Mäleficentt
HELL’S HEROES | HOUSTON, TX | 03.22.2024
Photo by Sam James @samjames.jpeg
Beneath the Corpse Paint
Black metal will always be my favorite. The freaks among the freaks. Sure the music is important, but when I’m looking at you I need to believe you when you’re playing. Are you and your friends just up there doing Euronymous cosplay or is some primal version of yourself being exposed? Anyone can slap on a coat of corpse paint and some gauntlets covered in nails. What I’m looking for more than any decoration is vulnerability. Are you more vulnerable in uniform?
Photo by Sam James @samjames.jpeg
I believe Mäleficentt when I see them. It’s not only the songs and stage presence, but the world they create. I was waiting in line for Demolition Hammer merch when I saw that their merch, a single shirt, was pretty much a splotch of white ink. Totally illegible. Totally sick. The person behind me asked who it was for. I deciphered the code. Everyone is welcome in their world, but you have to want to be involved to be involved.
Photo by Sam James @samjames.jpeg
Black Metal requires active engagement. You have to want to listen to it. You have to want to know what’s going on. When it’s done right it should be something you listen to over and over again until you finally understand what the hell is happening. Mäleficentt does it right. Their music is an overwhelming full body experience that washes over you like a sound bath. Pummeling drums. Fast chordy guitars and melodies. Weird bass lines pushing back against chords. Extravagant hand gestures from the singer. The set had my boots stuck to the floor. Daydreaming. Calming my mind. A moment to catch my breath in the chaos of the day.
Photo by Sam James @samjames.jpeg
Discovering the underlying beauty that makes good Black Metal good Black Metal is always worth the effort. Mäleficentt gets better with each listen. They are like fresh flowers on an old grave. New life for an aging scene.
Written by Luke James @lukejeffjames
Photography by Sam (Willey) James @samjames.jpeg | Crowd Photography by Luke James