Envenomist – Bound Dominions

David Reed continues to be one of my absolute favorite dark experimental composers. He was kind enough to send me a copy of the latest release from his project Envemonist. David’s other projects include the venerable Luasa Raelon mentioned here previously.

Bound Dominions moans with heavy analog synth ambient. The whole album resonates with a primordial ache. Rotting ghost ships in the fog, fields of gurgling earth and steam, lost places swallowed by vegetation and the reverence and sorrow such sites evoke in a quiet landscape.

It reminded me, quiet eloquently, of something I wrote stuck on a train somewhere between Portland and Seattle about 6 years ago. This was originally written as preliminary lyrics for a project that was not to be. I will post it here unedited as this is the most appropriate home that has arisen since then…

“Crawl to the cadence of 100,000 crows, carving the sun to rags above the geometry of industry… axis and allies draw together against a wheezing tribe on another barren hill, where serpents dance with battle blades to defend their nightmare lives from their nightmare graves. The old ones, naked, survey from crooked frames at the slavering pests hooded in spiteful names. A sullen dignity – aspirations drained above root work recoiling from the kaleidoscopic air. Legions gaze over aeons to the wounded and the dead, of the clan born of time that time then shed… momentary domination of despotic ecology. Braying, cackling, screaming nonsense against the turning leaves… Between the lines of  history’s soliloquy fractured though it is, the tyrants right their broken spines and draw the hulks beneath the soil…”
- Scott E. Candey (2005 -ish) -

Luasa Raelon

David Reed recently impregnated my mailbox with the newest release by his project Luasa Raelon. I’ve been a fan of David’s music since I first heard it 2001 or so. He creates the kind of dark ambient that I relish. It has detail and teeth and uses it to build mood rather than disrupt it. I was fortunate to play a show with him here in Portland in 2004. That was the last time I played a show come to think of it.

This new one is called, Vampyre: The Light Of The Beast. I’m just listening to it now for the first time. It is, as expected, outstanding. The rich, creeping atmosphere that he conjures so well is as potent as ever. I’m not going to write a review of it on first listen because it’s music you must submerge yourself in to truly appreciate. However, if you like anything I have done musically and haven’t checked out David’s work you are missing out terribly.

In addition to Luasa Raelon, his projects Envenomist, Brittle Foundries, and Nightmares (with J. Canady & M. Solotroff) are all worth experiencing. Thanks David, I really appreciate it.

Ordering info and samples can be found here Reed Heavy Industries.

Nightmares on Tour

If you are in the midwest Nightmares a new project featuring Jonathan Canady, Mark Solotroff and David Reed will be hitting the road shortly for a brief tour. You can find all the important info here.

Jonathan Canady is best known for his projects Angel of Decay, Deathpile and Dead World. Mark Solotroff best known for Bloodyminded, Intrinsic Action and Bloodlust! Records. David Reed for Luasa Raelon and Envenomist. The three are combining forces for this phantasmagoria of analog synth goodness. I haven’t heard the project yet, but all three do great work on their own so the combination will no doubt be something genuinely special. They also have three new releases which I am sure will be available at the shows.

So if the tour comes through your area check them out. All three are good people, talented people and have been friends or supporters of what I do for a long time.