From Corners Unknown

Erik Moggridge is the sole guitarist and vocalist of the ethereal dark folk moniker, Aerial Ruin. His wayfaring under this name began in the early aughts, during the later years of his other project, Old Grandad—that is now kicking almost 9 years after laying relatively dormant. Within Old Grandad is where Erik debuted his singing voice. He penned lyrics and provided growls as well as clean, psychedelic-tinged throat harmonies. Though writing lyrics was not foreign to him at this juncture. Before Old Grandad, back in the late 80s and early 90s, Erik was shredding guitar and conjuring words for the Bay Area thrashy death metal quintet, Epidemic. Epidemic became a rather momentous artistic endeavor, and thus to fracture the project’s seriousness for him, Erik formed Old Grandad with his friends Will and Max, which eventually seeded the idea of Aerial Ruin and gave rise to its genesis.

Despite Erik establishing Aerial Ruin so many years ago, his first LP, Valleys of the Earth, did not broach the world until 2011. An EP of his was cast off into the ether in 2005, but much of the project’s activity, from an album release perspective, did not stir until Valleys of the Earth. In the year following his debut LP’s release, Erik contributed his airy, transcendental voice to “Rows (Of Endless Waves)“, a colossal 14-minute track from Seattle-based funeral doom phantoms, Bell Witch. This joint effort was only the beginning, however, as Erik’s own lyrics and vocals prominently comprised the latter half of Bell Witch’s monumentally melancholic Mirror Reaper, which dropped in October 2017.

Just one month before Mirror Reaper‘s funeral march, Erik released his fourth full Aerial Ruin album entitled Nameless Sun, a follow-up to his third LP, Ash of Your Cares. As Erik describes this project as a channeling of the psychedelic experience, Nameless Sun harbored an undercurrent of loss and a comparison to interstellar distances, the latter theme a sentiment not exuded in his body of work until this album. And this sentiment pierces rather deep, especially when being washed in the ephemeral delicacy of Nameless Sun‘s title track.

In this conversation, Erik discusses the surreal experience of performing Mirror Reaper in full with Bell Witch at Roadburn 2018. He speaks about his extensive European tour following Roadburn, noting his DIY approach to booking shows, and probes the compositions and themes of Nameless Sun whilst divulging the psychedelic essence of Aerial Ruin. We are also planning a follow-up interview, at a date yet to be determined, where we will talk a bit more in-depth about Mirror Reaper and an upcoming collaborative album between Aerial Ruin and Bell Witch. Thank you so much for listening.

Lastly, as a small note to folks residing in Europe, Bell Witch will be returning to Europe this winter to perform Mirror Reaper in its entirety with Erik singing in some special seated shows. Below is the tour poster, which includes tour dates and their respective locations.

In episode fifteen, we entrench ourselves deeper into sludgy noise rock and find a morose respite within some folk-infused dark ambient. We discuss the debut LP, By the Grace of Blood and Guts, from vociferous noise rock quartet HAAN, the malignant, harsh, and chilling first record from Israelian duo, Necromiska, entitled The Space Between Us, and we close with the hilarious—and at times, catchy—5 Wasted Years EP from the fuzzed out sludge rock trio, GRIZZLOR.

Thank you for listening. Let us know what you think about each of these records below and please feel free to leave us some album suggestions for future episodes.

Ramon is the sole brain and brawn of his progressive metal, science fiction vessel, Andromida. He arrived in the public sphere with this project back in 2016 with his debut EP, Celestial. A formidable release, Celestial showcased Ramon’s keen abilities to layer synth with sweeping grooves, resulting in a succinct, galactic adventure inflicted with those djent-laden timbres. Not too long thereafter, Ramon dropped his debut LP, The Void. And just at the end of July 2018 did he release his latest LP, Voyager. The transformation across his discography (thus far) is quite remarkable in that The Void felt and sounded like a more actualized rendition of Celestial—maintaining up-tempo rhythms whilst infusing a titch more synth for weightier atmosphere. From The Void to Voyager, Ramon has augmented the ante to even larger celestial expanses. The riffs and rhythms are a notch slower, though more synth pervades each composition; there is also a sparing, but sharp use of violin, which swells in pivotal moments to stir emotion. The largest shift here, however, is in concept. Where The Void was more a cluster of tracks, Voyager essentially articulates a story for a film that does not exist. The few details listeners can glean are provided in the track titles and the instrumentation vibrantly colors the Voyager vessel’s travels. It is left to your imagination to fill in the characters and the cosmos surrounding them.

In this conversation, Ramon delves into Voyager, discussing his approach for constructing this album’s concept and how his creative process differed on this album relative to his previous releases. He also speaks to his influences, noting his love for Mass Effect, muses about his desire to write and compose an OST for a science fiction film, and also looks forward to his plans for future albums. Thank you so much for listening.

The Spiral Staircase, directed by Robert Siodmak and scored by Roy Webb, is a murder mystery noir from 1946. It’s set in a quaint city which is ravaged by a string of killings, the victims being women with afflictions. Helen, the protagonist, is a speech-impaired caretaker to the Warren family estate—where the majority of the film takes place. As Helen tends to the bed-ridden Mrs. Warren, she is urged to vacate the mansion as her life is in peril. What ensues is a tense guessing game of who is committing these murders as the estate is ceaselessly battered by a thunderstorm.

Thank you so much for listening. Please feel free to leave your thoughts below on this film, suggest an obscure film for us to discuss in a future episode, or even provide some constructive criticism as we are always aiming to improve.

Celluloid Obscurities is a film discussion podcast between Graham, Connor, and Ryan. All of the droning soundscapes heard behind our words are made by Graham. You can download all of his music across his various monikers for free at his Bandcamp page.

Randal Collier-Ford is a dark ambient producer currently residing near the western shores of the Puget Sound. Several years ago, he took to producing these brooding soundscapes to stymie his insomnia, to focus his energy on crafting his own work instead of listening to and memorizing the constructs of other producers. Thus he made his first appearance in the dark ambient realm with his project The Temple of Algolagnia—a harrowing ritual steeped in mesmerizing drones—which fell silent shortly after forging one spit with Funeral Mantra entitled Fremitus Ortus Cum Defuncti. Around the same time he conjured another project, Black Sun. And eventually, Randal shed the aforementioned monikers to begin producing under his own name. What came of this new path was the utterly bleak Dark Corners followed by his lengthiest album to date, Filosofia.

Filosofia is a particularly fascinating release as it hinted at a universe to be fleshed out with seemingly infinite lore in future releases. This fleck of an idea would then be manifested as a trilogy known as the Architects, Remnants, and Promethean trifecta on Cryo Chamber. The universe building, however, did not conclude with Promethean, where it would seem natural. But rather, Randal is actively completing a new trilogy of albums—to be released on Cryo Chamber—that will give us new perspective of this gargantuan expanse he is so meticulously etching.

In this conversation, Randal submerses us in the lore he’s been penning and articulating in his releases for several years now. He discusses the evolution in sound that takes place throughout his first Cryo Chamber trilogy and describes how he is perpetuating this metamorphosis in albums to come. There is much to learn and glean from this conversation. Expect a more in-depth mini-series exploring Randal’s rich lore in the months to follow. Thank you so much for listening.

Tarek Ahmed is the vocalist of New Haven-based noise rock quartet, Intercourse. Established sometime back in 2014, Tarek set out on this feedback-slathered journey after spending a myriad of years in bands across accosting spectrums of auditory malaise during the aughts. Metalcore, grindcore, punk; he has dabbled in each, providing snarls, growls, and screams. Most of these bands never really expanded beyond the local scenes they subsisted in and after participating in these genres until literal burnout, he found no other way to sate his vocal deliveries. Then barreling in came Intercourse. The band dropped their first self-titled EP in July 2014, following this up in April 2016 with another succinct EP, Enablers. In this approximate two-year time frame, the outfit was experiencing a rotating door of musicians. And as it stands, Tarek is the only remaining member of Intercourse since the project’s birth.

Back in March 2018, they dropped a new LP entitled Everything Is Pornography When You’ve Got An Imagination—a visceral, unhinged, and rather experimental concatenation of delectable riffs and frothy ramblings. What’s most striking (to me) about Intercourse is the lyrics and the way they are uttered. It’s almost like subconscious thoughts, morose and outcast, mangled by ingenuity, are made flesh through their biting, fed up with life prose.

In this conversation, Tarek muses about his love for noise rock and how he founded Intercourse, citing the bands and motions he went through to get there. He also delves into his lyric composing process, divulges some of the stories underlying Intercourse songs, and reflects on the strange inquires his band receives for having its name. Thank you so much for listening.

In episode fourteen, we discuss the gargantuan hashteroid EP Constructs of Time from Matriarch, the profoundly moving Mourning from sadgaze/ambient conjurer Carl Gene, and the intoxicating post-metal/blackgaze dynamics encapsulated in Anassa from Message In A Cloud.

Thank you so much for listening. Let us know what you think about each of these records below and please feel free to leave us some album suggestions for future episodes.

Chris Durnin is a noise producer operating under a variety of guises who spearheads Corvallis Experiments in Noise. Originally from the Midwest, Chris moved to the Pacific Northwest several years ago to the quaint city of Corvallis, OR. And soon after his arrival, he worked to establish a home base to host noise shows at the InterZone cafe. Their four-year anniversary sunset just about one month ago and throughout these years, Chris has hosted well over a couple hundred artists ranging from local talent to touring acts from across the United States. He himself has performed at a handful of these shows. Don’t Say Anything They Won’t See You is a caustic splicing of indigenous music with harsh noise, No-Method is his mesmerizing noise drone outfit, and Depleted Your Cranium is a percussive onslaught of rhythm-less drumming. His love for all forms of noise is evident from his personal endeavors and his perpetual effort to maintain an inclusive space for artists of all backgrounds to express themselves.

In this conversation, Chris touches on a number of his own projects, but there is a particular focus on the founding of Corvallis Experiments in Noise and discussing its evolution over the past four years. He speaks of his move across the country to Corvallis and also how he has constructed such a vibrant noise scene in the Willamette Valley.

This episode marks the second in-person artist interview conducted on From Corners Unknown. The audio quality is a bit coarser as Chris and I spoke inside InterZone and the cafe’s ambiance soaked into the recorder. Going forward, the quality will improve as I learn better recording techniques and set up interviews in spaces with less background noise. I hope you enjoy this delving into a noise scene relatively local to where I reside. Thank you so much for listening and for your continued support.

Brendan Auld is an audio engineer residing in Brisbane, Australia. He owns and operates his personal studio, Black Blood Audio, out of his basement where he records and mixes local heavy talent. His studio serves a dual purpose as a practice space. When not recording other outfits, Brendan is chipping away at his own craft. Guitar, bass, drums, vocals, he’s adept at performing each, though his primary instrument is guitar. Be it penning repugnant riffs for his HM-2 death metal quintet, Descent, contributing ideas to the colossal blackened hardcore beast Siberian Hell Sounds, or constructing full songs for his undiluted blackened death metal solo project Snorlax, Brendan seldom rests. And this doesn’t even account for his sundry of side projects, many of which have yet to break the web’s surface—though his latest endeavor, Consumed, is about to emerge. When Brendan is not working his typical-day-to-day as a carpenter, his mental tap, his ceaseless propensity to write riffs, flows. Even during passages of calm and relaxation will he rush to his studio to record the kernel of a riff gnawing at his impulses.

In this conversation, Brendan probes his various projects, exploring the compositional approach of each. He articulates his insatiable lust for writing stomach-churning riffs and gushes over some of the technical aspects of audio engineering. Thank you so much for listening.

In episode thirteen, we speak about the emotionally hefty EP Bill of Rights from Boston-based hardcore punk quartet, Campaign Committee. We also discuss the otherworldly self-titled introspective journey conjured by Greek duo, Martyria, and we muse about the chaotic and crushing second LP from Bethlehem trio Secret Cutter, entitled Quantum Eraser.

Thank you so much for listening. Let us know what you think about each of these releases below and feel free to leave us some album suggestions for future episodes.