Genre/Influences: Experimental, Dark-Ambient, Noise, Industrial.

Format: Digital, Cassette.

Background/Info: Behind this project is hiding Howard Gardner who you may know from his involvement with Non-Bio. He’s also active in Pillars Of Golden Misery and has released a very few works thus far. This album has been accomplished during the ongoing pandemic and its lockdowns.

Content: The work is a diversified composition, revisiting early Experimental- and Industrial works of the 80s and 90s. Some cuts have been progressively built up, sometimes simply empowered by crescendo resonating sequences. Ghost-like vocal effects accentuate the darkness supporting some passages while other parts sound like pure improvisation touching ground with Noise.

+ + + : Pillars Of Golden Misery creates a unique and diversified dark sound, which will mainly appeal for lovers of Experimental music. I like the retro-like influences, sometimes comparable to a sonic collage of Industrial sound treatments and pure Noise. My favorite tracks are the ones, which have been progressively built up.

– – – : I was less convinced by the final tracks of the album -featuring a live cut, which are more into improvisation and Noise.

Conclusion: This work brings a wide canvas of Experimental/Noise music mixed with more Ambient-driven parts.

Best songs: “Shuriken Worm Murderer”, “Disheartening 3D Zombies”.

Rate: 6.

Artist: www.facebook.com/PillarsOfGoldenMisery

Label: www.facebook.com/culturevomitproductions

About Pillars Of Golden Misery

Pillars Of Golden Misery is the London-based experimental and noise project of Howard Gardner, set up in 2018. Gardner also runs the industrial and powernoise project Non-Bio, whose catalogue dates back to “Pillar Of Salt” (2010). Side-Line reviewed the debut CDr EP Golden Hand Of The Leech in April 2019, and Pillars Of Golden Misery contributed to the Non-Bio remix collection Degraded – Remixes 2014-2019 the same year.

“Riders Of Misfortune” was released on 1 February 2021 by Culture Vomit on cassette and as a download. The nine tracks are “Riders Of Misfortune”, “Brain Enemy”, “Shadow Of The Snake Hell”, “Exquisite Crystal of the Dead”, “Shuriken Worm Murderer”, “Viscious Call Centre Universe”, “Disheartening 3D Zombies”, “Remorse Surfer” and “GoGo Battleship Gone Wild”. The album “Turbo Necropolis” followed on the same label on 13 February 2023.

Non-Bio’s later releases include Monkey Feather (2023), Vermin (2023) and Every Chalice Poisoned (2024), all reviewed on Side-Line. “Riders Of Misfortune” is the first Pillars Of Golden Misery full-length.

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Out now is the Non-Bio remix download album “Degraded – Remixes 2014​-​2019”. Included on “Degraded – Remixes 2014​-​2019” are remixes, alternate song versions and a couple of live versions, all of which are previously unreleased.

Contributing artists include X-KiN, MOX Salnikov, Ernesto Bohorquez (known for Animal Machine/Maeng Da/Wolvestribe), Project Shadowkind and Pillars of Golden Misery touching electro-industrial, death industrial and harsh noise.

There are currently no plans fo a physical release of this album, however it can currently be downloaded on a “pay what you want” basis from Bandcamp.

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!

side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Noise, experimental, abstract.

Background/Info: We here welcome a new project hailing from London and set up in 2018. This EP (CDR format) features 4 tracks and is the debut work of Pillars Of Golden Misery.

Content: This project claims to be inspired by some 80s pioneers like Lustmord, Coil, Randy Greif ao. There for sure is a kind of experimental/industrial/noise approach, which might remind you of early 80s experiments although this is different. Some parts are more abstract sounding and feels like improvisation. Noises and voices are sometimes merging together getting a pretty experimental result.

+ + + : The title track is for sure worthy of examination (and still available as video clip). I like the progression running through the track which ends in a heavy, overwhelming industrial-noise style. Another attention grabber is the last track (cf. “Fear Code”) which is mixing bleeps and crispy noises with an oppressive, haunting sphere.

– – – : I’m sometimes missing some cohesion between the tracks and the numerous influences running through it.

Conclusion: I can’t say to have been totally convinced by this debut, but I already heard worse debut releases. I think this project still needs to find its own style, but there’s some potential hiding in it.

Best songs: “Fear Code”, “Golden Hand Of The Leech”.

Rate: (6½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/PillarsOfGoldenMisery

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com