I first listened to this album soon after reading a newspaper article about scientists delivering a ‘final warning’ on the climate crisis facing the planet. It’s not hard to find similar stories any day of the week that suggest the tipping point for the earth is either close at hand or has already been reached . Phoenix based musician, producer and multimedia artist Sam An is all too conscious of the impending horror and says “Trying to keep up with tragedy can make one feel helpless.”
Her 3rd full-length solo album attempts to process the personal trauma she feels in response to the steady stream of distressing world events. ”If grief goes unprocessed, it is doomed to also manifest as brutality" she says and states that the only alternative to self-destruction lies in cathartic release; there are no half measures for her.
The record is the follow up to ‘In The End I Am A Beast’ (2016) and ‘Shadow World’ (2018) which were both released by Los Angeles based label Deathbomb Arc.
Sam An’s chosen alias is, of course, a crude trolling of Lana Del Rey and presumably is designed to distinguish her music from the mainstream. Unfortunately, the name also risks her being dismissed as a novelty act and is an avoidable distraction from the serious intent behind the record.
Her unearthly music is a mix of gothic noise and darkwave elements which is reminiscent of Zola Jesus even down to the cover art.
In earnestly unambiguous terms, the press release announces that ”Her work thematically embodies discordant spaces between the occult and the political, personal trauma and collective grief, and brutality and benediction.” Definitely unlikely to make the BBC Radio 2 playlist!
The title, ‘Streaga Beata’, loosely translates as "Blessed Witch," and the songs are told from the perspective of this mythological figure who is responsible for humanity but not in control of the world. Sam An says "I have used this story to process the harm that power enables.”
The dense textures serve to explore the dark themes and, since the lyrics are buried deep within the mix, the ten tunes are driven by a menacing atmosphere.
The blanket of droning industrial noise means that the listener has to accept as a given that these are not love songs. Titles like A Plague,Mourning and Apocalypse Fatigue appear to confirm that they were composed in moods ranging from angst to anger.
Despite the heavy subject matter, the sound is neither harsh nor brutal – there is even a measure of beauty in the pain released.
The record derives its power from an accumulation of eerie harmonies and controlled howls underpinned by insistent bass tones and synth effects. A track like Mother is a good example of the sonic layering that feels by turns unnerving and conciliatory.
The overall intensity of the album means that it is far from being easy listening but it packs a strong emotional punch and stands as an effective soundtrack to the age of extremes we are living through.
