industrial – The Upside Down World

MUSIC: MONA DEMONE TAPS INTO THE FUTURE AND THE PAST ON “S3RP3NT”

Mona Demone “S3RP3NT” is the funky, industrial laden disco record you need right now!

Something I discovered off the Bandcamp Album Of The Day column, this album has continued to grow and grow on me with every listen. The style is somewhere between psychedelic industrial, broken disco, minimal electronic funk, and a pop leaning take on EBM. “S3RP3NT” offers us funky, syncopated beats, singing arpeggiated synthesizers topped off with a psychedelic and wavering vocal delivery that sits perfect on top of the mix. This record makes me want to move, even if I’m laying down as I was for the second listen prepping for this review, I found my body moving, almost uncontrollably. Style wise, “S3RP3NT” seems to pick up where “OP3NDOORS” left off, which you can listen to on Mona’s bandcamp here. ”S3RP3NT” sonically visits several different worlds however the album feels unified and cohesive in both its sequencing and overall vibe. Flickering, funky and unique drum lines create a solid base for Mona’s army of warm, buzzing analog synths to build emotively rich sonic worlds filled with musical surprises and emotional offerings in nearly every bar. Mona’s music is emotionally dense, rewarding, and something that will not be leaving my playlists anytime soon.

MONA DEMONE (https://www.instagram.com/mona_d3mone/) states “The songs of “S3RP3NT” are meant to be anthemic. Trans people don’t have enough anthems and we deserve to be celebrated. We break barriers simply by existing as our true selves. I want these songs to lift us up, to celebrate us, to dance, to connect and to dive deeper into our transformations. Let’s grow our roses now while we are still here. Make the soil rich and send it forward. “

Mona’s music is original, timeless and refreshing in a world littered with music and art geared for instant gratification. “S3RP3NT” offers something new with each track and each listen and the listener will continue will be rewarded with sonic and magical discoveries throughout the album. The tracks on “S3RP3NT” flow together and create a narrative for the listener to navigate through while the warm, analog tones peek out of the speakers and transport us into 1986 in a musky, underground, sweaty dance club in a post apocalyptic decaying world. Favorite tracks are “WAV3RAV3” and “WHOREZ” You can order MONA DMONE “S3RP3NT” from Ratskin Records here and I highly recommend you do.

MUSIC: Mirrors For Psychic Warfare Brings Us Into Depths Unknown on “I See What I Became”

Mirrors For Psychic Warfare is the brainchild of Neurosis co founder SCOTT KELLY and Sanford Parker. While puling elements from both the artists backgrounds, this project serves as a true collaboration, where we can see both artists vision refined, sharpened, and amalgamated to create something beautiful, something haunting, something new.

“I See What I Became” like the title suggests, acts as a sonic reflection of the inner strife, turmoil, of grief, loss, a broken world and a confused mind, or at least it sounds like it. Kelly’s nearly uncanny ability to blend seemingly distant emotions and moods through his musical vision is as nuanced and pronounced on this album as it is on his solo works and the juggernaut-like unrelenting discography of one of the greatest heavy bands of all time, Neurosis. Like Kelly, “I See What I Became” is honest, complex, and layered. The voice howls, screams, cracks, and spaces envelop themselves as time shifts through non linear passageways oh healing, trauma, strife, beauty, all of the inexplainable complexities of humanity are magnified through the music of Mirrors Of Psychic Warfare. If there was ever a less contrived musical collaboration across varied heavy styles than this one, that would be a sound for sore ears. Give yourselves to the nuanced and articulate noise and chaos of MFPW.

https://mirrorsforpsychicwarfare.bandcamp.com/album/i-see-what-i-became