1. Trip 2021 (7'29)
2. Dystopia in Utopia (4'46)*
3. Caterpillar (3'45)*
4. Uncontrollable Flesh (4'12)
5. The Desire of Catherine Ballard (4'39)
6. Ectoplasma (4'22)
7. Lullaby for Angels (6'00)*
8. How Angels kill in Ecstasy (13'43)*
* feat Æchidna Morgan Kamen
Buy: digital / CD
Copies preordered on Oct 30 as part of the limited edition package, also included bonus mini 3" CD called "The Electric Pasta Ritual".
Third album in the hypnagogic drone series from Mater Suspiria Vision. Debuting in 2010 on Living Tapes, the first Crack Witch record, as well as its 2012 follow up "Paracusia", presented a slightly different approach to witch house than 'regular' albums from the collective, being more like sound collages, focused on extreme looping, reverb and delay techniques as well as obscure voice modifications (evidently explored in their "Trip" tracks). And while large parts of this new LP are still filled with those elements, alongside signature trippy synths and rhythmical and murky soundscapes ("Dystopia in Utopia" and "Ectoplasma" for example), the album doesn't shy away from implementing elements of other sub-genres of dark electronic music. The lead single "Caterpillar", led by industrial drums and MSV trademark synths, and backed with Morgan's ethereal whispers and vocals, is one of them, next to "Uncontrollable Flesh", reminiscent of the underrated Drug Machine's Amnesia album and collaborations with In Death It Ends. We also get icy, pulsating synthwave on "The Desire of Catherine Ballard", that serves as a tribute to David Cronenberg's film Crash, as well as cryptic, cinematic composition "Lullaby for Angels", which brings to mind noisy ambient arrangements of Ben Frost and the menacing sound design of Brad Fiedel in the escape from the hospital scene in Terminator 2. With Morgan's hypnotising mantra, surrounded by walls of crushing sound, the track seamlessly mutates into "How Angels kill in Ecstasy", a 13-minute long ghostly transmission full of muttered hiss and distant, wobbly bass, that inevitably brings to mind the beat-less and vast recordings on Mater Suspiri Vision's 2013 album ATEM. As we steadily float toward the end, the wailings become louder and somehow more comforting, luring us deeper into the void. "Crack Witch 3" is a really solid album, sitting comfortably among the best offerings from MSV produced in the past few years.
