Lustmord: Other

Lustmord is like a numinous deity of disquiet. Oft-considered the creator of the “dark ambient” genre, Lustmord sculpts atmosphere and mood to create unsettling aural experiences rather than creating music of any conventional sense. On his latest record, the mysteriously titled Other, he is assisted by Adam Jones (Tool), King Buzzo (Melvins) and Aaron Turner (Isis). Their twangs and drones set against Lustmord’s brooding backgrounds achieve an even greater impact than usual. Using sounds extracted from crypts, caves and slaughterhouses Lustmord summons the reek of primal dread and a sense of eternal, solitudinous voids in the same vein as movies like Alien and 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Some of Lustmord’s compositions can be transposed to visuals that reveal coherent images when run through a spectrograph. Perhaps a visual element would also benefit Other since there is no narrative arc or noticeable hooks to prevent the experience from becoming somniferous. If some unfortunate soul does fall asleep while taking in Other, it will at least serve as an apt soundtrack to a terrifying nightmare.