Author & Punisher Post “Maiden Star” Video
With the ever-present caveat that I know nothing about anything basically as a general condition of existence, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to think that the video streaming below for “Maiden Star” from Author & Punisher‘s 2022 LP, Krüller (review here), is perhaps an unofficial drawdown to the cycle for the album from whence it comes. And that maybe after embarking on statistically-significant tours in the US and Europe for the better part of the last 18 months, vocalist/synthesist/machinist Tristan Shone and guitarist Doug Sabolick (also of Philly freak rock forerunners Ecstatic Vision) might begin the however-long process of moving toward the next outing. Writing, in other words. And because we’re talking about Author & Punisher, perhaps also building.
I didn’t see Author & Punisher supporting Krüller, and looking at having now apparently missed my chance, I’ll count it as a character flaw on my part. To say the album still resonates almost feels like an insult by proposing the idea that it wouldn’t, but in terms of ‘holding up,’ I had it on spontaneously in the car the other day and its dystopia is no less sprawling than it was emerging from covid winter last February. And I’ve seen a bunch of videos from sundry locales in likewise sundry countries, and with Shone running midi through his homemade drone machines — which I couldn’t decide whether or not to capitalize; are they a proper noun, I wonder? — and Sabolick alongside conveying organic distortion through lumbering riffs and emphasizing the depth of character in the material and the traditions of industrial metal that are in-part a launch point for Author & Punisher generally. Not like they didn’t come to New York. I just missed it. Turns out sucking at life kind of sucks sometimes. Go figure.
Homage is paid to the live experience from the band’s point of view in the James Rexroad-directed — if you were a good band from the Pacific Northwest there would be at least a 79 percent chance he took your awesome promo photos — clip for “Maiden Star.” We see Shone and Sabolick traveling, hurry-up-and-waiting and, of course, playing on stage which is the point of the rest in the first place, burning through a steady supply of ‘these machines kill fascists’ shirts all the while. They’ll be back out at some point, if potentially with a different set.
In addition to the video, the PR wire brings word that Shone‘s Drone Machines manufacturing concern — which definitely gets capitalized — is in NYC doing cool shit, which isn’t necessarily directly relevant to “Maiden Star,” but you can see below what’s detailed in a photo by that absolute non-Machiavellian prince of a human being, Dante Torrieri, speaking of people who do cool shit.
Enjoy:
Author & Punisher, “Maiden Star” official video
AUTHOR & PUNISHER SHARES “MAIDEN STAR” MUSIC VIDEO
BEGINS ARCA x DRONE MACHINES PARTNERSHIP NOW THROUGH OCT 15 IN NYC
KRÜLLER FULL-LENGTH OUT NOW
Industrial mastermind AUTHOR & PUNISHER shares the official “Maiden Star” music video from the 2022 release full-length Krüller! Watch the full video on A&P’s YouTube Channel HERE.
“Maiden Star” video was shot during AUTHOR & PUNISHER’s 2023 June European tour by James Rexroad who joined A&P across the northern EU territories and edited by Augie Arredondo.
AUTHOR & PUNISHER comments on the video:
“”Every time I watch this video it hits me…it’s a beautiful music scene and it really makes me so thankful that I get to do what I do. Thanks to James Rexroad for coming along and capturing the community, the energy and the power of heavy music in our lives. Shout out to my bandmate Doug Sabolick, John Cota (sound engineer) and Augie Arredondo for editing the damn thing. From the fjords of Norway, the wood fired saunas of Helsinki and Tallinn, to the beer halls of Bochum, with friends new and old, this one goes out to the fans who support underground music. The community is strong. We love you.”
Additionally, AUTHOR & PUNISHER and his intrepid gear company DRONE MACHINES announce a partnership with visionary multi-discipline artist ARCA designing and building machines for her live work Mutant;Destrudo at Park Avenue Armory in NYC now through October 15!
AUTHOR & PUNISHER comments on Arca:
“There aren’t many artists out there as innovative and groundbreaking as Arca. Her style of production and visual design is visceral, dark, and bleak; yet always intriguing and exciting. She’s produced amazing solo works as well as music for Bjork, Kanye West, and FKA Twigs to name a few. When she asked me to build her some machines I immediately jumped on it. We’ve worked on this now for the past 8 months with Alejandra and her creative team focusing on building some industrial controllers that would interact with her DJ setup and allow her to make broader, more physical strokes with levers, sliders, and large knobs. There are five machines in total: one Fader, two Throttles, and two Platters that are all rack mounted above her DJ setup with the table suspended from the ceiling by chains. The aesthetic of Drone Machines (the small gear company birthed from Author & Punisher) is raw and industrial, with heavy machine components. Functionally, there is MIDI, USB, DSP Audio output, and CV/Gate; they are completely open source. Many thanks and shout outs to the team at Drone Machines working with me who helped on this project as well as the other devices we are making: Adam Reed-Erickson (mechanical engineer), Jason Begin (sound designer, producer, composer), and Hanri Thayyil (software engineer).”
Author & Punisher, Krüller (2022)
Author & Punisher on Instagram
Tags: Author and Punisher, Author and Punisher Krüller, California, Krüller, Relapse Records, San Diego
