Welcome to another video premiere here on the Veil of Sound, this time for a performance video set in front of a red veil. Performed by none other band than the infamous Missouri Executive Order 44. Infamous for their anonymity and their ferocious grindcore attacks.
When a band you really like reaches out to you because they like a review you wrote about their last release – then this is like every writer‘s wet dream. It makes it all worth the while. Same happened to yours truly when MEO44 reached out to drop the news about their split release with Usurp Synapse which happened as a surprise on May 30 via The Ghost is Clear Records. The whole thing is interesting on so many levels: the similarly addictive music with some interesting old school punk moments on both sides of this 7“; the fact that this is Usurp Synapse‘ s first split after a more than 20 year pause; the notion that both bands share a similar sense of tongue-in-cheek humour (just look at track titles like “youaregoingtodie.com“ (MEO44), “Kenny Login“ or “At The Drive Thru“ (both US). This list could easily be prolonged but we do not want to spoil the fun of discovery for you.
However, we need to talk about the mighty interesting video for “youaregoingtodie.com“ which we got for you today. As much as this band works on a theoretical level one should not ignore the music itself. The track really has some really interesting Grindcore moments but there are also undeniable melodic moments when some kind of Old School Punk comes to live, when the vocalist whose name we do not know screams “What was I supposed to do / what am I supposed to do“ - here his vocals run counter to the rest of the music. Given the fact that this track is among the longest ones the band has ever written, is also very interesting. Here the are moments, when the whole thing sounds like Chat Pile on grind-ketamine, bursting full to the brim with ideas! And the latter can also be said about the video which alludes to the Mormons, whose struggle with the historical Missouri Executive Order 44 from 1838 is the basis for this band of anonymous musicians. The video shows some kind of ritual including secret handshakes with the bleeding hand of an even more anonymous person hiding behind said red veil (is this already a hyper-text moment or meta level hint?!). The four “bike helmet Hardcore“ pioneers really go all the way on their two songs and with this video itself.
The record can be purchased via The Ghost is Clear Records and MEO44‘s Bandcamp page (see links above). Now enjoy the video for “youaregoingtodie.com“ and then go to the Bandcamp page to find that Marilyn Manson soundalike moment hidden among one of the five tracks!
