It wasn’t long ago that we were first made aware of Venus Twins by our friends at Mathcore Index – it was the name that got us first. Astrological fascinations aside, the name had sort of a comic book feel that felt like it would be an apt pseudonym for a duo of supervillains or superheroes. When we checked out the music, we realized our first impressions weren’t totally inaccurate.
They weren’t as heavy as we thought they’d be, but they were twice as frenetic. We were hooked pretty easily, and what’s interesting is it also remains somewhat accessible thanks to the relatively clear, if totally crazed, vocal screeds backed up by serrated bass lines and breakneck beats. This remains relatively constant throughout the band’s discography as well – their breakthrough EP Kickass and debut LP Eat Your Dogs were sort of a cracked out hybrid of Lightning Bolt, Arab on Radar, and The Garden.
They’re still noisy as hell, but on their 2022 followup record Raxis, they showed they also have the ability to concentrate and execute theatrical elements in multiple dynamics – not just at full-throttle. They’ve been gearing up for the release of their next EP, titled /\/\/\/\/, and we don’t want to spoil it, but rest assured the band continues to surprise.
Also, don’t forget to check out the single and video for “I Just Can’t Get Enough.”
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Talk about close-knit – the album title is pronounced ‘stitching,’ and you can see from the video that it seems to be a pretty literal theme. We don’t know a ton about knitting, sewing or stitching, but luckily Venus Twins took the time to tell us the top ten influences when it comes to crafting the new record, and we’re super excited to share them with you below:
10.
“The production of this record is bananas. There are so many additions that really “make” the record what it is in post. We were inspired to make a lot of weird production tricks from this record. They straight up became a noise band with this release. We were involving more noise/feedback into our live set, so hearing this record towards the end of the writing process influenced us to make the EP sound like a fucked up version of one of live shows.”
9.
“This band was already in my top ten for their ferocity and the energy that they’re able to put into the recorded performances. When “the gray in between” was released we were both floored specifically by the tone the feedback has within the record. It becomes its own instrument.”
8.
“This record always reminds me that doing weird shit and having fun is the most important thing when being creative. Gabe Serbian’s drumming on this record is insane.”
7.
“This record has more in common with someone like Radiohead than other screamo bands in my opinion. The songwriting and production is so mature, especially compared to their earlier releases. Goes lots of places, very cool.
6.
“This record sounds like Halloween. ‘The Lonesome Waltz of Leonard Cohen’ is my favorite song, but every track has incredibly emotional takes. Its spastic and beautiful at times, definitely two adjectives I’d like to carry over to Venus Twins.”
5.
“The vibe of this EP is so haunting, noisy, and not what I was expecting from them at the time. The spacing of this EP is great, lots of quiet moments mixed in. I definitely had a bit of a chug phase(lol) around this when Jake and I would write together.”
4.
“Listening to this feels like a nightmare. Moments of real destruction can be found in both this record and our latest EP, this was definitely inspiring in that way. This made us experiment cutting parts of the entire master in Pro Tools, or messing around with time-stretching. The more ambient/pretty parts of this record contrast perfectly.”
3.
“I’m gonna state the obvious on this one… Zach Hill is the best drummer. This record pushed us to improvise whatever crazy shit we came up with and left it in. “I Just Can’t Get Enough” has that completely timeless drum section yet everything else continues. “God Help Me Bury This Fucking Light” in a very similar way has an explodey drum performance, just with timed hits with the bass and vocals. The tightness and bond that Hella has with each other will always be an inspiration to us.”
2.
“This record is dark and noisy and dancy and just fucking rules. They’re my favorite band to see live here in NY, that energy was captured really well on all these tracks. Love the huge hi-hats, weird percussive guitar stuff and everything else. Amazing musicians and people.”
1.
“This is the best supergroup. Been huge fans of this band since we were 14 or so, we might not be a band if it weren’t for them. We used to cover the first minute of “Chasing Suns” at our first couple of shows, even though it probably sounded bad being only the two of us. All their records are sick, but the intensity this one brings in between interludes is so unique and interesting. Incredible songwriting and experimental production choices throughout this record make it my favorite from their works.”
/\/\/\/\/ comes out November 8th – pre-order it here via Three One G.
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