Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter
Marble Son
Station Grey Records

At first listen, especially to one of her earlier albums, like Reckless Burning, Oh, My Girl, or Like, Love, Lust and the Open Hallways of the Soul, you wouldn’t think that Jesse Sykes would become a desirable figure in the world of heavy music (although she does look like a raven-haired mistress of the night), but thanks to her collaboration with Boris and SunnO))) on “The Sinking Belle” from Altar, the alt-country/indie singer/songwriter has made a name for herself amongst weirdos and beardos alike. In fact, she’s toured with bands like Earth and Black Mountain, and played at Roadburn, so whether it seems like a natural fit or not, the dark side has embraced Sykes, and now on her latest release, Marble Son, she’s embraced it right back. Truth be told, Sykes’ music (which she’s always made with longtime musical partner Phil Wandscher) has always contained darker elements, but never has that been more evident than on Marble Son, which sheds the alt-country vibe of albums past for a more psychedelic feel of melancholic finger-picking, mystical strumming, and distorted magic. In fact, all of that can be found on the eight-and-a-half-minute opener, “Hushed By Devotion,” which sets the tone for the rest of the album by acting as a giant rabbit hole into which you fall, and once the title track and “Come to Mary” sink their elegant claws into you, you’re adrift on the foggy river of Sykes’ wonderland of sorrow and beauty, and there’s no turning back. And that’s saying nothing of the addictive potion that is her voice, a kind of whiskey-owned siren call of hypnotic splendor that will toss you into thralldom on such songs as “Be it Me, Or Be it None” and “Wooden Roses.” Masterful stuff, really, as electric and powerful as it is lovely and languid, bound to nothing but its bold, broad appeal.

Listen to “Come to Mary” from Marble Son!

BXI
BXI EP
Southern Lord

BXI, better read as Boris + Ian, is a seemingly odd collaboration between Japanese experimental/stoner/metal/drone/doom giants, Boris, and everyone’s favourite spiritual tambourine shaker (when he’s not wearing a track suit and pretending to be Jim Morrison, that is), Ian Astbury. Personally though, I was stoked when the news first dropped about this hook-up because it seemed to me that throwing a huge stack of noise behind the salty ol’ shaman might actually resurrect his inner love child. I think it’s done just that. The four-song EP kicks off with “Teeth and Claws” and sure enough, Boris’ slow, deep, melodious rhythm goads Astbury’s voice into prophetic incantations about love, illumination, renewal, and salvation. Then Boris drops a brutally heavy, attacking riff on “We Are Witches” as Astbury grows larger at the pulpit, casting an army of one thousand ravens into the night. It ends, quite fittingly, with “Magickal Child,” the all-encompassing comedown, a sweetly distorted lysergic ballad full of atmospheric soul, but not before the procession is interrupted for Boris’ Astbury-less cover of The Cult’s “Rain,” which is a stand-out here thanks to its truly remarkable psychedelic pop vibe and guitarist Wata’s ghostly, porcelain voice. The power of BXI is mighty, brothers and sisters. Let it compel you.

Listen to “We Are Witches” from BXI!

Torche/Boris
Chapter Ahead Being Fake split 10″
Hydra Head

All right, so this one was really released late last year on CD in Japan by Daymare Records, but Hydra Head has just re-released it on these shores on 10″ vinyl (it comes in black, clear light pink, opaque hot pink with purple splatter, opaque light orange, and opaque purple with orange splatter), so it’s worth mentioning. Besides, it’s Torche and Boris, and I don’t really need a reason to talk about either of them, do I? Whether you snagged it last year or are just getting into it now, you’re probably doing so because new material from both of these bands is still forthcoming. Actually, it’s not gonna be too much longer now; Torche’s Songs for Singles will be out in September while Boris’ collaboration with Ian Astbury, called BXI, will be out in August. Anyway, Torche’s “King Beef” occupies side A, and frankly, it’s not one of their better songs. They’ve replaced their usual, awesome brand of sludgy melody with a post-apocalyptic clamour, and the whole thing just sounds like storm clouds gathering. You’ll be waiting for the lightning but it never comes. Side B contains Boris’ “Luna,” a 12 minute long showcase of the band’s schizophrenic approach to genre bending. The song moves from black metal trickery to ambient shoe-gazing to stoner fuzz riffola while the vocals breeze right along over top the whole thing. It’s a strange mess, but as always, Boris seem to have it all figured out.

(The Japanese cover)

Check out the video for Torche’s “King Beef” from Chapter Ahead Being Fake!