the strange sound of cthulhu-part2

If anyone who knows anything about Lovecraft’s personality and life misses the link in the next song’s title, he or she should probably start over. That title is a long one, “American Anglophile in the World Turned Upside Down.” This is a bouncing sort of punk rock jam with more of those frantically fast and most unintelligible spoken voices, this time in multiple layers, set over the top.

They follow that song up with “Memento Mori,” and frankly, I would say that this one really is not Lovecraft based at all. The only lyrics are “Die, bugger die.” This is an angry frantic punk rock powerhouse. The only link to H.P.L. that I can find comes during a section at the end that is just a nickname of Lovecraft’s

Next in line is “Better Not Born.” The cut starts with more spoken word, fast paced and a bit more “normal” than the other such work here. This is shortly accompanied by a tasty mid-paced jam that is one of the more meaty ones on show here. Weird spoken distorted sound bites in a very brief showing end this. This one is another that feels a bit like Hawkwind. It is also my favorite cut on the

disc. I have been unable to track down the lyrics to this one, but I believe that they may be taken directly from Lovecraft’s writing.

“Arkham Hearse” is the next track to show up here. If you have read the title to the song, you have also seen very word in the lyrics. I suppose just the usage of Arkham puts this one into Lovecraftian territory. That said, though, you would have to include any Batman comic books in the same category as the asylum in that magazine is called “Arkham.” The cut stomps in feeling a bit like Ted Nugent meets AC/DC, but after a while shifts towards the more strange. This one is good, but not amongst best on show. It ends with a short spoken sound bite.

While the next one, “The Old Man Is Not So Misanthropic” is almost certainly about H.P.L., it seems like the lyrics would be hard for most people to figure out. Still, just the title seems likely to give away the identity of the “old man.” If that’s the case, then the opening line certainly pays tribute to the author with “You do not realize how much I appreciate You.” This is one of the more pure punk showing here, feeling a lot like The Dead Boys, with perhaps a bit of Hawkwind thrown into the mix. Another spoken bit ends it. Joshi said of the lyrics to this one, “The line ‘You do not realize how much I appreciate you’ is a reference to Sonia (Greene) Davis [Lovecraft’s wife] memoir of H.P.L., in which she says that he would say something like this to her-he could never bring himself to say ‘I love you.’

The next cut to show up on the CD is “Gentle Men Prefer Blood.” This track feels like a twisted take on 1950’s rock and even the Grease Soundtrack. It is somewhat plodding and definitely strange, but rather fun.

With their next song, the group seem specifically to turn their attention to Lovecraft’s wife Sonia [Greene]. While again the lyrics are most certainly obtuse, there are definite signs pointing in the direction that she was the “Sonia” whose name the song share. “I’ve made up my mind to steal you my dear / Never the initiator / head of the house is humbled / who is Phillips, Phillips.” While this is subject that is probably best addressed elsewhere, in terms of lovemaking, Sonia Lovecraft said H.P.L. did not initiate the process. Musically this track has a sort of psychedelic psychosis sound. It’s almost like a 1960’s romp, but twisted around into something far stranger and less accessible.

Another title which will be crystal clear to anyone with a good knowledge of Lovecraft’s life, the next track is entitled, “The Day the Universe ceased (March 15th 1937).” That date is the day that the author died, and certainly one could perceive that his universe might have ceased on that day. Of course, there have been far too many people carrying on his legacy for that to be true, but the title makes a nice tribute nonetheless. While the lyrics don’t present such a lasting and beautiful homage, they do make it clear that the song is in fact about that particular significance of the date. I have to say that Lovecraft probably would not have approved of the form of verbiage, but I suppose it’s the sentiment that counts.

Next up is “The Crime of the Century.” I must confess that while this is one of the more odd pieces on the disc, it is also very intriguing. It is a quick paced, fairly interesting musical excursion with barely intelligible spoken bits over the top of it. Joshi told me that the title “is a reference to a rather racist essay that H.P.L.wrote in 1915, referring to World War 1.”

“Musick In Diabola” comes next on the disc. It is yet another frantically paced punk rock jam in the early modes, and then it shifts gear towards an odd space rock sort of movement. The spoken words come in later and run over the top of this spacy jam. I suspect that many of the words here are lifted directly from Lovecraft text, but since some of them I can’t make out, nor get my hands on the lyrics, I can’t be sure. At over two minutes, this is one of the longest tracks on show here.

Lyrically, “Shard” is probably the most brilliant piece on the album, and I’d have to say the most in keeping with Lovecraft’s style of storytelling. The lyrics seem to work best as a whole, so here I present them as such-certainly the comparisons to something from one of H.P.L.’s stories should be obvious.

Call of Cthulhu / As I’m recording here in this studio this shard will surely reach someone / Someone who’ll know but all these messages have been in vein from the little glass bottle to the unfilmable such things just should not be writ / so please destroy this if you wish to live / ‘tis better in ignorance to dwell than to go screaming into the abyss worse than hell / But all these messages have been in vein from the little glass bottle to the call of Cthulhu.

A very odd falsetto serves as the vocals over the top of a slow punk grind. Then after this short, twenty seconds or so, introduction, the vocals come in with a more “normal” texture, but the falsetto still returns at points. This is another of the stronger cuts on the disc, assuming you can get by that somewhat whiny falsetto. The music here is dark, mysterious and very meaty. The song is also one of the few that top the two-minute mark. It ends with a throaty groaning sound.

The album is closed out with “Black on Gold.” The cut is less than thirty seconds and feels a bit like the theme to the 1960’s Batman TV series, but with different vocals. This one is intriguing, but I can’t make out the lyrics enough to find the Lovecraft link.

Book details: The Strange Sound of Cthulhu is a fascinating compilation of musical artists who have paid homage to the father of modern horror, in turn adding their own new chapters to Lovecraft¹s ever-growing cult mythology. Highly recommended for rock historians and Lovecraft aficionados alike. Russell Williams, Dark Realms Magazine.