Pale Sketcher

There was a period in the latter stages of 2010 that it seemed like every second post here on Sonic Masala was about some musical project tied up with Justin K Broadrick, whether he was releasing stuff as Jesu (including a brilliant Christmas track), playing with Godflesh, touring, re-releasing past glories, producing and/or playing with smaller, up-and-coming acts...

Well, look that comfortable, reliable glove, Broadrick is back and it feels fantastic. This time it is as Pale Sketcher, which is essentially Jesu, but more electronically rendered. After Opiate Sun saw Jesu fusing guitar fury with digital glitches, Broadrick felt that he was steering away from what Jesu was essentially about. Pale Sketcher then feeds into the study of sound but with a different medium, with the first forays into the recorded form being remixes (most notably of Jesu' Pale Sketches album).

But now we have something that is exclusively a Pale Sketcher release. Seventh Heaven is an EP that mines both the sounds of the digital age and the ambient nuances that he explores in his current 'day job', creating something that is akin to UK fusionists Seefeel (who also brought a great album out this year, well worth checking out.) There is a real sense here that Broadrick is still in his infancy when working out a noise palette for this sonic collages, yet as he grows as a producer, the structures he will mold in this mode just may beggar belief.

Pale Sketcher - Seventh Heaven

Jesu's Heart Aches From Beyond The Throne

We havent posted about a decent re-issue in a while and there have been many that we have missed - my fave of the last month being by Vulcan - but I couldn't let this one slide by. Jesu, the current project of Napalm Death/Godflesh god Justin K Broadrick, has carved its own niche in ambient post metal, which was a brave move considering the the dyed in the black fanbase Broadrick had developed in the decade previous, but has since elevated himself to the forefront of an exciting, experimental and surprisingly ethereal industrial, bludgeoning sound. It all started with 2004's Heart Ache, a two song EP that is as brutal as it is heart rending. Both 'Ruined' and the title track feels like a rusted mine shaft ride, both lasting 20 minutes, dipping up and down in the bowels of the earth, coalescing into a fluid journey through all of life's deepest emotions - and it proved that Broadrick is a consummate composer. This just should not work. But since Heart Ache, Jesu has spawned many likeminded individuals that are willing to entrance as much as enviscerate. The Godflesh influences are imminent, but we start to see some of the rough edges buffed away in the second half of this re-release, Dethroned. Tracks become shorter, the vocals a little more refined and to the fore. Still, these are rough compositions, and it is over the next six years that Jesu has honed its craft to become the truly unique beast that it is today. Yet, as far as a genesis goes, this is awe-inspiring stuff.

Heart Ache and Dethroned is out now on Hydra Head Records.

Jesu - Heart Ache

...And The Earth Swarmed With Long Titles...

One month after receiving this email from Hawk Moon Records (home to the likes of SM postees Good Weather For An Airstrike), I have finally gotten around to listening to Ted Parsons' (Jesu/Godflesh/ex-Swans) new project, ...And The Earth Swarmed With Them. The EP, titled - wait for it - The Fading Voice Of The Old Era Speaks To Us, But Where Are The Ears Left To Hear It? (deep breath after reading that one...), has been a year in the making after they did a split demo with Sleepless Dreams, and the pedigree on display here (Parsons is joining original members Mitchell Johns and Kat Stanbridge, with Mr Jesu/Godflesh/Napalm Death himself Justin K Broadrick twiddling the knobs in the studio) ensures that it is a quality effort. This is post rock that swings like a metronome from joyous celebration to the gnashing of anguished teeth and back again, the emotive rollercoaster painted in stark sonic colours a la the pastel cover art. Its an accomplished piece, and is well worth checking out. No word on future releases or tours for the minute, but in the meantime, the EP is another freebie that you can get from Hawk Moon Record's Bandcamp.

...And The Earth Swarmed With Them - The Slow Decay Has Already Begun

Review - Heirs, Fowl

After their dangerously impressive LP of last year Alchera sunk some minor populated islands in Australasia due to its brooding, then punishing sonic squalls, I wasn't expecting to hear from Heirs again so soon - well, not until they had done their penance in the Underworld. But being the chronic hard workers that they inevitably are, they have just carved out Fowl, out today in Australia in CD format. It is as bruisingly brilliant as you would expect if you've had the pleasure to have heard them before - Alchera would have made my top 10 list of last year if I had heard it then (I only came across this album in March). With this release, Heirs have thrust themselves into the heavy instrumental scene as the New Guard, to join the ranks of veterans such as Isis and Pelican.

I would be remiss if I didnt mention that Fowl, whilst incessantly brutal, is an achingly beautiful affair, a result of the core songwriting duties baton being passed from drummer Damian Coward to guitarist Brent Stegeman. Anyone who is a fan of this genre will recognize this - who the structures of these songs, when done correctly, caresses rather than just bludgeons. Whilst 'Dust' spends over half its 8 minutes slowly building tension before breaking into a storm of noise that is pinioned by the incessant monotonal drumming (which is a compliment by the way) - a la later Godflesh - tracks such as 'Mother' and 'Drain' provide a one-two punch of perfectly orchestrated maelstroms of emotive white noise, closing the album in an immense and - aptly - draining fashion. They have not played rote Isis material here - they have maintained the dark ferocity that this genre expects - nay, demands - and by opening themselves to its cousins, post rock and industrial rock, and a noticeably darker slant on electronic programming, they have provided themselves with a wider sound palette, certain nuances, sound structures and electronic preamble, than many of their contemporaries - Red Sparowes, Mogwai and Trent Reznor are touchstones here, particularly at the tail end of the record...

Released by Denovali Records (home to Her Name Is Calla, worriedaboutsatan, September Malevolence, and Kodiak) Fowl is a behemoth of a record, a pugilistic triumph of the senses. Every member of Heirs is in the right place - its precise, its meticulous, its haunting, its ear-shattering. And regardless of what story its telling - the perverse nature of feeding on filth for entertainment, to sate our hunger, to gratify our sexual appetite, to facilitate our survival - the end result is that at the end of this ride, you will be bruised, battered - and enlightened.

Fowl is out now in Australia in CD form. The UK has to wait a few weeks til October 15th to get it, unless like me you sent away for it - but its better to pre-order here, so you can get vinyl versions - and there are three different packs - yellow/white vinyl (150pcs), yellow/black vinyl (150pcs), and good ol black (300pcs). The rest of the world will have to wait until November, so we have first dibs. Also (and this is great news), Heirs are touring Europe in October, starting off in the Netherlands on the 6th. They make their way to England, where they play not one but TWO shows in London - plus some random outer capital drops - here are the dates/venues:

14/10 - Green Park Tavern, Bath
15/10 - The Unicorn, London
16/10 - Harry's Bar, Stoke-on-Trent
17/10 - The Criterion, Leceister
18/10 - Dublin Castle, Camden

These are mental venues to see an act of this magnitude (AKA small seedy metal venues). I, for one, cannae wait.

Heirs - Dust
Heirs - Burrow