The Chicago-based experimental project Moiii has released the new digital single (and video) “Needles on the Tundra,” in a Joy Thieves remix featuring Chris Connelly. The track is actually a reimagining of the earlier instrumental piece “Scarab of Ra,” taken from the duo’s 2024 self-titled debut. The mix adds spoken-word vocals by Scottish-born, Chicago-based musician Chris Connelly (Revolting Cocks, Ministry and Pigface).

In order to compare the new mix with the original track “Scarab of Ra,” you should know that the original track was built from loops provided by Chicago artist Surachai, then constructed around fragments of a live radio broadcast and layered with guitars from Moiii’s Jason Butler.

Scott Shellhamer says the remix grew out of a long personal connection with the people behind The Joy Thieves: “The core members of The Joy Thieves have been part of my life since I was very young. I’ve known James Scott since I was three years old and Dan Milligan and I were in the drum line in high school together.” He added that their shared interest in old-school industrial formed the remix and that Connelly was a natural fit for the spoken-word part.

The Joy Thieves are a musical collective featuring a rotating cast of members from iconic bands such as Ministry, Killing Joke, Stabbing Westward, KMFDM, Nitzer Ebb, My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult, and many others.

The release is accompanied by a music video directed and edited by Chris Eichenseer.

About Moiii

Moiii is a Chicago- and Austin-linked atmospheric-noise project by Scott Shellhamer and Jason Butler formed in 2018. Shellhamer and Butler first met in the late 1990s, when Butler released one of Shellhamer’s records on his Sixgunlover label, and that several earlier attempts to work together failed before they found common ground years later. Shellhamer came to the project after work with American Heritage and Ghosts And Vodka, while Butler’s work under Thee Conductor includes collaborations with Bonnie “Prince” Billy and Glenn Kotche.

The project’s first full-length release, “Moiii,” arrived on August 2, 2024 via Someoddpilot Records. Recording took place at Gimme A Second Studios, with drums tracked at King Electric Studios. Andrew Hernandez handled mixing, Jeff Wojtysiak mastered the record, and guest contributions came from Swans’ Thor Harris on drums and percussion and Surachai on modular synth.

And now there is the new digital single (and video) “Needles on the Tundra,” in a Joy Thieves remix featuring Chris Connelly.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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