Curtain Call: Onorthochrasaei at the Colonial Cafe - 12/22/23

  Like a death rattle, these guys SHOOK me. You have to understand it was this tiny kid just HOWLING into the mic fucking relentlessly. Mixed in were sampled vocal elements that said strange things and added to the complete fucking absurdity of the set. This is not to mention the drummer??? Blast beats to the attack of the vocals and backing tracks. Holy SHIT. The intentional tempo changes—unwavering screaming that highlighted the drumming—it really felt like art. It was dirty, and nasty, and fucking ruled.

Just to give everyone some cool context for the band's name, (Glossaria.net {citation}), states that the word Onorthochrasaei refers to the mother of four Gnostic demons—all of which are elements of the psyche—and that Onorthochrasaei is matter, illimitable, and that the other four demons feed from her. Pretty cool shit. Seems to stem from second-century Jewish/Christian spirituality with an emphasis on self-spiritualism and polytheism.

I think this is an important tidbit to add because a lot of the samples played at intervals during Onortho's set seem to pull from—or at least are inspired by—excerpts from Gnostic literature (eg. "who is euen now at the Dore. Blessed are those, whose portion is not with the wicked"). Paired with the violence of the drums and the brutally stirring vocals, the meaning presents itself not in the juxtaposition, but more in the adjacentness of their symbolism. Screaming at the wickedness, rejecting it in the most violent way possible. It's like a battle cry; declaring that you will not be tread on or crossed, you are dangerous to those who don't wish you or others well. SIMILARLY, you cry and scream for those who have been lost. Of course, this is only one example, and only what I glean from it. In sum, Onortho's work captures a feeling of protection of self—a feeling of raw, savior-type empathy through strength and self-awareness, while also conjuring a massive eldritch energy that really completes, as far as motifs go, the big, scary sound that is the main pillar of the genre.

The music—as a genre—really took me out of my comfort zone. (I think that's a really important thing to both say and acknowledge as you continue to immerse yourself in more of these unfamiliar genres.) At some point, it stopped being screaming and blast beats and started contorting into a meditative yet highly aware piece of art. Every time you'd get lost in the screaming, it would stop, a clip of sound would play, and then it would start again— constantly immersing you in the performance, then yanking you back to realize that you are in fact watching a show. In this way, it was very reminiscent of the Talking Heads' "big suit era."

Commercially, I find this genre of band does not always find a lot of mainstream success, however this is not to say that the genre is worthless. I think in an already unique topic and subgenre, they're really finding their niche, and are only continuing to get more creative as it goes. I cannot wait to see what narratives pop up in their next bodies of work.

In an interview I had with both the vocalist and drummer (Grim and Kevin, respectively), they divulged that Kevin had begun as a solo act around June or July of 2023, and had picked up Grim sometime about three months prior to the show on the twenty-second. The band together has played less than ten shows.

Grim rated their performance a solid 9/10, stating it was a good day for their vocal cords, and that their strength and tolerance were increasing.

Kevin was a bit more critical of his own performance, saying he messed up a couple times and may have rushed a little, ultimately ranking it a 7/10.

I say, for having played less than 10 shows, you get a pass. I couldn't notice anything. PLUS! My editor/secretary/tempo expert said, and I quote "You have no idea how fucking hard it is what he just did. Frankly there's nothing I'm complaining about. I've been playing drums for seven years and I cannot do what he just did".

Onorthochrasaei fucking rocked. They took us all to a place we weren't expecting, and I think shocked us so much that we didn't know what to do except stand around like idiots. At least- for me, that's how it went, there was A LOT of moshing during the set—

I can't wait to catch up with these guys again after they've played more shows and had more time to develop their act. They're already a massive powerhouse, and at full upside, I can't imagine how impressive their set is gonna be.

You can find Grim @Cosmetic.plague_

and Kevin on their main band page @Athletes.mouth!