Cucurbitophobia is an experimental music project formed in 2018 by composer-producer-instrumentalist Rob Benny, who “set out on a journey to create music that echoed many of his favorite Horror, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Adventure themed movies and video games” along with dark ambient, prog, experimental and avant-garde classical music. As such he’s released multiple albums, EP’s and singles “which explore different themes related to Horror folklore, mythology, and the supernormal.” Cucurbitophobia has even been featured in a short horror film titled A Stroll Through the Woods from the Midwest Horror Network in Chicago. Their newest release is titled Autumnal Apparitions.
The band says the Cucurbitophobia project (which means “the fear of pumpkins”) is designed to take us on a journey “through the malevolent and the majestic; a thrust into an existence witnessing the stark brutality and stunning beauty that nature has to offer.” This new album in particular “is a collection of works inspired by the Autumn season. A rustic, nostalgic, melancholy ambiance is prevalent throughout the album, portraying an ebb and flow between dark, experimental dissonance and lighter, sadder, ambient minor-key driven moods.” All this feels exactly right, coming on the heels of Halloween and heading into solstice. “The Cloak of Twilight” has a muted beat that feels like an elevated heartbeat, with a synth melody that recalls Giorgio Moroder, both musically and in its tonality. The mix is fun, in that a counter-melody migrates back and forth in the background. There’s also something like handclaps as if performed by creatures in a Matrix. “November Woodlands” is especially appropriate given the month that I’m hearing it, and features a lute-sounding stringed instrument playing against roiling winds and ghostly gusts. “The Ritual by the Creek” eschews a backbeat totally for a more George Crumb-type excursion. It’s basically plucked strings, shrill tones and an occasional synth explosion. It certainly seems to illustrate a ritual I don’t want anything to do with! “Witch’s Enchantment” has a very creepy, circular melody that kind of blows John Carpenter’s “Halloween Theme” right out of the water, again surrounded by disgruntled spirits. About halfway through a very muted electronic drum kit joins in. “Approaching the Dead of Night” creates its first rhythm with a sound very close to an industrial alarm. A piano plays another lovely, complex melody with emphasis on the hammers hitting the strings, with synth-created cellos sawing away in the background. Both this track and the previous one have been favorites so far, because I love the compositional skill they exhibit. “As The Incense Burns” has the most complex and interestingly constructed beat (I’m not sure but maybe 6/2?). Melodically and instrumentally it sounds almost Japanese, though becoming more “westernized” as it moves along. There seems to be a lot of key shifting here as well, which also feels a bit unsettling. “The Spider Web and the Shattered Mirror” is the big six-minute conclusion, and it feels like movie music even more so than the other tracks. Sonically it could be taking place in the Addams’ home, and features all sorts of barely decipherable percussive sounds. Metal bars? Squeaking hinges? Ghostly footsteps? The melodies are a bit brash in their haunted qualities, very much like Vic Mizzy (“The Ghost and Mr. Chicken.”) This track does have an awesomely majestic build, though I’m never sure if Benny’s tongue’s in his cheek or not. Overall this album is way different from most things I hear, and should appeal both to listeners and the apparitions surrounding them!
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