"I killed a man
Who took this mouth
Who took this tongue
And spit it out
I lick the skin
The wound the cut
That bitter taste
Your sweet, sweet blood [...]"
Dana Schechter sings now. It's in the album title.
I'm also quite late with this review, so if you're a fan of Insect Ark you probably already knew that even if you didn't get the obvious hint.
INSECT ARK - Raw Blood Singing (black / bone galaxy vinyl LP) (2024)
The shape of the Swans bassist / lap guitar player's duo has changed since the last regular album "The Vanishing" (the follow-up "Future Fossils" being a collection of recordings from different phases anyway); her new drummer Tim Wyskida is known for his work with Blind Idiot God and Khanate.
Stylistically this doesn't mean a radical change compared to what his predecessor Andy Patterson did in the band. One phenomal guy for the job substituted by another phenomenal guy for the job, both serving Schechter's vision of Doom, Drone, Noise and Dark Ambient perfectly.
Everything on "Raw Blood Singing" feels like a straight continuation of the path that previously led from "Marrow Hymns" to "The Vanishing": the base of Insect Ark are bass riffs which feel like Godflesh guitars slowed down to Earth pace, sprinkled with subtle synths and piano here and there, and of course the characteristic slide of the lap steel guitar.
The main component which is new this time is of course the voice. Adding vocals to an established instrumental project can be a risky move, potentially estranging listeners. You have to be sure that they are worth it. And that confidence is undoubtly there.
I don't know if Dana Schechter's work with Michael Gira inspired her to add singing to her multiple chores in Insect Ark, but his influence is definitely present, in some of her phrasings (listen to "Psychological Jackal"!), but also in the weight of her lyricism, which seems like a very natural extension of the music.
While of course adding new layers of sound and meaning both the words and the way they're uttered take absolutely no time to adjust to. It rather feels like an element that easily could have always been there. Someone either just forgot to unmute the vocal tracks on the previous releases - or decided to replace the vocals with lap steel guitar parts.
Because those tools almost have the same function. They even alternate on eye level on this album: half of the tracks feature singing, the other ones focus on the guitar as lead voice.
So there you have it: Insect Ark are just as amazing as before, but they present their bleak, dark signature sound with new textures, an extra touch of modern Gothic and the actual lyrical content the music already felt it had before.
There's a macabre beauty in hopelessness. And "Raw Blood Singing" draws right from that well. Channeling apathy and inner turmoil this album is cold and distanced, yet dangerously close and immediate at the same time.
Just like the raw landscape on its cover art, which fronts a beautiful packaging and fittingly coloured record. Flawless Atmospheric Avantgarde Doom art, accordingly presented.
Stylistically this doesn't mean a radical change compared to what his predecessor Andy Patterson did in the band. One phenomal guy for the job substituted by another phenomenal guy for the job, both serving Schechter's vision of Doom, Drone, Noise and Dark Ambient perfectly.
Everything on "Raw Blood Singing" feels like a straight continuation of the path that previously led from "Marrow Hymns" to "The Vanishing": the base of Insect Ark are bass riffs which feel like Godflesh guitars slowed down to Earth pace, sprinkled with subtle synths and piano here and there, and of course the characteristic slide of the lap steel guitar.
The main component which is new this time is of course the voice. Adding vocals to an established instrumental project can be a risky move, potentially estranging listeners. You have to be sure that they are worth it. And that confidence is undoubtly there.
I don't know if Dana Schechter's work with Michael Gira inspired her to add singing to her multiple chores in Insect Ark, but his influence is definitely present, in some of her phrasings (listen to "Psychological Jackal"!), but also in the weight of her lyricism, which seems like a very natural extension of the music.
While of course adding new layers of sound and meaning both the words and the way they're uttered take absolutely no time to adjust to. It rather feels like an element that easily could have always been there. Someone either just forgot to unmute the vocal tracks on the previous releases - or decided to replace the vocals with lap steel guitar parts.
Because those tools almost have the same function. They even alternate on eye level on this album: half of the tracks feature singing, the other ones focus on the guitar as lead voice.
So there you have it: Insect Ark are just as amazing as before, but they present their bleak, dark signature sound with new textures, an extra touch of modern Gothic and the actual lyrical content the music already felt it had before.
There's a macabre beauty in hopelessness. And "Raw Blood Singing" draws right from that well. Channeling apathy and inner turmoil this album is cold and distanced, yet dangerously close and immediate at the same time.
Just like the raw landscape on its cover art, which fronts a beautiful packaging and fittingly coloured record. Flawless Atmospheric Avantgarde Doom art, accordingly presented.
Loved this record!
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