#nvrmndcru

Since 2012, Wicca Phase Springs Eternal began pumping head space with his 2-track demo releases of #NIGHTMOVES (#50STACKSINMYCOFFIN) & #HEXED. Where the young artist then established an ever expanding cult following for the self-warshiping Scranton #GOTHBOI, he "tranced" us into a very own sulky, industrial-like emo[-tional] trapstyle fantasy. 

Initially awoken, hindsight 20/20, the voice we hear is a familiar one. This choice of vocal sampling, is as perfectly distorted, as it ever should be. Producing an understanding, the speaker has the ability to have already read our mind(s), perceived our past memories, and be explaining explaining them back to us. If any of you are familiar with Plato's Theory of Knowledge, you may understand what set-up the story is following.

Our imagination cocooned in distortion, as this voice continues to enlighten the listener. Progressively, we level up within the darkened & cold vocals, over the hardcore-electronic sound(s) - that shit really keep heads bobbing! The feathery trapstyle (clap & snare), is so infrequent I found myself carried through certain tracks solely on this "1-Up" variant sampling

[The fact is I find it quite easy to produce mental imagery, freely and powerfully when listening to Wicca Phase. I find myself seeing an angel with no known name. A solider of death. That the breath of (said angel), being exhaled like a final one, as the angel hovers over a gravestone, with plant-life growing/dying in a endless cycle around it]

Another year later, as I am starring eagerly into my feed, streaming uninteresting and worthless pop remixes, from everyone's favorite local NYC DJ's spinning Jersey or Baltimore Club music (and to my delight), I spied a gem in the stream #FEB13. The first full-length release from the art goon Wicca. This time we got a more Iced out dance oriented rhythmic experience. The way the sound carries like a Gothic lullaby, like an echo panning ear to ear. As these dark romantic hymns are sung to the internal memory of lost lover, we can all put a face too. 

To my surprise some of the synthesizers in #BLOODxBABY are a lot warmer, than what I could have anticipated. This track lead me through the abyss of hyper ambience, breathy synthesizers, and depressingly cold-vocals. As the standards of this post [ insert microgenre ], Hip Hop, Electronic, Emo[tional] music are carved into (tomb)stone, Wicca Phases' dark narration seems to be a stand alone component in "Wicca Phase Springs Eternal style". Offering listeners a certain nostalgic sensibility. An English (UK) Goth Popstar clearly possesses Wicca's mind, body and soul. This is simply the first of 5 tapes, that Wicca released in 2013; #FILTHY// MY FAVORITE PHASE, #BITE MY EAR, #MAGENTAGRAM, & last but of course not least #HELLVERSION. 

#FILTHY // MY FAVORITE PHRASE, a 4-track EP, recorded with Steel Tipped Dove still features the depressing VOX, but does away with the heavy distortion, but instead incorporates more of a dirged ("Chopped & Screwed" or "slowed") aesthetic in its final tracks, offering a genuinely fluid listening experience. The vocals & the instrumental are mixed together very well. #BITE MY EAR, 2 track EP. Although, only one of the tracks is by Wicca, Per-say, tiled after the release. The other is a remix of the first track by Fantasy Camp, “A Very Maybach Version”. An ultimately more ambient version, beautiful key stokes, warm over the cold vocals in the background of the song. A women hymns over the remixed instrumental structure, alternating with Wicca’s lyrical content. This piece sticks to the roots very well, having an excellent timing, between all of the major influences that Wicca incorporates into his soundscape; emotional, trap style, and electronic. Even though a collaboration, its clearly one of his best works from 2013. #MAGENTAGRAM, The 3-track EP, featuring Fantasy Camp, just as before. With two original tracks by Wicca, and the final by Fantasy Camp. All three tracks are named after the title of this tape, which is a bit more ethereal, and has a west coast hip hop vibe to it, simple drum technique and seeing synth carried by the cold vocals that Wicca has equip to him. Fantasy Camps version is such dance tune, you could imagine if WOW KIDZ released a “Pop Goes Goth” album this track would be featured. Its very soothing, like wind chimes on your front porch, but merged with a stuttering of snares. 

Just last year, Wicca dropped three tapes, the first of which is titled MISSING CHILD, produced by the mysterious artist Greaf, whom you may be familiar with for his “Southern” instrumental sounds x Science Fiction aesthetics. We get a lot of the great sounds we find consistently in the best of Wicca Phase’s releases.

NN: Wicca, you have a ton of really visceral and emotionally raw music, not strictly based on your instrumentals but your lyrical content. Where/How did you develop your sound ?

W$PE: Developing my sound came from writing songs for years, and figuring out what I am good at and what I should stay away from. I cannot say that I am consciously trying to achieve any sound that I have heard before, even if my music might sound like someone else's.

NN: Comparing your original sounds in 2012, and looking over the past year, what do you think separates those styles, if anything ?

W$PE: My first songs were just drum loops and keyboards because that was all I knew how to do, and I had no idea what I wanted my songs to sound like at all. I think it took until last year, early 2014, for me to figure out how I wanted to write songs and what I wanted my next few projects to sound like.

NN: How do you define the world in which your sound/music exists (specifically tracks like “Not Even The Fire”, produced by JAYYEAH & HNRK) ?

W$PE: I can't say anything specific about that song, but everything I do with WICCA PHASE SPRINGS ETERNAL is about me, and it's controlled by me, so it's really my world in that I only put out releases I want people to hear, at a pace that I determine, and presented the way I want. I don't mean that there's no outside influence, because things like other music, television shows, world events, personal relationships...find their way in, but they are filtered through me and presented in the way that I see those things or have reacted to them.

NN: Where are you from, and what does that have to do with anything ( or mean to you ) ?

W$PE: I am from Pennsylvania, and I don't think it has anything to do with anything.

NN: Yes, what was your favorite track you produced or rap on, this year or even last year ?

W$PE:  "LIL BBY" by Cold Hart was my favorite song that I produced last year. I think it's the only song I produced that I gave to someone else. My favorite songs that I sang on last year were Cold Hart's "BLACK LIPSTICK ON MY BLUNTS", "Saddest Day on Saturn" with Mackned, or Spooky Black's "Echoes In My Mind."

NN: Will you ever merge the sounds from WP$E into Tigers Jaw ?

W$PE: I am not in tigers jaw anymore.

NN: Anything (huge) you would like to announce?

W$PE: My next album is called Abercrombie & Me.

NN: Would you care to give some details surrounding your next release, "Abercrombie & Me" ?

W$PE: I've wanted to do a synth-heavy, club-sounding album for a while, so that's what  Abercrombie & Me is. I don't know what an LA album sounds like, but I think this is it. 

NN: THE//MOON just recent released a tracked featuring you called “LOVING YOU MADLY F// WICCA PHASE SPRINGS ETERNAL. Can you tell us what went into making that track, and how you are connected to the the artist ?

W$PE: He was one of the first producers I've worked with and we've stayed in touch since 2012. It takes me a long time to write lyrics to his songs so we don't have many released yet.

NN: You are featured on the Cold Hart album Missed Calls, what was it like to work with him, how do you know each other?

W$PE: I work with Cold Hart so much. I think I first heard his music on Tumblr, probably around 2011-2012, and then we started sending each other songs regularly after I released HELLVERSION. When I start doing tours it will be with him and Horse Head.

NN: What is your affiliation to GOTHBOICLIQUE & THRAXXHOUSE, I have gone through a slew of throwed jaunts with features you’ve done with COLD HART, BB Sun, & a few others?

W$PE: GOTHBOICLIQUE is a group I started with Cold Hart. I think there's around 15 people in it now, but I was throwing it around lightly in the beginning and I need to figure out who the official members are so we can start releasing entire gothboiclique albums. I think I was asked to be in THRAXXHOUSE after I Mackned and I released a song. There's a THRAXXHOUSE group chat that has helped me become close with everyone in the group. Almost everyone I'm working with now, as far as production and features go, is either GOTHBOICLIQUE or THRAXXHOUSE.

NN: THRAXXHOUSE OR GOTHBOICLIQUE have any tour dates planned for this year ?

W$PE:  We're working on it...I know some people in THRAXXHOUSE are planning a tour around SXSW, and I think Key Nyata and Mackned play a lot of shows on the west coast, but I don't know for sure. I hope to do my first tour this year, and that would be a GOTHBOICLIQUE tour.

               'Astrosuka performing live, taken from Astrosuka Flickr' 

Three years ago many humans may or may not have heard of Astrosuka, but in 2012 I found myself encapsulated in the experimental concert dance style from the Argentinian Artist Astrosuka. Astrosukas' presentation of music follows through with such an audible spectral spectrum not unlike a buffering loading menu with a melodicXasthur guitar intro seamlessly accelerating into muted hard bass, with racy-pop synths, and sadden South American vocal chanting, sharp & aquatic textured ambience, a fork in the road in terms of where we found ourselves spiritually growing out of the carcass of dolphins, a mass the back drop of a glitchy rural town, burning crosses, and strobing decadence. The dead can dance, to the wailing drone tracks, with progressive synths reaching up and voices are heard echoing back, moan and subtly crying out, and you begin to hear tearing distortion not only in the vocals but panning of multiple voices and crunchy fractals of sound crinkling to these hellish sounds.

A little later on down the road, ‘now’ it’s the summer in the western world, June 2013 to be exact and Astrosuka finds a new way to plug us into their saddened-electronic death-Reggaeton, pop music. A dimension of sound projected like am oceanic vision streaming into our ears & eyes.

Dos Mil Ojosojosojos (por Espírtitu Santo)

Astrosuka released ЗОЛОТАЯ / / / / / ГРЯЗЬ and this album marked a huge turning point, not a major difference in style - rather a more fine tuning, and honing in on the style which they had been carving this certain niche, for years. South American hymns and screaming, coming from Tatiana (DRUMS & VOX) will have you creaming while the distorted reggae turns into a few different synth sample breakdowns all rolled in one, & build ups all mashed perfectly into a 11 really-really tight bite sized tracks. (I have to keep Astrosuka on repeat, regardless of the fact I follow the language entirely well at all). I can hear the witch in her voice beckoning me to continue listening, its all still very enchanting - with its jazzy live concert performance drum repetitions, which ultimately made it just a bit "dancy-er" to me.

Since then two additional releases appeared from Astrosuka, the first titled "Dislexia Amable." A 6-track compilation of a tracks by Astrosuka, "Dislexia Amable", the rest are remixes by featured artists such as Aylu, Vo5uru, Camilo GP aka Âgata Bostok, and finally Ornamenti d'Oro. The second release but including ЗОЛОТАЯ / / / / / ГРЯЗЬ have all been released on Aural Sects. The take Vo5uru expressed on Astrosuka’s Dislexia Amable was very funky, fresh, and had a classic feel. More or less was a series of Brazilian House, Hip-Hop, Dance remixed together, and fit well with the original soundscape, gotta love it for sure.

The waviest tape Astrosuka has released, has to be the one simply titled ||||. Their most recent as well, this album takes us such a heightened place in terms of their music.The first track opens up with very heavy and hard hitting bass drums, and male choir vocals along side their angelic keyboardist. Fully realized, omnipotent and with resident outbreak item screen samples, and tuned into their hip hop influences, and witchy over-chanting. We are lead into one of our first ‘Hi-Def’ & ‘Hi-Tek’ track’s, jungle beats, strewn under a distortion of VOX, scrambling like a discombobulated rendering animation, stuttering and spazzing across a screen. One-moment later flutes and more oceanic distortion begin pumping through the speakers, ending in a final dance transition into the next track “ℐunglα”.

That’s the thing with Astrosuka, as long as a track is playing, the energy never stops, keeping you jumping out of your fucking seat endlessly!

Amass the invoking of Spanish demons Astrosuka has grown so much since the beginning of their creation, with theses melodic incantations properly place over tight drum kits, with experimental death electronic instrumental samples, mixed into Reggaeton Dance-pop, into various breakdown styles. Crunchy spoken word over “RnB” based around thee dopest drum and bass rhythms I have ever heard contemporarily speaking.

NN: You have a heavy Reggaeton influence being from Buenos Aires, Argentina, is that something you think will always be present in your music, or purely Astrosuka?

Astrosuka: I think that the reggaeton influence comes more from when I was living in Bolivia and didn’t even like that music, actually i kinda hated it, but since it was everywhere i couldn’t really avoid hearing it. With Astrosuka we allowed our unconscious influences to come out in our music, so there was reggaeton and shitty mainstream pop stuff we kinda grew up listening to unintentionally. We liked the idea of using all the shit we’ve been brainwashed with to make something we like. It was kinda like finding beauty in ugly stuff too, you know there were a lot of people doing the same thing not just with music, but visual arts, fashion, etc. As for the future work, I’m not sure what will happen with the project’s sound, for me it’s supposed to mutate, we’ll have to see if the reggaeton genes in Astrosuka’s sound are strong enough to make it to the next step.

NN: How old were you, when Astrosuka became your main endeavor?

Astrosuka: I was 25 and my bandmate, Alan, was like 20 I think, we were in a post hardcore band at that moment, but decided to make a new one and design it in a way we could work as much as we can without depending on people with very little commitment. So there were laptops and we started playing the qwerty keyboards and making noise loops with cheap multi fx pedals like 6 days a week (lol)

NN: Where has your favorite place to have toured?

Astrosuka: We've been playing in some cities here in Argentina, and I loved all of the places we've been to, for me it's like magical that I'm actually traveling and making new friends because of my music. Both times we went to Cordoba were great, we've played at a venue that's legit as fuck and they treated us with much <3 Also a lot of people showed up at the gigs, we sold a bunch of CD-Rs, it was like ok, looks like this is starting to get serious. We made a lot of friends there, one of them Gon invited us to stay at his home for some days, and he lived like in the woods, there was a river near with big stones that looked like sleeping dinosaurs and the guy had a bunch of instruments and no Internet, it was very fun. Also Rosario is a place I love to visit, have good friends there who make rad music. NN: Titaina was not featured on the latest release, will she be returning to Astrosuka in the future? Astrosuka: She's now working on her solo project (Qeei) and there are no plans of her returning to Astrosuka, but we talked a bit about making some little collabs in the future. NN: It’s a bit early in the year, but can we expect to see some more digital releases from you soon? Astrosuka: Now I'm more focused on the live shows, we're working with a friend Pablo (he also has a musical project Bungalovv, check it out it's rad) So he's a new member of Astrosuka and will be mostly making visuals but we're figuring out some ways to make both visuals and sounds interact in a super fantastic way. After that I'm sure we'll be releasing more free music for all the people who are kind enough to listen. NN: Since you have had three major releases on Aural Sects, what has your reception been like since, older releases like ¡¡¡En vivo en Club!!! & Ѧ$†ЯӨ$ЏҠѦ (QLN / 005)? Astrosuka: When we made the first release (a live recording of one of our shows) we were playing at local underground punk and noise rock gigs, so the people who knew us were basically our friends. Then we released a cassette on Quelonio Records; that and some Youtube videos helped to get some more attention on the internet. We started to make new friends more involved with electronic music, after releasing with Aural Sects people from other countries started to listen to our stuff and it was cool, we had the possibility to make some collabs with artists we liked, dj mixes and stuff like that. Around the time of our first release with "AS" we started to travel to other cities here in Argentina and playing live a lot, too. Bunny and Joe helped us a lot to promote our music, got much <3 for them NN: How do you feel your musical creations, have changed from what they were originally or grown since 2012 to where we are now currently in the year 2015? Astrosuka: I think they've changed a lot, not just the music itself, but the way we play it live and stuff. In 2012 Alan and I were experimenting a lot with electronic music tools, without really knowing how to use them but trying to make them sound the way we wanted, so there was a bunch of noise, drone, psychedelia and stuff like that, our live sets used to be like 4 songs and the rest was improvised noise. Then Tati appeared, she played drums and sang and I was playing a synth with one hand and a sampler with the other + adding noise with a footswitch pedal haha, so the whole thing had more of a live band feel. The songs were more pop cuz Tatiana knew how to sing very well. And what I'm making now is more focused on the sound design, I've been learning to use synths and kinda know which tools are the best for me now, but at the same time the vocals are noisy and it's kinda dark. For me it has been like 3 different projects with different people, tools and ideas merged into one. NN: What is something about Astrosuka, that people are missing or don’t quite get? (Doubtful) Astrosuka: hmmm, hahaha. I don't know... Korn Falling Away From Me (Astrosuka R∑mix)

NN: Ultimately I believe remixes like Falling Away are brilliant constructions, taking really strong vocal concepts and merging them with your style and influence, what’s been your favorite track to remix? Astrosuka: Thanks : ) I made that one kinda fooling around, had a lot of fun. For me it's always a pleasant experience to make a remix, also it allows me to try things I normally wouldn't with my own songs (like applying the "witch house formula" to Mision Indecente's track haha) I think that the remix I enjoyed working on most was Sobrenadar's tune "Mision". I only kept the vocal track and rebuilt the whole instrumental, changing harmonies and rhythmic signatures beneath the same vocal melody and it was fun as fuck. NN: Will we be seeing you in North America anytime soon? Astrosuka: No plans for that yet, but I would love to. NN: Aside from the influences you get from where you’re from, where do the others come from? Astrosuka: Hip-hop, punk, noise rock, ambient, soundtracks and being outside a club with loud dance music. buenos aires electronic reggaeton witch house abstract electronic dance-pop death electronic dance music experimental electronic noise noise pop sadcore techno Japan http://astrosuka.tumblr.com 

http://astrosuka.bandcamp.com

http://soundcloud.com/astrosuka 

https://twitter.com/Astrosuka 

https://www.facebook.com/astrosuka 

https://www.facebook.com/astrosukapremium