#ora iso

[postpunkindustrial]

Ora Iso — Image Certifies

I’m still getting suggested stuff.

Ora Iso suggested by @mouthofinfinity

[postpunkindustrial]

Ora Iso - Dead Riot

I get suggested stuff.

Ora Iso suggested by anon.

[echostereo]

ora iso

[ollydesalisartlab213157-blog]

From the upcoming Ora Iso record, Bathcat, on Ba Da Bing Records. Coming out October 14th, 2014.

[boyharsher]

Great line up in BK July 3rd.

[dustedmagazine]

Ora Iso – Bathcat (Ba Da Bing)

For a duo, Ora Iso make a good bit of noise. Built primarily of basic drumming, shards of guitar spew, and mutated piano thump, the 36 minutes on Bathcat harken back to a few different generations of New York free-form noisemakers. There’s no doubt that Jason Kudo (guitar) and Kathleen Malay (piano, vocals) are familiar with their city’s earlier rock deconstructionists, though that’s not to imply a lack of originality. I hear intimations of Lydia Lunch’s Beirut Slump and the skeletal abrasions of Circle X, but also at times the thump and scrape of early Swans and an industrial horror-show vibe reminiscent of SPK, albeit with a determined focus on guitar abuse amidst the broken-down factory atmospheres.

It always feels a bit odd when a band has a song titled with their name: it makes me wonder if they’re making a statement, if it’s their theme song, or if it’s just intended to sum up their ambitions. Either way, you’d almost think that after releasing a song named after the band, they should just consider their job done and move on. Here, the longest song on the album is entitled “Ora Iso”, and it does serve as a good summing-up of what’s on offer. Lumbering forward on slow drumbeats, No Wave-ish guitar storms come and go as a murky piano thump gives it an almost bluesy sound, in a decayed and haunted way. The echoing vocals are chanted as a counterpoint to the simple piano melody, interrupted by frenzied distorto-guitar shards that tear at the song’s fabric. Halfway through, an overdriven delay adds its circular churn until the song peaks, then tumbles down into a morass of old-school guitar torture.

The interplay of melodic piano with jagged guitar abuse is what gives Ora Iso an original sonic signature — the drums, such as they are, seem like an obligatory structure, and the vocals only occasionally rise above desultory declamations. The vocal melodies of “Ora Iso” and “Daria” are standouts, but on other songs like “Dropped” and “Florida” Malay’s voice feels flat, even when it rises to a shout. Shades of Lydia Lunch– but Lydia’s declamations always have some bite even when delivered in a who gives a shit manner.

The moments in “Daria” when gentle piano and singsong words surface above the churning guitar turn the song into some mutant industrial shoegaze, while the rubbery pitch-shifted guitar plucking and echoing piano of “Lower” feels like alien folk music. When they ride the tension between shadowy melody and unforgiving cacophony, it’s really compelling. It must be said that when they channel pure grimy disturbance, things are also pretty swell too: from broken-down factory clank to horror-film buzz and crackle, they’ve got it covered.

Spawn of Missing Foundation and Throbbing Gristle, filtered through their own cracked aesthetic, Ora Iso have a bit more filtering to work out, but it’s clear there’s a focus to be found. As it is, this debut hits on a lot of rewarding stuff and if any of the above makes it sound like your thing, you’d be wise to check it out.

Mason Jones

[jgthirlwell]

10/14/14 Ora Iso have a new album out on Bada Bing Records, produced by Lary 7. A duo consisting of Jason Kudo and the compelling Kat Delay, they played Silent Barn to kick off their world tour which will take them to Indonesia for an extensive visit.