Providing a kaleidoscope of intrigue, suggestion, and captivation, the debut album from The Dark Red Seed is a journey and experience which almost stains the imagination in its creative breath. It provokes thoughts and incites emotions as it lures ears into its shadowy yet seductive soundscape; Becomes Awake evolving into one of the most enthralling encounters so far this year.
The Dark Red Seed is the personal project of Tosten Larson, guitarist for Seattle dark folk musician King Dude. It is an adventure shared with King Dude engineer Shawn Flemming, the pair creating individual realms and intimation within a fusion of dark folk and heavy psychedelic rock with plenty more hues involved. Becomes Awake follows last year’s Stands with Death EP; a well-received introduction to the project hinting at the rich and immersive adventure to come. To use their words, the new album is “a dark, dusty discourse on the departure and ultimate dissolution of life, “Becomes Awake” symbolizes a movement from darkness into light; finding balance through acceptance of one’s own qualities of both the light and the dark; the good and the bad.”
Featuring the guest contributions of Kelly Pratt (LCD Soundsystem, War on Drugs, St Vincent) and Steve Nistor (Sparks, Marissa Nadler, Daniel Lanois), and wrapped in the superb art of Paul Romano (Mastodon, Dälek), Becomes Awake draws on inspirations from Indian, Persian, and Roma music. There is a nomadic feel to the exploration at times, an aural travelogue of the ancient, old, and modern within its harmonically and rhythmically shaped, melody fuelled exploration. From opener Dukkha, the album just sucked ears and attention into its awaiting and awakening milieu, flame licked psychedelic atmospheres soaring over the infectious rhythmic rockery of its land. Drama lines every note and syllable, a web of sound shaping its suggestion, all through imagination and craft.
Lured in by the first, its successor, Darker Days, just ensnared with its inviting rhythmic stroll and dark rock/country/folk swing. Like a psych kissed Helldorado, the song is a warm infection of body and imagination scorched by brass, caressed my Eastern temptation, and ignited by the underlying tempestuousness of its climate and heart. It is a recipe of pure magnetism taken and then evolved again within next up Alap, an instrumental web of threat and discord, intrigue and trespass, light and dark. The piece did convert its prowess into persuasion as swiftly as its predecessors with fascination a quick return for its mystery.
Through the melodic calm and blossoming rapture of Ancient Sunrise and the animated slightly portentous grandeur of The Mouth of God which emerges from it, ears and imagination were simply roused before The Destroyer deceptively saunters into view with a mellow if sonically volatile air. The melancholic scythes and beauty of the strings are a resignation to an impending result, enticing melodies and harmonies a holding of the hand as the track’s protagonist looms. A well of contrasts and emotions, the track simply enthralled as it made its way towards the jazz smoky atmosphere and darkly lit depths of The Void.
Personal interpretation is as easy as absorbing the inference of the tracks, another enticing element as the outstanding Awakening followed infesting and manipulating body and thought and Sukha mesmerised with its melodic heart and transfixing drone; again contrasting textures so sublimely aligned by The Dark Red Seed. The first of the two is easily our favourite moment within Becomes Awake, a stirring and rousing yet hypnotic canter on a compelling dark bassline through crystalline scenery steamed up by post punk breath.
Diana And Ouroboros Dance completes the release, another track which took its time to grow in ears and appetite yet was laying enticing seeds from its first breath to increasingly grow over time. With its heavy atmosphere and Doors-esque roar, the track is nothing less than enjoyable from the off and thick captivation down the line.
That pretty much applies to Becomes Awake as a whole though straight away we found ourselves gripped by certain moments, enslaved by just as many others. The Dark Red Seed is one heart which will not make for a fleeting attraction.
Becomes Awake is out now through Prophecy Productions and available @ https://thedarkredseed.bandcamp.com/album/becomes-awake
https://www.facebook.com/TheDarkRedSeed/
Pete RingMaster 24/05/2018
Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright
New Day is an instant temptation in ears, its opening melody a beckoning finger into the waiting alternative rock meets grunge like stroll. The guitars of Jonas Edvardsson and Blomqvist entangle the imagination in melodic tendrils and encouraging riffs whilst the swinging beats of PerOlof Tellegård rousingly align with the alluring groan of Kevin Valberg’s bass. Embraced by Brännlund’s strong and emotive tones, it is a superbly infectious proposal with muscle in its movement and seduction in its voice with the veining of nagging melodies and sharp hooks only adding to that attraction and success.
Uh Uh instantly bounds in, its initial lively melody carrying an appealing tang as boisterous rhythms flirt and entice. That countrified scent swiftly lines the infectious proposal, its body stirring up an appetite for fifties rockabilly and sixties power pop while entangling it in modern imagination and boldness. Flirtatious and mischievous in energy and sound, the song is web like in its lure, vocalist Astrid Dante charm and enticement before the similarly infectious lure and imagination of her and Disaster Silva’s guitars.
Produced by the band’s Allan Bravo, who also created the EP’s excellent artwork, Who Shaves The Barber? opens with The Sideline Effect, a track which quickly winds toxically sultry tendrils of guitar around ears as intimidatingly heavy rhythms prowl. It is not an over imposing or surprising first moment with the band but a setting down of the antagonistic terms the track offers before upping the ante in hostility and intensity. Once in position, raw throated vocals carry deep seated rancor in every syllable they share whilst the bass backs up that menace with its own cantankerous presence. Things become increasingly more enthralling with every passing minute, the track emerging a potent slab of death irritability and craft, making up for it’s sometimes less than surprising exploits with some mouth-watering hooks and slithers of spiky grooving.
Doomsday Babies opens on a bait of drum persuasion which alone awakes ears with a licking of lips, the brief and singular but potent lure soon joined by sonic caresses and a moody bassline, all courted by an instinctively suggestive hook. It is a masterfully magnetic start which discovers new fiery energy and a melodic haze as again thoroughly impressive and enjoyable vocals come in. Vocally the band is as energetic and resourceful in igniting ears and imagination as anything but within the just as rousing sounds they seem to gain extra angst and zeal. The layers of the song, as its predecessor, reveal twists of garage rock, punk, pop, and numerous more spicy flavours, all woven and honed into something distinct and individual to A Billion Lions, though at times there is a feel of My Red Cell to the track; a positive in anyone’s book we would suggest.