Rhys Bloodjoy is a one man noise machine, using sophisticated loops, echo drenched harmonies and reverb soaked melodies to create a truly unique style all of his own. His new EP is something special, and we had to see what all the fuss was about!
His debut album Human.Pattern.Repeat. at the start of the pandemic in May 2020. After a hiatus, Bloodjoy returned in December 2023 with ‘Drugs Loop’, the first track taken from his second LP The Chaos In Veins. This LP saw a departure from the Cold Wave sound of the previous LP and ventures into different territory, partly due to its origins being a musical accompaniment to Vividsection — a conceptual series of artworks by Dangerosa. In December 2024 he released Bloodjoy Remixes (Part One)—an EP starring four artists who have previously released albums on his record label, Sister 9 Recordings, as well as a follow-up to his low-key 2022 debut single with Neu Oscuro.
After a return to the live circuit earlier this year, he has now unleashed this amazing EP on Halloween – of all days. Bloodjoy explains “the EP features five tacks inspired by a lucid nightmare – a one-way trip to hell—wherein the writer found himself on a desolate desert highway, only to hitch a ride with a psychotic Elvis Presley type character who is referred to in the sleeve notes only as ‘Evils’.” The sound has elements of Suicide, desert rock riffs and shades of early Thin White Rope, the Velvet Underground and Neu all in the mix for good measure.
‘Arms In Knots’, a track that could easily be mistaken for one from the Suicide catalogue, the vocals channel Wall of Voodoo and dive bar scenes flood into your mind. ‘Motorcycle Blood’ brings a track of a similar name to mind, we’ll leave you to guess which one while you soak in the mellower tones and otherworldly riffs. Lead single ‘I Believe I Can Die’ is a moody electronic laden number, with the vocal style channeling the lead character in this journey to full effect. ‘Loner’s Mirror’ is the standout track, with its fantastically terrifying juxtaposed riffs competing with the detracted vocals, it belongs in a David Lynch movie. ‘Ghosts on the Highway’ is a dose of pure horror, but in a way that draws you deeper rather than pushing you away, the perfect fatalistic quandary.
Buy it here
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