Words by Peter Tanski
Peter Tanski grew up in the small but thriving Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area, fronting several bands and founding the music and literary fanzine, Exmortus. After a brief stint living in Manhattan’s Lower East Side and writing for Legends Magazine, he returned to Pennsylvania where he began to work with web based music site NEPA Rocks. He currently fronts the melodic hardcore/punk band, Heart Out and hosts The Book of Very Very Bad Things PodZine.
Within the pages of this much esteemed publication I have exhaustively expounded upon the myriad virtues of music as the temporal adjudicator, opening portals to time’s bygone and antiquated. I have testified to the unwavering might and living water that is the cathedral of sonic devotion. I have salved my own psychic wounds with the panacea that is the recorded sound. It has emancipated, emboldened, imparted wisdom and woven tapestries of virtuous love and libidinous lust. It fills the empty spaces as I go about the day’s drudgery and awakens the profane that leers in the far corner of the psyche. In the hands of one Diamanda Galas, it becomes an infernal aural theater.
The Anatolian-Greek vocalist and pianist, possessed of a staggering 8 octave range, initially found her musical footing performing in vocal Jazz ensembles. Her talents for composition and imbuing both socio-political consciousness and Grand Guignol drama into her creations birthed the staggering epic “Litanies of Satan”.
Spanning over 40 years in an industry that never fully celebrated the seismic talent and obvious genius that has ever been plainly apparent in her work, Galas continues to make manifest her innermost toils, and performing at such an advanced level that the majority of the listening public simply cannot keep up. This June, Intravenal Sound Operations released “Diamanda Galas – In Concert“, a compendium of 2 shows from Chicago and Seattle, that includes her rendition of Ronnie Earl’s “A Soul That’s Been Abused”. Each track has been curated and culled from the absolute stand out numbers from both concerts in order to present a live album for those that dislike live albums.
As the “Heat Dome” flambés the East Coast and Midwestern states and I do my level best to care for ailing feline companion of nearly 20 years, the salve that is music has been my leaning post more so than my usual rate of consumption. Amongst the bitter pills, there have been a few morsels I’ve savored. UK power indie and home to some of the most relevant artists in underground music, Cherry Red Records has issued a 4 CD compilation entitled “No Songs Tomorrow”, (named for the classic single by U.V. Pop) which aligns stars of the bleak pop stratosphere as far flung as The Cure, Tones On Tail, Cocteau Twins, and Dead Can Dance, to Black Tape For A Blue Girl, Lycia, and Cranes. Not much in the new and unreleased category here, but for those yearning for NOW! That’s What I Call Darkwave!, it’s an excellent starter kit.
From Sacred Bones and the Eatern Bloc Goths that unwittingly became the soundtrack to every spooky TikTok video in the past few years, Molchat Doma have dropped a new single from their forthcoming LP “Belaya Polosa “, “COH, Son”. As bleak of their previous output with less of the 80’s essence, the ghouls of Minsk have distilled their sound to something more elemental and mournful. Speaking of which, the other “other” Death Rock/Punk hybrid group from Lodi, NJ, Mourning Noise have returned with their first album since the mid-1980’s with “Screams/Dreams” on Cleopatra Records. It’s as raucous and campy as you might expect, with elements of 60’s psych-rock and rockabilly rhythms. Glorious and glamorous.
My homeboys at A La Carte Records have issued the new LP by electronic pop artist Kai Tak. “Designed in Heaven, Made In Hong Kong” is bolstered with contributions from Chelsey Boy, Foie Gras, Draag, and many others, fleshing out the layers of synth and dusky swagger. Another stunner from the always cutting edge team at A La Carte.
Heartworm Press, the recording and literature imprint of Cold Cave’s Wesley Eisold (American Nightmare, XO Skeletons, Some Girls) has dropped their monthly Cold Cave single with “Hourglass”. This track stands apart from the last few singles in a flourish of New Order ecstasy and Madchester MDMA. A welcome departure from an already above average spate of singles.
Dark Rock and Industrial label Dais has blessed the faithful with a new digital single from the newly crowned kings of Hardcore/Post-Punk crossover, High Vis. Clocking in at just over 2 minutes, “Mob DLA” deals in the same terrace chanting “bootboy goth” (my term) that the crew is celebrated for, and I could not be more pleased.
These are but a few of the myriad musics that have helped to keep your humble narrator afloat during a particularly trying season. Some of you may have noticed that my podcast has been on hiatus for an extended period of time. Some unexpected goings on have all decided to converge at once in my particular universe, and ostensibly hindering all activities beyond parental and vocational responsibilities. I apologize and appreciate your patience. The Book will return, and I’ve something new and exciting in the pipeline for this fall. Until next time, try to enjoy the daylight.