OMM Anniversary & Updates

Obscure Media Monday celebrated its anniversary somewhere in the haze of November. There were around 32 entries of content in that year, slightly better than an every-other week average. To kick off year two, here are some updates on previously featured artists:


Abney Park has a new album, Aether Shanties, coming out Dec. 1^st. Captain Robert has posted a two of the tracks for download.


Tapping the Vein's second album, Another Day Down, is available from Amazon.com and is as solid as their first.

Die Warzau's excellent, Convenience, is currently available from Pulseback Records.

Nouvelle Vague's third album, Nouvelle Vague 3, was released in June in Europe and is now available in the States via Amazon.com.

Finally, if you missed it during its short theater run, The Hurt Locker will be available on DVD and Blu-Ray on Jan. 2^nd. OMM will cover another Kathryn Bigelow movie, Strange Days, in the near future.

Music: Nosferatu

It's the Halloween season, and when in the mood for quintessential gothic rock, Nosferatu is the perfect fit.

Formed in the UK in 1988 during the second wave of goth music, Nosferatu does not shirk its heritage. Named for the king of the undead? Check. Low, wailing vocals? Check. Relentless guitars counterpointed by organ and harpsicord-like keyboards? Check. Enough vampire, witch and ghoul-themed songs to fill an entire album? Double check.

"The Haunting" from 1996's Prince of Darkness:

While moderately successful in the UK and Europe, most of Nosferatu's popularity in the US stems from Cleopatra Records various goth anthology records. Regardless, Nosferatu has continued to record, with an ever-changing line up of musicians, for over twenty years. Only lead guitarist Damien DeVille is an originating member.

As is the case with many obscure or near-obscure bands, Nosferatu has embraced digital distribution, taking advantage of all that MySpace, SoundClick and Amazon have to offer.

Rasputina

There's a fine line between obscure and niche, and Rasputina might cross that line. After all, "cello rock" isn't exactly a genre that has received wide play. Yet through some not entirely obvious connections, Rasputina could be the most popular cello rock band in existence. Though Melora Creager toured with Nirvana, a single off their first album was remixed by Marylin Manson, and the band has opened for such artists as Manson and Porno for Pyros, Rasputina maintains a decidedly Victorian/steampunk/goth edge. Even Creager's lyric and vocal have a demure, yet subversive tone. Her song writing isn't afraid to touch on history and every album has one dryly humorous spoken track that mirrors Creager's concert banter.

"Transylvanian Concubine" from 1996's Thanks for the Ether:


Rasputina's first album, Thanks for the Ether, was released by Columbia Records in 1996, five years after the band formed. Columbia released How We Quit the Forest, their second effort, as well. Chris Vrenna of Nine Inch Nails joined them as drummer and producer on this second album, leading to slightly harder, distorted sound. Neither was particularly appealing to a wide audience. The band's next two albums would be released on Instinct Records and 2007's Oh Perilous World was released independently. All albums are currently available through Amazon.com as downloads and selectively in other formats.

Unto Ashes

Gothic: adj.

2. Of or relating to the Middle Ages; medieval.
3. a. Of or relating to an architectural style prevalent in western Europe from the 12th through the 15th century and characterized by pointed arches, rib vaulting, and a developing emphasis on verticality and the impression of height.
4. Of or relating to painting, sculpture, or other art forms prevalent in northern Europe from the 12th through the 15th century.
5. Of or relating to a style of fiction that emphasizes the grotesque, mysterious, and desolate.

The Free Dictionary

In many ways, the music of Unto Ashes embodies the concept of "gothic" more fully than typical goth bands like The Cure, Bauhaus, or The Sisters of Mercy. Founded, produced, and largely performed by Maichael Laird, Unto Ashes eschews the harsh, thundering darkness that can be summoned by electric guitars and basses. Instead, a medieval atmosphere is created with the use of 13^th and 14^th century instrumentation (such as dulcimers and bells) and writings. While relatively known for their cover of Don't Fear the Reaper, this band can also do justice to Petrarch and traditional songs. Even when Unto Ashes veers into more modern fare, there is still an expansive, soaring quality that is evocative of gothic architecture. Laird is not alone in this project: nearly a dozen artists lend vocal and instrument-playing talent.

Currently their website features two full-length mp3s that showcase the band:

"Fly on the Windscreen" (Depeche Mode cover) off the forthcoming album The Blood of My Lady:


"Emptiness" from Grave Blessings (2005):


Throughout their career, Unto Ashes has been handled by Projekt, Records and are easily available online.

"Cry Little Sister" Edition

"Cry Little Sister," or the theme from The Lost Boys is an interesting intersection for obscure bands. Many oft-covered song are, but in this case even the original is shrouded in misinformation.

Due to mis-tagging and mis-attribution in early file sharing communities, "Cry Little Sister" was most often tied to The Sisters of Mercy, despite the vocalist sounding nothing like Sister's Andrew Eldritch. The original writer and performer of the song is Gerard McMahon, who has also been credited as Gerard McMann and is now releasing under the band G TOM MAC. Arguably, the use of pseudonyms hasn't served Gerard McMahon well. McMahon, though not a typical commercial success as a solo performer, has been a prolific songwriter, writing for such musicians as Roger Daltry, Kiss, and Chicago as well as contributing to many other 80s soundtracks. For the most part, McMahon is now correctly given credit for "Cry Little Sister." Indeed, 80s nostalgia has given the track new life. With the release of The Lost Boys: The Tribe in 2008, the song was covered by Aiden and remixed by G TOM MAC. The original and the remix can be heard on G TOM MAC's MySpace and can be purchased through many online outlets. Surprisingly, the single never charted in the US in its initial release.

The song went relatively uncovered until Zug Izland's "Cry" was released in 2003. Since then, covers have been produced on a nearly annual basis, mostly by goth bands (a genre where the differences between "obscure" and "niche" could be debated).

"Cry" from the album Cracked Tiles, Zug Izland, 2003:


Zug Izland is not a goth band in the traditional sense. Their first album Cracked Tiles was produced by Insane Clown Posse member Joseph Bruce and includes ICP on several of the tracks. This lends the album a strong hip-hop-horror aspect that is far from the punk or dark electronic that has come to represent the body of goth music. Zug Izland's fairly faithful rendition of "Cry" has more in common with the band's second less-ICP-influenced album, 3:33.

Zug Izland is currently not easy to find. They parted was with Psychopathic Records records in 2004 and have gone out of print since then. Many of their songs can be heard through their MySpace or their orphaned Downloads page. (It should be noted that much of Zug Izland's music is not work safe or for the easily offended.)

Darling Violetta

If you're a fan of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you've heard Darling Violetta. During the third season of Buffy, they were one of the relative unknown bands to take the stage at The Bronze (the show's popular hangout/nightclub). Not only were two tracks featured ("Cure" and "Blue Sun"), but the band itself made an appearance. The next year, Darling Violetta was invited to submit a demo for the spinoff series, Angel. Despite two EPs and inclusion in other soundtracks, the under-a-minute main title became their most famous composition. Ironically, written in 1999, the piece of music wasn't available in any form other than on television until a show soundtrack was released in 2005. Darling Violetta's last album, Parlour, was released in 2003.

Here's "Spoiled & Rotton" off The Kill You EP (2000):


The Angel theme and the albums previous to Parlour are marked by lush orchestrations, including the use of a cello, in counterpoint to Cami Elen's stripped-down vocals. The latter album, while containing artistic "interludes", tends more toward basic pop, but is still listenable. The band is currently working on new music.

Darling Violetta's entire catalog is available for purchase through Opaline Records, except for the Angel theme. It is only available in an extended recording on the album Angel: Live Fast, Die Never.

Tapping the Vein

During the early to mid-90s, a confluence of musical factors produced a crop of alternative bands headed by female vocalists. Garbage might be considered the first and most notable, but the likes of Evanescence (and a slew of lesser known bands) predate Garbage's initial success. One of those "other" bands is Tapping the Vein.

Formed in 1995, the band's basis is drummer and programmer Eric Fisher and vocalist Heather Thompson. Though the name (and to some degree the lyrics) suggest "goth," Tapping the Veins sound is separate from the punk influences of early gothic rock and shuns the genre's later darkwave influences by keeping the musical elements to a minimum. Thompson's vocals are not unlike Trent Reznor's of Nine Inch Nails: she knows when the song needs to be delicate and when it needs a banshee.



Tapping the Vein's first album The Damage was released in 2002 on Nuclear Blast Records. It is currently available in CD form via Amazon.com and other merchants. According to the band's MySpace page, their second album Another Day Down is scheduled for release on March 10, 2009 through Dancing Ferret Discs and IsoTank Music and will be available through other online retailers.

Of particular personal note, the VOTS 2009 Spring League team Plastic Falls was named for the song "Sugar Falls":

Abney Park

Steampunk. That is the genre name that Abney Park prefers these days. A label usually reserved for steam engine era "future" technology, it fits Abney Park's mixture of industrial dance beats and turn-of-the-previous-century orchestral instrumentation. With a bit of 90s goth and world music influences thrown in for good measure. What might end up being an unfocused mess in the hands of lesser musicians is held together perfectly by Robert Brown's vocal and the rest of the "crew." Though they've been around for a decade (and are probably not-so-obscure in some circles), Abney Park continues to become solid contiguous whole.

Abney Park offers quite a few songs for free via their Vault.

From their 2000 release Cemetery Number 1, this is "The Wake":


This year's "Airship Pirate" off of Lost Horizons:


And, better than anything you'll hear at the mall this month, "Little Drummer Boy" from Dark Christmass:


Four of Abney Park's albums are currently available from Amazon.com in both CD and digital form and in CD form off their website. Cemetery Number 1, Twisted & Broken (a remix album) and Dark Christmass are available through Vault access. I've purchased Vault access in the past and have found the band to be great to do business with.

Update (before I even post):
Dark Christmass is being offered for a limited time as a separate download!