japanese band from the late 60’s, early 70’s, Les Rallizes Dénudés, that even the people who know about the band don’t really know anything about the band. Except that they supported the Japanese Red Army and their original bass player hijacked a plane to Korea.
That’s actually kinda a tragic story- Dick Dale will literally die if he stops touring
“The back of our car is filled with the medical supplies we need to take on the road,” Dale says. “And it costs $3,000 a month. That’s why I have to keep working. That, and I want to show people that it can be done — that you don’t have to lie in bed sick.“ From a Tiger Cage to the Viper Room: Dick Dale Still Rules the Surf at 81 - LA Weekly
wow, i had no idea so many people here loved Einstuerzende, Laibach, and Throbbing Gristle (well, TG i could have guessed, because Bb covers Genesis & Psychic TV so well). i love all of them, but i just never run across many other people who do. what a refreshing change!
My new favorite Industrial band is playing all the vids on this page simultaneously.
Sounds quite intriguing. It might beat out Nurse With Wound.
I remember getting thru on the request line of the local “progressive” FM station back in 1979 and requesting NWW. The “cool” DJ said she never heard of them. HERESY!
Besides some of those I really liked Flour, kinda because they defied any genre boundaries I was aware of. I thought of them like some sort of bombastic shoe gaze metal or something.
You know it occurs to me that by the time I heard NIN the fact that it had pop-like elements was… already normal. So it sounds… pretty much the same to me. Not so much for the Neubauten though. I’m more amused by the cycle of pretension with every generation of music. I was touched when Steven Wilson insisted ABBA was a great band at his last show. I didn’t get into NIN so much because I hated club scenes. You can dress it however you want, it’s still a club. I was really into the Swans though.
This. Saw them live for the Downward Spiral tour…and I only went cause The Jim Rose Show was the opening act. To be fair I was gonna buy a ticket but then my friend the radio dj gave me his floor ticket as he only had one and wanted to go with his girl in the regular seats. It was a decent show plus I had front row for Jim Rose. My only sad was stupid stuck up prudish St. Louis didn’t allow Mr. Lifto to do his whole act.
I absolutely love Babyland. They had a really cool DIY industrial punk aesthetic with oil drums and bespoke percussion instruments. First time I saw them live I was enthralled by their ancient Mac SE running all their MIDI connected stuff. They broke up a few years ago and I was very sad.
(I was at this Gilman show in the front row!)
(They eventually stopped incorporating fire into their live shows but the circular saw stayed - front row folks would get showered in sparks.)
i’ve listened to that start to finish 9 or 10 times. regardless of the methods he used or the motives that drove him, he created a remarkable work of aleatoric rock.
keep in mind that i listen to a lot of jandek
Iowa City didn’t let Mr. Lifto show is all his tricks, either. A few years later, Jim Rose came to Detroit (shortly after I moved here), and I finally got to see the full act (this was my third time seeing the Freak Show). At the Majestic, where Harry Houdini performed his last show. On the anniversary of Houdini’s death.
