As should be clear enough from the title of this piece— lifted directly from a Bandcamp bio which goes on to add “power ambient” to the descriptor—Atlanta’s Malevich are a difficult band to pigeonhole.
They used to describe what they did as “Grinding Blackened Angst”, which still also fits really, but ultimately their music is much less about how you define it than how you feel it. The four-piece’s third LP, Under a Gilded Sun, recorded with the inimitable Seth Manchester (Lingua Ignota, Daughters), is an immersive and expansive record—one that sees the band get intentionally more experimental, and even startlingly delicate and melodic at points.
It’s also still utterly furious though, with blast beats and dissonance and a scorching triple vocal attack all hammering home the band’s continued seething outrage at the injustices of global capitalism and imperialism.
This is a group with plenty to say, so I let guitarist Josh and drummer/vocalist Sasha have at it.
What was the writing process like for Under a Gilded Sun? Did you approach it any differently from your last couple of records?
(Josh, guitar): Starting with the last EP, Trembling and Dowsed, we have been able to write at Connor’s studio here in Atlanta: Sobek Sound. It’s really handy in that we can put mics up and record anything that we’re working on so that’s a huge improvement over the phone recordings we had to use for the last full albums.
Our approach to this specific album was certainly different in that we put more effort in consciously combining our influences in a cohesive manner rather than having certain songs or parts of songs that we felt were too similar to specific bands or subgenres. A result of that was rewriting and rewriting songs until we all felt satisfied with them, which can be grueling but worth it.
On top of that was the crucial conscious decision to explore more textual elements and even major key moments that serve to bring about more melody in contrast to the swarms of bands that have been adding harsh noise to the whole “blackened” trend. We still love that stuff and feel connected to that community but we don’t want to be just another band doing a thing, we want to be doing “our” thing. We’ve sort of crawled out of the atonal black hole of the past and incorporated more colors and emotions to the palate.
You have a very diverse sound, how do you keep things cohesive with so many different elements and influences in the mix?
(Josh): That has been one of the main focuses of our songwriting. It’s incredibly important for us that our albums sound like actual albums, not compilations of songs thrown together. Yes, that means writing and rewriting songs as I mentioned but it also means laying out the “architecture” of the full album as it slowly forms. We love blast beats (and there’s a whole fuckin’ lot of them) but we also love other sounds and genres.”
Are there any particularly ‘out-there’ or unexpected sources of inspiration on Under a Gilded Sun that people might not pick up on?
(Josh): I don’t know if these are particularly “out there” but there might be a few. I kept referencing Low’s Double Negative album while we were working with Seth Manchester (Machines With Magnets) on some of the “production destruction” moments on the record. Making interesting sounds happen in the studio, both there and at Sobek, is one of our favorite parts about recording and is a huge part of why we wanted to work with Seth. His work with Big Brave, The Body, and Model/Actriz are great examples of his flavor for distortion.
We’re also enjoyers of pop music and the way that good pop song-writing involves intricate layers of little things to keep songs moving is always a background thought. If you listen to Charli XCX’s “Tears” there’s a screech in the mix during the second and last chorus (courtesy of Caroline Polachek) that isn’t dissimilar to when Sasha does the same thing on some tracks.
The album really makes a strong commitment to rage and extremity, why is that so important to you?
(Josh): This is our way of dealing with those feelings ourselves. Heavy music has always been political. I’ll happily be the 100000th person to tell chuds to read the lyrics to “War Pigs." But even more so, art is the creative expression of the self. We live in a fucked up world where people are valued according to how much wealth and power they have.
We see everyday that living in poverty or belonging to the wrong demographic can mean death at a moment’s notice. You don’t get rich by being a good person, you get it by playing the system and that system is a machine where people’s lives and happiness are mere commodities to be sold on the market. If they can’t be sold you might as well be dead. So yeah, there’s a lot to rage about.
Could you elaborate on some of the main themes of the record?
(Josh): The title itself refers to the idea that we’ve grown up in a part of the world where we are told that hard work, etc. is the key to success and happiness when that is far from reality. Westerners are promised the idea of upward mobility at any expense. Do good in school, follow your passion, and you’ll be content in life.
Whether you call it propaganda or ideology, that is the gilded layer over the harsh reality of capitalism and imperialism. These are not “natural” systems but are the result of decisions that people have made over centuries. Wars are fought and people die because those in power want more territory and resources. People die from poor health not necessarily because of decisions they made but because someone at a desk made it too expensive to see a doctor. The “gilded sun” is the false promise that covers up immense devastation.
Next year marks 10 years since the band formed, is there anything you know now that you wish you had known then?
(Sasha, drums/vocals): I can think of a million things I wish I had known when we started this band. Everything from proficiency with our instruments, ability to communicate as a unit, how to book successful tours, the list goes on and on, but to me this project has always been about challenging ourselves to grow.
This band has taught me so many skills and lessons, and I think that is just a big part of DIYing it. When we ran into a roadblock we would just get scrappy and try to be resourceful.
From the jump, Josh and I booked our tours (now he does it and I chime in as needed [laughs]), Daniel booked and promoted shows in Atlanta, I did all our art, and then when Connor started his studio Sobek Sound it let us dig into more of our own production. On almost all of those fronts we didn’t start out very good at what we were doing, but persistence and an open-minded approach to learning how to get better has brought us to where we are now.
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What have you learned from playing with such a diverse set of bands and artists over the years? Is there anyone you’ve played with that stands out as having had a particular impact on you?
(Sahsha): I’ve learned that there’s nothing I dislike more than having to sit through a full show of bands that sound exactly the same, especially on tour [laughs]. Years ago we played a black metal festival and by the end of it I couldn’t tell any of the bands apart.
Of the bands we have played with over the years the ones who had the biggest impact on my taste have all been bands who were uncompromising in some way, bands who were willing to experiment and challenged their audiences to come on the ride with them. Planning for Burial, Sunrot, and Infant Island are all bands we’ve played with a bunch who are examples of this.
Also, as a drummer I have learned so much from touring and playing with insane drummers over the years. There’s too many to name, but the first one who always comes to mind is Matt from Immortal Bird. He’s just one of those players who whenever you watch him play drums it’s inspiring and makes you want to be better at your instrument.
What are some new or up and coming bands that you are particularly excited about at the moment?
(Josh): Split Silk are local post-hardcore heroes that we love. I’m definitely excited for the new Agriculture after having seen them live a couple of times. There’s also some bands on the other side of the Atlantic that we feel kinship with like Kollapse, LLNN, and Still. I’ve personally been really hyped about the new wave of slowcore influenced bands, some of which we’ve played with: Death Parade, Flooding, Nightosphere, Fainting Dreams.
What’s next for Malevich?
(Sasha): We are pushing the album as hard as we can through this release! We have multiple Atlanta shows in place to roll it out and we are working on a second music video.
Once the album is out, we will be laying low till the end of the year to give our guitar player Connor time to be a dad. He and his wife just welcomed their first child into their lives. Starting next year, though, we plan on hitting the road hard and getting the new material out there.
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Under a Gilded Sun will be out on August 22nd via Church Road Records. UK pre-order | EU pre-order | US pre-order
Malevich on social media: Facebook | Instagram
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