by Scott Yohe
Editrix are back and they weren’t kidding with the title of their new album, it really does seem that they went to hell. The aptly titled Editrix II: Editrix Goes to Hell is their followup to last year's Tell Me I’m Bad, which is a strange record in its own right but nowhere near as strange or sinister as this one. Editrix is comprised of guitarist and vocalist Wendy Eisenberg (of Birthing Hips and a long solo career fame), bassist Steve Cameron, and drummer Josh Daniel. In some ways Editrix is similar to Birthing HIps but in most ways Editrix is its own completely unique band that does not sound like anybody else. Editrix II: Editrix Goes to Hell is a strange album, an album that does its own thing, but wow does it do its thing well.
“The Hunt” is accompanied by a noisy guitar riff, as if you just walked straight into hell to Editrix playing. It then moves straight into a much more subdued part of the song, featuring Eisenberg’s signature talking/singing vocal style, before moving back again. This sets the album up perfectly, introducing you into all the staples you will find in an Editrix song; noisy and mathy guitars, a pulsating bass line that grooves the whole time, and drums that hold the entire thing together. “Hieroglyphics” has the eeriest moment on the entire record, after following a similar noisy guitar intro, the instrumental then quiets only for Eisenberg to whisper “I hate this part/ it leaves me so exposed/ don’t talk about that/ don’t talk about how it makes you feel” going on and on until they break down with the instrumental. The vocals layer to create a combination of low and quiet and higher and louder. It is truly alien sounding and fits the album perfectly.
A lot of the songs such as “One Truck Gone” will open with a post-hardcore-ish riff then have Eisenberg sing quietly and subdued, which creates fascinating songs that just don’t sound quite right. “One Truck Gone” even has callbacks to “Strawberry Fields Forever,” which calls back to the reworking of lullabies and other songs in the way Birthing Hips used to. Songs such as “Two Questions” and “I Can Hear It” start off the complete opposite of other songs on the album. They start quieter, albeit still strange, and then get noisier and noisier.
The music on Editrix Goes to Hell is what makes it such a compelling listen. There are always multiple things going on, sometimes the complete opposite of each other. Sometimes the album is loud and other times it is quiet. Sometimes the album is sinister and other times it's sweet. It can be rough around the edges while still feeling completely polished. It never falters a single step, never wastes a single note. The album feels loose and tight at the same time. What you are listening to is a group of people with a distinct vision who also have the ability to make that distinct vision come true. Where the album will sometimes feel like a nightmare, it will at the exact same time feel like a dream. It is the way that all these opposites work together at the same time that make this a perfect album.
Editrix Goes to Hell is an album that only Editrix could make. There is no other band that could make such complex sounding music sound so simple. Editrix is a league of their own here, making the music they want to make. Everytime you listen you will want to keep listening to it, it's that entrancing, you want to go to hell with Editrix. In a mere 34 minutes Editrix takes you on an unforgettable journey in a completely unique sonic landscape. Editrix II: Editrix Goes to Hell should be required listening in 2022 because it is hard to imagine something else this creative and this good at the same time. If this is as good as it gets this year then that's fine because this is perfect.