Review: Heroin In Tahiti - Remoria

Almost 2 years ago to the day I listened to an album that was to completely change the way I appreciated music; it took seemingly disparate musical factors and melded them together to form an intoxicating and frankly awe inspiring whole. It also lead to me completely falling in love with Italian 'left field' music. That album was, of course, Heroin In Tahiti's 'Sun and Violence' (read my review here). It became, and remains, not only my favourite of 2015 but one of my favourite albums EVER. It also lead me further down the 'Italian Occult Psychedelia' road from which there is no return, a 'genre' that I find endlessly fascinating, always surprising and unfailingly inspirational. The whole 'IOP' scene typifies the fire that burns in the bellies of talented Italian musicians and composers; the never ending quest to push the boundaries of music and to stretch the listeners imagination. Donato Epiro is one such composer - via the clever, subtle manipulation of electronics, the use of 'found' sounds and field recordings and long tracts of drones he has created some transcendental pieces of music (check out his 'Rubisco' LP - fantastic stuff). So, and here's the thing, what happens when a man such as Epiro curates a series of recordings, one of which is a new Heroin In Tahiti album.....well, nothing short of magic! The series in question is the 'Grandangolo' series via Soave Records..and I've a feeling that this will not be the last you hear of this series having listened to the first 2 albums.

So to 'Remoria'; to quote the press release "In Roman mythology, the murder of Remus by his brother Romulus is the key event that led to the founding of the city of Rome. But what if Remus overcame Romulus? Easy: rather than Rome, we'd have Remoria, the city that never happened.

We'll never know what Remoria would have looked like, at least compared to the Rome which still stands there 27 centuries after the ominous brother's sacrifice. But perhaps, the ghosts of Remoria still harbor under the so called Eternal City, as a kind of deforming mirror of the events, the shapes, the geometries and the values which lay on the surface.

In their new “alternate history LP”, Heroin In Tahiti explore the negative occult side of their native city, portraying the myths, the legends, the heroes and the tragedies of that original “what if”, and sinking into the abyss of Rome's psyche and griefs."

The album is seven tracks, simply titled 'I' to 'VII' and, I'm very, very glad to report, is a worthy successor to 'Sun and Violence'. 'I' is a lesson in atmosphere construction using very little - the regular twang of what sounds like a Jews Harp, the occasional crash of a gong and church bells build a gothic framework under which glimpses of discordant melody fade in and out. It's a track in which the spaces between the sounds say as much as the sounds themselves. The track does grow and flourish however, drones and more percussive elements combine with the trademark HIT 'spaghetti wasteland' elements and by the end it has become...well...another Heroin In Tahiti masterpiece. A killer way to open an album. 'II' opens with a simple bassline over which are gradually added elements...percussion, a simple drum beat and more 'death surf' guitar and still it grows. It's this combining of elements that make the band so damned good..an instinctive grasp of when to add what...and so frustratingly difficult to review! 'III' takes things down a darker path...the ominous caw of crows and some ritualistic, primal drums give proceedings a real occult vibe. 'IV' sound positively funky at first with it's groovy percussion, but when the horns come in it all turns more discordant...the skronky saxophone and syncopated drums give things an experimental air but things soon settle into something more melodic, like a soundtrack to a gothic cowboy movie (now, that would be a thing!). It is an upbeat number with some more tribalistic drums and plenty of 'twang'. 'V' again starts off funky, almost jazzy, with shimmering cymbals and more syncopated drums but the electronica and drones takes this out of the cocktail lounge and out once more into some arid, desolate landscape, like a western 'Bladerunner'. 'VI' is the shortest track at just over the two minute mark...dread laden gong heralds some equally ominous drones and melancholic guitar. 'VII' closes the album with some hauntological electronica harking back to public information films of the seventies but with added drone. Baleful piano chords lay beneath the electronica to give things a touch of the sepulchral. More and more elements are added until it becomes something bordering on the ecstatic until some spoken word and the baying of an television audience bring things to a triumphant close.

I was always going to like this album but was unsure where it would sit in my affections when compared with 'Sun and Violence'..there is always trepidation when reviewing a band you love...and I was fully expecting to love the album but simultaneously feel a bit deflated. However, I think 'Remoria' is up there with 'Sun and Violence'...it is stunningly brilliant! It gave me that same fluttery feeling I had on listening to 'S&V' - the atmospheres they build and the soundscapes they conjure are there as is the jaw-dropping creativity. As much as this is an album bedded in 'negative occult' it still has a verve and a beguiling sense of mystery that brings a smile to the face (I say smile, maybe just open mouthed admiration). it is, in short, triumphant. It represents all that I love about Italian music...the arcane and ritualistic ethos, the creativity and imaginative use of sound and silence, the sheer 'fuck you' attitude of musicians who make music that they want to make and, more importantly, the instinct of true sonic masters who can manipulate noise to suit their own means. Fucking amazing!! 'Remoria' is currently on pre-order at the Soave Records Bandcamp page here and is available in strictly limited (100) red vinyl and standard black vinyl as well as as a download.