Tuesday, January 1, 2013

This is the post where I talk about Spider Lilies.

A new year is supposed to be all about new beginnings, but I'm going to start off 2013 with a bit of nostalgia.

Who remembers Stacey Campbell, former guitarist and backup vocalist for The Crüxshadows? She had been around for Wishfire, Ethernaut, Frozen Embers, and Echoes and Artifacts. I know I certainly remember her, because she was my favorite member when I first got into that band. I was actually quite sad to see her leave. After she left, I heard a little something about her being in another band, but I didn't keep up with it.

That other band she went to was Spider Lilies, the band she had created before her stint with CXS. She likes to call it "electronic dark rock", although there are a number of people out there who like to stick the darkwave label on the band. Regardless of what anyone wants to call it, it's incredible. It's dark and broody, but the beats aren't lethargic. If you want a good idea of what to start with, my favorite songs are "Mirror in the Dark" and "Nearly Forgotten" from Cyclogenesis, "My Love" and "In the Light" from In the Light, and "Disaster (The Prime Time Player Mix by The Dark Clan)" and "Mirror in the Dark (Clan of Xymox Mix)" from Eyes of the Storm, Spider Lilies's remix album.

I wish the band had more influence outside of Washington, DC. They went to Dragon*Con once, as far as I know, but the band has mostly stuck around the Mid-Atlantic region. They don't seem to play too many shows, either. The last one was on October 27, 2012, at the Multiple Sclerosis Fantasy Ball with a number of other bands. The show before that was in July. From what I understand, they haven't really toured in recent days (if at all).

This band is nothing short of amazing and is on my top five bands/musicians I simply have to see live within the next year (with I:Scintilla, Unter Null, and Tying Tiffany being easily in that list, too, but I'd have to think about who'd take the last slot). With that, I leave you with their ReverbNation streaming playlist.


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