Argonauta Records & The Obelisk Present: Magick Sun & Mystic Moon Compilation
I went back into the archives and looked, and I’ve been writing about Argonauta Records fare for more than a decade now, and I remain an admirer of the way in which Gero as the founding principal and the imprint as an entity conduct themselves with little regard for trend or anything so much as what speaks to his/its/their own passion. I was asked last month to be a part of ‘presenting’ this compilation, and to be perfectly honest with you, I was likewise honored and confused as to why, since the thing was (nearly) done by then and it’s not like I had much more to offer than some text and that circle logo to digitally-stamp on the cover.
But hey, I’ll take it. It’s nice to be thought of, nice to be asked, and I’m happy to be a small part of it however I can. In addition to having great respect for what Argonauta has accomplished in its time and for the way in which Gero has grown the label over the last 11 years, I also did a lot of the music that comes out under the label’s banner.
Some of this stuff has been released before, some of it hasn’t, but after what one imagines was a not-insignificant logistical challenge in putting it together, the 19-track Magick Sun & Mystic Moon — not to be confused with Barcelona psych outfit Magick Brother & Mystic Sister — emerges as both a good time listening experience and a celebration of the stylistic range that typifies Argonauta‘s roster, the totality of which goes even farther than this. And, of course, one of the most essential facets of what Argonauta does is that it continues to grow and seek new creative voices to support, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this isn’t the last time they do a project like this either. Just a heads up, I guess.
I wrote the text below to coincide with the stream of Drive by Wire‘s cover of The Smiths hitting Bandcamp, and it’s got a little more background on what inspired the compilation, etc., put in PR wire blue for form’s sake. Before I turn you over to it, I’d like to say a direct thanks to Gero for having me on board.
Dig:
ARGONAUTA RECORDS – ‘Magick Sun & Mystic Moon’
Get it here: https://argonautarecords.bandcamp.com/album/magick-sun-mystic-moon
Argonauta Records presents the covers compilation ‘Magick Sun & Mystic Moon,’ featuring 18 acts from the long-running Italian label’s roster, diverse in sound and celebrating influences both glaringly obvious and wholly unexpected. From The Doors and Stooges and KISS to Billy Joel (?!), Darkthrone, The Smiths and Candlemass, artists from a wide swath of styles and legacies are honored by denizens of one of the heavy underground’s most vibrant imprints.
Partnering with respected heavy blog The Obelisk, Argonauta brings forth new and unreleased tracks from the likes of Ancient VVisdom’s Nathan Opposition, who bookends the release in the opening and closing spots, as well as Drive by Wire from the Netherlands, Temple of Deimos, Blues Weiser, Autumnblaze, Mos Generator, Hebi Katana and Mitochondrial Sun, and rare and previously-issued works from Snail, Shadow Witch, Indigo Raven, When the Deadbolt Breaks, Dee Calhoun (ex-Iron Man, current Spiral Grave frontman), Deep Space Mask, Buzzard Canyon, Mourn the Light, The Black Legacy and Sator.
In being utterly packed with righteous executions and aesthetic breadth, ‘Magick Sun & Mystic Moon’ is nothing if not representative in its entirety of Argonauta’s ethic of supporting artists and groups united by passion and quality more than aural homogeny. But if it’s raw heavy you seek, there’s plenty to go around.
“18 Artists from our stellar roster joined forces to give life to a wonderful compilation made of a wide range tunes and bands being honored,” says Argonauta boss Gerolamo Lucisano. “As the label, we are extremely proud of their top quality songs and effort, especially as the project was started and assembled during the difficult times of the pandemic era.”
Begun in 2012, Argonauta Records approaches its 11th year of existence having already contributed significantly to the sphere of underground rock and metal. A somewhat light-hearted concept to contrast with difficult times, ‘Magick Sun & Mystic Moon’ reminds listeners as well as the parties involved in making it that it’s both okay and necessary to step outside one’s normal methods and expressive ideologies, to challenge convention inside and out, and at the most basic level, to have fun doing it.
That spirit is palpable here, and we hope you experience it as well in listening. Thank you for your support.
Tracklisting:
1. NATHAN OPPOSITION (Ancient VVisdom) – The River of Dreams [Billy Joel]* 03:26
2. DRIVE BY WIRE – How Soon Is Now [The Smiths]* 05:23
3. TEMPLE OF DEIMOS – Dancing Days [Led Zeppelin]* 03:41
4. BLUES WEISER – Rags to Rags [Eels]* 04:07
5. AUTUMNBLAZE – Transilvanian Hunger [Darkthrone]* 03:44
6. MOS GENERATOR – She [Kiss]* 06:05
7. HEBI KATANA – Money [The Beatles]* 03:06
8. SNAIL – Fearless [Pink Floyd] 05:06
9. MITOCHONDRIAL SUN (Niklas Sundin) – Neverending Story [Limahl]* 03:44
10. INDIGO RAVEN – Push the Sky Away [Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds] 04:10
11. WHEN THE DEADBOLT BREAKS – Not to Touch the Earth [The Doors] 04:01
12. DEE CALHOUN – The Knoxville Girl [The Louvin Brothers] 04:11
13. DEEP SPACE MASK – Strange Ways [Kiss] 03:49
14. BUZZARD CANYON – Where Eagles Dare [Misfits] 02:20
15. MOURN THE LIGHT – Bewitched [Candlemass] 06:45
16. SHADOW WITCH – I Wanna Be Your Dog [The Stooges] 03:47
17. THE BLACK LEGACY – Been Down So Long [The Doors] 04:28
18. SATOR – A Forest [The Cure] 09:54
19. NATHAN OPPOSITION (Ancient VVisdom) – The End of the World [Skeeter Davis]* 02:24
*previously unreleased
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