Velvet Cacoon
Genevieve Southern Lord

by Matthew Hoffman
Staff Writer

Comments: Minimalistic experimental black ambience is the best way to describe the Genevieve CD from Velvet Cacoon.
This is a current Southern Lord re-release of the two person band's essential 2004 album. For music collectors seeking something unique, this CD, like the vinyl version, has a velvet cover with the logo created with silver foil.

The band supposedly is making music that recreates or personifies a drug trip, though if anyone had a trip like this it would probably be their last one.
First song that seems to be nameless yet has the name "U.S Nautical" when played in Windows Media Player is pure black ambient drone. It resembles what a dungeon in the 6th Century might be like in Old World Franconia. There are no audible vocals just a dirty black feel throughout.

The second cut supposedly entitled "P.S Nautical" has some spoken word though it is not really audible and more of the same drone.

"Avalon Polo" really digs down and gets to the core of the evil nature that truly is Velvet Cocoon. Towards the end of the song you may start to feel your heart get torn away from your spirit one aorta at a time.

The next offering "Fauna and Flora" has real guitar notes sustained in a seemingly spellbinding manner that is louder and cleaner than the prior three cuts. Midway through an evil spoken word is added before the terrible twosome return to the devastation and then a soft almost silent blackness encompasses the remainder of the song.

A louder almost animal drone is parlayed throughout the title track lasting another mind numbing 5+ minutes.

"Bete Noir" brings a little more diversity than the prior cuts and even has some bell effects yet at it's core is basically another rapid fire riffed song with the same melancholy melody repeated hundreds of times.

The last track is the album's "magnum opus" and lasts more than 17 minutes long. It has little to nothing going on and resembles a soundtrack to The Hound of the Baskervilles specifically during a scene of the great detective walking through the mores in the dark with only a lantern. For fans of minimalistic expression, this is their calling card.

Southern Lord P.R calls this album "monumental and epic" and while it is certainly ominous and tremendously dark it lacks the true creativity necessary to live up to those superlatives.

Overall this is a good release for the ultra specific genre but it continues to amaze even the most fervent of black metal fans that anyone could survive listening to this style of music, as ten minutes is enough to make Tony Robbins want to shoot himself.

Band lineup:
Angela- Guitars
Josh- Vocals, Guitars, Drums

Track Listing:
1. 1
2. P.S. Nautical
3. Avalon Polo
4. Laudanum
5. Fauna & Flora
6. Genevieve
7. Bete Noir

Hardrock Haven rating: 7.6/10