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    Posted: July 18 2022 at 14:26
Times are bad, we're all gonna die (soon), but it's still a good time to be alive - because of Black Midi

-I really enjoyed Professor Skye's 80 minute long "review". Not necessarily an expert on music as such (he plays the drums though, which is more than I can do), but this professor knows loads of other relevant stuff. He take his time before he gets to the actual music/album though:

...Come to hell with me as I talk about Faulkner, Céline, Spike Lee, Rabelais  and eventually even Black Midi themselves.  Instrumentation, vocals and a gloriously fractured narrative...


Edit: The "Hellfire listening party" video is made private - which is understandable (but just listen to the three singles they dropped from prior to the release). I'll post the Needledrop video instead. More effective - but still informed and intelligent... and very positive. I don't need people telling me this is great and neither does any of you. But I must say I've hugely enjoyed adopting a little of the Faulkner/Rabelais etc... approach into Hellfire's thrilling concept - whilst listening.



Edited by Saperlipopette! - July 21 2022 at 00:52
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Also this 3,5 star review of the song Welcome to Hell (by furbyfancock on RYM):

I’d heard Welcome to Hell before, both in-person at a live show and from various bootleg recordings on YouTube, but it wasn’t until they officially released it a few days ago that I listened to it intently. And while a few individual sections that I’m not a huge fan of prevent this from dethroning my current favorite black midi song, Slow, I've become increasingly impressed with how the band seems to achieve an incredible level of cohesion in this track despite the absurd amount of ideas they pack into its four minutes.

The song opens with a brief introduction featuring a descending octave figure repeated twice in full. The third time, the lower E doesn’t come, and instead Simpson enters with a brief fill and a surprisingly normal drum groove. It’s clear things won’t be all that simple though - behind it, you can hear the whistling of a falling bomb.

As usual, the band then cycles through a number of riffs, varying widely in mood and style. The first is an ascending chromatic figure [0:11], initially just in unison but later expanded to parallel tritones when the vocals enter [0:26]. The riff shares some minor similarities with the opening octave figure, with the low droning bass E landing on the second eighth beat, an offbeat, making the already tense chromatic atmosphere even more unsettling.

A brief transition with the guitar strumming the last D-G# tritone [0:40] leads into a new chord progression [0:41]: E major – B-flat dominant 7 – E-flat major – A dominant 7. The roots of these chords, if paired up, form chromatically descending tritones. This new section has a slightly more playful tone, almost like the background music to some Cyriak animation.

Another transition, this time an ascending chromatic bit (C – C# – D) derived from the first riff but played two times and twice as fast [0:55], and we’re back to the parallel tritones of the first riff [0:56]. They alternate between the single-note and parallel tritone versions of the riff at [1:03]. Some chaotic piano smashing brings extra flashes of color.

At [1:11] we move to new, slightly more serene material that could have been lifted right out of Slow. The chords here are delicious: C# minor 11 – C dominant 7 flat 5. The relative calm, however, is punctuated every two bars by the rhythmic figure of the transition at [0:55], accentuated with the snare. [1:21] again changes things up slightly, introducing a new chord progression anchored by the chromatic moving line D – C# – C – C#. This all builds into [1:29], a return of the material introduced in the transition at [0:55] and hinted at throughout the section at [1:11]. This time though, the C – C# – D is thickened to parallel tritones like the first riff. The tritone figures are interspersed with the guitar playing just E following the same rhythm.

A beat of silence, and the chord progression from [0:41] is back at [1:33], which leads into a symphonic rock-like passage at [1:47]. The melody here is arguably derived from the first riff, with the chromatically ascending line inverted: E – C – C# – D => E – C – B – B-flat. This section doesn’t last long before transitioning to a near-repeat of the section at [0:56], but with a more abrasive guitar tone and some subtle additions (like the repeated high E’s on piano) expanding the sound.

[2:06] brings us to an elaboration of the material at [1:29] (itself an elaboration on the snippet at [0:55]), where the last half-bar is replaced with a figure that first ascends and then descends chromatically. Everything also seems to be shifted up a half-step, though that’s a minor detail.

A short drum solo follows at [2:20]. The guitar then comes in at [2:24] with a solo that bears some semblance to the brief transition at [0:40] and to the passage at [1:29], alternating between the low E and strumming the D-G# tritone. The drums and guitar have a bit of a dialogue until the return of the vocals at [2:32]. The guitar continues its riff, never quite settling into a predictable rhythmic pattern, and the other instruments join in to add to the cacophony.

At [2:47], we hear the passage from [1:47] again, this time played for twice as long. They hang on to the last note, embellishing it with some saxophone wails. Then, the whole band bursts in again at [3:06] even faster and more aggressive than before. The guitar material here, C – B – B-flat and F – F# – G, is of course made up of a descending and ascending chromatic line of three notes, the descending line identical to the melody at [1:47] and [2:47]. There’s a brief detour at [3:14] with arpeggiated major 7th chords.

[3:27] is a sped-up repeat of [1:29], and [3:30] to [3:43] sees the band noodle around with the chord progression of [0:41]. At [3:43], the band plays what is essentially chromatically descending parallel tritones but broken up into their constituent notes, much like the chord progression of the preceding section. [3:50] is back to that chord progression at its original tempo, now with gnarly guitar solos sprinkled in. The material from [0:55]/[1:29]/[2:06] pops up again at [4:05], and the song ends almost exactly as it began [4:06], but this time we finally get that last low E we expected.

This whole rambling mess of a review could probably be deleted and summed up in one sentence: intentionally or not, black midi achieves an impressive degree of coherence and unity in Welcome to Hell, despite switching things up almost every 15 seconds, by cleverly foreshadowing later ideas within earlier passages and using a few fundamental musical units – namely an ascending chromatic figure of three notes and the tritone – as building blocks for much of the material they present. This is vaguely the sort of motivic economy that classical composers like Beethoven and Mahler and Medtner are praised for, but while those artists admittedly maintain it throughout larger-scale and more complex works lasting between 20 minutes to well over an hour, they don’t often evoke (and probably didn’t try to evoke) the delicate balance between pure chaos and structural cohesion black midi manages here.

Of course, none of my questionable and uneducated over-analysis means the music is actually enjoyable. That you’ll have to decide for yourself.

(Note that all timestamps come from the album recording and not the one in the music video.)
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It's probably going to end up as my favorite black midi album and I'm a huge fan. It keeps opening up to me. Lots of wonderful stuff going on.
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Not a band for me. Capable musicians but I don't like the noise (an integral part of the music used as an effect) the talky lyrics, or the compositions. Glad you're enjoying it. Tongue 

I'm really enjoying the new release from Bubblemath. Rarely discussed, reviewed, or rated. The lost gem of prog. 
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I'm really looking forward to listening to it. The CD has arrived in the mail, but I won't be home for a bit so I gotta wait a few days. I deliberately did not listen to the third single (and only listened to the other two once) in order not to spoil myself, and have not listened to any of the tracks in their earlier live incarnations. I'm hoping it will live up to Cavalcade and maybe have a bit less compression (Welcome to Hell sounded better to me than Cavalcade at least).
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Originally posted by Stressed Cheese Stressed Cheese wrote:

I'm really looking forward to listening to it. The CD has arrived in the mail, but I won't be home for a bit so I gotta wait a few days. I deliberately did not listen to the third single (and only listened to the other two once) in order not to spoil myself, and have not listened to any of the tracks in their earlier live incarnations. I'm hoping it will live up to Cavalcade and maybe have a bit less compression (Welcome to Hell sounded better to me than Cavalcade at least).
I couldn't wait. Bought it digital on Bandcamp the day it was made available and been listening to it since. I will by the physical version as soon as it's available in a record store. I love Cavalcade, but I'm much more invested in Hellfire. 
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Saw them perform some of the new songs live last week - great material!
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Originally posted by Trickster F. Trickster F. wrote:

Saw them perform some of the new songs live last week - great material!


They are playing Boston while on vacation in England, bugger.
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I loved Cavalcade (and Schlagenheim before it), but Hellfire is on another level - it really is fantastic. These guys are still in their early 20s too, crazy.
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Originally posted by Gentle and Giant Gentle and Giant wrote:

I loved Cavalcade (and Schlagenheim before it), but Hellfire is on another level - it really is fantastic. These guys are still in their early 20s too, crazy.
That's how I think too. I'm sort of trying to hold back a little as the album is only four days old, but I can't imagine I'll change my mind. There's plenty more to unwrap, and I'm not nearly finished getting to know it. But that just makes it more impressive.
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Can't wait to see/hear what they do next. Incredible band.
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Other than the usual suspects it was the only band at Glasto that I had some knowledge of. Their hour long set is on the BBC I player. Just mention it as they are a lot of fun to watch although I'm not sure how much I enjoy the music itself. For me they are a little bit like the Mars Volta , a bit manic and random at times.

Edited by richardh - July 20 2022 at 10:46
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Originally posted by richardh richardh wrote:

Other than the usual suspects it was the only band at Glasto that I had some knowledge of. Their hour long set is on the BBC I player. Just mention it as they are a lot of fun to watch although I'm not sure how much I enjoy the music itself. For me they are a little bit like the Mars Volta , a bit manic and random at times.

I watched the Glastonbury set and good it was - the crowd were a little subdued though. 

Squid were very good at this years Glasto too.
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I've had a few listens, but need more time and listens where I'm not distracted. So far my impression is that I really like it and it has a lot of stuff going on that takes time to discover.
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This is all accurate for me
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Just saw them play in Boston tonight. Very rowdy show. Loved every single bit of it as I was the very large mosh pit! Tongue

Hellfire is definitely my album of the year.


Edited by King of Loss - July 21 2022 at 23:44
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Originally posted by King of Loss King of Loss wrote:

Just saw them play in Boston tonight. Very rowdy show. Loved every single bit of it as I was the very large mosh pit! Tongue

Hellfire is definitely my album of the year.



Would have loved to have been there but currently in UK. How was the venue? Paradise Rock Club, right? I don't really like the sight lines there, seemed a very odd shape when I saw GYBE there.
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Only one listen so far and it's not quite grabbing me as much as Cavalcade, but to be fair that album also took several listens before its beauty truly sank in with me so I'm expecting something similar to happen with this one. My favourite songs so far are "Sugar/Tzu" and "Welcome To Hell"
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Originally posted by Mirakaze Mirakaze wrote:

Only one listen so far and it's not quite grabbing me as much as Cavalcade, but to be fair that album also took several listens before its beauty truly sank in with me so I'm expecting something similar to happen with this one.
I can't imagine it won't.

Originally posted by Mirakaze Mirakaze wrote:

My favourite songs so far are "Sugar/Tzu" and "Welcome To Hell"
Those are the immediate standouts. But for me, after a couple of listens, everything is a standout.
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Originally posted by Nogbad_The_Bad Nogbad_The_Bad wrote:

Originally posted by King of Loss King of Loss wrote:

Just saw them play in Boston tonight. Very rowdy show. Loved every single bit of it as I was the very large mosh pit! Tongue

Hellfire is definitely my album of the year.



Would have loved to have been there but currently in UK. How was the venue? Paradise Rock Club, right? I don't really like the sight lines there, seemed a very odd shape when I saw GYBE there.

This is the second time I've seen them. The Paradise Rock Club is not my favorite venue, but they were great live. Probably would have preferred the Sinclair or something else.
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