For over ten years, VON was this strange, kvltier-than-thou band that was absolutely shrouded in mystery; and if you were a metalhead of any real degree, then Satanic Blood was required listening. Nevermind how objectively bad it was. It was pure, distilled, tin-shedded, blackened hatred recorded to tape. It was also from Northern California of all places…

Anyway, it was like a decade before VON actually resurfaced and started talking to underground mega-label Nuclear War Now. They put out some more stuff, but never really captured that hyper-elusive atmosphere of outsider kids making outsider music; for better or worse.

They dropped a new track yesterday on their Bandcamp page, and I’m just gonna leave it to you guys to act as judge, jury, and exxxecutioner on this one. My verdict? Totally forgettable, unfortunately. It’s an advance single, though, which means the upcoming album could be genuinely evil.

(pssssst…if you’re fileshare-savvy, you can easily find the Satanic Blood demo from 1992 in time for some Saturday night bloodshed! Highly-rec’d.)

Belgium is a land where the beer flows like wine. A magical country known for chocolate, waffles, and other confectionary delights. So what better place to foster the up-and-coming, negative hardcore doomsayers known as Deathseekers?

With a nice combo of crust, hardcore, and speed/thrash, Deathseekers play songs in the vein of Мишка’s favorite subject. So crack one open and get properly dysfunctional. Start a pit at a party near you. Lock the front door and burn the motherfucker down, pyre-slamming around the street, pickin’ up change and kicking your best friends in the face.

Stream the new track, “Dead Tales”, below, and watch for the 7″ to be released within the upcoming months or so.

Is yours a heart full of death and destruction? Are you sponsored by the dark lord himself, slaughtering innocents at the bottom of a 10-stair? Do you spend your nights fuckin’ up tombstones with your pals? Gettin’ fucked up in a mausoleum, OE in one hand, blunt in the other; some kind of glowing fog from the netherworld whispering occult secrets into your ear in an unknowable, arcane language?

If you answered yes to any of these, then Haust is your soundtrack for all things infernal this Summer.

Hailing from Norway, this group of black metal punks play fast, loud, and mean. The vid dropped in April, but Haust finally released their third full length a few days ago. With a wanton lust for violence and mayhem, it’s the perfect music for pulling NYC into the depths this season.

Kill! Maim! Destroy!

Black Metal, you’ve come a long way, baby. I remember when you were just a glimmer in Quarthon‘s eye. A thrash n’ glam amalgamation with a heavy bend towards the Satanic. Judas Priest worship, black leather, and tin-shed recording studios; the early days of DIY metal labels.

While Venom and Bathory both pioneered what would retroactively be named ‘first wave’ black metal, it’s the Norwegian ‘second wave’ that probably gets the most attention. Burzum, Immortal, Emperor, Mayhem, and Darkthrone were essentially the Big 5 of Norwegian BM during the early 90s. Taking mostly stylistic cues from their forerunners, Norwegian BM bands made their production as battered and decayed as possible. While technically proficient (lookin’ at you, Immortal), a lot of second wave sounded intentionally shitty. Heavy on the blast beats and with an ultra-boner for the tremolo knob.

From here, we get ‘third wave’ black metal, which was never really a thing. It was used as a placeholder sub-sub-genre to explain the burgeoning bedroom black metal scene gaining steam in the early 00s. One man bands living out corpse-paint dreams with nothing but a black Randy Rhodes and a MacBook.

Like I said, ‘third wave’ was never really a thing, but it sparked a movement of legitimate black metal bands with multiple members. The BM coming out of the northwest was informally labeled Cascadian Black Metal (much to the chagrin of older heshers, who fucking hated the term), which itself fell under the umbrella of the newly minted term, U.S. Black Metal. USBM was characterized by extremely lo-fi, buzzing production (imagine a wasp’s nest stuffed into the muffler of a Honda Civic); minor key plucking; a plodding tempo, pained vocals, and a sense of suffocation. There were actually a slew of decent USBM bands fitting this description, but the one you’ve probably heard of, and the one that definitely got the lion’s share of press was a one-man project called Xasthur.

Fast forward to 2013. I haven’t been on the metal train for a while; almost two years now. I was all about that shit for a long time, but it was keeping from broadening my tastes, so I set my Bathory first-presses aside, and took the huge Coffins back patch off my jacket. A friend of mine is a relative newcomer to black metal, and the shit he sends me now occasionally blows my mind; if only because it’s not where I would’ve ever expected the genre to go.

Enter Deafheaven, a San Francisco-based duo who play a seemingly oxymoronic blend of triumphant, uplifting black metal; dispelling the death-cult morbidity of their predecessors. In fact, as I listened to their latest album (an advance release stream over at Pitchfork), it kept reminding me of the post-hardcore screamo scenes of the 90s. A very emotive, complex, almost life-affirming sound. Not the shit I’d ever normally associate with black metal. It gets a little post-rockish at times with some noodling here and there, but overall, the album is a beautiful entry into the current state of USBM. I still think of black metal by way of what I got into when I first heard the term, but how cool is it that the genre as a whole has evolved so intricately in its relatively short existence?

This is how it is always supposed to work. spf5Ø’s Joe Royster postedvthat he was finally getting around to watching Sion Sono’s Suicide Circle.  Like most people, he was awed by the opening train sequence, but I warned him that it got even better and better as it went along, and mentioned the musical number in the Bowling Alley. Shortly after viewing Joe contacted me, letting me know that I was right about the whole musical sequence.  It was obviously so inspiring that he went ahead and made a dark and demonic dance remix out of it.

I’m pretty much at the point in my life where I can positively say that Miike and Sono are my two favorite directors.  I love film in general, but there is just the right combination of experimentalism and attention to tradition and craft that makes the films of these two Outlaws irresistible to my eyes.  The same can be said for this spf5Ø remix of Rolly’s “Rocky Horror Picture Show” inspired number. Joe does it right… by just effecting and adding a minimal beat he creates a slow creeper that fits right into the heart of the new dark and cosmic sound that is growing amidst the underground.

Since the film itself is actually a commentary on trend vs. tradition, it seems apt material to utilize in today’s climate of media warfare. For those not aware of the film, Japanese pop star Rolly plays a Manson-esque figure named Genesis who attempts to take credit for mass suicide pact that is plaguing the teenagers of Japan. The orders are delivered via internet and symbolism displayed in the seemingly innocuous J-Pop promotions of a girl group named DESSERT. How does it all turn out? Watch the film, if you haven’t; it’s pretty much a staple of avant cinema by now.

What sings to me, however, is how the plot of the film is mimicked in this little movement [formerly?] called Witch House.  As tired as I always try to get, I continue to be pulled in by the sheer poetic terrorism of using mass marketed material to destroy the evil hold that big media has over youth culture.

spf5Ø is also cofounder of the new label Aural Sects. They have been extremely diligent in creating a diverse and experimental roster that includes Texture, Tash Willmore and I Am Water.

There are so many artists reveling in their love of chaos, but few actually possess the mojo to back up their petty symbology. Fear not, because FauxMusica’s Yorba Zergot has enough Eris for the whole damn lot. His music is his personality. Grating, off kilter, humorous and oddly infectious. As he develops as an artist, his madness has been  sharpening to a focused point. A laser of lunacy. A divined dementia.

Yorba actually solicited a spot in this installment of Heretic Hymns. He picked Gary Numan, but left the song up to me. When I told him “Me I Disconnect From You,” he sent me a track within ninety minutes.  This isn’t a drag remix, mind you – but a full blown cover featuring Yorba’s addled and altered vocals. It’s damn good. Good enough to make one wonder whether Zergot has a Portal, because it is almost unbelievable that this took less than a half an hour to make. Part Shaggs, all Genesis P, Zergot’s take on the Colder Whiter Duke is drenched in irony and bile. It’s idolatry through deicide.

So why Tubeway Army? The answer is evident as soon as its asked. Hammersmith born, Numan trumped the entire British Synth movement by coming out first, and coming out hard. Distant and xenophobic, early Gary Numan was as difficult to pin down as his futuristic sound. FauxMusica sees this as a mirror. It is almost impossible to figure out just how much of Zergot’s warped autobiography is truth and how much is troll. At times he has claimed to have invented pretty much every microgenre that the current indie music scene is plagued with. In Yorba’s sapience he is 42, and it is up to everyone else to provide the Question. With serious coverage in the blogs now (Not for Resale devoted an entire week to him recently) it is hard for Zergot to play Witch House martyr anymore. His music has gained the recognition and understanding that he wore as a badge of honor for the past year or so. His role play is Generic Universal, however, and he is sure to create another scenerio to fit into his twisted concepts of reality.

The enormity of Yorba’s output is as overwhelming and iconoclastic as his online personality.  Here is some of his latest work featured on his Soundcloud, one of many vehicles he implements to dispense his discord:

ʄ≜uxmuℭica – Geni Astra by ʄ≜uxmuℭica

Shan Beaste’s recent transformation into the Scarlet Woman of Witch House is not enough to betray her rock and roll roots.  Publicly known as Zombelle, her music and musical image are vested in the history of indie and avant garde sounds.  An avid record collector and former rock stocker at Los Angeles’ Amoeba Records, Shan has both the knowledge and cred to cook it all up into powerful potion. When asked to do a cover for Heretic Hymns, she faltered a bit, and I understood completely  As someone with a similar compulsion for art and music, I totally got the fact that it can be nearly impossible to narrow it down to that one influential song. Given time though, she nailed it by choosing Yoko Ono’s “Walking on Thin Ice.”

The great philosopher Homer Simpson said it best when he proclaimed “John Lennon? He ruined the Plastic Ono Band!”  Sure the squares and str8s laughed at the seemingly ironic statement, but those in the know knew that he spoke the truth.  From her involvement with Joseph Hanson and the Fluxus movement, to her performance art and all the way back to her importance as an art noise diva, Yoko has always eclipsed Lennon and the Beatles by virtue of her sheer dedication to experimentation.  Throughout their marriage, Ono brought out the best in her husband; as his muse she took him to artistic realms that he might never have achieved without her.  To some, she may continue to be the punch line of a silly joke, but by now most people are fully aware of the immense effect that this woman has had on art and culture.

Photo by Valerisings

As an artist, Zombelle recognizes Yoko Ono as the hero of all heroines. An independent thinker in a culture of female sidekicks with pretty faces. Yoko Ono never allowed herself to be Mrs. John Lennon, and that spirit of empowerment lives on in the work of Shan Beaste. Already a fixture in the tight knit scene of the new Dark Wave, this sonic siren is putting the finishing touches on her next album, which will be released on Black Bvs Records this year, along with az digital EP on Tundra Dubs.  To add to that, she and her friends give new meaning to the concept of “Real LifeSecondLife” with their frequent virtual raves (including tonight’s 4/20 party); where clandestine otaku from around the globe gather to perform and enjoy live feeds and dj sets whilst trolling away their weekends with inside jokes and inane banter.  Later this summer she plans on taking these cyber parties into the real world with the help of Robert Disaro, visual artist Pepper DreamTeamer (ScannerJammer), Teams, Jono MiLo (Worthless Waste, Daytime Television,) graphic artist NVR MND and a cast of fellow miscreants yet to be named.

Zombelle recorded this dragged out remix with a little help from fellow artist and friend Myrrh Ka Ba.  For the video, it was decided to use images from Ono’s definitive “Cut Piece,” which dealt with the issue of feminine submissiveness.  Although Ono was apparently helpless in her 1965 performance, as an artist she was completely in control of the space she created.  Shan Beaste embodies this spirit today, a modern day Minerva.

There is a mother of the universe, and her name is Babalon.

Not much needs to be said. Broadcast showed an entire generation that their grandparents’ music could be cool.  Almost single-handedly, the Birmingham quartet, led by singer Trish Keenan and keyboardist Roj Stevens, reintroduced youth culture to the freakbeat sounds of artists like Delia Derbyshire and The United States of America. In short, they once again made it hip to make music with a variety of repetitive bleeps and blorps. Quite frankly, they made the world a better, better place.

OS OVNI know this all too well. The Austin, Texas duo make the kind of music that would make the late Trish Keenan proud.  This isn’t your usual Chris and Cosey clone-age. Logan Owlbeemoth and Omebi Velouria owe more to fringe artists like Mort Garson than Miss Kittin. For their tribute, they decided to cover Broadcast’s “You Can Fall” with metallic talons. Where the original revels in its own Space Age bachelor pad, this one lies somewhere on the corner of Tinnitus Pan Alley. C’mon, anything too faithful would hardly be a tribute to a band that took pride in sounding exactly unlike their musical peers.  Retro has always been the new Futurism, and analog synths have always sounded more modern than their digital counterparts.

If you like the way this sounds, and I am sure you will, you can find their limited output on their Tumblr (linked above) and also look for their track on the new Twin Peaks tribute released on Phantasma Disques.  Hopefully, they signal the coming of a new breed of artists that take themselves a little less seriously and make music that retains its density without being heavy to the point of fatigue.

This track, and an OS OVNI cover of Kraftwerk’s “Radioactivity” are both currently available for download as the latest Beko digital single.

Witch House is dead.  Well, not really, but 2011 should be a make it or break it year for the morbid movement. Already, the core is showing signs of fracture, as artists seem to be eager to divide the sound into even smaller containers. The “Gucci Goth” faction have taken a fashionable stance against older drag and chop aesthetics and Fuck Aktion remixes. Those serious about their industrial and EBM seem to be less enthused about being lumped in with the ghetto producers that make Footwork seem complex.  Everyone knows that a little inner struggle and animosity is irresistible as a marketing ploy. Lately it seems #whichsideareyouon? Is the most popular trend.

M△S▴C△RA remixing Necro?!?  True, at face value it seems an odd choice.  In the world of thee Wish Haus, M△S▴C△RA’s painstakingly clean tracks have pretty much made the delusive duo the pinnacle of popular, and perhaps the next band to crossover to Pitchforkian heights.  Don’t call John Edwards yet though, because the band’s front man S▇▇▇▇ S▆▆▅▅▅▆ disproves all this and more with an insipid little remix of “My Sweet Dreams.”

Oddly enough, in retrospect, it makes perfect sense.  As far as underground hip hop goes, Necro’s beats are almost always flawless, he’s earned his reputation from his grimy rhymestyle and subject matter.  In a similar fashion, there is always an underlying filth beneath a M△S▴C△RA track.  Even though a track like “Clochi” off AMDISCS’ Strobe Cramp split with Ʌ borders on IDM, one can hear the influence of decadence that cradles it. For this remix, M△S▴C△RA builds a sinister synth line on top of the original track, and then slows the whole affair up. This is a dirty affair, filled with clips and pops.  It is made with an intense love for the original artist.  Although I am unsure of the actual intentions, I’d like to think of it as a calculated sign of allegiance with the minions that will never forget that this is post-Screw music.

While his classmates are practicing their headshots to beef up their gamerscores, John Sanchez is involved in another type of game. A junior in high school, Sanchez has already recorded a fair amount of music and posted it up to Soundcloud.  Plays, Favoritings and Comments are the only achievements he’s concerned with as he logs in nightly to play in the internet’s strangest new MMORPG.  The Remix Generation has become a sort of quasi arcade frequented by many teenagers grown tired of their Zynga Farms and Mafia Wars. Very few, however, have dared to walk down the shadowy path that leads to the Witch’s Candy Cottage.

Sanchez began making music in 2010.  He got his start mashing up pop and indie tracks, under the moniker Aubrey and Friends, before quickly becoming attracted to the DIY spirit of artists like GuMMy†Be▲R!, White Ring and LAKE R▲DIO. Not just satisfied with mere fandom, he ditched his imaginary friends and decided to take the gender ambiguous ÅÜßRÊÿ on a dark ride. It all started getting really good about the time he released “Xenia, Ohio,” a sluggishly blissful journey through warped bass and dragged “Gummo” samples.  Oddly enough, he chose to tag his track “Witch Made,” and pretty much forced his way into the micro Coven that Herr GuMMy and I were forming.

†XeÑia, Θhio† by ¤¥¤ÅÜßRÊÿ¤¥¤

What is most impressive about ÅÜßRÊÿ though is his knowledge and love for music.  When remixing tracks, he often opts for a rare Nena track over something as obvious as Depeche Mode.  Recently he decided to return to the practice of mash up in order to transform Q Lazzarus’ classic “Goodbye Horses” into a fuzzy trance monster.  This is true mash up, with emphasis on the mash.  Nothing really matches, and the result is a beautiful disaster of loose ends and frayed edges.  Sanchez took great care washing the track out to create a dull cassette feel, his way of personally “doing justice to such a great track.”