The New Music

Salem King Night [IAMSOUND]

Need to know: To quote their bio, “Salem are John Holland, Heather Marlatt and Jack Donoghue. John and Heather went to high school together in Interlochen, Michigan and later moved to Chicago where they met Jack.” After meeting, the John and Heather joined Jack’s project Salem, which they used as an outlet to merge their respective influences – shoegaze, goth, ambient, Chicago Juke, Houston Screw, crunk, Dirty South rap and pop - and see what would happen. What resulted was a sound unlike any other out there: beautiful and creepy, tranquil and murderous, beguiling and sedating, as slow as molasses and as rapid as automatic gunfire. Eventually, they’d be credited as originators of “drag” and “witch house,” insular subgenres known for discombobulated effects, screwed and chopped beats, trill synths, haunted vocals and goth-y overtones. Their first single was called Yes, I Smoke Crack (Acéphale) sold out instantly, and was followed by a bunch of singles, splits, remixes and mixtapes. Their EP Water featured a drugged out cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Streets of Philadelphia” re-titled “Brustreet.” The video for single “Dirt” featured a woman trying to kill herself in a car via carbon monoxide poisoning, while another naked woman dances on the hood and roof of the car. In an interview with Butt magazine, where John admitted to a stint as a “highbrow prostitute.”

In a 100 words or so: Salem have only been in the public consciousness for two years now, but the anticipation for King Night has made its release feel like we were waiting in dog years. Between the band’s divisiveness and the album’s build up, this felt like a debut that was destined to fail. But for those who have fallen for Salem’s austere, disorienting music, the album transcends expectations. Mixed by Dave Sardy (Rage Against The Machine, LCD Soundsystem, Jay-Z), King Night goes for broke without any concept of what that actually means. Nothing is considered off limits: “Asia” parades Aphex’s overzealous techno beats from “Ventolin” into the euphoric shoegaze of “Frost,” which then descends into decelerated, sizzurp-slurping rap joints like “Sick” and “Tair,” without giving two shits. The nerve of this trio is completely off the charts: case in point is the title track, which has the nerve to sample a choral rendition of “O Holy Night” and inject it like a filthy syringe into a blown-out symphony of gunshot beats and distorted keyboards. While Salem may be grouped in with the witch house/drag gang, King Night is a singular artistic statement that hits you like a miasma of the most toxic chemicals imaginable. And like everything that’s bad for you, it tastes damn good.

Best track: “King Night”

R.I.Y.L. The Knife, oOoOO, the 20jazzfunkgreats blog, Balam Acab

Rating: 9/10

Buy, download, steal or don’t bother: Buy the vinyl and play it backwards.

Sample: “King Night”

Website: S4lem.com