Review: Mater Suspiria Vision – 'Hollywood Necronomicon'

MATER SUSPIRIA VISION 
'Hollywood Necronomicon'
PHANTASMA DISQUES

Necronomicon – book of the names of the dead... Yes, most appropriate. Like a series of spectres conjured in a ritual received through skrying from the flames of burning celuloid, Mater Suspiria Vision comes to us with deliberate intent. This declaration and evocation of intent is an essential part of the work of Mater Suspiria Vision. The aim is clearly to create specific aesthetic impressions using imagery from fashion and film and the results are often more unnerving than what many achieve using occult, martial or violent imagery. I refer to imagery, for images, sounds and video work are parts of the complete expression of Mater Suspiria Vision. Even without seeing the attendant images, the sounds evoke the aesthetic.

'A New H Of Consciousness' announces itself with some measure of grandeur. Embedded in a grinding drone of square wave is a voice welcoming us through the door into the realm of the ghosts of the dream factory. This is a very ritualistic release, meant to alter the listener's state of consciousness. At over nineteen minutes long, the track 'Hallucination 1969' is the most extreme example in one sense. Eschewing usual methods of arrangement with its balance of bass and treble, a mid tone pulse is present throughout, tuning the brainwaves a maddening frequency as garbled voices speak straight into the subconscious. It has an effect, and one that is amplified upon repetition. Perhaps taking this extended ritualistic mode further is 'Infinity Ritua'l, while clocking in at 40 seconds, it is made to loop forever and doing so results in a very hypnotic experience indeed. There is some of the methodology of dub in 'Out Of Body', with layer upon layer of slap-back echo playing an essential role on the arrangement. On 'Hollywood Requiem' the apparitions called to appear sing, dissolve and fade slowly away.

Turn on the Hollywood Sacrifice Teleportation Machine, enter the world of the lost souls, says the artist's statement. Make what you will of the fact that this album was recorded at the gate of the Sharon Tate house and the location where Kenneth Anger filmed Lucifer Rising, but based on the audio evidence, Mater Suspiria Vision are a strong conduit for the spectres dwelling therein.

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