This summer, as the ongoing pandemic raged, NYC instrumental psych-metal trio Titan to Tachyons — a.k.a. guitarist Sally Gates (ex-Orbweaver, ex-Gigan), drummer Kenny Grohowski (Secret Chiefs 3, Imperial Triumphant, John Zorn) and bassist Matt Hollenberg (Cleric, John Zorn) — released their debut LP, Cactides. With the live music circuit all but shut down, the band gathered to film a quarantine performance at The Sultan Room at Brooklyn's The Turk's Inn. There might not have been any fans in the house, but the band did welcome one very special guest: Mr. Bungle and Fantômas bassist extraordinaire Trevor Dunn, who plays on Cactides closer "Everybody's Dead, Dave" and joined them onstage that day. Orange Amps kindly provided the backline, while Luke McCoubrey and John Carlucci filmed the performance, which was produced by Ghost+Cow, and directed and edited by Carlucci. Today (October 26th), Titan to Tachyons have teamed with Revolver to premiere the mind-bending set — watch above.
"These songs were chosen to introduce the exploratory and improvisational nature of the band, and also happen to be the most enjoyable and engaging to play live, as they're never the same each time," Gates tells us. "We were fortunate enough to have Trevor Dunn join us for the first live performance of 'Everybody's Dead, Dave,' a four-part structured improv piece, loosely based on Red Dwarf and Dr. Who storylines. The only time this has been played prior was during the album recording sessions."
She continues, "In lieu of an actual release show, we felt that this was the next best thing — to play a spectacular, psychedelic venue, and make the event accessible to a worldwide audience. After months of isolation in a locked-down New York, it was sheer pleasure to be back onstage again, finally able to interact with other musicians face-to-face, at full volume. Many thanks go out to the Orange Amps for sponsoring this performance and providing us with a heavyweight backline, the Sultan Room for hosting, and Ghost+Cow Films for capturing the event."
Cactides is available across all streaming services and as a "bone white and gold with aqua blue splatter" 12-inch vinyl limited to 300 copies. Find merch bundles and more at the Nefarious Industries webshop.
