Drawing on slow metal, 80s post-punk, and industrial atmospheres, Square Ears label delivers their latest release with Oxford experimental drone solo project HE DIDNT, an unyielding exploration of repetition and loops, accentuated by scorching heavy guitars that span the frequency spectrum. The EP embodies the darkness unearthed by Seattle guitar duo Earth, as if they had merged into one Godless, electrified being.
From the droning, hypnotic “Heavy Elevation” to the controlled depths of “Open Dust Loop,” and through the icy sheen of “Loop Ritual,” the tracks on this EP challenge the troubling reality of powerful individuals seldom being held accountable for their actions.
Today, we’re pleased to give you the full stream of “Loop Ritual” and a special track by track commentary, by he didnt himself.
Heavy Elevation
I had the main cyclic riff but was unsure what to do with it until I saw a Public Image Limited session on youtube of “Poptones” and Keith Levene’s guitar sounded amazing (for many reasons!) so I wanted to borrow from that. I used a heavier guitar tone than Levene and built the track around the main riff before adding the vocals to give another sound and add some width. I tend to use vocals as another instrument rather than the focal point in some songs
2 Loop Ritual
Another idea built around a main loop riff. Took a while to edit/construct as there are 12 (!) guitar tracks by the end. This was inspired by some of Swans work in the 80s and I wanted a bleak feel to the atmosphere, maybe even a little industrial. The lyrics refer to how powerful people make our systems to serve themselves & are rarely held accountable for their corruption. Criminal behaviour is part of their daily ritual. Unfortunately this has become more prevalent in the UK since the right-wing coup of Brexshit. We need to destroy the culture of this being acceptable.
Open Dust Loop
This came from a simple E minor chord played thru a looper pedal, with an added lead line. Repeat. A looper pedal allows you to record riffs then plays them back ad Infinium so is crucial to what I do when I play live but is also a great writing tool as it means I can keep adding on ideas to build the sound. The end recording came out darker than expected – the demo is more soundtrack rock – and the verse always sounds a bit 80s to me. Could have looped it for 10minutes+!
