The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.

Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.

Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.

The Obelisk Questionnaire: Idin Alexzander of Lavisher

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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?

At a minimum, as a drummer, I help establish the rhythm and keep time. But there’s certainly more to it. There can be. You can add drama or tension to a section, let it breathe, accentuate certain notes to shift the feel of a song to something more.

Describe your first musical memory.

I don’t have a specific first musical memory but I suppose, if pressed, it’d have to be listening to music at home with my mother. But I’d rather not elaborate. It’s a wonderful sort of memory and if I’d share it, the bloom would come off the rose and I want it only for myself. It’s nourishing.

Describe your best musical memory to date.

The beginnings of me playing the drums. It was the first time in my young life that I did something that seemed to come naturally. It was a relief to find that. It was shortly after I had heard Metallica and started my heavy music journey. That led to all the incredible shows I saw and friends I have made.

Or maybe it was seeing The Dillinger Escape Plan play Calculating Infinity at the Fireside Bowl and being literally at the front of the stage with Ben Weinman swinging his guitar like a fucking madman, dodging it and being blown away by Chris Pennie’s drumming. Fucking brilliant! Nora and Ka also played and what a show it was.

When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?

This question reminds me of undergrad or law school, where you have some Ayn Rand loving asshole, some selfish Libertarian, talking about excellence, independence, or some other horseshit they mangled through the filter of their beliefs. Fucking handed down from their douchebag parents. Those fuckers are always trying to test you. They couldn’t of course. They’d try to sling their false intellectualism but I never respected it. How could I respect a position like that coming from those pricks? Those motherfuckers grew up in the burbs where life is soft, grew up rich, talking about bootstraps and such. Fuck those guys. This just makes me want to go and read more Kant.

Where do you feel artistic progression leads?

Knowledge for one. I suppose it leads to a self-discovery of sorts. If you have an interest in becoming a better artist, I say that abstractly because I am reticent to refer to myself as such, so let’s say musician to soften the blow of the question, you will explore new methods of expressing your creativity. You will focus on techniques or set goals. As a drummer, some of these can be technical or merely physical. I want to learn the push-pull method or, I want to be able to blast at 300 bpm. The self-discovery bit comes when you face those decisions of what you really want out of the instrument and yourself.

How do you define success?

The answer to that concludes the previous. Getting better at the technical and academic side of the instrument. Chops for lack of a better word. But substance without style is dull. I wouldn’t sacrifice one for the other because my ambition is to maximize both, however that lands. And so I want to be better at expressing my ideas and synthesizing and expressing my bandmates’ ideas too. Would that be holistic?

What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?

Nothing. I say that for two reasons, what I have seen has been an experience that has brought me to where I am. Or maybe I just haven’t seen enough fucked up shit. I’ve heard about people’s fucked up lives but that’s not my life. So it’s either I am the sum of my experience and however painful some memories in my mind’s eye are, they lead me to this point, or maybe I am a fucking fraud who has lived a charmed existence. Either way, I’ll be the one beating myself up about it.

Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.

In a musical sense, I want to write drum parts that are beyond anything I can do now, utilizing drumline techniques and then at some point, bits of gospel chops, and elements of styles that are beyond me.

What do you believe is the most essential function of art?

To provoke thoughts or emotions one hadn’t considered or felt. To enhance or give shape to thoughts or emotions one could not elucidate.

Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?

Finishing The Price of Salt and reading more poetry. It’s mostly lost on me. I’ve got to work on that.

https://www.lavisherband.com
https://www.facebook.com/lavisher
https://lavisher.bandcamp.com

https://nefariousindustries.com
https://nefariousindustries.bandcamp.com
https://facebook.com/nefariousIndustries
https://instagram.com/nefarious_industries
https://twitter.com/nefariousInd

Lavisher, “Reverie”

The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.

Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.

Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.

The Obelisk Questionnaire: Jason Walton of Snares of Sixes (ex-Agalloch)

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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?

From a very young age I became fascinated by the power, magic, and mystery of music. I never wanted to live a normal life, I’ve always wanted to live on the boundaries, on the edges somehow. The freedom of music and self-expression sets people apart from the rest. This is why I started creating, and why I continue to create 30 years later. Living free and creating. Defining what I do is somewhat useless, I make sound.

Describe your first musical memory.

Listening to Ozzy Osbourne’s “Bark at the Moon” in my Cousin’s room. It changed my life.

Describe your best musical memory to date.

Hard to choose, so I will just choose one. Playing with Agalloch directly before Obituary and Morbid Angel in California.

When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?

When Agalloch broke up. I never imagined we would ever stop, for any reason, ever.

Where do you feel artistic progression leads?

Not sure how to answer this. Hopefully it leads to the fulfillment and happiness of the creator.

How do you define success?

Much like the above, happiness and fulfillment.

What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?

Anathema in 2012.

Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.

A really great Death Metal album. Also maybe a book of photography.

What do you believe is the most essential function of art?

To challenge people. To make them think about the world in ways they previously hadn’t.

Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?

I am looking forward to the pandemic receding and being able to travel again.

https://jwalton.bandcamp.com
https://www.earthinsound.org
https://www.instagram.com/earthinsound
https://www.facebook.com/earthinsound

http://nefariousindustries.com
http://www.twitter.com/NefariousInd
https://www.instagram.com/nefarious_industries

http://www.transcendingrecords.com
http://www.instagram.com/transcendingrecs
http://www.twitter.com/transcendingrec

Snares of Sixes, “MoonBladder” official video

Georgian atmospheric sludge five-piece Dead Hand released their split with exclamatory fellow Peach Staters Machinist! in March through Nefarious Industries. It’s a beast. A short beast, but a beast just the same. Machinist! offer two tracks in “Bask in the White Light,” which fosters almost immediate post-hardcore sludge lumber and caps with quotes from Fahrenheit 451, and “The Nail,” which is presumably named for what they hit on the head in their blend of noise, lumber, loathing and bite — actually the title comes from the lyric “I am Jesus and you are the nail,” but for the sake of argument, let’s roll with it — and unleashes its furies with corresponding efficiency and thickness. When Dead Hand enter this thickened, churning fray, they do so amid the chuggoplod and harsh doom of “Muirgeilt,” a single inclusion running a seven-minute gamut of extremity in purpose, bridging death-sludge with atmospheric heavy along a linear course that breaks almost exactly halfway in to a stretch of bass, spooky keys and drums like all of a sudden someone invited John Carpenter to the party. Please, come right in.

The surge back is satisfying and sudden, as “Muirgeilt” pushes into its angular, consuming final stretch with its riffs dystopian and its vocals more gurgle than growl, becoming shouts in the last minute forward push, some gang shouts to let you know where they come from. They started angry and they end angry, which is fair enough when you do anger so well. In the video below, which is Dead Hand rendering “Muirgeilt” live in the mood lighting of their rehearsal space, one of course gets a better sense for what everyone is doing at any given moment, with the arrangement between vocalists, the keys and guitar, what looks like and may or may not be some kind of theremin-esque device going on there, and so on. Yes, the sound is rawer than on the finished studio version — if the words “rehearsal space” didn’t signal that loud enough I’ll say it outright — but the tradeoff is personification of viciousness, faces to the rage, and that’s worth the viewing in itself, let alone the bootleg vibe of the thing, which is enjoyable in its own right and gives its own sense of atmosphere to the proceedings.

The split’s out on 10″ vinyl and DL, and you can stream it down by the bottom of this post. The band offered some words on the video and more below.

Enjoy:

Dead Hand, “Muirgeilt” live-in-studio premiere

Cliff Carr on “Muirgeilt”:

It was recorded in mid-February at our rehearsal space at my house. This song had a different drummer on the recording. Although Carson [Pace] is playing 90 percent of what Craig [Harper] played on the recording, he steps it up in the end and puts his own stamp on it. It is what we wanted to do originally but Craig couldn’t play double bass that fast.

Live performance of “Muirgeilt” off of our split with MACHINIST! from the DEAD HAND practice space. Out March 19, 2021 on Limited 10 inch glacier blue vinyl and digital worldwide via Nefarious Industries..

Order the Machinist! / DEAD HAND split at: http://nefariousindustries.com/nef-62

“Bask in the White Light” and “The Nail” recorded, mixed, and mastered by Lee Dyess at Earthsound Studio in Valdosta, Georgia.
machinistga.bandcamp.com

“Muirgeilt” recorded, mixed, and mastered by Matt Washburn at LedBelly Sound Studio in Dawsonville, Georgia.
deadhandcollective.bandcamp.com

Dead Hand are:
Clifton Carr – guitar/vocals
Shannon Harris – synth/vocals
Stephen Williams – guitar/vocals
Carson Pace – drums
Andrew Seth – bass

Machinist! & Dead Hand, Split (2021)

Dead Hand on Bandcamp

Dead Hand on Instagram

Dead Hand on Facebook

Nefarious Industries website

Nefarious Industries Bandcamp

The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.

Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.

Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.

The Obelisk Questionnaire: Jeff Hill of Machinist!

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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?

I guess when people ask me what I do I most commonly respond “I’m in a touring band.” Then they normally ask what we sound like and I say “metal” and they say “oh like skillet.” And inside I die and outside I say “yeah man.” But at its base I’d say I’ve come to be most comfortably saying I’m an artist that makes art with his friends. That’s really what it is. It’s gross, sweaty, loud art but it’s art.

I started writing poetry in middle school. I was in a couple of puddle-of-nickel-creed-back bands in high school but I became comfortable on stage through drama and debate. I was a drama kid and I had a wonderful teacher and mentor named Phillip Wertz who taught me so much about engaging the audience and telling stories. I went to college and joined a band. We went on the first and worst tour I’ve ever been on and I fell in love.

Describe your first musical memory.

Riding in my dad’s Buick listening to a Jim Croce tape that came out of this leather tape collection box that rode on the floorboards. I remember listening to “Bad Bad Leroy Brown” and thinking dad’s giant Buick was the coolest. It was “19 feet 2 inches of American steel” and it had a 455 rocket under the hood.

Describe your best musical memory to date.

Dang. I’d say probably The Fest a few years back. I mentioned I had to leave right after our set to go take my little girl trick or treating and the capacity crowd started chanting my little girl’s name. I still get chill bumps thinking about that.

When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?

Our van broke down in Lexington, Kentucky, once in a 9 degree winter. We and False Tongues (the band we were sharing the van with) were stuck in a house for three or four days with this guy named Nasty Nate and his family. 80 percent of the people on the tour and in the house smoked cigarettes inside because there was ice and snow outside. I’m from South Georgia. I’ve seen snow like four times in my life. It’s one of the few times I’ve wanted to quit being in a band. But I didn’t. And we made it.

Where do you feel artistic progression leads?

For me it leads to peace and balance. I couldn’t exist without writing words.

How do you define success?

These days it’s making stuff that I like with my friends.

What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?

I wish I hadn’t seen a lady in a Cat In The Hat hat shit in a Solo cup in the middle of the street in front of Churchill’s Pub in Miami, Florida.

Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.

I’d like to write a children’s book.

What do you believe is the most essential function of art?

To remind us that we are more than cogs in a capitalist machine. It’s escapism but also it gives us a connection to other human beings.

Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?

The federal legalization of Cannabis and the expungement of charges and release of our brothers and sisters who are trapped inside of a for profit prison system. I’m looking forward to the abolishment of the system that grinds people into a place of desperation so that rich bastards can watch unreal numbers increase on screens. I’m also looking forward to The Matrix 4.

https://machinistga.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/machinistga
https://www.instagram.com/machinistga
https://www.instagram.com/machinistga
https://twitter.com/machinistga

Machinist! & Dead Hand, Split (2021)

Machinist!, “Bask in the White Light” official video