Nokchampa is a solo artist named Nick Perkin located in San Clemente, California. He has been prolific since he started writing music and recently released Dragonfly of Black and Blue.
The album starts with “Karma” which starts with a subtle electronic beat and clean sounding guitar chords. It’s going for an ominous tone with serious lyrics that seemed aligned with a band like Tool at times. I really liked how the song started. It’s gets a little cartoonish sounding when really dramatic demon-like growls come into the picture but it works. I couldn’t tell if he was going for a slightly tongue-in-cheek thing or going for something very serious. I often feel the same when I listen to Sunn O))). “Living Experiments” sounds like going down a wormhole and you’re surrounded by an ominous voice. I have to admit there were some points which came off sort of funny but I consider that a good thing. However, the end was a little bit scary. Again I’m not entirely sure of the intent but I thought it was a highlight that was original either way you look at it. I also liked the fact he was going all in. I’m a big Tim Hecker fan (This Life is an amazing album) and I was excited to hear “The Tim Hecker Shows/ Happy to be Alive.”.It doesn't sound like Tim Hecker but more a straightforward goth rock. The song is built on fuzzy guitars chords, a lot of cymbals and monotone vocals that sound more like a chant. “Tree Hugging Dirt Worshiper” is a great name. There is a bit of a NIN vibe when the energy is pumping. I couldn’t understand a single word in this song but felt the vocals were just another element rather than a lead. “Advise for a Younger Self” has a lot of distortion with perhaps the most demon-like voice yet. “3MDC” is an almost ten-minute track and a slow burn. It’s a little more experimental and aligned with sound artists like Tim Hecker or Oneohtrix Point Never but really doesn't plunge into a pool of it. It sounded like a play at points. He breaks out the acoustic on “In the Gut (Reprise)” which is even a slower burn that repeats a riff and vocal hum for the majority of the song with a lead vocal on top. The end is worth the wait. Speaking of Sunn O))) “Grey Matter” is a close cousin the embraces white noise and feedback. Dragonfly of Black and Blue threw a lot of different styles at me. I thought the experimental stuff that was more aligned with some of the aforementioned was his strongest. Take a listen.
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