Foment – verb, past tense; fomented
to instigate or stir up, provoke, incite.
They say you learn something new every day, for me it is this word, fomented, I’ve never heard of it but the definition aligns perfectly with the co-conspirators Kieran Scott(Death Collector) and Sy Taplin (ex- Savage Messiah) who get together to wrap their knuckles on your skull and try and knock some sense into it.
We start with the brutalist video for ‘What Can I Change?’ it is grainy, yet the war theme is visibly challenging as the images shuffle across the screen. The colours are suited to the gnarly profiles, teeth clenched, gut wrenched by the obliteration we face. The issues are, sometimes, internal; we harm ourselves; we taunt ourselves as a means of reasoning and having an outlet for our cries. We are trapped in an infinite loop, unable to see an escape, as a result our anxieties increase.
Time flies, it’s an adage that describes our world at the moment, with ‘Tempus Fugit’ a reference to Virgil’s ‘Georgics’ which is quite compelling as these works, although having agriculture as the main theme, they actually discuss the obstacles faced by landowners. How they battle the natural elements, and hostile landscapes. This can be applied to life as we know it, we deal with climate change, animals losing their habitat and other such issues.
All these things overlap or are at least impactive and reliant on each other.
Now for another word I’ve not come across (thank you Kieran) ‘ Eigengrau’ is the darkest shade of grey near enough black, which is not usually seen but perceived by the brain, especially when it is dark. It works really well here, as we find ourselves fumbling around in the gloom, trying to fathom it all.
What began as a project with no real sense of direction, here we have an extremely exciting and unhinged prospect, with the anticipation of more songs to come.
The big finish is unexpected, but then I really didn’t know what to expect. This EP is like lava flowing through your locality, it is thick with dirty riffs, it clings to everything it touches, and it oozes deathly character and style while remaining true to the hardcore ethos and intention.
The almost comedic coalescence of ‘Captain Slidey Pants’ with the dialect taken straight out of Hoboken Hollow, these hillbilly hi-jinks are beguiling as they hide the horror to come.
A remarkable undertaking: proof that the music scene is alive and kicking, but in dire need of the necessary funding and support.
‘I’ve been here before things will be different this time; I will actually have a good day’
On that note, I’ll pour myself a tall glass of fomented eigengrau – ahem- and I really do wish you all have a good day and wish you well for the days ahead.
Azra Pathan
Fomented – Bitter and Miserable Beings out now