Semiotic Ghosts - No. 5

 

Released: January 5

Semiotic Ghosts is the new project of several established artists (Bendu, Autistatic, and an unnamed third collaborator) that sees them step out of their usual type of work and into something highly experimental and abrasive. A myriad of electronic sources provide the sounds heard, which range from bleep-y to scathing to downright odd. Four tracks take us through a sonic palette smeared with random streaks of noise and aural disturbances that tap the borders of ambient, noise, and even punk aesthetics strangely enough. 

The album starts out with "Convergence," a slow moving bit of drone work that is repeatedly broken up by the sound of distorted leads ringing out with a heavy bit of distortion. These distorted leads give off a vibe of guitar leads you might here in more extreme variety of punk and metal, providing and interesting contrast to the more subtle and airy bits that make up the meat of the track. This dynamic is repeated throughout the runtime, which gives the album a cohesive feel even in the tracks that ramp up the energy. "The She-Wolf" is one of the more energetic pieces here thanks to a driving electronic rhythm that pushes the track forward even as heavier and deeper bits of distorted ear candy threaten to drive it to the background. The last track, despite the misleading name of "Lavender Mist," takes it even further with deep bass rumbles and random arpeggiated synths that form a thick cloud of noise that oscillates around the stereo field. Its a rather neat little trip and a spectacular showing from artists trying something new.