Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Hey there.
[00:00:01] Welcome to Demon Toast. This is King Loki, the editor of Death Wish Poetry magazine. Today I've got a book review for you and an album review, incidentally, which is directly connected.
[00:00:12] Today I'm reviewing something pretty exciting. This is a one death box, one fable by none other than Iehodecember Joseph, who is one of the founders of the legendary.
[00:00:26] How does he phrase it? Death rock band Astro Vamps. To me, it's just, you know, goth music, right? Goth music that I grew up listening to and continue to listen to. But Astro Vamps is really cool. And if you can't find them on streaming, their music is on.
[00:00:42] It's on YouTube and stuff. I really recommend it. If you're into gothic rock, you know, black metal, anything like that hit, interestingly enough, like, over 30 years later, he's still making music.
[00:00:57] This is the Black Heroine Gallery, which is his current musical project, east of Bats. And interestingly enough, all of the songs that are in here on this album are also in this book.
[00:01:11] So these are essentially one in the same. These are companions to one another. Each one is a. Is a distinct work of art unto itself. I want to also mention that Ieho did the.
[00:01:24] The COVID art. I mean, look at that. It's so fucking cool. He has a real talent for drawing monster girls, too. The Dead man who Caught and Ate the Catfish Girl. It's a wild poem. And that's what this is. It's a book of poetry, A true book of poetry.
[00:01:39] Each one of these invites you into a surreal world of monsters and horror. Here's this one lovely piece. Take this rose Take this rose, it's from death with her kisses I can finally see Take this rose, it's from death she's given me instructions to set her free Take this rose, it's from death the kelpie tricks his riders Take this rose, it's from Death she pens a book of horrors Take this rose, it's from death she can't reach the weeping willow I'm gonna jump to the end because it's really cool. If I should die before I wake up I pray to God my soul don't take Leave me on this mortal coil so I can become the blackened soil There's a joy in not necessarily death, but mortality and the fecundity that comes with being a flesh and bone.
[00:02:31] There's also monsters. So many monsters in this book. It's delirious.
[00:02:43] Hmm.
[00:02:44] This one catches my eye. I have. It's called Dead Scape. I have no reasons Today or yesterday There is no More passion in the gazing at a full moon. No fantastic creatures romp and play with my muse today all my graveyards have been moved and the dead don't write anymore. I don't want to leave. I want to believe in the solitude of the dead. Scape, you know, it speaks for itself, doesn't it? It's eerie, it's beautiful, it's dark.
[00:03:21] Every one of these poems takes you into a different mindscape, if you will.
[00:03:26] You know, I love these ones that are just like this image right here.
[00:03:31] It's contemplative, it's sad, it's lonely, it's mournful.
[00:03:36] But there's also a piece to it as his hair just blows in the wind, which you can clearly see from Ieho's pen strokes.
[00:03:44] You can buy this book on Amazon. I recommend you do so. It's a very good read.
[00:03:50] You know, I find myself going to it, reading through. I mean, this one, Gargoyle Project is one of my favorites. My card is stacked with burnt bodies with eyes as blue as the sky the smell of burning meat soaked sweetly through my feet.
[00:04:04] This is also one of the songs on the album.
[00:04:08] Don't remove them, they protect you Evil that guards them and keeps you safe from hell. I beg you, don't remove them or damnation will ring ring its bell. I tried to tell them it was a mistake as they removed all the gargoyles from the church tops Even priests burnt alive on holy ground swim fleshless to the Nazarene. I despise the demonic gathering.
[00:04:31] As legions marched on the ruins of God's beloved house Just a simple plague doctor I crawled inside a hollow body to hide.
[00:04:43] There's more to it, of course, but I can't be reading the entire poem. This album is great, by the way. You know, I mentioned the Go Girl project. It's actually track two on the album. The way. The way the vocals are howled mournfully, he builds an ambiance of darkness. And I want to say madness, but that's not the right word. The real word is mania, you know, ecstatic mania.
[00:05:15] It's not enough to just evoke, you know, a shadow draped moonscape. Right.
[00:05:26] You see, a lot of.
[00:05:28] A lot of this type of music is very derivative.
[00:05:32] What I like about what Iejo and his collaborators have done here is they've effectively created a gothic rock album that as much as it feels like it could have been made in the late 80s, mid-90s, it really could have only happened now at a point where people are looking for simplicity of genre. But also something new.
[00:05:59] This almost feels like, you know, with the incredible liner art of the album itself, the lovely layout, the cool fucking design of the cd, this feels like what we might have gotten if, you know, goth hadn't been subsumed by all the different influences that kind of absorbed it. You know, because music, art is a conversation, it evolves constantly.
[00:06:23] And it's like, it's worth wondering what art would look like if other influences weren't around to sort of pull it into all these different directions. You know, like for every typo negative, there's like, you know, there are bands that absorb elements of pop or punk or whatever, and ultimately they change their sound. I mean, what if the Sisters of Mercy were still around making music, but they instead of. Well, they're not around anymore, but like, I don't know, it's worth wondering what they would sound like if they darkened their sound and continued exploring what goth could be. And I think in a large way, Viejo's, you know, album here, Black Heroine Gallery.
[00:07:10] This album, E Beast of Bats, of course, it's definitely evocative of that thought.
[00:07:22] Needless to say, I don't like to give ratings, but I do think this is a must, a must read. I think you should at least listen to the album on Bandcamp. And considering that Iejo is an independent artist and author, I do think that it's worth at least buying the digital version of the album. I bought the digital and I bought the cd. It's not that expensive.
[00:07:44] You're supporting a an independent artist. You know, his label is his own and this is self published. It's a very nice self published book. And interestingly enough, Ieho told me that this is meant to be kind of Leaves of Grass type of book, where he wants to put out a new version of it in the future with more poetry and keep adding to it over the years.
[00:08:07] And I'm very excited to see where this goes. You know, it's an incredible book. You know, speak of monster Girls, here's this dark angel character. She's lovely, isn't she? I wonder what she's looking at. She's not an angel. She's a bird creature.
[00:08:23] See her beak?
[00:08:25] Very cool.
[00:08:26] If you're listening to this, I am sorry. But, you know, if you're just listening to this, you're gonna have to buy the book to see the pictures. But if you're on YouTube. Well, in her black garden there's a curious candlelight whimsically burning bright, an old lady giving head, A newborn floating Dead the bright blue ribbon in her hair Just didn't seem to belong There I stood lonely rotting there can't you see I have complaints? I've never claimed to be some saints I know you're afraid so what else is new?
[00:08:54] Don't say her name she's coming for you the silver sparkle on her face she said I lived life without a trace I'm so goddamn confused she split in two and said choose she handed me a bucket of bluegill Then pretended to jump from a windowsill I watched her red lips turn gray as her death faded away what if I was to say to you I could take your hurt away Bury it deep in the earth Locked in a purple wooden box and all that I ask of you is just one little thing Never break my heart Never break it in vain in her black garden there's a goblin laughing loud A spider infested shroud A twisted pumpkin patch Some naked girl attached to a swinging hook Above a carnival star in love caught in a quicksand flower bed and then of course, we get this. I have to assume tiny, tiny, tiny girl.
[00:09:58] Tiny skeletal girl draped in her own hair sitting on a stack of books.
[00:10:05] It's mysterious, it's eerie.
[00:10:08] I love it. I think it's gorgeous. And like, you know, we go from the gothic Marilyn Manson stuff to Battle of Troll Hill, which is almost a dark high fantasy, a story of. Of trolls and goblins and Knock Fae Land, which is a recurring motif.
[00:10:30] And of course a poem that we published over in.
[00:10:34] Gosh, I think it was our.
[00:10:38] Our. Our winter edition. Tapping the top of her coffin over at Death Wish.
[00:10:44] Great poem.
[00:10:49] So. And of course I just. I have to highlight. I think this is the first song. No, it's. It's track seven, actually. It just sticks with me because I love the lyrics so much. The boy who married the Spider face Girl.
[00:11:03] This Diver's helmet guy. I think he comes back occasionally. I'm not sure.
[00:11:09] But Viejo decided that instead of giving her spider mouthparts, he would give her extra eyes. That's how she's the spider face girl she's home I slowly creep Bringing her her favorite treat Spider cotton cotton candy she's an angel of monstrous kind an unwilling pawn that stands as mine she gently lays her head in my lap Chanting softly dark ballads of love she begs me, please don't leave she dances above some freshly dug grave and warmly welcomes all of earth's depraved don't want you to hunt her, trap her, kill her or charge a dollar to see her in some show I am the boy who married the spider faced girl she smiles eternal pink candles coil she's afraid devils aren't loyal she no longer worries her web has bled don't turn away or whisper her name She's a violent beauty singing love's name.
[00:12:10] So in conclusion, that's my review of One Death Box on Fable.
[00:12:15] It's beautiful, it's haunting, it's dark, and it's truly one of a kind and the beginning of a new journey for Mr. Joseph.
[00:12:26] I like to refer to him as December, but you know, Ieho is his first name.
[00:12:31] So buy this on Amazon. That's where you can buy it. I think it's also on Lulu, but you know, most of us just use Amazon for everything. I personally bought the Black Heroine Gallery album Feast on Bandcamp and I recommend you do the same. Also, it's a really good album. You know, you can of course listen to it on Bandcamp first and you can just buy it digitally. I mean you're still supporting the artist if you do so. But I'm happy to. I own this and I'm happy to highlight it. Check back for part two, which I will post next week, where I actually interview Iejo December Joseph. That's all poetry. Make art, love your demons. Ave say Thomas.
