by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Last year St. Louis' Complainer released Floodplain and it's companion EP, Pure Vanilla, two ripping and wild pieces of hyper-active noise punk. One of the stand-out tracks on that EP was "Fucking Droid," a calmer moment in a tornado of ever present chaos. The song doesn't quite soften their pummeling sound, but it's structure is more refined and accessible, building with visceral tension rather than exploding on entry. While Pure Vanilla was originally a digital only release, Already Dead Tapes is set to re-release the album on cassette with a bonus "Side B" of additional material for this year's Cassette Store Day on October 13th.
To celebrate that announcement, the band is sharing a video for "Fucking Droid," directed by Blank Thomas and animated by Curtis Tinsley. The video finds a little alien making their home inside the brain of an un-expecting participant and his entire world becomes a blur of glitchy movement and psychedelic color trails. The video is jumpy and deranged, pushed further by Mabel Suen's sludgy guitars and shouted vocals. Possessed and disorienting, it's a great visual to accompany Complainer's music.
Complainer's Pure Vanilla expanded cassette reissue is out October 13th (Cassette Store Day) on Already Dead Tapes.