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Vialka "Curiosities of Popular Customs"
format: album, released: 2005
genre: psychotic avant math rock

review by Karl Mohr


A band that appears to tour 320 days per year is either insane or
on a serious mission to spread their sound far and wide. Vialka
is both of these things. With such a rigorous plan, how could
they help but expand their musical skills and compositional range?

Vialka consists of two international rock gnomes. Eric Boros is
an experimental music expert and master of the baritone guitar.
The previous Vialka recordings have featured generous doses of
Boros' raw singing style - vocal chords shredded into permanent
post-party rasps via his solo electronic doom project, Hermit.
Marylise Frecheville bashes the living shit out of drums and
vocalizes across a wild range of styles from death screams to
French chanson to German punk to Arabic chanting.

Vialka is true art rock - it is less of a question of what is
it that Vialka is, but WHY is it that Vialka is. They seem
to write, record and perform in spite of themselves. What
may have started out as a joke has now taken on frightening
proportions and exists as a monster force waiting to eclipse
the world. They prove, uncontestedly, that rock music only
requires four things: attitude, rebellious singing, wicked
guitar and monster drums.

Vialka is truly international. Boros left Canada for France,
and with French-native Frecheville moved to Slovenia to set up
their art rock nest. The touring schedule on their website
would make most booking agents cry. How they do it is anyone's
guess. With a recent hefty tour through China (gripping tour
diary also available online), this current release includes
many influences from many peoples, places, and musics.

Music that would appeal more to those with open minds than
genre-huggers, Vialka cruises the spectrum. One minute you
feel on the edge of time signature-warped ska, then you are
dancing with Russians at an AC/DC tribute show. Boros and
Frecheville truly have a great groove together - they seem
to have fused into one being. The cocky rock figures and
daring vocal protests in French, English and German - Heine
is covered as well as a traditional Chinese folk song and
a poem by Haruki Murakumi. Topping the whole package off
is gorgeous freaked-out artwork by Nikolai Kopeikin.

This record will cut your breath in half, but you have to
crank it up really damn loud and you have to have your mind
ready to get its weeds whacked out.

Standout tracks: when "Everywhere and Nowhere" hits
its epic eastern theme, one feels the roof lifting off.
"Die Lorelei" (Heine) is great for anyone who misses German
pre-punk, or just digs sick math rock.