Description
There was something extra-political, extra-social, almost extra-human about it; it smacked of tidal waves, of natural forces . . . These emotions are my instruments.
Richard Wright, The Color Curtain: A Report on the Bandung Conference (1956)
In DEMON STATE, long-time member Dharma and Cheryl Ong plus Yuen Chee Wai continue The Observatorys bold partnerships, this time with electronic musician Koichi Shimizu (IMPRINT). Together, they finally reach this long-gestating, total (yet Im sure temporary), and rhythm-focused, electronic reinvention of The Obswhile briefly nodding to their past. The road is long; DEMON STATE is one pit stop in glorious hell.
Despite these multiple sporulations and alternate realities, the Gesamtkunstwerk-like DEMON STATE is a standalone work: of human menace and potential, and the restorative quietude of nature like mushrooms. The central pair of tracksalso the only two with discernible vocalsDemon State and Imprisoned Mind pulsate with rage and radical possibilities. Drawn from the subconscious, almost-automatic writing of multi- instrumentalist Chee Waiwho also voices his journal extracts in an uncanny tone, unintentionally akin to The Obss dark-wave masterpiece CATACOMBS (2012)the lyrics of the title track morph Demon State from a noun to a verb (Demonstrate, the unspoken Deracinate) to adjective (describing the various geographical demon states we live in, as well as our souls and sanity, or lack thereof); from the singular to the plural and collective, even rhyming it with Eviscerate in its fiery conclusion. The waste referred to in this ritualistic chant is upcycled into Koichis (Demonstrate Remix). Hearkening back to The Obss remix album BEHIND THESE EYES (2014), which imaginatively fucked up CATACOMBS, this existentially trying remix expands upon the lies overflowing like secrets with an alternate, demonic background chorus.
On Imprisoned Mind, The Obs are joined by Sukarno/Soekarno (19011970), Indonesias first president (from 1945 to 1967), and marching industrial kicks. Regarded as the leader of the Indonesian independence movementwhich sparked off similar struggles in Southeast Asiathe imprisoned and exiled revolutionary was renowned for his oratory. It is Sukarnos burning-through-the-scratchiness speech recording from the underacknowledged Asian- African Conference, AKA Bandung Conference, that is sampled here. In West Javas capital in 1955, the Third World of Afro-Asian political leaders (so-called coloured people, representing more than half the worlds population) discussed how to fully wrest control back from the French, Dutch, even the Soviets. Colonialism in all of its manifestations especially the insidious, modern formwas valiantly fought back against, then the fight was forgotten. Featuring the sound waves from this brief solidarity of the oppressed, Imprisoned Mind encapsulates a resurrection of radical energies.
Fittingly, the gamelan/gamelang/gamelinIndonesian, ensemble-type, bronze gong sets struck with malletsmakes a return here, but counterintuitively. The orchestral instruments that inspired a whole generation of sound artists are reclaimed in Panopticism (originally titled Evil Eye) and seemingly mimicked in Lichen; on this enmeshed album, it is impossible to differentiate instrumentation, let alone who played what. The reyong, gong, and (sampled) jegogan, composed on The Obss own six-tone scale (like on their 2015 album CONTINUUM), is additionally layered with mechanised beats and dual prepared guitar by Chee Wai and Dharma, who clip their electric guitar strings with stuff or junk accumulated over the last seven years, such as spoons and screws, clips and metal picks. While CONTINUUMs gamelan was mostly spiritual, almost ambient, and melody-based, the gamelan noise here restlessly skews towards furious rhythms. On the standout Lichen, for instance, an effected snare sounding like the gamelan vibrates with distortion, slow-then- fast tension, and insomniac hollowness of the mind. Hearing it (ideally sober, like with the rest of the album, it is intense enough) is akin to seeing things falling down in quick and uncontrollable succession: the tropical monsoon rain, hooked mallets, a masseurs knuckles, preprogrammed motives, the scales from our eyes.
Amidst all this regal vigour, a slight reprieve of softer variation is weaved throughout. On the A side, I330 twitches and glitches amidst the bass crashesthe titular character from Yevgeny Zamyatins novel samizdat We (1924) would be disturbed. Meanwhile, Animal explores the higher end of the frequency spectrum to shimmering and tinnitus-bequeathing effect; Psyberia transports us to somewhere like Aldous Huxleys Island [1962; a companion to Brave New World (1932)], where the subjects of this kingdom consume an indigenous concoction of psilocybin mushrooms to attain a trance-like peace and awareness. Sequenced as the penultimate track, before the closing return of Demon State in rehaunted form, this number glides with such grace and slightly psychedelic colours, grooving with the ostensible silencefinallyinto similar states of potential being. (via Label)
Label: Midnight Shift Records
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Limited Edition, 180g
Released: 2022
Genre: Electronic, Folk, World, & Country
Style: Avantgarde, Dark Ambient, Experimental, Gamelan, Techno
File under: Singapore Titles // Electronic
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