From the heartland of American deathrock, Los Angeles’ BLACK HEROIN GALLERY share the video ‘Take This Rose’ – the latest promo from their ‘Feast of Bats’ album.
The new black and white video for ‘Take This Rose’ depicts BLACK HEROIN GALLERY frontman Eyajo December Joseph meandering and dancing giddily through a haunted wood, in full gothic regalia.
Blissfully unaware, however, he is pursued by a shadowy, clawed figure in a bird mask, who carries an old leather suitcase containing dark curiosities.
The bird mask and suitcase in turn join an inventory of recurring objects and oddities in the woods, including a white rose, an old jailor’s key-ring tied to a long string, and a mysterious black gift box.
Eyajo Joseph explains: “Death is seeking out her mark, trying to trick the carefree artist into taking her gift: a rose. She uses a surrogate in place of herself, who stalks the artist through the forest, trying to get him to take the rose, even using spells to will his compliance, or trick him with the poisoned rose in a gift box. Ultimately, she will take him to meet the ferryman.”
The video is written, directed, and edited by Eyajo Joseph, and shot by cinematographer Johneray Case: intercut with shaky hand-held “found footage” by Eyajo, frantically searching through the branches and the undergrowth.
He continues: “Silent films of long past have always been a big influence on me, as have arthouse films, and I think both of these styles peek through in this video.”
‘Take This Rose’ is the haunted closer to the band’s album, ‘Feast of Bats’. Longtime drummer Tony F. Corpse provides jangling, ritualistic percussion, comprising windchimes, tambourines, hi-hats, ride cymbals and cymbal washes. Krystal Fantom’s eerie guitar treatments, meanwhile, resemble a ghostly wind, wailing and whistling through the trees. Dracul Grotesque’s bass follows subtly behind Eyajo Joseph’s piano, with a sliding, droning feel similar to William Faith’s bass work with Rozz Williams and Christian Death.
Bandleader Eyajo Joseph, himself the former keyboardist for gutterglam-deathrockers Astrovamps and Hollywood gothic blackmetallers Willow Wisp, meanwhile provides the solemn piano procession that leads the song. Keys are played live by Skye Lee Vague.
Vocally, Eyajo usually abandons the conventions of “singing” in favour of his highly theatrical performance poetry, combining tormented storytelling and tortured nursery rhymes.
“Take this rose, It’s from Death
A feast of bats is certain
Take this rose, It’s from Death
She winks and pulls Life’s curtain”
Often found haunting live venues between Mexico and California, BLACK HEROIN GALLERY recently opened for France’s nineties goth legends Corpus Delicti at the Black Box in Tijuana; and will play with notorious US industrial metal group Genitorturers this coming October, at Hollywood’s famed Whiskey a Go Go. Previously, BLACK HEROIN GALLERY have played shows with US deathrock pioneers including 45 Grave and Gitane Demone, latter-day proponents Readership Hostile, and with UK horror-punk outfit, Screaming Dead.