Genre : Post Rock with Massively Dark Psychedelia and Sludge/Doom affections
Label : Independent
Origin : United States
Official site: > - here - <
Herman Martinez's Solopsi Radio is the doubtless undeniable result of a creative process that has spawned throughout 18 months, all aimed at the production of a bulk of material that convey the hallmarks of Martinez's musical vision along the combined criterias of precision and authenticity.
Solopsi Radio is a super-thorough medley of sonic stares into the nietzsche-ian abyss, as carefully arranged auditory discord-, and the constant challenge declared towards the riskless conventions of harmony and emotional comfort, are all on relentless and resourceful display herein.
Seldom are the times when the cover of an album AND the sounds arranged into said spin are in a perfect symbiosis of reiforcement with each other, and such is the case herein. Once you witness a deliberately AND convincingly sociopathic facial expression on an album cover, you are free to assume that you are either in for a treat you won't likely want to forget OR remember. The album cover photo is an irrefutable invitation: "Come find out, if you think you have balls."
Luckily enough, Martinez's music is both rich and meticulously sculpted enough to convince one on spot that the facial expression on the cover is not "just" an efficient method of invitation, but, in fact, you will get exactly what is promised, only more of it AND more colorful of it than you have hoped for.
Read on to know more.
Herman Martinez sports an excellent aptness for the creation of audible stimuli that immediately configures you into your "All Defensive Systems And Attention On Maximum Capacity"-mode. The respective components of the arrangements are deliberately shaped into pieces that do not even SEEK to conform, instead, each sports an inventive-, spot-on harmonic insult or two up its sleeve towards all the other participants of a given arrangement.
The promise of aesthetically pleasing harmonic decay is not only assumed, but its realization is obtained with non-decreasing efficiency throughot this intiguing journey of discord. As a much welcomed method of elegant and competent counter-pointing, the album has a a re-occurring-, eloquently channeled tendency to summon the melodic/narrative conduct of a dark-tinted grunge rock behaviour, which quickly becomes a compass-, a point of reference in the hilariously tormented harmonic environments that the sung melodies will pull you through.
The album has a rhythmic overall pulsation, and it simply does not run out of ideas - you can give it a full listen without ever being allowed to lower your guard, leaving you surprised of how you survived for THIS long without given time to the realization of it. Your attention is demanded. Martinez was wise enough to conclude the album with one of the strongest arrangements of the full statement, through which the eloquent display of an organic intersection of doom/grunge is courted even further by particularly ballsy melodic singing - sitting in a tastily researched sonic spot, no desperation herein - that channel the best-, most uncompromisig mechanics of both genres. Classic sludge chords are giving you a personal 1 on 1 in these instances on how and why they became those classic sludge chords.
Martinez possesses a keen sense at changing the intensity, and this asset is key in maintaining constant interest and focus in/on the material. The album has an optimally whimsical sense of creative arrogance of what TO give and what NOT TO give at a certain time, and careful focus is concentrated on the avoidance of shelf-time expiration per idea, as there is no place you would dare to plant a firm foot on, which, of course, is the premiere charm of the full delivery.
Martinez never ONCE has to go overboard and/or desperate and offer up-tempo to live up to the challenge and deliver impending doom. The moment you'd think you are about to have a firm(er) grasp on a tune, your host catches you in the act of assuming so, and he puts you into an even weirder and equally as interesting place as the previous one was, always casting these spells with a hilariously infectious/venomous and playfully evil act of wizardry of his own.
At the end of the day, the album weighs in as an undeniable statement of the underground, and an immediate-, safe (trussssssssssssssst me) recommendation to the inquisitive set of ears that not only love-, but, in fact, LOOK for a musical challenge that is both beautiful and dangerous.
Herman Martinez is a self taught singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist originally from New Jersey, now living in Georgia. With 16 years experience and over 100 songs up his sleeve, he slowly recorded his album Solopsi Radio over an 18 month period with the help of producer/ally Ahmed Mahmoud. Martinez is also a painter and successful tattoo artist, but music will always be his primary mutant power.
GyZ at Bandcamp.
If you want, check out my music
and / or
Buy me beer.
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