Review by Rachel Jablonski
The dedication at the conclusion of the booklet, almost more accurately described as a warning, reads:
This recording is dedicated to the woodpecker in your head… to be continued…
I couldn’t have said it better myself. My mind has labored, twisted, and turned trying to figure out the mere two tracks called Temporary Psychotic State from an ensemble named Subterranean Masquerade. The complexity of the 17 minute 21 second journey is somewhat difficult to follow, but the overall effort contains much promise.
Subterranean Masquerade is hailed as “a means of self-expression of deepest and darkest thoughts and emotions.” The listening mind is tricked, twisted, and tussled by deep messages brought about by an interesting compilation of sounds. Sped up and distorted carnival music among a murmur of voices. Brief bleeps, squeaks and blips of sound that don’t seem to fit quite right. Dramatized spoken word, distant sound effects, and dominating violin and keyboard arrangements. These overpowering sounds develop a storyline, but the ear is somewhat perplexed by the distant and subdued lull of guitar. Disguised by various sound oddities, the subtle guitar, vocal melodies, and growls fight to be heard. These combinations allow each track of the album to progressively build until reaching a central climax. The piece then gradually descends back to a soft musical foundation. The overall meaning of the work is undoubtedly up for personal interpretation.
It took many, MANY listens to soak in and accept the complexity and atypical composition, but the deep mixture of words, meanings, and sound arrangements have become embedded in my mind. It has been a rather personal effort to piece together the Temporary Psychotic State journey, but one that now makes perfect sense, at least in my eyes.
…and staring at the eyes of my world…
I look forward to the promised Subterranean Masquerade continuation and the reawakening of the woodpecker in my head.