Asenath Anyox Interview

Silvis Records fans - here's an interview with the elusive Asenath Anyox.  Fans of other Silvis Records bands take note, as it's the same personnel, and many of the thoughts apply to various projects. 

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Sybaritic Narcissist Zine

Interview with Asenath Anyox, November 2020

If in some delicious universe Loveless and Siamese Dream had a child, it would be Alaska-based artist Asenath Anyox’s 2nd LP “Black September” - a majestically dense shoegazing wall of fuzz with catchy complexity, and vocals that are at once hushed and in-your face, nostalgically emotional and dispassionate.  Created in intensely introverted isolation in Alaska, with an unholy devotion to 90s ‘gaze and alt/grunge pioneers, Asenath uses an anachronistic formula to arrive at timeless rock.  This swirling mass of contradictions points to silent film, Proust, and - of course - My Bloody Valentine as key influences for creating a world that defies and transcends the COVID-19 era.

SN:  You’re from Alaska, and you record shoegaze music.  When did this begin?

AA:  I moved to Alaska 13 years ago, because it seemed like a healthier and more inspirational environment than anything else I could think of at the time.  I haven’t left the island I originally moved to. 

SN:  What’s your frame of reference for shoegaze?  There have been several resurgences over the years

AA:  I was listening to shoegaze back in the 90s, and haven’t really branched out much from those original bands.  There are a very few imitators I have liked - Fleeting Joys, Skywave (pre-A Place to Bury Strangers), and some of the BJM material, but partly due to a connection a friend of mine had to them.

One of my favorite original shoegaze bands that has had an outsized influence on me is Smashing Orange.  I used to know Rob Montejo; he was in a couple of my college German classes when I lived in Delaware, and our bands played some shows together.  I am a fan of the early Lilys music - another college-related connection.  I was a fair bit younger than those guys, and the other folks who participated in the original shoegaze movement.  Growing up, they were the cool local musicians.

SN:  Guitar talk.  Give us a rig rundown.  After all, this is guitar-oriented music.

AA:  Yes - and I spent a lot of time on the guitar.  I started Asenath Anyox with the intent to be a very guitar-focused band.  Everything is done on my 1963 Fender Jazzmaster that I rebuilt, through a single fuzz pedal, and then into a cranked Orange, Marshall, or Vox tube amp running through a 2x12” Vox cab.  I pulled out a few other surf guitars to mix it up, including my ‘65 Mustang, an early 90s MIJ Jaguar and an early 90s MIJ Jazzmaster just like one of Kevin Shields’ old favorites.

I have a lot more fuzz than I should, but for Asenath Anyox mostly used a HM-2 just like Bilinda Butcher, plus various Devi Ever and Keeley pedals.  I may have also used the germanium big muff, which is what I used on all the Cantharellus stuff - I forget.  The germanium, an Orange tube amp head, and my Vox cab are largely the Cantharellus sound.  That’s not really what you were asking about, but now you know.

As far as recording goes, I am mostly using Beyer stuff.  The M160, M88, and M201.  I occasionally mixed in an Audix i5, and a Latvian-made Blue Ball mic.  Mostly it’s the M160 and M201.  I am especially fond of the M201, and use it a lot on vocals.  It reminds me a lot of the Sennheiser 441-U I used a lot for vocals 20 years ago with Young Vulgarians, except it costs a fraction of the price.

Funny side story about gear - Devi Ever herself actually ripped me off during the making of this album.  I ordered a few pedals from her on Reverb, paid, then got a series of cryptic messages about the pedals being delayed.  This went on for a while, then I opened a Reverb dispute.  She shortly thereafter deleted the Reverb webstore.  I ended up having to file a Paypal claim, which I won.  I think she is a genius, and am not upset at all by the experience.  In fact, I would not have expected anything less than that from her, and knew there would be drama going into it, and was totally cool with that.  That’s why I used Paypal - the buyer protection.  I own a large number of her pedals - including some multiples, and some variations of the same pedal. 

SN:  How would you describe your style of guitar playing?  What’s your technical approach?

AA:  With Asenath Anyox, I am using pretty much standard Loveless-era MBV technique - very light picking, and the glide guitar tremolo arm technique, with the electrical tape tremolo arm extender.  I don’t use any alternative tunings - I feel like I get a broader range out of standard tuning, and get tired of keeping track of alternatives.

I originally taught myself to play by learning things like early Smashing Pumpkins and Dinosaur Jr., then moved into Suede, Johnny Marr Smiths guitar lines, etc.  I used to use super heavy strings, because I read it would help me get better faster, and develop finger strength, then just got used to the tone.   I also used to use very heavy picks, and play very hard - I would literally melt picks.  Nowadays I use 009s, mostly.  A much lighter touch.  Dunlop green picks, which are still on the heavy size.

SN:  Your vocals with this project are very light and wispy compared to some of the more boisterous vocals of your other rock bands like Cantharellus and Madolenihmw.  What’s going on there?

AA:  I recorded all of the vocals while very tired - sometimes half-asleep.  I wanted a different approach and atmosphere. All the vocals are through a M201 with a huge amount of Apogee gain, which is perhaps an odd choice for that.  

SN:  How do you make this stuff sound so huge?  Lots of effects and overdubs?

AA:  The opposite, actually.  Everything is pretty much a 60s surf guitar into a single fuzz pedal and a cranked british amp.  Even though I set up a ton of mics, I end up using the best-sounding one, and the guitars are mono.  Only a couple tracks.  No reverb whatsoever.  Not a lot of panning.  That’s actually the classic MBV formula.  Everything sounds huge because the live guitar sound is huge, without a lot of studio fooling around.  Siamese Dream got a huge sound by endless overdubs and track layering, but I’d rather play in a way that sounds huge in the first place - how MBV did it.  Most of the time the guitar is just two narrowly panned tracks.  

SN:  “Black September” is your second album, following up “Antiquities.”  Antiquities was very aggressive - like Isn’t Anything-era MBV scorching its way through a setlist and aching to get off the stage.  The new album (Black September) seems a lot less punk rock, and much more like a huge, heavy rock album.  What’s going on here?

AA:  Antiquities was an album I have been wanting to make for years - gothic, aggressive shoegaze, yet with light, sensual, half-asleep vocals.  Black September has less to prove. The next album will be very aggressive, high-speed.  It’s mostly finished, and called “Decay’s Way.”

SN:  Talk about gothic influences.

AA:  I have been into gothic / dark Victorian literature since I was old enough to get my hands on it. Aside from all that, probably the biggest influence on Asenath Anyox is “Isn’t Anything” by My Bloody Valentine, which has always been my favorite of their albums.  I hear a lot of the gothic in that.  I think they were listening to a lot of the contemporaneous gothic stuff, exposed to it quite a bit, and some of their Birthday Party influences from their early years are still apparent.  It also brings back a lot of memories of my teenage years that have a much darker hue to them.

The other band that obsesses me as my favorite of all time is Lycia.  I am fixed on the style, atmosphere, aesthetic, detachment - especially of Ionia.  I dream of music that combines some of those stylistic/aesthetic choices with “Isn’t Anything’s” aggression.

SN:  You have been working on Asenath Anyox for 3 years.  What’s the deal with that?  You release a huge amount of music on an ongoing basis, but this stuff has really taken you forever.

AA:  I saw My Bloody Valentine in Seattle, and it totally shifted a lot of things about how I think about myself, music, life, time.  Even though I had been listening to them for years, many concepts did not connect until seeing and hearing them live, and being touched by the soundwaves that come through their amplifiers.  While that may sound odd, there are definitely some very physical aspects of their music / sound waves that only come across live.  It is so loud, you physically feel it, and it feels as though it is dispelling all sorts of negativity and meaningless non-issues outside of your consciousness.  That’s the whole point, in fact - it is music that is meant to be physically present, and felt.  Anyway, after seeing MBV and being detoxed by their soundwaves, I conceptualized Asenath Anyox, and began slowly going about putting it together.  There was initially a lot of gear buying / selling, testing things, screwing around with getting the tone just how I wanted it, moving different microphones here and there.  Ages of that.  There were also technical issues stemming from the fact that my audio interface stopped keeping up with updates to my iMac, which required me to redo a significant part of my studio.  I decided to take a “discography” approach to Asenath Anyox, and record the full catalogue at once.  That ended up being 66 songs, which is a lot to manage.  There are about 7 albums of material.  I’d say that recording 7 albums in 3 years is a pretty solid accomplishment, especially bearing in mind I am still working on other projects.  Plus I took a detour and went to the trouble to become certified as an accountant despite not having an accounting degree or background, which is not something I recommend others attempt! 

SN:  What are you hoping people take from the music?

AA:  Whatever they want.  I’m not really thinking about the listener at all.  Except for me as a listener.  I guess at this point in time I would hope it helps others get through COVID-19 and do whatever it is they want to do, without worrying so much about other peoples’ expectations.

SN:  You have been releasing one LP per month, which seems like insane volume.  What’s the rationale behind that?

AA:  I guess I could release one album per year for the next several years instead of doing it on a monthly basis, but I like staying productive.  I’d prefer to be done and on to the next thing sooner.  There’s no benefit in delaying. And because we are surrounded by a deadly pandemic, there’s a greater sense of mortality in the air, and a natural tendency to release music - which transcends, and life - into the universe.  

SN:  Golden Hours in the Velvet Plague is clearly about COVID, right?  Give us some added insight into that song.

AA:  Essentially, it’s a song about hiding out from humanity all the time, and how that’s what I’d be doing anyway.  Sort-of beyond COVID.  I have had that mentality for years - I lived in rural Africa surrounded by medieval disease and bad public health decisions.  Death was more in-your-face there.  COVID isn’t a surprise to me.  It’s to eventually be expected due to the nature of human contact and conduct.  Isolation and working alone is a big component of my various musical projects.  Everyone else is having to isolate to varying degrees, and struggling with it, and I’ve been doing it all along.  It’s like a validation of that lifestyle.  I truly think the inclination towards isolation is a survival instinct.  

SN:  Where is the name Asenath Anyox from?

AA:  It’s a combination of an Ancient Egyptian first name relating to the Goddess Neith, of weaving and war, combined with the name of a northwest British Columbia ghost town not far from where I live.  They have a rad Eastwood multiple arch dam there - it is incredible engineering.

SN:  What are some of the other bands you are involved with that people who like A.A. might check out?

AA:  Cantharellus is a shoegaze predecessor of Asenath Anyox, and will definitely appeal to the same crowd.  Bartram Haugh is somewhat shoegazey - more darkwave.  Masquerade Generation (synth darkwave) is the most popular of my projects.  Skaltros is an Alaska black metal classic.  Silvis Records - my label - has a compilation on Bandcamp listed under Masquerade Generation.  Or you can go to silvisrecords.blogspot.com

SN:  What do your lyrics focus on?

AA:  Someone did an analysis where they looked at the most common words, and told me memory, nostalgia, and beverages.  That seems like it must be right, especially if they counted the words.  They made a comment that in my lyrics, “the past marches onwards as pitilessly as the future.”  Isolation.  Tropical environments have a big influence on me.  Temperatures like heat, and cold - living with them every day.  I’ve lived in Africa and Alaska.  Extreme temperature changes how you think about and experience the world.  

I carried malaria in my body for a year and had to take and then recover from terrible malaria medications, and that experience is part of my psyche, so you’ll find disease lurking around the lyrics.  That will be especially true of “Tropicapitulation,” the 4th album.  There are going to be around 3 malaria songs on that.

I used to have an attitude that lyrics are meant to be heard rather than read.  It didn’t make sense to me, the importance people that people attach to lyrics.  For many people, lyrics are a main draw - the featured component of music, and what they connect to.  To me, lyrics are mostly sounds that happen to shape themselves into words, which make subconscious suggestions.  I don’t try to “connect” with other peoples’ lyrics - I mostly just listen to the sound of them.  I view them very objectively as sounds.  I think of them almost like a synthesizer part.  I used to refuse to share lyrics with people who wrote asking, but now I don’t really mind.  

I have other opinions about other genres of music, though - I’m really into Ghostface’s brilliant lyrics.  He’s better than James Joyce, by far.

SN:  What do you think the purpose of making music is?  For you?

AA:  I used to think that the purpose of making music was to outlive yourself.  Then after I lived in Africa, I decided the purpose of art was to accomplish things indirectly when you can’t do them directly - the same as witchcraft.  I also concluded that it is better to do things directly, but if you do that for a while, you yearn for more.  Now I am back to feeling like I want to be making things that outlive me - probably because I am approaching a midlife crisis while living in a pandemic.

A lot of times I look at the world, and time, and how I use time, and I measure things in “songs that won’t be recorded” if I do those things instead.  Like, I spent a year becoming an accountant, probably at the expense of over 100 songs.  Maybe closer to 200.  What were those songs?

SN:  What is your creative process like?

AA:  It’s really like going into a job working in a garage, doing oil changes all day long.  I have a disciplined approach, with a lot of focus on efficiency and not wasting time.  I have all the steps sort-of lined out, and work at all of them in order.  I try to batch things - recording all the guitars for dozens of songs, then recording all the bass, then recording all the vocals, etc.  I will spend ages getting a mic set up right, an EQ the way I want it - then will save that just as it is and use it over and over.  Asenath has a lot more quality control than some of the other projects I’ve been involved in.  I care about smaller details more lately.  It could be due to becoming an accountant recently.  Or maybe just wanting to feel like I have improved.  If something isn’t working out, I try to stop for the evening.  I work on something every day, but will sometimes take breaks to rest my ears.

SN:  Can you talk about the format of your releases?

AA:  I am very much old school in the sense that I think of releases like “LPs” or “CDs” in terms of length, and cohesion.  Nowadays, you are supposed to do lots of small releases - lots of singles, EPs, etc.  I am experimenting with that a bit.  I really like the feeling of listening to an entire album at once - that is most enjoyable to me.  I don’t want to write “hooks” or ringtones.

With other bands, years ago, I had been doing a lot of double albums because I was using CD Baby, and I could list a double album for half the price of two single albums.  For example, Skaltros. I would record enough content for a double-album, which is more than two albums, as you can't use everything.  And then there were other projects like Naukati, where some of the albums ended up being 5 hours long.  So the production process became production of multiple albums of material.  It's a tremendous mental challenge to manage that much music, and going back to creating only 60 minutes of content at a time is less thrilling.  

Then CDBaby sort-of disappeared from the internet, along with my songs, and the money I spent listing my music there evaporated.  I should have gone to Bandcamp much sooner, but from a distance, Bandcamp seemed like a trend at first, and I oftentimes lack perspective into cultural changes since I live on an island in Alaska.  Or I will look at something like Bandcamp when it is new, then miss out on how it evolves.  

SN:  What’s next for Asenath Anyox?

AA:  I’m in the process of releasing the entire catalogue, which will run through spring.  Then there will probably be a greatest hits album.  I’m doing something similar with Bartram Haugh, which is a darkwave/shoegaze project - there are 6 or 7 albums of material, and I’m releasing one per month.  I’m also finishing up Mulozhi’s “The Power Broker Vol. 2,” which is going to be fantastic - it is black metal trap music.  All of that stuff is in the point in the project lifecycle where I’m mostly just mixing and mastering.

I’m also working on a lot of stuff that sounds like Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins.  Incredibly close.  I am not sure if that will be released under Asenath Anyox, or another moniker.  

SN:  What are your goals for your music career?  You give everything away for free, currently, and you don’t do any social media marketing.

AA:  I think that money blights music - if you are making music with money on your mind, you will inevitably gravitate towards the lowest common denominator, and make yourself miserable or insane.  I determined a long time ago that the way to become a financially successful musician is to become financially successful, and to be a musician.  I have been working at those goals for years.  I don’t have any desire of profiting financially from my music… with any of my projects, or with Silvis Records.  Also, it's simply not a good investment.   I'd rather focus on better investments, and on better music - separately.

As far as maximizing fans or exposure, I do not have any goals along those lines, mostly because I can only deal with a small number of people at a time.  And after doing that even just a bit, I need a break.  I deal with people to my maximum capacity at my non-music day job, so why would I want a lot of “fans” or “listeners” in my non-work hours?  It seems exhausting to think about it interacting with people… especially with regard to my music.  I am very much into sticking to my vision of what I want to do with music without external influence, pressure, audiences, etc.  If people want to listen, that is fine, but I don’t need a mass audience, and I definitely can’t handle that volume of people.

I don’t do social media because is much higher quality information out there for me to spend my time looking at and thinking about.  Also, I like sticking to my own thoughts - I need to in order to pursue them to their conclusions and realize their value and beauty.  I have things that I am thinking about and exploring that require concentration, and do not necessitate outside validation. 

New Singles - Asenath Anyox and Bartram Haugh

We've released new singles from the upcoming Asenath Anyox and Bartram Haugh full-length albums, both due out in January of 2021.

Grab them for free.  If you want to support Silvis Records, share our music with your network of friends and associates.

We also just got Malaxis up and running on bandcamp, starting with their 10" "Witchcraft Weather."

"Against the Grave" by Bartram Haugh - Available Earlier than Planned!

We are releasing Bartram Haugh's second album "Against the Grave" a bit earlier than expected due to southeast Alaska's recent massive landslides, flooding, and the announced threat of a nearby dam being breached, resulting in evacuation orders a few blocks away from our HQ.  Carpe diem, friends!

Nostalgic gothic darkwave/coldwave, mixed with Evelyn Waugh and poured into a glass darkly with homemade vermouth before being spilled against aging, dark, wooly sweaters of synthesizers. "Against the Grave" is the second Bartram Haugh ("HAFF") full-length album, released just a month following their initial LP. Imagine Seamus Heaney serving as frontman for the Cure. From Revillagigedo Island, Alaska - watch "The Silver Horde" (1930) for improved geographical context.

Asenath Anyox's 2nd LP: Black September

Asenath Anyox's 2nd LP, "Black September," is now available for $0 (or whatever you feel like).  If you want to offer something in exchange for this album, rather than money, share it with others.  

"If in some delicious universe Loveless and Siamese Dream had a child, it would be Alaska-based artist Asenath Anyox’s 2nd LP 'Black September' - a majestically dense shoegazing wall of fuzz with catchy complexity, and vocals that are at once hushed and in-your-face/mind, nostalgically emotional and dispassionate. Created in intensely introverted isolation in Alaska, with an unholy devotion to early 90s ‘gaze and alt/grunge pioneers, Asenath uses an anachronistic formula to arrive at timeless rock. This swirling mass of contradictions points to silent film, Proust, and - of course - My Bloody Valentine as key influences for creating a world that defies and transcends the COVID-19 era." - Sybaritic Narcissist Zine

New Mulozhi EP "Maladapt: Death of a Gravedigger"

Mulozhi's crushing 3rd EP - "Maladapt: Death of a Gravedigger" is here to push you forwards through what remains of 2020. Grab it for free, or whatever you feel is appropriate, and blast it as loudly as possible from your vehicle while driving past all the everyday psychopaths not wearing masks.

Also, feel free to check out the new Silvis Records compilation - it features Mulozhi, along with related outre black metal acts Ataxeta, Kuundlaan, Skaltros, Sutreak, and Naukati. (Also all on bandcamp, with "pay what thou wilt" pricing.)

Thanks for supporting Silvis Records, an Alaska label born in isolation, where we still make dark music without creative limits or commercial pollution.

Bartram Haugh "Entombed" Single, and Mulozhi "RICHWITCH" Remixes

December is here, and so is Silvis Records, which is going to have a very busy month.

Black metal trap artist Mulozhi has released a mini collection of remixes of the song RICHWITCH, found on The Power Broker Vol. 1.   The release features a special guest remix by legendary Alaska black metal artist Skaltros.  Meanwhile, TBPV2 is in progress.

Darkwave fave Bartram Haugh has released a new single for the song Entombed, from their upcoming LP "Against the Grave."  Yes, they just released an LP last month, but that won't delay the release of a second LP this month.

Pricing is "pay what thou wilt."  Nothing is fine.  This is art, and there are zero financial/commercial expectations involved.

Upcoming releases for December will be:

Asenath Anyox - "Black September" LP

Bartram Haugh - "Against the Grave" LP

Mulozhi - "Maladapt" EP

Asenath Anyox - "Yellow Fever" Single

We are changing the color of Black Friday by releasing the single "Yellow Fever" from Asenath Anyox's upcoming LP. 

Grab it with "pay what thou wilt" pricing.  Expect the full-length in early December. 

Sybaritic Narcissist zine writes of said impending full-length: "If in some delicious universe Loveless and Siamese Dream had a child, it would be Alaska-based artist Asenath Anyox’s 2nd LP “Black September” - a majestically dense shoegazing wall of fuzz with catchy complexity, and vocals that are at once hushed and in-your face, nostalgically emotional and dispassionate. Created in intensely introverted isolation in Alaska, with an unholy devotion to 90s ‘gaze and alt/grunge pioneers, Asenath uses an anachronistic formula to arrive at timeless rock. This swirling mass of contradictions points to silent film, Proust, and - of course - My Bloody Valentine as key influences for creating a world that defies and transcends the COVID-19 era.

Sutreak's "Wilderness Installation" Available Again for Free!

Sutreak's stunning "Wilderness Installation" is available once again with "pay what thou wilt" pricing at Bandcamp.  

Occult, remote-viewing-focused synth/ambient music by Alaska-based artist Nukshean (Skaltros, Kuundlaan, Naukati, Silvis Records). Seeking hidden meaning and revelation within overgrown soviet concrete, bygone Alaskan mining towns, lost Siberian logging villages, and sprawling emptiness filled with conifer. Blacker than black metal.

Asenath Anyox's "Black September" is finished, and is like a gorgeous child of Loveless and Siamese Dream.  We'll release it in early December.

Bartram Haugh's "Against the Grave" is also complete, and is a total stunner!  Again, expect a release in December.

Also coming in December is Mulozhi's "Maladapt (Death of a Gravedigger)" - a riveting conclusion to the artist's 2020 trilogy of EPs.  "The Power Broker Vol. 2" is currently in production.

Hugely Overdue: Asenath Anyox "The Antiquities" LP, and Silvis Records "L" Compilation

 It's Friday the 13th, and we're releasing two very overdue and anticipated albums.

First off, Asenath Anyox's "Antiquities LP."  Development of this album was a 3-year saga resulting in 7 full-length LPs worth of material.   We'll be releasing more info on the process, as it was a real saga, involving stacks of british tube amps, a library of fuzz pedals, restoration of 60s Fender surf guitars, getting ripped off by Devi Ever herself, and a trip to visit My Bloody Valentine.  Gothic, sensual, aggressive shoegaze along the lines of MBV's "Isn't Anything."  

Next, an album that has been listed at spot #50 in the Silvis Records lineup for some time - our "L" (that's Roman numeral 50, people) compilation.  This celebrates our 50th release (even though we are into the 60s), and features 17 different Silvis Records artists.  Although, let's be real.  If you haven't figure it out, all the artists are the same person.  To make it special, we included a cover of MBV's "Soon" by shoegaze band Alder Ashes, from several years ago.  We actually went to the trouble of getting a license to use it from Kevin Shields so that we can share it with the world.  (No joke.)

After being relatively quiet in 2019, we have a ridiculous backlog of music to release over the next few months.  Except to see 3 or more releases per month through spring.  

Young Vulgarians: Sassculinity / Milquetoast on a Catafalque Covid Reissue

After many years of being out of print, Young Vulgarians' two most infamous albums - "Sassculinity" and "Milquetoast on a Catafalque" - are now available via Silvis Records for free!  Because, as COVID-19 ravages the land, and as we enter the early 2020s, why not distract ourselves with the frivolously gilded dreams and nightmares of our early 20s?  (How have we done since then?)

Young Vulgarians began in 2001 as a solo project recorded on synthesizers and a Tascam 4-track. A Philadelphia industrial music label made an agreement to release the project's music and promote it on the US east coast, and in Germany. Live shows would be required. A band was formed around the early demos, but the label was not able to follow-through on its agreement and release YV's music due to competing investment requirements.

The live incarnation of Young Vulgarians persevered, and self-recorded and released a variety of albums on CD-R as "Caffeine Library Records." This included the "Songs 4" EP, and a 67-track album. The band used a unique combination of mid/late 1980s synths (inexpensive and vastly unpopular at the time) run through effects pedals and loud 1970s guitar and bass amps. YV quickly garnered a reputation for outrageous live performances around the Philadelphia area, which included energetic Iggy Pop-like antics, keytars, ritualistic destruction of 1980s computer equipment, and redistributing income by throwing money paid to the band at its last show off the stage. The band was notoriously loud due to the need to match the volume of its intensely zealous drummer. Because there were no other bands quite like it, Young Vulgarians found itself performing alongside underground acts in a dizzying array of genres: shoegaze, post-hardcore, skramz, stoner and doom metal, indie rock, electroclash, and post-punk. YV's followers were as loyal as they were limited in number.

After seeing the band perform live at the Khyber in 2002, audio engineer and composer Darren Morze invited the band to record at his studio. YV recorded "Sassculinity," a full-length album capturing the erudite intensity of the band. A group of Philadelphia music aficionados including Morze formed Counterpole Records, intended to feature YV and other unique artists. YV recorded the "To the Top" 7" (which was never pressed or released) as well as their full-length album "Milquetoast on a Catafalque." The Milquetoast Session involved full indulgence of the band's unconventional recording preferences, stemming from esoteric philosophical and occult principles. Vocals were recorded outdoors in below-freezing weather by a 3 story array of microphones. Vintage synthesizers were run through an array of pedals and tube electronics. Tracks were blasted outdoors and then re-recorded. The band drew upon influences including gothic music of the prior decade, Edwardian-era popular music, 1980s synthpop, and the mishmash of sounds around them. Lyrics reflected an interest in 19th century symbolist poetry, silent film (the singer was working as a silent film researcher), Frankfurt school philosophy, and various forms of nostalgia.

After a failed round of fundraising, Counterpole Records was abandoned. YV relinquished plans to tour in support of the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs, and An Albatross. Subsequently, Young Vulgarians struck up a deal with Goodnight Records, and migrated to Atlanta, GA to record the album "Napoleonic Melodrama." Around this time, the band dissolved due to its members - who had just graduated from college - deciding to pursue diverging career and personal interests. YV's singer and creative director ultimately moved to Zambia as a Peace Corps volunteer, then to an island in Alaska. The band played two reunion shows which were well attended - one in 2006 in a basement, and one in 2007 at Mojo 13. After a failed attempt at remote collaboration, Young Vulgarians re-emerged as a solo project (as it began) in 2013 with the release of Darktangle on Silvis Records. In 2018, it released its Autumn Trilogy. By 2020, the solo incarnation of YV had morphed sufficiently that it was rebranded as Masquerade Generation. (See masqueradegeneration.bandcamp.com )

Asenath Anyox is here! Enjoy "Golden Hours in the Velvet Plague"

Silvis Records is psyched to debut Asenath Anyox after 3 years of effort.  Check the first release - a single for "Golden Hours in the Velvet Plague" - available on Bandcamp.com .

Late 80s "Isn't Anything"-era shoegaze with gothic overtones, played on 60s surf guitars through cranked british tube amps and fuzz. Members of Cantharellus, Young Vulgarians, Masquerade Generation, Bartram Haugh, Skaltros, and more. Recorded on Revillagigedo Island circa 2018-2020.

Bartram Haugh Debut and New Mulozhi EP "The Horror of Mulozhi"

 It's once in a blue moon when you will see Silvis Records announce two release at once, which is exactly why that is happening today.

Bartram Haugh makes its debut with a single, "Winter Chanterelle," from its first LP.  Bartram Haugh performs gothic coldwave / darkwave recalling both the 1880s and the 1980s. Synthesizers, live drums and darkly ethereal guitars create an autumnal world of yearning, nostalgic splendor. Music for antique shopping, chiropterology fieldwork, OTC microcap stocks, and drinking vermouth neat.  Seven LPs of material are nearly complete.  Expect around one per month until next spring.  

The second in a trilogy of Mulozhi EPs is also available at Bandcamp today.  Swing by and grab "The Horror of Mulozhi" for your Halloween afterparty with "pay what thou wilt" pricing.  We really, strongly encourage you to get really deeply psychologically invested into Mulozhi's black metal trap music.  If you want to check the interview with this elusive artist, we still have it available.  There's a surprising amount of "rap metal" out there purporting to channel black metal influences, but it usually turns out to be someone wearing crust punk pants rhyming some slick phrases in a clearly audible voice over a pastiche of extreme music samples.  Mulozhi is the polar opposite - corvidly indeterminate black metal vocals howled over dark trap music filled with darkwave ambience and synthesizer-drive psychadelica.  Challenging, perplexing, underground extremity.

 Mulozhi's first EP, "Making a Fortune from Misfortune," is out now on Bandcamp with "pay what thou wilt" pricing.  Grab this gem and crank the bass until it cracks the foundation of your sanity!  This album follows up Mulozhi's ground-breaking full-length debut, "The Power Broker Vol.1"

Alaska-based artist Mulozhi combines trap music and black metal into horrific, darkly psychedelic soundscapes sure to challenge fans of either style. Mulozhi focuses on themes of the occult, the natural world, and individualistic struggle. A one-man project of black metal auteur Nukshean of Skaltros, Kuundlaan, Ataxeta, Naukati, and Sutreak. Unique, groundbreaking, sanity-testing material.

SURPRISE! Mulozhi "Folkhorror" single with Skaltros and Ataxeta guest appearances!

Fresh for October, we're releasing a Mulozhi single, "Folkhorror," with a guest remix by legendary and elusive Alaska black metal artist Skaltros, and an alternate version for riding' spinnaz home from the morgue served up by oppressive black metal artist Ataxeta.

Pay what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law.

If you kept reading past this rad cover image, then you will be delighted to know there will be a series of Mulozhi EPs, with at least one release per month, for the rest of the year!

“Respect for Botany” - an Interview with Mulozhi

 

“Respect for Botany” - an Interview with Mulozhi

Black Metal Trap Artist Behind the new album 

“The Power Broker, Vol. 1”

September, 2020

Northern Skyblaze Zine

Mulozhi appeared unexpectedly from an island in Alaska with a shocking new form of music - “Black Metal Trap” - showcasing elements of “trap music” hip-hop, and black metal, yet somehow being neither.  Macabre ambiance surrounds pounding bass and hi-hat drum machine spitting from deep in a dungeon, with vocals howling unintelligible poetry from Cthulian shadowlands.  “The Power Broker, Vol. 1” - Mulozhi’s debut - is the stuff of instant legend, blasting 3-minute-or-less anthems containing profound meditations on individuality, screamed transcriptions of authentic 14th century demon-summoning rituals, symbolist botanical poetry, a tribute to Robert Moses, and uniquely Alaskan nihilism.

Mulozhi himself is no less of an enigma, standing well over six feet tall and wearing a psychedelic Huichol mask under a nordic-looking mountain climber’s hoody.

NSZ:  What is Black Metal Trap, and why did you create it?

Mulozhi:  I’ve been listening to black metal in depth and consistently since the 90s, and trap music nearly as long.  Black Metal Trap is what I am calling this form of music, which uses elements of both styles - trap music bass, beats, and production combined with underground black metal-style vocals and ambience.  There are other influences in there - psychedelic electronic/synth music, various darkwave and ambient influences.  It is not a black metal version of trap music, or a trap music version of black metal.

NSZ:  You’ve been involved in various black metal projects, right?

Mulozhi:  Yes - Skaltros, Kuundlaan, Naukati (ambient), and Ataxeta are all one-man black metal projects of mine.  Ataxeta perhaps has the most in common with Mulozhi - I began mixing black metal with dub influences techniques, and various asymmetric forms/theories of music to get into syncretic BM territory.

NSZ:  Do you feel like BM and trap have much in common?

Mulozhi:  Both have a nihilistic worldview focused on the individual’s struggle for self-determination and autonomy, although trap is far more capitalistic.  Both genres lend themselves to one-man-band sorts of situations.  Both involve elements of extremism, shock, the creation of unique personas.  I am not trying to find commonalities, however - this is about synthesis into a new form of dark music.

NSZ:  Where does the name Mulozhi come from?

Mulozhi:  Mulozhi is a Kichokwe word for “witchcraft.”  I lived in rural Zambia, near the Angolan border, and that was one of the languages I spoke.

NSZ:  So you used to live in Africa, and now you live on an island in Alaska.

Mulozhi:  Right.  I’ve lived in Alaska for 12 years, at this point.  It’s quite rural, but not too far from Seattle, and I have access to everything I need, plus incredible natural surroundings - some of the finest in the world.  Wolves, killer whales, bears, wild food, hunting, fishing - all of that is here.  Sasquatches.

NSZ:  I’m trying to understand what to relate your music to.  What are your favorite rappers and black metal artists?

Mulozhi:  I can answer the question of what I enjoy, but Mulozhi is syncretic, and comes out unlike the various influences.  Lord Infamous, Kool G. Rap, Mobb Deep, and Rick Ross have been ongoing favorites. Dark music with a strong narrative flow.  As far as black metal goes, favorites are Transylvanian Hunger by Dark Throne, Nattesid by Taake, older Immortal and Emperor, Marduk, and Xasthur.  Apart from those artists, Boards of Canada and Lycia have a big influence on how I think about and appreciate music.  Also numerous African / African diaspora styles.

NSZ:  Are you a satanist?  What are your beliefs?

Mulozhi:  Satanist - no.  As far as beliefs, I believe that whatever people believe to be true should be respected as though true, as the actions they take and the resulting outcomes are the same as if it is true, even if it isn’t.

NSZ:  You are wearing a mask (not a COVID-19 mask) and basically mountain climber clothes, from what I can tell.  Explain your style.

Mulozhi:  I am wearing a Huichol mask featuring psychedelic artwork displaying peyote buttons and the blue deer - the spiritual guide.  Before you ask, I don’t do drugs because I need my brain cells - without them, I would be doomed to physical labor, at which I would be an utter failure.  Huichol art provides very strong, distinctive alternate depictions of the complexities of the world, and its interrelationships.  The clothes are practical, high-quality outerwear of the type typically found in Alaska. 

You would never find me buying gold, diamonds, chains, Italian veblen good brands venerated by hip-hop culture - I’m going to show up in some good stuff, but it’s going to be stuff like unique masks by talented indigenous people, and upscale Alaskan outwear.  I like clothes that I can move and exercise in, that are suitable for a range of weather.  It’s kind like how in the 90s, people wore Carhartt jackets and Timberlands because they were a symbol of practicality - that ethos, in Alaska, with some deep masks.

NSZ:  Who or what is The Power Broker?  Volume 1 implies there will be a volume 2 - is that the plan?

Mulozhi:  “The Power Broker” is Robert Caro’s biography of Robert Moses, the ultimate project “coordinator” and possibly the most powerful and socially influential individual outside of the Roman empire.  It doesn’t get any more gangster, or satanic, than Robert Moses, in terms of amassing and asserting individualistic power, for better and for worse.  I have always liked the term. 

Robert Moses pointed out in his critique of the biography that a “power broker” doesn’t actually mean anything.  What does it mean to be a “broker” of “power?”  He thought it was nonsensical, and he has something of a point, and that just makes it all the better as a title, for me.  Anticipating your next question, I will clarify that I am well aware that Robert Moses was a psychopathic racist, and am not making any sort of pro-Moses statement with the title.

As far as a follow-up, there will be more Mulozhi.

NSZ:   Is there a political dynamic to your music?  I note there is a song called “anarchodemon,” which suggests anarchy.

Mulozhi:  Mulozhi doesn’t get into politics, other than the general sense of drama involved in the struggle of the individual within or against the context of their surroundings.  The politics of self-determination.  Generally, I’m a believer in individual freedom of choice in all things, in Crowleyian sense of “do what thou wilt,” as long as it doesn’t interfere or impose upon the life of others.  I oppose anything that impairs individual freedom.  I also believe everyone deserves a reasonable standard of human living, which can be improved on an ongoing basis.  Maybe that sounds political in an era of increased selfishness and fascism, both things I detest.

NSZ:  COVID-19 has changed our world, and has impacted music in numerous ways.  How has COVID-19 impacted you as an artist?

Mulozhi:  In a lot of ways, I was already socially isolated to begin with.  I live on an island in Alaska, and wasn’t really hanging out with people a whole lot.  There aren’t a lot of other black metal trap artists here, or even black metal artists.  Or trap artists.  I also have been making dark, aggressive music for years, well before the influence of COVID.  Perhaps there are more people living in isolation now, who can connect with music made in that sort of context.

I have had notably more time recently to work on music and experiment, but that is not entirely due to COVID-19.  For several months, I was working to become certified as an accountant, without having an accounting degree, which is a somewhat insane undertaking requiring huge amounts of time.  To do that, I had to cut my sleep back to 4 hours per night for about 10 months, which also meant I had to get my diet very clean, and get plenty of exercise in.  After passing the exams and getting certified as an accountant, there was a huge void in my schedule, which I have been backfilling with music.

NSZ:  So you are saying that becoming an accountant has had a bigger impact on your approach to black metal trap music than COVID-19 lately?

Mulozhi:  Essentially, yes. 

NSZ:  Any other thoughts on COVID?

Mulozhi:  My consciousness of disease and its capabilities and possibilities has been acute from living in Africa. I have been a germaphobe for some time, so my concerns about disease seem vindicated by current events.  The problems are very similar to things I saw in Africa - poor public health choices, lack of public health education, superstition, politics, nonsensical miracle cures, profiteering.  Living on an island in Alaska is a nice way to minimize risks during times like this.

NSZ:  Let’s get back to the Power Broker.  With Skaltros and Kuundlaan, songs could easily be 10 minutes or longer.  Skaltros had numerous double albums, and your project Naukati has albums lasting as long as 4 and 5 hours. All of the Mulozhi songs are around 3 minutes or less, and Powerbroker clocks in at around 30 mins.  Why so comparatively short?

Mulozhi:  Where the other projects you mention use time as a device to detach the listener from reality and take them beyond their conscious attention span, Mulozhi hits hard and fast, then switches it up to new ideas.  You can always come back.  With Skaltros or Kuundlaan, you are meant to always be following a trail forwards.

NSZ:  Tell me about the meaning of the song Cossart Road.  It seems to most resemble (somewhat) a conventional rap song.

Mulozhi:  Cossart Road is near where I grew up.  There is a house rumored to belong to a cult, where human and animal sacrifices have been made.  The film “The Village” was filmed in the area, and at one point, the film set was mistaken for actual cult activity.  The Johnson Gang also murdered and buried people along the road.  There is definitely a heavily sinister atmosphere - the trees grow away from the cult house, and the area is full of high school and college kids trying to see the cultists, vandalizing stuff, sneaking around causing havoc, and even sacrificing or leaving behind body parts of actual animals.  Every night - a parade of mischief.  If you drive into the area, it is typical for some sort of security people in red pickups or black SUVs to chase you away.  The song is about coming back to that area as an adult, buying a house, and basically starting my own cult and ruling the neighborhood - sort-of like my version of a rapper boasting about buying a mansion in a neighborhood that conveys a lot of prestige, or buying commercial real estate in a neighborhood where you grew up poor.  It is also about lending legitimacy to a folk legend.

NSZ:  Is your work meant to be funny?  Is black metal trap meant to be funny?  Or ironic?

Mulozhi:  No - nothing is intended to cause you to laugh.  I think the concepts fit together well.   It’s been fitting together in my mind for years.  I am 100% serious about this, and nothing is meant to be novelty, or ironic.

 NSZ:  What is the song “vermouth” about?

Mulozhi:  There have been plenty of drinking/beverage songs - in the hip-hop genre, as well as in the viking drinking song genre, which is a precursor to black metal.  While beer, various cognacs, etc. have been featured, I don’t think anyone has done a song specifically about vermouth.  I think that’s because vermouth is poorly understood.  I make my own, using various herbs and botanicals, and done right, it is extremely interesting with astonishing depth.  I love botany, and the concept of the effects of natural plants upon human biology.  Vermouth is a playground of synergistic botanical / human interaction, but is not something that is seriously considered by most people today.  So, I figured for all of those reasons, it deserves its own black metal trap song.

NSZ:  That explanation seems somewhat humorous.  Is the song meant to be humorous in any way?

Mulozhi:  No.  If you made your own vermouth, as I do, you would not think that funny at all.  Vermouth is respect for botany.

NSZ:  Do you see Mulozhi playing live?

Mulozhi:  No.  I am not into live “rap shows” where it is someone jumping around and yelling over a backing track.  In this case, there isn’t anything to “play” - it is all computer-based.  Concerts - gatherings of people - are pretty much the opposite of the isolation that forms a big part of the context of this music.  

NSZ:  There have been a lot of alternative rappers within the last few years.  Emo rap, mumble rap, and even people using elements of black and extreme metal.  What is your take on that?

Mulozhi:  As far as black metal’s role in that, I primarily see black metal being co-opted to create visual shock or excitement.  Having black metal influence - of any type - is better than not having black metal influence, so I am not going to complain. It is disturbing to see the misogyny carry over from mainstream hip-hop to some of the emo, mumble, metal-influenced rap with roots in forms of music where that type of disrespect would not be permissible.  I was around a lot of the mid/late 90s emotional hardcore, and that sort of disrespect never would have been tolerated, nor does it have a home within the metal scene.

I see Mulozhi having a unique niche due to the vocals being traditional black metal style, whereas the alternative rappers are more doing traditional/recognizable rapping, just over different types of samples, and/or wearing different clothes.  I like a lot of that type of music, though - some of it is brilliant.

NSZ:  To what extent is Mulozhi influenced by African spirituality?

Mulozhi:  Speaking African languages daily in life and work rewired various parts of my brain / understanding to function differently, and I view time, space, narrative, and other key elements of human perception in a way different from most others in the US.  I won’t comment on the spirituality / spiritual constructions here, except to say they have changed my view of the world.  I am interested in how diverse cultures describe and construct reality and spirituality overall - I think it is very healthy to expand consciousness beyond self-awareness, and gain access to different concepts of time and space.

NSZ:  How does Alaska impact your music?

Mulozhi:  Because I live there, Alaska naturally finds its way into most things I write or do.  But other places I have lived and worked do, as well.  We’ve mentioned Zambia, but there is also Micronesia, and insular areas of the Pacific. I am a big fan of Chamorro cuisine and Pohnpeian myth.

NSZ:  What is the intended effect of Mulozhi on the listener?

Mulozhi:  I really don’t have the listener in mind, so I’ll leave their reactions to them.  Mulozhi is fulfilling various creative needs for me personally.  Although, I do think about how the bass sounds, including both inside and outside a vehicle, because I want to get that right.

NSZ:  What is your goal for Mulozhi?  What would be a success?

Mulozhi:  I would love to see it blow up like Lil Peep or Tekashi - really go viral and perplex - but I don’t expect that whatsoever because people generally have trouble with music that doesn’t have distinctive, discernable vocals.  Some people place enormous value in being able to connect to lyrics as they are sung.  Or, being shocked by lyrical content.  Mulozhi vocals sound more defaced, or like layers of obscured synth.  They play a similar role, in fact.  I’m not going to change that.  

Mulozhi Debut LP: "The Power Broker, Vol. 1" - Out Now!

Silvis Records is starting-off September with the release of black metal trap artist Mulozhi's debut LP, "The Power Broker, Vol. 1."  

The Power Broker, Vol. 1 combines trap music and black metal into horrific, darkly psychedelic soundscapes sure to confuse and challenge fans of either genre.  Mulozhi focuses on themes of the occult, the natural world, and individualistic struggle. A one-man project of black metal auteur Nukshean of Skaltros, Kuundlaan, Ataxeta, Naukati, and Sutreak. Unique, groundbreaking material that is sure to test your sanity and expand your mind.

Grab it at Bandcamp using "pay what thou wilt" pricing, and feel the remainder of the year wilt with autumn.

Mulozhi Single "Cossart Road" Available Now - BLACK METAL TRAP MUSIC

Outrageously Unique black metal trap artist Mulozhi has released his first single, "Cossart Road," off the forthcoming album "The Power Broker, Volume 1."  Grab it off Bandcamp today.

Alaskan artist Mulozhi combines trap music and black metal into horrific, darkly psychedelic soundscapes sure to piss off fans of either genre. Mulozhi focuses on themes of the occult, the natural world, and individualistic struggle. A one-man project of black metal auteur Nukshean of Skaltros, Kuundlaan, Ataxeta, Naukati, and Sutreak. Unique, groundbreaking material that is sure to test your sanity and expand your mind.