Reviews

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May 06, 2011
Combichrist Tour: 
Combichrist, Ivardensphere 
@ The Palladium - Upstairs [Worcester, MA (USA)]

 


April 10, 2011
Unsound Festival New York 2011: 
Lustmord, Void Ov Voices, Robert Piotrowicz 
@ Abrons Arts Center [New York City, NY (USA)]

I nearly died when I saw that Lustmord was playing nearby. The only show I knew of from recent times was the Unsound Festival last year in Poland. Now he was going to play at the Unsound Festival in New York city. It was going to be a happy birthday to me.

Robert Piotrowicz was up first. His set was ear-piercingly harsh. The first song sounded like a telephone screaming for ten minutes in different tones. It hurt my ears a lot. Most of the people around me vacated their seats. I stayed and suffered just so I could tell you, my dear readers, that I wasn't judging the set for its first 5 minutes. I stayed the full twenty to thirty minutes. The second and third tracks were easier on my ears, but they weren't suited for my tastes either. Many people in the audience seemed to enjoy it from the amount of applause he received at the end of the set. If you are a person who appreciates high pitched frequencies over abstract noise, you might want to give his material a listen.

I asked Frederic from Cyclic Law about Void Ov Voices since he had seen him. He said something about "throat chanting". Ok. That could be really interesting... I could see there was an altar set up with candles. I could also smell them. They were the same ones used in Catholic churches. Being a former altar boy, I was quite familiar with that distinct scent.

A man came out in black robe with a deep cowl hiding most of his face. He was like the head priest about to conduct a black mass. He sat down behind the altar with the lit candles. He picked the microphone. The hall was dead silent. The first abyssal notes were like sonic shockwaves reverberating all around us. They were looped so he could add more sounds and chanting. All around us were a chorus of cultists calling forth Satan or a great old one, but sung with one voice.

There was never a break in the performance. When certain loops were rendered useless, they were discarded to be replaced by new chants and sounds. If he wanted to keep the loops running and speak over them, his buried voice boomed over the chants. At one point I heard "Ai! Ai! Satan!" I swear he was going to say "Ai! Ai! Fhtagn!" and call forth Great Cthulhu.

He ended the performance with long subterranean tones as he put out the candles in a specific order. He did this by placing his gloved hand over each candle to snuff out the flame, ever darkening the lightless stage. Either this guy has a high tolerance for heat and pain or the palm of his glove was enough protection. The final candle was in the center. He held his hand less than an inch above the top for too long. His glove was ablaze. It was quickly put out before he lowered his hand back to the fire to snuff the life from the last candle. Thus ended one of the most mind-blowing performances I've seen in a long long time.

The guy behind the project is Attila Csihar, former singer of Mayhem and current member of Sunn O))). It doesn't appear he has any recordings as Void Ov Voices, but maybe that is for the best. There is no way a recording can remotely do justice to what we all just witnessed. I am very impressed with all of these one person acts using loops to perform as like a full band. If you ever see Void Ov Voices is playing, go experience the magic.

Void Ov Voices was not an easy performance to follow. I had to remind myself that I was there to see Lustmord, the father of dark ambient. His setup was simple - sit at a bare table with a laptop and have one of the most amazing videos behind him. I didn't recognize anything he played as the last work I bought prior to the show was Zoetrope. It didn't matter that I didn't know which songs were played. It was all masterful and as dark and haunted as Lustmord should sound. Drones and chants were drowned out by icy winds, which in turn were annihilated by unsettling low frequencies like inky black tentacles from nightmares so unimaginable that looking upon its face would cause insanity. His composition of sounds tugs at emotional strings that draws the listen further and further into his grim worlds. This is what drew me into dark ambient in the early 1990s. As if the audio wasn't enough, the visuals were a perfect companion. The blend of occult and quicksilver, organic scenery mesmerized the eyes. The clouds and fire and smoke and liquid. There was so much symbolism and patterns to tantalize the imagination that you could start to imagine seeing patterns and pictures like in those Rorschach tests. I kept thinking that if someone in the venue was tripping, they would be having one hell of a time. I hope the video gets released.

The sojourn was shorter than I would've liked. I'm sure everyone else would have loved it if the show lasted all night. When the video ran out, I knew the music would also end soon. We gave a standing ovation and thunderous applause for such a great show.

[Close Review]

Review | Pictures

 


March 27, 2011
Millipede Show: 
Millipede 
@ Darkroom [Chicago, IL (USA)]

 


November 19, 2010
Combichrist Tour: 
Combichrist, Aesthetic Perfection, Ivardensphere 
@ Webster Theater [Hartford, CT (USA)]

 


September 30, 2010
The Swans Tour: 
Swans, The 
@ The Middle Cafe - Downstairs [Cambridge, MA (USA)]

 


August 04, 2010
Tragedy For Us Tour: 
Iszoloscope, Ad·ver·sary, Cervello Elettronico 
@ Champions Cafe [Everett, MA (USA)]

 


July 03, 2010
Steel Hook Prostheses Tour: 
Steel Hook Prostheses, Bereft, Sewer Goddess, Xiphoid Dementia 
@ Club Choices [Somerville, MA (USA)]

 


May 24, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 4 [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 24, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 4: 
Satori 
@ Volkspalast: Kuppelhalle [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 24, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 4: 
Sardh 
@ Volkspalast: Kuppelhalle [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 24, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 4: 
Eldar 
@ Volkspalast: Kuppelhalle [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 24, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 4: 
Nurse With Wound 
@ Volkspalast: Kuppelhalle [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]

 


May 23, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 3 [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 23, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 3: 
Schallfaktor 
@ Werk II [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 23, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 3: 
The PCP Principle 
@ Werk II [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 23, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 3: 
Flint Glass 
@ Werk II [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 23, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 3: 
Seventh Harmonic 
@ Schauspielhaus [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 23, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 3: 
Loell Duinn 
@ Schauspielhaus [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 23, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 3: 
Arcana 
@ Schauspielhaus [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]

 


May 22, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 2 [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 22, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 2: 
Ashram 
@ Volkspalast: Kuppelhalle [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 22, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 2: 
Sonne Hagal 
@ Volkspalast: Kantine [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 22, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 2: 
Sigillum S 
@ Volkspalast: Kuppelhalle [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 22, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 2: 
Moonspell 
@ Kohlrabizirkus [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]

 


May 21, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 1 [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 21, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 1: 
Conjure One 
@ Agra Hall [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]
May 21, 2010
Wave-Gotik Treffen 2010 - Day 1: 
Kirlian Camera 
@ Agra Hall [Leipzig, Saxony (Germany)]

 


May 16, 2010
Kinetik Festival 2010 - Phase 5: 
Covenant, Rotorsand 
@ Usine C [Montreal, Quebec (Canada)]

 


May 15, 2010
Kinetik Festival 2010 - Phase 4: 
FabrikC, Terrorfakt, Nachtmahr, Destroid, Memmaker 
@ Usine C [Montreal, Quebec (Canada)]

 


May 14, 2010
Kinetik Festival 2010 - Phase 3: 
Alien Vampires, Combichrist, Absolute Body Control, Decoded Feedback, SAM, Synapscape, Komor Kommando, Iszoloscope 
@ Usine C [Montreal, Quebec (Canada)]

 


May 13, 2010
Kinetik Festival 2010 - Phase 2: 
Leæther Strip, Tyske Ludder, Imperative Reaction, 16 Volt 
@ Usine C [Montreal, Quebec (Canada)]