 "Composed by human, played by physical robots." Frankly, Electromancy's is one of the more intriguing elevator pitches that has slid across my desk here at Ye Olde Sleeping Village Industries. Besides piquing curiosity in regards to the actual sound of the purported experimental black/death metal, the notion of robots playing music raises a lot of questions on a practical level. As it turns out, this is no mere gimmick: composer Satyra was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2018, which made playing instruments an impossibility. As such, they spent two years designing robots specifically for the task at hand: playing the music.
Given the potential complexity in ability, Electromancy is able to do things that human instrumentalists are not. That alone presents a very existing avenue for exploration, and on "The Spark," the track (and accompanying video) that we are pleased to present here today, a taste of that potential experimentation and oddity is on full display. However, before we scare you away with our ramblings, we recommend giving "The Spark" a watch and listen below. See those robots in action!
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 If you aren't familiar with a certain tendency of Zimbabwean one-man outfit Nuclear Winter to drop unexpected cover tracks, now is an excellent time to familiarize yerself. Last year, we were pleased to premiere two such covers--first, a rendition of Haddaway's
immortal "What Is Love," and second, a bombastic ode to Toto's beyond-immortal "Africa." While obviously a little goofy given the implicit nature of a metal band covering beloved/hated 80's tunes, we nonetheless found these singles quite refreshing and entertaining. As such, we slumbering peasantry jumped at the chance to premiere a third Nuclear Winter cover. This time around, things get a little grimy: Mötley Crüe are the topic o' conversation. The World's (self-reported) Most Notorious Rock Band aren't in the house per se, but Nuclear Winter do a fine job at depicting their outrageous general persona. Without further ado: welcome, dear readers, to the, erm, wild side. Check out "Wild Side" below!  Here's a rare occurrence 'round these parts: a music video premiere. And a 22 minute video at that! We don't just clean the cobwebs out of our decrepit theatre for anyone, however, so rest assured knowing that the spectacle before ye is well worth your while.
The track and video in question forms the entirety of Side B of Live Improvisations Vol. 1, the forthcoming, well, improvisational release from French anonymous genre-bending and convention-eschewing collective Non Serviam, out May 1st on the (always stellar) Trepanation Recordings. If you're already familiar with Non Serviam's prior work, "Improvisation 2. Take 1. Ce Qui Dure" doesn't stray too far from what you may be expecting. The whole affair is wrapped up in a distantly baroque swaddle, but the telltale hints of post-metal by way of doom by way of industrial by way of avant-garde are as present and impactful as always. The video itself features a series of seemingly disassociated locations and events--not a narrative per se, so much as juxtapositions that mirror the overall spirit and emotion of the particular moment. But! Before I scare you away with my ramblings, we slumbering scribes highly recommend that you fire up "Improvisation 2. Take 1. Ce Qui Dure" post-haste. As always, we'll meet you on the other side. |
Welcome!We provide thoughtful reviews of music that is heavy, gloomy...and loud enough to wake us from slumber. Written by a highfalutin peasantry. What are ye
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