Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Gunshots

The second demo by the mysterious Bay Area Black Metal band Lascowiec was titled Gunshots Ring Out Over Vinland Streets. It was released in a very limited run in 2006 by my short-lived tape label The Funeral Agency. This release shows a continuation of the Branikald worship of their first demo, Gesamkunstwerk. Both Lascowiec demos have been released as a CD by Dark Hidden Productions called Asgard Mysteries. As much as I love this band, and know them to be intelligent and noble beings, I am sometimes baffled by their flirtations with the shadier political elements of the Black Metal scene. Above all their music is pure, icy transcendental bliss, and should be heard.

14 comments:

soundhead said...

love your blog.

period blud said...

when you talk about their "flirtations with the shadier political elements of the black metal scene" are you referring to them having a release out on dark hidden productions? anyway, great band! they definitely do not sound like they're from san francisco!

Aesop said...

That is a factor, yes.

Todd said...

First time I've ever heard of a band engaged in "Branikald worship".

Anonymous said...

is dark hidden productions a NSBM lable?

TMM said...

What's the connection with Horn of Dagoth?????

Helm said...

Nazi flirtations often have much less to do with factual political affiliation and more with the impulse of small musicians to join an established scene for support of an underground musical venture like putting out a black metal tape. It's a way to establish an ad hoc audience. Musicians often fear the most that nobody's going to give a shit about their music. There is an established and tested scene revolving around nazi-anything in black metal, regardless of quality, and there's a similar one in old-school-'traditional metal' and likewise for any other niche form. It takes an artist of great fortitude and self-belief to do away with those mechanisms of spreading the word around and simply put music out there that survives on its actual merit. Your friends might not have felt equipped for that at the time. I'm not judging, perhaps I'd have done the same (though I'd have picked a different subscene to nazi black metal).

What I find interesting about this band is the jangly guitars in a black metal context. Perhaps there's lots of bands like this out there but I'm not too much in the loop on this style of music so I have not heard something like this before. A minus is that the songs tend to run in each other, pretty similar material. Still, thanks for uploading and presenting, Aesop.

word verification for this post: prowl

Aesop said...

Dark Hidden has released records by NS bands mainly, but I can't comment on the agenda of the label itself.

TMM, at one point early on a member of Lascowiec was singing for HoD, but doesn't appear on the demos.

demogorgo said...

I would prefer "Forest worship", but I don't know if there's really a difference

Anonymous said...

love the guitar sound

Anonymous said...

this is a great downer album, love it thanks!

jAy @ jApAn said...

Can't agree with the above comment--this is not a downer album...it's an OPENER album. good thing.

Tyler Lunch said...

Are you aware of any possibilities of new material being released by Lascowiec? Such great stuff.

Aesop said...

According to one of the two, whom I ran into the other night, more stuff is in the works. The band is still active despite one member relocating to Russia.