short term memory loss - a bat eating her wings (Premiere and Review)

In what must come as a bit of a shock, I enjoy (and indeed seek out) music that feels fresh, and unusual, and patently weird. Given this proclivity, a premiere request from Euphoriadic Studios hitting the inbox inevitably bodes well. I'm comfortable stating that today's artist in question offers a potent blend wholly unlike anything I've ever heard before, and that alone is enough to get the ol' heart a-pounding. Listening to a bat eating her wings by New Jersey's own short term memory loss is a jarring and electrifying experience. Needless to say, we are excited and honored to present said experience to our unexpecting readership. 

But. Before I vomit forth a grotesque collection of adjectives and scare you all away, please give a bat eating her wings a well-deserved listen below. As always, we'll meet ye on the other side!

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Audrey Hornet's solo project nominally plays "witchy, bitchy, vampire stoner queercore/metal." In practice, sonic eclecticism is the name of the game--the eight tracks herein perch somewhere between electronic, industrial metal, and, I dunno, blackened mathcore? There's a little sludgy heft to keep things grounded, and the tracks are build on a foundation of brevity that recalls powerviolence or perhaps even the grindcore. On paper, the various components feel like they would result in a disjointed mess, but fear not: a bat eating her wings integrates seemingly disparate elements in clever and unexpected ways.

Take opening track "Mystic Fire" as an initial example. Bass-heavy percussion thunders forth like a mechanized centipede, accompanied by squelchy bursts, an eventual head-bopping riff, and a cacophony of chanted screeches. The whole damn thing is over in a minute and change, and upon my first listen, I simply didn't know what hit me. Things get wilder with "Place of Bones," which manages to seamlessly work some clean vocals underneath the fury. The back half devolves (or perhaps evolves?) into a frenetic whirlwind...and, as before, it's over and on to the next before you've truly absorbed what hath occured. "Blunted" hits hard with triggered kicks and blossoms into an overtly dance-ready beat. "Kush Coffin" leans into the occult with a vocal sample that is promptly trampled underfoot. And so it goes, onward to the end: every track presents a new idea in a remarkably unexpected light. Notably, each new song cleverly avoids continuing beyond the scope of its self-contained ideas--Audrey Hornet is very good at presenting her ideas in a flashy fashion without sticking around to reiterate, or to argue specifics. The blistering immediacy of the project is a great strength, and while some will certainly react negatively to the wild whiplash, I suspect this approach will undoubtedly resonate with fans of extreme music across a wide spectrum.

If it's not already apparent, I think short term memory loss is doing some really cool shit. Listening to this project is like unto playing tag in the middle of a highway whilst wearing a blindfold. You can try to anticipate what's coming, but you're gonna get utterly blindsided regardless. That makes for a a highly memorable and engaging listening experience, and around these parts, we celebrate those experiences.

short term memory loss ends her bio with an apropos command: "bang those heads and keep your knives sharp, your bowls lit, and your cauldrons bubbling." Today, I intend to do just that. I hope you join me in doing so. Give a bat eating her wings another listen above, and grab thatpre-order here prior to release this Friday!

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short term memory loss can be found:
​Bandcamp
​Facebook