Ara Cristina Hernandez – BLACK HOLE
In many ways, you can split up the entire history of pop-rock into two segments. The first one, and certainly the more pleasing and fan-endorsed of the two, concerns itself with offering the imagination diversions and giving it little time to contemplate the worst-case scenarios. This is dominated by cheerful pop stars who are careful not to utter publicly words that could cause distress.
The other segment is more critically respected, more daring and, generally, less liked. Songs from this category concern themselves with analysing the worst of what mankind has to offer, or to consider all the various ways in which the world as we know it could end at any second. Personally, I am more interested in this style and in the music of Ara Cristina Hernandez.
“Black Hole” is meant to work as an imagination exercise that will reveal what you’re most scared is going to happen. All that you need to do is to pay attention to all the details of this industrial-rock-inspired song. Let your powers to daydream take over. And, if, as the singer describes, you’ll feel the Universe start to itself up, you will have just revealed to yourself knowledge that will be of the utmost importance soon enough.
Ragebate – Wrist the Teeth
Everything happens very, very slowly and then all at once. We’re nearly done with the part of the show where things move at a snail’s pace and, likely, on the verge of dramatic, but possibly terrible events in world politics, and, in particular, those related to the U.S.A., the most powerful of countries on this planet.
How do I know? Everyone’s singing about it. And the tunes talking about revolution or imploring someone to put an end to the incredible levels of corruption are being planted out in the open like propaganda posters just before the king’s head is destined to end up on a spike.
I too am fearful of such events, but listening to bands like Ragabate, I can’t help but feel that the message has been issued out clearly. On “Wrist the Teeth,” this musical project echoes the anger-filled, gloomy industrial-metal of Nine Inch Nails’ 1990s work. It’s a fitting musical direction to choose and a one more rallying cry against a system that’s promised everything and only delivered it to a chosen few.
