Distilling melancholy into music is a predominantly youthful
pursuit. That’s why the Black Heart Procession is such an interesting
band. For more than 10 years, the San Diego group has offered mature,
rehearsed takes on sepulchral imagery and somber themes, speaking with
the voices of Poe and Lovecraft, rather than the histrionic tones of
melodramatic teens. “When You Finish Me” starts things off with a
macabre theater piece. The song tickles piano ivories and your sense of
woe with cold, quiet precision. “Witching Stone” sounds like the Arcade
Fire creating a horror soundtrack, while “Heaven and Hell” is a creepy
dirge meant for a run-down lounge where killers, ghosts and jilted
lovers share a drink. “Liar’s Ink” is a haunted-house waltz for literal
last dances and leads into the fuzzy, paranoid rocker “Suicide.”
There’s a calculated execution to these songs. After six albums, TBHP
have perfected a morbid restraint, ear for grand melodies and a sense
of longing. — Matt Whelihan
This article appears in Oct 7-13, 2009.
