Maggot Mass - Pharmakon: Review
Pharmakon is a New York experimental noise project spearheaded by Margaret Chardiet. Though she's developed a reputation for blistering live shows, MAGGOT MASS is just her 5th studio album and first in 5 years. Through that lens, it's been a while since she dropped a project that I really loved in 2017's Contact and a full decade since her best work Bestial Burden. But after a dynamic ripping lead single I was optimistic going into MAGGOT MASS. On the record, Margaret clearly has a lot to say, though how she says it and the presentation surrounding those themes can sometimes leave a bit to be desired.
Let's talk about that great lead single "WITHER AND WARP", which may still by my favorite song here. It lives up to its name dishing out 8 minutes of brooding music that, well, withers in certain places and warps nearly beyond recognition in others. In between, Margaret dishes out these dragging gritty refrains over distant booming percussion with fluttering whips of distortion slithering in and out. My favorite of the deep cuts is "BUYER'S REMORSE", the albums shortest song and the one that most directly indulges in shrill, headache-inducing tones. I mean that as a compliment by the way. The bluntness of the lyrics in their skewering of unethical greed is extremely effective and sets up for a few really memorable moments. It reminds me of a hellish version of Moor Mother's album from earlier this year, which is a big compliment.
Speaking of lyrics, most of my favorites on the record come on the track "SPLENDID ISOLATION". She manages to portray some unbelievably visceral ideas without having to use ultra-specific language. Moments like "Pregnant with despair, The moment I broke, The yolk of clarity, Shell cracked open" have stuck with me ever since first hearing the album. It also comes with one of the more grinding and intense instrumentals on the album especially in the second half.
Closer OILED ANIMALS is also obviously about man-made damage to the environment. It starts by leaning into some of the terrifying emptiness of the record before dishing out lyrics about how the damage we've done will come back to haunt us. My issue with the track is that its a full 10 minutes, a third of the album all on its own. And while the first half is a great start, the presentation starts to get more routine and less impactful as it goes on.
My least favorite track is still the second single METHANAL DOLL. My biggest issue with the song are the refrains which are presented with uncharacteristic clarity and odd timing that completely robt hem of any real intensity. It's a shame because the distant thunderous drums move with an ominous build that I find pretty interesting.
Compared to some Pharmakon albums that are more intent to blast your speakers out from start to finish, MAGGOT MASS' reservation is often quite welcome. It's still just as scary to be in these sparse musical landscapes cut off by jagged distortion and booming metallic metal drums Plua Margaret has as much to say as ever and she finds pretty compelling, if abstract ways to do it. But with a record this short, just 5 tracks over 31 minutes, it manages to have quite a bit of down time. While that breaks up the momentum of listening through to it, the most memorable moments still stand on their own merit. 6.5/10
For more noise, check out my review of Chat Pile's Cool World
