#raein

[thefinalwitness]

he loves it because it means you aren't in pain anymore.

YOU!!! 🫵 should romanticize prosthetic limbs

[lunamarish]

Saremo il monumento continuo di nuovi desideri Che corrono giù dalle montagne, più veloci della paura di soffrire Vestiremo splendore con la determinazione di mille inverni Faremo esplodere il consenso in cielo E lo guarderemo piovere diamanti in tutte le direzioni

Parleremo per immagini Per tenere gli occhi bene aperti su quanto non si vede Ritroveremo gli attrezzi per riparare l'ideale E il nostro cinismo farà sbocciare nuovi sogni Innescheremo la macchina della volontà Per produrre domande che spostino cattedrali Affinché tutto accada di nuovo, oltre che nulla vada perduto

Saremo il fatale prevalere dell'azione Per sempre, tutto comincia ora

Raein, Nirvana

[ticketstoacarcrash]

Raein – Il n’y a pas d’orchestre (2003)

Album Information

• Artist: Raein

• Album Title: Il n’y a pas d’orchestre

• Release Date: 2003

• Genre: Screamo / Emo Violence / Post-Hardcore

• Label: Heroine Records / Ape Must Not Kill Ape

• Runtime: ~25 minutes

I’ve always had a soft spot for albums that feel more like emotional experiences than just collections of songs, and Il n’y a pas d’orchestre by Raein is exactly that. Released back in 2003, this record captures everything I love about the raw, unfiltered side of screamo — emotion, chaos, and beauty all clashing together in one rush of sound.

Even though it’s sadly been removed from Spotify, I still find myself coming back to it whenever I can. There’s something about the way Raein plays — the messy energy, the walls of distortion, the shouted vocals that sound more like cries than words — that feels completely genuine.

Sound & Emotion

The album doesn’t waste a second. It hits fast and hard but still carries a strange sense of melody and hope buried under the noise. The guitars shimmer and grind, the drums push everything forward, and the vocals sound like they’re coming straight from the heart. It’s not about perfection — it’s about emotion, and that’s what makes it powerful.

Listening to it feels like being caught in a storm but somehow finding comfort inside it.

Favorite Tracks

My favorite track is “Tiger Suit.” It’s intense from start to finish — fast, emotional, and packed with riffs that somehow sound both desperate and uplifting. Every time I listen to it, I feel like I’m right there with them, losing myself in the moment.

“The King Is Dead” is another one I keep coming back to. It’s slightly calmer but carries a lot of weight. There’s a sadness to it that really lingers, almost like the song itself is reflecting on everything that came before it.

Together, those two songs sum up why I love this album — it’s violent and emotional, but also deeply human.

Final Thoughts

What makes Il n’y a pas d’orchestre special to me is how it communicates without needing to explain anything. Even if you don’t understand what they are saying, you feel what they’re saying. It’s pure emotion — no filters, no polish, just honesty.

It’s one of those albums that reminds me why I love this kind of music in the first place. Short, chaotic, and full of feeling.

Rating: 8.5/10

[ilikeyoshi]

hi. i like them

[dawndwelling]

hi. i still like their boobs. (he/they/she)

[thisworldisablackhole]

Raein Forme Sommerse

🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗

FFO: ITALIAN SCREAMO / LISTEN

Surprise releases are back in vogue, and I can't say that I'm not refreshed by the mounting rejection of six-month rollouts and a culture that increasingly values single streams and social media engagement over the appreciation of art in its intended form. Whether their intent or not, Raein took this rejection of consumer culture a step further by dropping their first recorded material in a decade in the form of two lengthy movements, without any warning, and then refusing to play ball with Spotify's warmongering (to hell with your sad boy summer playlist, head on over to their bandcamp page to listen). This approach would be any major label exec's worst nightmare, but thankfully, the kind folks over at Persistent Vision actually know a thing or two about respecting the medium. Sure, you could zoom into the tracks that make up Forme Sommerse and triangulate the spots where one motif ends and another begins, but doing so would be counterintuitive to the way that Forme Sommerse was intended to be heard—with each sub-movement being part of a larger whole.

Forme Sommerse, at its core, is a practice in intuition. Instead of trying to recapitulate the past, Raein opted to utilize a fresh approach that would allow them to flow seamlessly from one idea to the next without any heed to the limitations of conventional structure. That sense of freedom is fully evident in these movements. These aren't exactly post-rock songs with linear progressions after all; they are more akin to a collection of peaks and valleys, with kinetic rhythms that push and pull like a waltz through turbulent waters, and the result is nothing short of staggering. All the hallmarks that made Raein such an influential force in the first place are still front and center here—their perfect balance between bright guitar tones, sensitive melodies, passionately chanted vocals, and a rhythmic urgency that feels vital every step of the way—but the form of the album makes their music feel more alive than ever.

This commitment to intuition hasn't only resulted in a fantastic new record; it is also one of the core pillars of Raein's near quarter-century career. Countless peers have come and gone since their self-titled record came out in 2002, but Raein has remained an undying fixture in the scene, and a large part of their longevity can be attributed to the way the group has consistently approached their relationship to the band as a conversation, asking not only what they need from the music but also what the music needs from them. Sometimes this means letting ten years slip by between records, but if that's what it takes to avoid burnout and collapse, by all means, take another ten. Raein aren't just back in top form here; they are still at the forefront of the pack, and Forme Sommerse may be their most elegant and mature record to date. 

[aflowerdrops]

Jackson/ever.rot on twin cities metalcore/hardcore scenes, his photography’s technicalities, and more | Interview

Pictured here: ostraca

Photographers are crucial to music scenes, they’ve been important before the advent of and with social media. Last week I had the pleasure of talking to Jackson / ever.rot on Instagram - he’s taken pics of Sunami, Saetia, Jeromes dream, and loads more cool bands. He also does urban/landscape photography. In this interview he talks local music, and dives into the details of how he achieves different looks in his photos - something you’ll definitely find interesting whether or not you’re into photography. He has selected a set of 20 pictures that show the different kinds of pictures he takes, which are included in this article. Keep reading to check them all out! And make sure you follow him on Instagram!! 

Hi there, thank you so much for doing this with me! Introduce yourself to our readers please.

Hi!! My name is Jackson. I’m also @ever.rot on instagram, that’s where I post all my weird, fucked up photos if you’re into that kinda thing. :D

How did you get into live music photography, and photography in general?

I got into photography through a friend I made as I was beginning to get into the local twin cities beatdown hardcore/metalcore scene after moving to Minneapolis (thanks Brett!!). I recently did some exploring with a group of friends all over the rotting state of New Jersey and started documenting everything we found. I wanted to chase this eerie look in the photos I took that I was able to get with just my phone, and after a two and a half hour conversation Brett sent me spiraling down a photography rabbit hole. Since I was already going to shows nonstop at that point and I had friends in bands, it only felt natural to try out concert photography.

Can you talk about your relationship to your local music scene? Did you grow up in/around it? What would you say makes it different from other scenes?

I really didn’t grow up with live music, so I’ve only really been truly seeking it out for the last year and a half or so. Between college and visiting family I’ve been split between the hardcore/metalcore and screamo scenes in both NJ/NYC and twin cities, Minneapolis and St Paul. I’ve met so many incredible people so far, and I’m hoping to make more of an impact as I figure out what the fuck I’m doing with my camera and fingers crossed if I finally get one of these bands I’ve been planning with friends off the ground. 

How do you think photographers contribute or maybe give back to a music scene?

I think while we (me especially) might get in the way here and there and might be a little distracting if we all decide to show up at once and there’s like 10 of us for no reason, photographers at their best are great for immortalizing moments that lets a show live on past the night doors opened. Everyone remembers that one 1988 Fugazi show in Philly because there’s a shot of Guy Picciotto dangling from that basketball hoop. 

bulletsbetweentongues, opposition dolls, grimlitter

Granted, most shots aren’t that iconic. My hope is that, despite the fact I might miss some great moments due to how I take photos and a soul crushing skill issue, I might be able to make that dream of being in a band with all your friends feel a little more real–just with whatever artsy bullshit I’m doing on top.  

The way you capture your subjects is really beautiful. Something about it makes the pictures feel so lively. I find that the energy in your work is super unique. What’s going through your head while you’re taking pictures at shows?

Thank you so much! That’s so sweet!!

Since my photos are so dependent on lighting and I haven’t really relied on flash for concert photography to date, I first focus on how I want to change my white balance settings and how I over/underexpose my photos to best make use of the light I’m given. 

Then, I typically focus on positioning myself where I can best compose my subjects, get compelling angles, and potentially capture something between members of the band or between the band and the crowd. 

jerome's dream, saetia

Last, I try to capture moments. Given how many on-the-fly plans and adjustments go into preparing and lining up my shots, I often just have to get lucky or adjust super fast to get a picture of a big moment if it doesn’t happen exactly where I’m preparing to take a photo.

Doing all of that manually at a show where my subjects are moving and I’m getting kicked in the head is honestly very mentally taxing but god do I love the challenge. 

You also take really cool pictures of landscapes. Are most of these taken where you live/grew up, how would you say that inspires and affects your work? How would you describe the difference between your mindset taking pictures at shows and taking pictures of landscapes?

The few landscape shots I’ve done were all out of a window of a car moving about 70 mph through Wisconsin on two separate roadtrips with no real tie to my past. What motivated me to take them was simply how beautifully desolate the state looked that spring. That’s what separates my band photography from most of the other photography. Whenever I’m not in a music venue, I’m typically seeking rot and decay, in whatever form that may take. 

You told me you don’t edit your pictures. Some of them have an analog/film look to them while some look more modern but they’re all really fucking awesome! How do you achieve/switch between those styles, in the technical sense? Can you describe your overall process for taking pictures, maybe talk about the gear you use? Feel free to include as much detail as you want — I’m sure there’s plenty of people reading who are into photography!!

Thank you!!

I think what separates the analog vs. modern look to any photo is just how I use the lighting conditions at any given venue.

I use a Nikon D100, one of Nikon’s first DSLRs from 2002, which I specifically bought for its old, beautiful CCD sensor and its poor noise reduction. Definitely not because I could find one for $55 on eBay. I essentially wanted something with a relatively high max ISO so I could drown my photos in as much noise as possible, and to date almost all of my photos are taken that way.

I use two lenses. My general purpose is an f/2.8 28mm manual focus Nikkor AIS that some photography forum thread from 2008 told me is Nikon’s best wide angle lens. I trust them. It’s old, made of metal, looks pretty, and survived getting lost and kicked around a Harvest pit. The other is a lensbaby composer with an edge 80[mm] optic, a tilt-shift lens that allows me to selectively focus on other things in frame that aren’t directly in the center of my viewfinder.

I manually adjust my shutter speed and aperture, and I manually focus, so I’ve got all the control to either succeed and capture something sick or fail and end up with an underexposed, out of focus mess. Lots of the latter. 

raein, sunami

As you said, I don’t edit any of my shots (besides adding white borders to fit an aspect ratio) so the appearance of a photo is influenced by choices made before and during the shot. 

As for my process, any band photography I do is reliant on the lighting at the venue I’m shooting at. I’ll typically start by trying to figure out how much I want to under/overexpose my photos, and adjust as needed throughout each set. I don’t use a light meter. Next, I’ll start looking for angles I find compelling. Throughout a show I’m constantly referencing the photos I’ve just taken on my little LCD screen for hints as to what I need to adjust to give me the best chance of getting a usable photo; that probably separates my process of taking photos from shooting film the most. At the moment, I tend to lean towards portraiture but in the future I’m trying to make an effort to capture more of the energy of the room.

(left to right) herlovebeheadsdaisies, knumears, my buddy eric, bloom dream, whenthedustsettles, datura dread, flooding, eyelet, newfound interest in connecticut

Thank you once again for doing this with me! I’m really excited to post this and showcase your work. Are there any projects (etc.) of yours that you wanna promote? And/or if you’re available for work (live show photography for example) feel free to mention that here.

Thank you for taking the time to put a spotlight on my work! At the moment, aside from whatever I end up posting on instagram, I don’t have any other projects to promote. As for work, I’m just an amateur photographer fucking around with a camera. If you like my work and want me to flick you up, dm or email me!! I’d love a photo pass at events.

Follow Jackson on Instagram - @ever.rot 

Written by Mio | aflowerdrdops. Follow us on Instagram and turn on notifs so you don’t miss an update! 

[emotionalhardcore]

RAEIN </3