six organs of admittance - luminous night (2009)

Six Organs of Admittance, AKA Ben Chasney, is back with his new album, something like... his nineteenth official solo release? Not counting split albums? On Luminous Night, Chasney continues to expand the variety of sounds he incorporates into his music, this time collaborating with musicians in his new base of operations, Seattle. His last album, the excellent Shelter From the Ash, saw him working with San Francisco musicians, including members of Comets on Fire (Noel Harmonson, with whom Chasney also collaborated with on the harsh noise album NVH/CHASNEY, in addition to their work in Comets on Fire together), The Fucking Champs (Tim Green), and Magick Markers (Elisa Ambrogio, his then-and-maybe-still-now girlfriend?). This time he worked with ex-Pearl Jam and Tori Amos drummer and current session musician Matt Chamberlain, violinist Eyvind Kang (Secret Chiefs 3, Laura Veirs, guest spots on Animal Collective and Sunn0))) records), flautist Hans Teuber (who has worked with Ani DiFranco, Kayo Dot, Sunn0))) and Secret Chiefs 3), Tor Dietrichson on tabla (Diga Rhythm Band), and pianist/electronics musician and album producer Randall Dunn (who has appeared on albums by Sunn0))), Mayhem, Wolves in the Throne Room, Earth, Grails, and many more). I don't usually pay so close attention to who the guest musicians are on an album, but I tend to in the case of Six Organs of Admittance- the reason being that Ben Chasney has been performing for so long, and released so much, under this moniker, that his recent albums have each represented a new incarnation and sound for the band. While Luminous Night isn't a major departure from his older work, it continues the trend of higher production values, more varied instrumentation, and more compact songwriting (side B of the album The Sun Awakens excepted) that has been true for his Drag City releases so far. Side A of Luminous Night is probably his most streamlined, "rock" oriented release yet, although that's not saying much, and Side B definitely takes things down a dronier path. But many songs feature Chasney's vocals, and most songs are around the five minute mark; for indie rock fans who are unfamiliar with Six Organs of Admittance, this album would be a pretty good place to start. Older Six Organs fans have probably made up their mind about the direction the band has been going in over the last few years- if you're a fan of the drone and raga, solo guitar-style Six Organs, this might not be for you (although you might like the track "The River Of Heaven"). But if you've dug the last couple of albums, you'll certainly like this one.

Six Organs of Admittance - Anesthesia
Six Organs of Admittance - Cover Your Wounds With the Sky

wait what the hell

That's The Bronx, an LA based screamo/rock/punk/whatever band whose name I've seen a lot over the years, but who I've never bothered to check out. Based on the music video above, I don't really regret that decision. HOWEVER, it turns out they've just recorded a mariachi-influenced album called "Mariachi El Bronx"???



I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around this; on the one hand, this sort of cultural appropriation isn't really any more offensive than, say, Beirut, although there is the issue that Zach Condon steals from cultures thousands of miles from where he lives, whereas The Bronx (or El Bronx in this case) are aping the ethnic culture of their own city. The Bronx don't obviously seem to be playing this for the "LOL we're white playing mariachi!!" factor, either. And the song isn't so bad. So... uh.... cool, I guess?

absu - absu (2009)

I'll be upfront- this is the first and only album I've heard by Absu, a Texan death-metal band that was formed in the late 80's/early 90's. So I can't really consider this album from the perspective of their back catalog, or tell you how they've grown as a band. I can say, however, that this is a great, complex, thrash-y blackened death metal album with occult, Lovecraftian & Sumerian/Mesopotamian themes. Make sense? No, not really to me, neither. When I first heard this album I wasn't quite sure how to categorize it- I was under the impression it was a black metal record, and it does sometimes veer close to the thrash-y black metal made by Darkthrone and other more stripped-down black metal acts. But despite some black metal flourishes, this is actually progressive death metal, filled with hook-y riffs, odd tempos, and intricate song structures. The band uses a variety of sounds, in addition to the shredding guitars and relentless drums: synthesizers, ceremonial Tibetan horn, "brake disc" (?), Greek horn, and vibraslap are all present as well. In a sense, Absu reminds me of Dødheimsgard, in that both bands are releasing confidently complex-yet-accessible albums, late into their respective careers. While the songs on "Absu" take abrupt turns, sometimes winding around at breakneck speeds only to suddenly morph into an over-the-top synthesizer solo, it never feels half-assed. I certainly never had the impression that the band didn't know exactly what they were doing, or being unnecessarily intricate for the sake of intricacy itself. Don't get me wrong, this is proggy as hell. But it's also immediately approachable. Proscriptor McGovern, the drummer/lyricist/vocalist, has put in time with like-minded Middle-Eastern-influenced death metal outfit Melechesh, and has ties as well to The Firstborn, so if you've heard either of those bands, it might give you an idea what Absu are about. But even if you haven't heard those other bands, as long as you enjoy varied, well-written and interesting death metal, you're likely to enjoy this. Definitely one of the best metal albums I've heard this year- I'm interested too in checking out their last album, "Tara", which came out in 2001.

Absu - Between the Absu of Eridu and Erech
Absu - Amy