For over 20 years, San Diego psych rock power trio, Earthless, have never been ones to abide by conventional styles or certain artistic norms. Guitarist and vocalist Isaiah Mitchell, bassist Mike Eginton, and drummer Mario Rubalcaba exhibit a flowing cohesiveness that intrigues the senses. How else can you keep a 41-minute, instrumental song interesting? This unique quality is what separates them from a lot of other genre-pushing bands, and it also pays homage to the weirdos of years gone by. It’s evident in their sixth album, Night Parade Of One Hundred Demons, on now via Nuclear Blast Records.
The album only has two songs on it, which is quite out of the ordinary in terms of what the structure of a rock record usually is. There’s the title track, the previously mentioned 41-minute one, and the 20-minute “Death To The Red Sun,” and both are rippers reminiscent of old jazz albums, especially modal jazz a la Miles Davis, where one long, extensive song could take up an entire side of a vinyl.
“Our first record that we put out only had two tracks, and we drifted away from that over time,” Mitchell says. “This was especially true by the time we put out Black Heaven in 2018, which has six songs, five of them with vocals. We just wanted to do something different, and on a personal level, I wanted to go back to how we used to do things with long instrumentals taking up one side of a record. If we cut it any shorter, we weren’t going to get what we wanted out of it, so it became that long due what it felt like it was asking for. Those old jazz records definitely come to mind when we play, so it ties in there somewhere.”
Along with the music, the album is also inspired by the ancient Japanese legend known as Hyakki Yagyō in which a horde of demons, ghosts, and other terrifying ghouls descend upon sleeping villages at night, once a year. Eginton, who seems to be a savant on the subject, initially brought the idea to both Mitchell and Rubalcaba, and the three of them proceeded to incorporate the concept in sonic fashion.
“I’m not exactly certain how he found it, but I know that he’s very into Japanese culture, and he’s a wonderful artist. He did the art for the record,” Mitchell talks about the inclusion of Eginton’s idea into the album. “Once the song started taking shape, it had this feel and influence like the early psych bands from there. When he brought the idea of this story to the rest of us, it just totally fit, and we started composing with that in mind.”
Rubalcaba’s childhood friend Ben Moore produced Night Parade Of One Hundred Demons and he has quite the resume. Moore has worked with folks ranging from avant-garde artist Diamanda Galás, classic pop singer-songwriter Burt Bacharach, black shoegazers Ceremony, and post-hardcore shredders Hot Snakes. Due to their familiarity with him and his unfamiliarity with their music, the experience was enjoyable for the band while also having a fresh vibe to it.
“It’s always good working with someone you know. I’ve worked with him a little bit, and Mario has worked with him quite a bit on different records,” Mitchell says. “It’s great working with a buddy around town who knows the gear. He’s just a cool dude and a wonderful musician. At the same time, he didn’t really know us as a band. He comes from a different musical world than what we do. He admitted that he didn’t know anything about Earthless, so it was an interesting and fresh experience. In my opinion, it worked out great. I’d work with him again, of course.
“I just hope people find it to be an enjoyable musical journey. You can see all the motions of activity of the story within the music and when it’s done, you won’t realize that it was as long as it was. I hope the listener enjoys the experience that the record brings.”
Watch the album teaser here:
For more from Earthless, find them on Facebook, Instagram, and their official website.
Photo courtesy of Earthless and Marta Estellés Martin
