The post-punk, industrial-inspired queer duo V.E.X. is at it again with their new full length.
Vortex Empath Xen plays Oakland 3/27 w/ False Figure @ Elbo Room Jack London. Oakland
VORTEX EMPATH XEN “Between Worlds”, which comes out 3/27 on Oakland’s own Psychic Eye. Here we bring you an exclusive stream of the first two singles, “Split Orb” and “Demon Dimension” V.E.X. further develops their ever-evolving sound with dark these two powerful post-industrial / post-rock tracks, utilizing all of their signature sonic elements; arpeggiated bass and synth lines, funky, chaotic melodies, complex arranging, pummeling drum machines, buzzing horns, mangled samples, angular, distorted, blown-out guitar, and everything gelled together with the duo’s iconic evocative vocal styles, which skate atop the cauldron of twisted sounds perfectly and solidify their art as one of the hardest to quantify into a single genre, V.E.X can simply not be defined in this way. If you remember, we reviewed the duo’s other project MOIRA SCAR “Wound World Part 1” (also released by Psychic Eye) and you can read that here and order the CD, at the same time your hopefully ordering this one, which held a similar complexity, however “Between Worlds” takes the creativity to another undiscovered level. Sonically, the duo is at times more post-punk, at times, more experimental and always pulling from a queer, post-industrial framework, VE.X. is constantly shifting and re-adapting their sound and visions to the cutting edge of a violent world. From the band:
“Demon Dimension is a Deep Delve into Depressive Paranoiac Mind traps Human brain like hamster on wheel spinning around it’s cage for eternity.Discordant screams waking in a nightmare.” – Lucifer Gamma Ray & Roxzan Zatan
Lucifer Gammaray and Roxzan Zatan split vocal duties on this pair of singles, undulating between a more operatic style such as found on the break of “Split Orb” or like the orator of controlled chaos, the singing/screaming dichotomy on “Demon Dimension” increases the intensity in a very real and visceral way. After only hearing the first two tracks, we know “Between Worlds” is going to be an underground queer staple of post-rock/post-industrial.
“Split Orb is a journey across time and space from within/outsider/multiplxpersonaliti cell/root/complex, we are growing into new beings, what we have been what we are becoming, change is the moment, hybrid hubris, we are flesh channels for source/spirit, we are unbecoming.” – Roxzan Zatan & Lucifer Gamma Ray
DECAYCAST Guest List: Bran (…) Pos “EOY TOTALE 2019” Bay Area Multimedia Artist Chooses His Favorite Mind Bending Media of 2019
EOY TOTALE 2019
some of things that flicked my tick this year by bran(…)pos
Headboggle “Polyphonic Demo” – Ratskin Records
40+ one-minute diddies catchy as fuck, and always weirdy. Then the dude practiced the pieces and toured them and they got better and deeper. Each live show I saw of Derek this year topped the last. Bubble machine finale at the Dildo gave me the creepy-happy chills.
Patrick Cowley “Mechanical Fantasy Box” – Dark Entries Records
This got a lot of spins from me and combined with the release of the same-titled “Homoerotic Journal” creates an amazing document of a period of San Francisco that is increasingly becoming as lost as one of those self-driving cars stalled in a SOMA intersection.
Sahra Halgan Trio “Waa Dardaaran” – self-released
Sahra has an incredible voice and energy and this trio combining her song stylings from her native Somaliland with a tight rockish energy brought by French musicians Aymeric Krol and Mael Saletes puts big smiles on my face every listen. I wore out their 2016 EP “Faransiskiyo Somaliland”, and was super excited to see they had a new release on Bandcamp this year.
XUXA SANTAMARIA “Chancletas D’Oro” – Ratskin Records
Haven’t stopped playing this record. Sits right in the 2019 groove for me. Poppy, hard, sexy, smart as hell, and just a really fucking well-produced record. Won’t be surprised when this band blows way the fuck up. I promise I won’t be a hater when that happens.
Ed Balloon “The Dubs” – Deathbomb Arc
Like nothing else I wore out this year. “Dreamworld” may be my favorite pop song in many years, and this tape was certainly my summer soundtrack of 2019. I’ve yet to see him perform live, and I’ve heard he brings it. Excited to see/hear more in 2020.
Dos Monos “Dos City” – Deathbomb Arc
Another tape I played to death and memorized. I love these fools’ energy and sharp vocals riff on each other like the jazz samples they so well-employ in the production. Fun as hell and got me through some bike rides I have no business putting my knees through.
Strange and gorgeous futurewrong electronic rhythms and vocals LP packaged alongside a 10-inch glossy “visual lyrics book” with amazing computer art by JulesLC, this is hands-down one of my favorite new weirds of 2019.
**** You can also read our review of the album here
Sir Artful Cornhole Doily “Sings the All-Time Greats” – Planetary Magnetics Corporation
Imagine The Frogs slapping a baby around with a rubber fish covering the best/worst songs of your ok-boomer life. Yeah, this fella has more musical ability in his damp palms than any of us deserve, and we should be so lucky that he is putting music out in 2019 and beyond. Good luck finding this tape, but try contacting Planetary Magnetics hq in New Orleans direct.
A longtime favorite set of music from a longtime favorite band came out this year collected, remastered, and filled with tons of extra material and documentation. The Residents alongside Cherry Red Records have been firing out reissues of all their classic material lately, but none of the pREServed editions have been as exciting and revealing to me as this set. A runner-up would have to be the Record Store Day BS reissue, filled with ancient Rezzy material I had never heard. Residents 4ever.
Chromatics live at Mezzanine SF June 12, 2019
I’ve been a casual fan of Chromatics, but this live show put me over the edge. So great to see this unit form the music live and fill a club. This being the last show of their first tour in many years, there was real emotion on stage and in the audience. Their new record “Closer to Gray” has been on repeat play for me, but nothing recorded from this band has quite captured the energy of the live show in my opinion.
Evil Moisture/Thomas Dimuzio/Demonface/Ava Mendoza/Hobo Sonn live at Peacock Lounge December 18, 2019
James Decker/Resipiscent Records has been putting on monthly experimental shows for a few years now at venues around SF, but the much-needed SF series has really found a home at Lower Haight’s Peacock Lounge. I had the pleasure of working sound and sitting front row for this particular gig, which really brought a fantastic close to 2019 with solid to spectacular sets from every act, including maybe my favorite solo Ava Mendozaset ever.
RaffyTaphyASMR “ASMR raffy’s 3 hour video”
The king of tingles is back! After a lengthy break from any new material, Raffy came back strong in 2019, and his 3-hour video of all new good sounds quietly blows out the competition. Other ASMRtists have trouble coming up with a continuous 20-minute session without looping, and here Raffy remains strong and relaxing with unique content all the way through a full 3 hours. At least, I think that’s the case. I’ve never made it through the whole thing awake.
Biggest Crock of Shit 2019
“Cambodian Rock Band” by Lauren Yee with (some) music by Dengue Fever at OSF
Remember those Cambodian Rocks comps from the 90s? How about that 2014 documentary “Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten? Cambodia’s Lost Rock ‘N’ Roll”? Playwright Lauren Yee and band Dengue Fever hope that maybe you have forgotten about artists like Yol Aularong, Ros Serey Sothea, and Sinn Sisamouth as they front this disingenuous music play about the Cambodian genocide. “With music and songs by Dengue Fever” blasted all over the promotion and program with little to no information explaining that about half the songs are cover songs from this classic and tragic period of music and history. Dengue Fever has made a career of this kind of charlatanry and unfortunately theater folk are as susceptible to this kind of shortchanging of history as anyone I know. This play is a HUGE hit and will be produced everywhere in 2020. Almost every theater person I’ve talked to about it loves it. Every music person I talk to about it gags. I have way too many thoughts but suffice to say nothing in the arts irked me more in 2019.
Late entry (direct into my veins): Follow Your Heart “Siracha Vegenaise”
The Belgian concept of mayonnaise on fries has always disgusted me. After trying this incredibly addictive vegan spicy sauce during the recent holidays at Follow Your Heart’s longtime Canoga Park home, I have to revise all former thoughts on the matter. In 2020 you will find me dead of heart failure with an empty bottle of this shoved direct in my throat. I will have died happy.
bran(…)pos is the ongoing audio-visual-performance-noise-musique-brain-bend of Jxxx Rxxz from San Francisco, CA. Rodriguez has been performing and recording under this moniker since 1996 with releases on C.I.P., Resipiscent, Ratskin Records, Animal Disguise, and Chitah! Chitah! Soundcrack
We’re excited to premiere “Still Coming Of Age” from Grimalkin collective member Elizabeth Owens. On this four song acoustic/unplugged, Owens offers four serene, morose, compositions accented by lush vocal layerings which blend with the strings perfectly. Owens at once crafts a warming mix of voice, strings and piano for a enchanting effect on the listener. Somewhere between modern classical and neo-folk, Owens stripped down compositions offer a glimpse into a distant unknown land we aren’t quite familiar with yet. Owens holds a dramatic tension between the different elements, perhaps most effectively in favorite track Growing Pain (unplugged) where Owens begins to channel a Meredith Monk esque vibe, between voice and keys which is no small feat, nor familiar territory for most. A splendid ending to a starkly minimal and strong EP. Listen now in full below and pick up the album today .
Elizabeth Owens (they/them)lives in Richmond, VA and is a Grimalkin collective member.Still Coming of Age is the unplugged baby sister of Elizabeth Owens’ debut record, Coming of Age, released in September 2018. Available digitally and on limited edition lathe cut and cassette, this 4 track release includes unique, unplugged versions of songs from the original album and a new track titled “Rabbits.” Arranged for piano, Celtic harp and voice, “Still Coming of Age” offers a glimpse of the musical direction Owens is taking next, while thematically symbolizing Elizabeth’s personal saga with alcohol abuse and recent recovery. A purchase of Still Coming of Age on lathe or cassette includes the full debut record, Coming of Age, as a bonus download. Still Coming of Age will be available on limited edition cassette and 10″ lathe cut. Proceeds from cassettes and digital only will go to the Virginia Anti-Violence Project.
DECAYCAST Premieres: Bay Area Funk Wizard CHAKI Releases New Video “Water” – WATCH NOW!
If you’re in the Bay Area and you don’t know the work of CHAKIThe Funk Wizard than you must hate fun, funk, horror movies, and capes, in which case, why are you even reading our blog? On his newest song and video, “Water”, CHAKI offers a masterfully crafted, yet slightly dystopian blend of self reflective cosmic brain altering funk! Blending astute musicianship, top notch arranging and production, and a dark sense of humor, like a soldier of Funk, Chaki covers all of the bases himself, performing nearly all the instrumentation solo with wonderfully nuanced results. Warm organ, marching bass lines, swirling screaming synths, hard hitting, tightly would drums, and the voice of an angelic maniac to create a funkily unique and dirty swim through the history of Funk music. “Water” gushes into your face and soaks you head to toe with cosmic funk liquid from the place of Chaki’s origin, a true assault to those refusing to feel the rhythm, or maybe a hymn for those who feel the late night wrath of a post dance party Taco Bell excursion, whatever it is, we’re here for it. With it’s acid peaking level energy, driving in the pocket beats, “Water” is no doubt channeling the bombastic low end of genre-pioneering giants, Cameo, the glossy, psychedelic, and often flawless production of Prince with a dash of Blowfly-esque absurdist humor and what do you have? “Water”, which is to be released as a black vinyl 7” by Who Can You Trust? Records.
It’s a silly video for probably the most personal song I ever made. I was trying to channel my heroes like Cameo and Prince while in the studio.” – Chaki
“The concept came to Chaki in a reoccurring dream and scribbled onto a bar napkin. The vision was brought to life by the local Oakland filmmaker team Han Hale (director) and Dean Snodgrass (director of photography).
CHAKI has brought his dynamic stage show to festivals such as Noise Pop and The Offbeat Fest. This funky alien has gained a cult-like following over the past few years, playing shows with like-minded weirdos Shannon and the Clams, El Vez, Peelander Z, Bob Log III, Captured By Robots, The Space Lady, and Flipper.
DECAYCAST Guest List: We asked some followers and co conspirators to round up their favorite music and art from 2019. Here’s the first installment with Bay Area artist and producer Gremlins2Movie
2019 was a year, big year, very big year and after a hiatus from listening to music entirely, these are the songs that held my attention during this further plunge into the hellscape we know as planet earth.
We will begin this yearly round up of my favorite songs of the year with a song that didnt come out this decade. I think everyone should hear this at least once.
While this is just a lead up track to what is my favorite concept for an album all year, Spencer Clark sets you up with some information regarding the basis for his soundtrack to the still unreleased Avatar sequel, Avatar 2. If text to speech for 9 minutes and 19 seconds isnt your cup of tea well i suppose you could just not listen to anything.
100 gecs – 745 sticky (Mikey Joyce Still Stuck Remix)
Well first off if you arent aware of 100 gecs im sorry to hear that you must need help immediately,. Now there was alot of 100 gecs remixes this year some might say there was…. 1000 of them. But this stands as one of my favorites of the year. One of my favorite remixes using a beep beep horn.
Not only is Tyler one of my favorite artists, singer and songwriter, she consistently puts out music that will make you smile and cry at the same time and puts on a lovely intimate live performance that is not to be missed. I urge you to listen to the full release, Devil, and would be hard pressed to find anyone who doesn’t fall in love with it.
Charli XCX – Thoughts
Now for something completely different, Say or think what you want about charli or pop music in general(you may be right but probably not), but i really think she did something great with her latest release simply titled Charli. I went with thoughts mostly because im keeping with the theme of songs ive cried to this year. Everything from the simple but effective drum part, those autotuned “oooo’s”, something about ballad that isnt afraid to touch on the fact that everything around you is literally fucked speaks to me. (second choice is: official)
Staying with the theme of songs ive cried to multiple times this year, we arrive at my favorite 100 gecs song of the year, spawning the now infamous phrase : I Might Go Throw My Phone Into The Lake, Yeah. And possibly being one of the only songs of the year futuring autotune and grindcore vocals. I really cant just pick one song off this album so just listen to the whole things 1000 Times.
DJ DJ BOOTH does “it” again with this song that was stuck in my head for a good month or two after hearing it, probably my favorite piano part in a song this year. Its just simply fucking good. And should be on any uhhh playlist that you listen to before going to church.
I spent years ignoring the output of Burial but this was the track that made me actually listen to and fall in love with Burial. No one wants to hear anyone wax poetic about burial, but this song fucks big time.
When i read a tweet about this song on twitter dot com i was like oh hell fucking yeah and it really paid off, this year we have learned that i really fucking love just straight up wall of texts on a nice track. Another example of a track and album that just simply goes the fuck off. Towing a line between music that might ask you what your major is and if you have any more drugs.
Just the whole damn thing, it is a touching tribute to a friend who has since passed away and its keeping with the theme of music i have cried to or have made me cry. This release was featured on fact dot com according to tweets.
Naoko is named after the beautiful and somber character
from Murakami’s book Norwegian Wood.
Here is the first single from Norway based producers NAOKO, who bring a thick, dense, percussion style, hypnotic and catchy loops, sputtering shifting hi hats and snares, throbbing bass and a creative mix of production style to their new single “Bloom”, off their upcoming EP, which you can listen to for the first time, right here, below:
“Bloom” blends heavy, synthetic beats with lush, slowly melting vocals in contrast to the dark, creeping bass and plucky strings and hoover style synths that create a warm, thick backdrop to showcase the vocal delivery. Referencing American producers like ABRA and FKA TWIGS, NAOKO spins a haunting sonic tale for listeners to get lost on a late night road. Take a listen to this heavy and lush done poem anthem of touch and change and be on the lookout for more from NAOKO.
Here’s some download codes for the single which can be redeemed at:
Listen To THE BEDROOM WITCH hauntingly nuanced and beautiful new album “DIASPORA” out this Tuesday 10/15 on Oakland’s Psychic Eye. Full stream and preorder link below.
The Bedroom Witch – photo by Kristin Cofer
We’re proud to bring you the full album stream of Diaspora from LA recording and multimedia artist Sepehr Mashiahof‘s BEDROOM WITCH project, coming out on Psychic Eye this Tuesday, October 15th. Diaspora elegantly blends, lush, haunting synths, big ethereal swells and intricate percussion all coalesced through Mashiahof’s beautifully haunting and complex vocal delivery. Diaspora invites the listener on a foggy, dimly lit path through orchestral-like passages of a journey to an unknown land. Warm, mid-tempo plucking synth arpeggios create a driving yet ethereal background for the artist’s voice to shine through a distant dream haze. Channeling sonic references from Kate Bush to Alice Coltrane and Iranian folk music, The Bedroom Witch creates a sonic conceptual journey into another world.
In the melancholy of the new album’s narrative, each song weaves together messages from ultra-dimensional entities that describe a way to overcome the core struggle in the first generation immigrants’ experience—alienation in a new world. Recorded and mixed by Mashiahof and released by Psychic Eye Records, Diaspora investigates the Bedroom Witch’s origin story as an Iranian-American Trans Woman.
“I kept seeing visions of women in veils obscured by cool lights hovering over me to a point where it really started to click that there was this other part of myself that I had abandoned through the diaspora. So, I wanted to tell an epic-style story that spoke to the immigrant experience.” – The Bedroom Witch
Make sure to head over to the Psychic Eye Bandcamp page and order your copy today. Highly recommended. The album release show happens 11/9 at Pro Arts Gallery & Commons w/ Mystic Pristess, V.E.X., Scissoring, & Dès Vu. 150 Frank H Ogawa Plaza. Oakland, CA 9pm $10
DECAYCAST Premieres: Post-Industrial Darkwave duo V.E.X. Shares New Video “Dancing At The End Of Time”
Bay area artists Roxy and LuLu, as V.E.X., (and a myrid of other projects) have been playing music and creating art together for years on end in the bay area and beyond, yet somehow always bring something refreshingly new and politically necessary to the table, and their latest single, supported with a brand new video here “Dancing At The End Of Time” is certainly no exception.
From the artists; “Dancing At The End Of Time” is a low-fi synth ballad of remembrance and resistance in a dying world, the true story of two femme freaks gentrified out of the city but not out of their souls, holding onto their love in spite of all the hate, dedicated to crafting underground subculture music for outcasts, the forgotten, and those fighting back in this genocidal abusive white supremacist capitalism patriarchy death spiral.“
“Dancing At The End Of Time” offers a celebratory, yet real and visceral look at two femmes resisting the violent forces of oppression and gentrification through the streets of a forgotten and endlessly morphed San Francisco. “Dancing…” gels haunted vocals and murky, analog synth arpreggiations, creating both a serene and haunting vibe which encapsulates the listener into a tale from the past. Watch the video below and read some words on the track and video from V.E.X. below. The track is from an upcoming split with Moira Scar.
“Roxy and LuLu have been playing music together since 2001, as The Floating Corpses, Angel On The Nod And The Phantasy Defylement, Terrran Traumantics, Moira Scar, and V.E.X. being the most recent incarnation. V.E.X. (Vortex Empath Xen, formerly Voltage Empath Xanaxax, Ventriloquest Ectoplasmold Xanaxax) is Lu Lu “Lucifer” Gamma Ray and Roxzan “Roxy Monoxide” Zatan as industrial-dark-wave synth-punk surreal-doom noise-romance duo. V.E.X. creates, V.E.X. records, V.E.X. plays shows.”
Check their bandcamp below and make sure to check for select tour dates and an upcoming split with Moira Scar.https://xanaxax.bandcamp.com
DECAYCAST Interviews: “If it smells like noise, it must me noise.” – An Interview with experimental music mainstay Steve Davis / +DOG+
First hearing of +DOG+ they were somewhat of a mystery to me in history and intention, I think I first came across a split 7” between +DOG+ and The HATERS or maybe they were separate release I acquired at the time along with a Tribes Of Neurot CD maybe were the first “noise” albums I would own ? I could be crossing releases/synapses, but i remember +DOG+ was sort of enigmatic from the beginning- much like many of the out there experimental titles I was discovering at the time, who were the members, where were they from, what did they do during the day, and why were they making these wonderful and chaotic sounds. In the bay area, +DOG+ had built sort of a mystified legend around themselves, toting a modular lineup that seems to shift with nearly every performance and document (of which to both there are, MANY). +DOG+ was one of the first projects I saw that completely eradicated the boundaries between audience and performer, encapsulating the true spirit of noise, freedom from convention and maybe even a slight dissolving of the psyche, or at least a loud probe into it’s existence. +DOG+ seems to record an uncanny amount of studio material, boasting at times seemingly monthly output but overall, the work is intentional and nuanced, yet free and engulfed with the celebratory spirit of true avant-garde sounds and performances. Digging into +DOG+’s exhaustive discography, there is a nearly endless trove of sounds and expressions, but we are left with one constant, the man behind +DOG+, Steve Davis. We chatted with Steve about his longstanding +DOG+ project as well as his imprint LEM. Love Earth Music although largely focusing on noise, boasts a rather diverse roster of artists, everything from the nuanced, drone tone poem mastery of multimedia artist Conscious Summary “Flowers” or the blasting, alienating noise walls of +DOG+, or the angular, broken guitar rhythms of Intensive Studies, LEM keeps it refreshing, interesting and uncontrived in the most honest way possible.
Can you talk to us about the history of +DOG+ and your other various musical outlets if any?
Hi, I started doing +DOG+ around 1990 when I lived in Osaka. Prior to doing +DOG+ I was in a Boston band Expando Brain and The Flower Brothers in Osaka, I played bass in those bands. I had been doing another noise band J-Shi with David Hopkins- Public Bath Records and Sam Lohman- Nimrod , 36. Then made +DOG+ as a ‘studio’ extension of that sort of. When I moved back to MA in early 1993 I started doing +DOG+ as a regular band and did a lot of shows around MA/NY/CT with myself and a couple of others. We were blessed to have Ron Lessard release our 1st 7” on Stomach Ache in 1994 and Detector to do our 1st full album in 1996. I moved to CA in 1997 and continued to do +DOG+ there. That’s when I met you and the other Bay Area folks and did a lot of shows around CA as well as doing a tour of UK/Belgium in 2007 then did a tour of Japan in 2008. I moved back to MA in 2016 and have continued to do +DOG + here and have a new CD out soon called “10, 585” which is approximately how many days I’ve done the band. The line up has been myself and a large number of members coming & going. I’d say the core members besides myself are Eddie Nervo, Ron Karlin, Lob, Chuck Foster, Bobby Almon, Jack Szymczak and they send me stuff for the cd’s and then I mash it all up so to speak and add my crap.
I also have a couple other bands, Intensive Studieswith Jack, we grew up together and started it when I moved back. I think that band is a mash up of styles from all the stuff Jack & I love; the Mothers, Punk, and just overall weird sounds. It’s a hard band to categorize as far as a “style” goes. I also just started a new noise band with Daniel Sine from L’elcipse Nue. That project is called Le Chien Nu and we just did a release on LEM. +DOG+ has a new release out spring and another probably out in the summer.
Speaking of releases, talk a bit about the history of your imprint, love earth music? How does running your longstanding label, LEM inform your creative practice, if at all?
I started Love Earth Music (LEM) around 1999 when I was living in CA. The 1st release was +DOG+ “Luddite Revolution” I started it just to be able to do +DOG+ releases and stuff from my friends and that’s how & why I did it. I used to make all the CD’s, covers, etc at home with my computer and printer but it just got too much so I don’t do that anymore . I have them made by someone else now. I have my friend Lob to help out with the art stuff on a lot of the releases and my pal Dustin ( Actuary) helps with a downloadable component of the label. That’ s stuff that usually is not on the physical LEM releases. A lot of the early LEM releases were friends from CA, but then it sort of branched out to bands from everywhere, mostly noise/experimental stuff at first. I’ve tried to do some stuff that is not noise/experimental stuff cause I’m really into everything. Weirdly, we did a Brutal Truth 8 track but I think we sold all of those. I feel that doing the label is a way to be a part of something that I enjoy and have respect for. Its easy to make crap, and have someone put it out. The stuff we / my friends do and release is hopefully something that isn’t boring and pushes the envelope a little. I have met so many great folks thru the bands and label and I have enjoyed many wonderful life experiences that I never would have imagined as a kid growing up in the woods in MA. I don’t get out to many shows these days, but when I do I am always blown away by the power of the sounds and the passion that my friends put into the shows. Even after all these years, it’s still inspiring. Last summer I was playing a show at a venue in Worcester, MA and there was this huge drum on top of a piano and was looking at it thinking how cool it would have been to use ( I’d already played my set) and then a bit later, Victoria Shen, a local noise great, went over and used it and it was soooo awesome..I so glad she went over and just mic’d it and wailed! It was very cool. Stuff like that is inspiring to me.
““If it smells like noise, it must be noise.”
I don’t know, it makes me happy to be able to get some of these sounds out for other people to hear. Seeing people and hearing the stuff they do keeps me interested in sounds and being creative. Doing the label has also let me get to know people from all over the world. Some upcoming LEM releases are going to be by Ego Death from Greece and God Pussy from Brazil. I’m also planning to do releases by some local / east coast folks here over the next year too, like Angelsbreath,Lean, Matt Luzak, Pas Musique,Martyr, This Is Not Okay, Bullshit Market ( MI), The Flayed Choirmaster (CA), Jolthrower (CA), Instagon (CA) and others that I can’t remember. I am looking forward to being able to release some interesting stuff in the future.
Having established yourself and your label on both coasts can you talk about the differences and similarities between west coast and east coast scenes, and if not the scenes the style/aesthetics?
I honestly don’t see much of a difference at all really. I think with so much stuff available online and the growth of these different groups online, everything is out there for everyone. So therefore there are no surprises …I see folks in NH doing similar stuff to folks from CA etc… I really don’t see differences..the only thing different here in the northeast is that the winter weather can mess up plans for shows/travel, but as far as styles or aesthetics it seems pretty much the same to me all over the country.
What was the most powerful performance you’ve ever witnessed?
I have seen a lot of shows over the years so its hard to pick just one, but if I had to I would have to say that the Swans at the Rat in Boston in the mid 80’s was one of the most powerful shows ever. They were terrifyingly amazing, the sound kinda went thru me and Michael Gira was awesome..it was an incredible show. The Boredoms 8-8-08 show in LA with 88 drummers was also great.
What are the main differences between recording and performing noise, is one inherently more valuable to you as an artist?
I think for me the differences is in the energy. I tend to be a little more harsh I think doing +DOG+ shows as compared to some of the studio stuff which is usually more varied. I also tend to play short sets ..usually between 5-10 mins so that would be different as well. When I ‘ve done ‘live’ on the radio sets..its usually a combination of studio and live cause I have to fill more time and bring a lot of extra gear as compared with a regular show. I honestly like both about the same…each year though I say to myself I’m gonna do less shows, but end up doing about the same number each year. One thing I do like about playing out is just seeing friends and seeing what they’re up to with regards to theirs sounds and their lives. I do feel that as an “artist” the recorded stuff is more of an accurate picture of where my head is at musically/sonically/sound wise. For example, the new +DOG+ studio album will have a couple minutes of acoustic guitar and actual singing on a track, which I doubt I would ever do live, and the sounds are more layered and clearer in general. What I enjoy about playing live are the physical aspects of playing, of making noise on the spot with all the adrenaline of it all, you know, getting to release some noisy energy. So I guess they both have value to me but just in different ways.
And lastly, how do you define noise?
I don’t know..at this point “noise” seems to encompass many varieties & styles. When +DOG+ first started it was easier to define, we set up a wall of amps with a few distortion & delay pedals, smashed metal all over the stage, screamed bloody fucking murder and made a lot of ‘noise’…it was very primal at that time. We considered ourselves a “noise band”…but now I don’t know…the noise scene now has so many sub genres…harshnoise, ambient noise..experimental noise, whatever…its noise if you wanna call it “noise”. I guess I could define it as anything that doesn’t follow the standard musical format and/or structures, but even that would be wrong cause a lot of noise folks do use structure and use regular instruments etc…so its really hard for me to literally define noise to someone else. If it smells like noise, it must be noise.
DECAYCAST News: Let’s Burn It Down: Mixed-Genre Benefit Show Invades Richmond District Tonight w: CCR Headcleaner and more!
CCR HEADCLEANER Photo: In The Red Records
There’s no secret 4/20 in San Francisco in 2019 can be a shit-show, with zombie-like blood thirsty capitalists co-opting and squeezing any profit they can out of literally anything cannabis related, and culture related for that matter, while steamrolling communities with racist and patriarchal policies which put the cities most marginalized at risk. Any and all culture in San Francisco seems to be at best, null and void for the distant future, to the lazily observing outsider, but local organizers fight back against this hypocrisy with a psych forward diverse musical event where you can support a good cause while having your brain melted with outsider sounds from some of the bay area’s stranger and more esoteric musical offerings. We spoke with the main organizer, Andre Torrez of the Brown Recluse Variety Show, a local radio program on BFF.fm. about the event and why it’s important to support organizations that help folks clear their criminal records or marijuana and other non violent low level crimes, especially now in an ever changing Bay Area landscape that seems hell bent on destroying anything that rebels against this hyper dangerous runaway capitalist model.
“With the annual crush of humanity on Golden Gate Park’s Hippie Hill reaching near mythical proportions, 4/20 in San Francisco is pretty much a stoner holiday. It seems like a no-brainer to tap into this crowd for some low-level marijuana offense criminal justice reform.
California’s recreational use marijuana law went into effect in 2018. At this point, any partakers are “barely legal”. Good times! But what about all those pot-case convictions prior to the new law kicking in? Bummer? Not so fast.
Why stop there? Marijuana is just the tip of the iceberg! Expunging old, low-level convictions can help tens of millions of Americans so they can get jobs, housing and education. Algorithms helping break down these barriers? It’s already happening! But it takes time, resources and money.
Pocket your vape pen and follow the wafting haze from the park on 4/20 and step inside SF’s Neck of the Woods(406 Clement Street) for the Blown-Out, Blowout Benefit Show: Barely Legal Edition.”
We spoke briefly with organizer Andre Torrez of The Brown Recluse Variety Show, who talked about the importance of organizing a benefit show and co-opting this green day for a good cause, “This is the 4th installment, though I haven’t thrown this party in 5 years. I used to be a DJ at KUSF 90.3 FM. When they were taken off the air I started the tradition of organizing a benefit show that was 4/20 themed. It’s not so much out of weed adulation, though I’ve definitely had my own adoring moments. It was more from my own observations of how 4/20 is like a California phenomenon. It really is treated like such an event as it is. Anyhow I like puns and themes, so I would get whatever local bands and acts I could convince to play for the cause of getting KUSF back on the air. Fast forward 5 years and they kind of are back on the air as KXSF 102.5 and I’m now affiliated as a BFF.fm DJ and recreational weed is now legal, so I needed a new cause.
Andre Torrez . Photo: Jaime Borschuk®️
I work at a local TV news station and that’s where I heard about all these low-level marijuana convictions getting expunged by the SF D.A.’s office. The cause to me was clear: more of this kind of work. When I dug into it and found out it was Code for America’s Clear My Record Campaign that was behind creating this algorithm that helped expunge more than 8,000 cases, I reached out to see if they’d like to be the beneficiary. I respect what they are working towards and how this impacts people’s chances for a greater housing, education and job opportunities. Really this is a manifestation of the income disparity I see on the streets everyday in San Francisco, especially living in the Tenderloin these last 10 years. People need help and not enough of us are stepping up to do something. I don’t expect a fat billion dollar check to come out of this, but even small-scale philanthropy can help make a difference.”
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“This year’s lineup includes local, psych-heavyweights; CCR Headcleaner, bringing you riffs for days! Oakland’s Milk For The Angry is hot with their new cosmically, psychedelic-flavored album ‘Extraterrestrial Desert’. Ratskin Records’ Cyborg Eye, a dark and moody East Bay duo, will wow you with their gear. Hauras sets the experimental tone including a special screening of film work by Myleen Hollero. And if you like Glitter Wizard, then you won’t want to miss “members of” in the country-folk duo known as Honey Bucket Boys. DJ Mashi Mashi of Galaxy Radio fame will be spinning vinyl all night.
Come on out and stick it to the man. The fun starts at 8pm. $10.”
Bay area artists Roxy and LuLu, as 
D E C A Y C A S T Magazine 