MUSIC

their performances on what the promoters are touting as “two floors of horror” within the church. The headliners alone are worth staying up late for: occult-leaning Los Angeles postpunk act Sextile and French Canadian synth-pop whiz Automelodi (aka Xavier Paradis, who you might remember as part of Echo Kitty). Also on the bill are 80s-inspired electronic duo Xibling, industrial dance producer Kris Baha, and otherworldly sound provocateurs Conjunto Primitivo—an alluring Chicago duo who might be the biggest draw of the night.

press release, Joseph says that 90 seconds is how long you can survive in space without oxygen, and that the song is influenced by the 1995 Yoko Ono album Rising).

continued from p. 69 idarity and revolution. With hotheaded wails and earnest clamor, Fisher recounts the Atlanta child murders of 1979-1981, in which more than 30 Black people, predominantly children and adolescents, were targeted and killed; the 1985 Philadelphia police bombing of Black liberation group MOVE; and other instances of police brutality that color our country’s past, present, and future blood red.

While Algiers’s ethos has always been rooted in brotherhood, on Shook they double down on their zest for collaboration by corralling an impressive roster of contributors—among them Rage Against the Machine front man Zack de la Rocha, jazz musician Patrick Shiroshi, Alabama rocker Lee Bains III, and Canadian rapper Backxwash—and emblazoning their names on the album cover. These contributors amplify the record’s white-knuckle feel: de la Rocha’s madcap barks stoke the blistering violence of “Irreversible Damage,” while Jae Matthews (Boy Harsher) and Samuel T. Herring (Future Islands) sing slinky, soulful verses on “I Can’t Stand It!”

Much of Shook orbits Atlanta, where the band members grew up together. It opens with a field recording plucked from Hartsfield Airport and incorporates chopped-and-screwed samples from Peach State artists such as soul singer Lee Moses; elsewhere its tracks are woven together partly by the baritone voice of Atlanta spoken-word legend Big Rube. In the hands of a less seasoned band, Shook could’ve ended up clumsy bricolage, but Algiers capture a perfect snapshot of everyday chaos. Shook is the sound of protest and house parties, the clangor of relationships dissolving and new love beginning. It’s the sound of life as we know it—even when it’s harrowing, it’s rooted in truth. —SHANNON NICO

SHREIBAK

Friday31

Molder Obscene, Detherous, and Cryptual open. 8 PM, Reggie’s Rock Club, 2109 S. State, $15. 17+

Joliet four-piece Molder know what’s awesome about classic death metal—and that includes its deliberately disgusting aesthetics. “I think some of it goes a little overboard and it’s a little silly, but to each their own,” guitarist and vocalist Aaren Pantke told Invisible Oranges last July, when Prosthetic released Molder’s second album, Engrossed in Decay . “It’s all about death, gore, decay,” he said. “Your typical run of the mill death metal topics.” Pantke, drummer Kyle Pooley, bassist Dominic Vaia, and guitarist Carlos Santini focus on what makes death metal exciting and gross—and demonstrate how even the grossness can be played up till it’s exciting too. Throughout Engrossed in Decay, Pantke delivers visions of slimy viscera in inhuman belches while the band relentlessly plow through morbid, sludgy instrumentals whose circular-saw guitar riffs could gut an alligator. Molder don’t even try to reinvent the wheel, but when death metal sounds as delightfully putrid as the pummeling “Ghastly Mutation,” it doesn’t need to be innovative to rip.

—LEOR GALIL

Saturday1

The Vampire’s Ball Featuring performances by Sextile, Automelodi, Xibling, Kris Baha, and Conjunto Primitivo, as well as DJ sets by Club Drippy, Flores Negras, and Veri Peri. Hosted by Cae Monāe and Nico. 7 PM, Epiphany Center for the Arts, 201 S. Ashland, $45. 21+

The event producers who debuted multiday gothic music festival Sanctum in Chicago last November are now attempting to make April Fool’s Night a thing with the 2023 Vampire Ball. The ball, which features a curated lineup of dark art and music, takes place at the Epiphany Center for the Arts, the near-west-side cultural center built inside the shell of the historic, stunning Church of the Epiphany—making the night feel all the more sanctified. The musical acts include a variety of goth, industrial, and experimental noise artists who will stage

A number of DJs will spin throughout the event, including ambient techno producer Club Drippy, aka Jonathon Freund of electronic trio Pixel Grip; industrial EBM master Flores Negras, founder of inclusive event company Mictlan Productions; Veri Peri, who’ll bring a mixed bag of Italo disco, acid house, and darkwave; and Beau Wanzer, who’s just as inspired by 70s and 80s minimal synth as he is by horror films. Also making some noise will be event coproducer Nocturna—allegedly going live from the “catacombs.” Dress for the occasion, as there will be a costume contest and photo-booth opportunities. The night also offers art vendors and visuals by Videowaste, and those who arrive early will be able to visit the Epiphany galleries free of charge before the ball kicks off.

—SELENA FRAGASSI