Ain Soph
Live At Piper 1986

LA RECENSIONE

Returning from the mists of mythical and mystical times is a sound document of unparalleled historical importance, namely the first concert (recorded in Rome at the Piper) of the Italian esoteric-industrial group Ain Soph. The record, titled Live At Piper Club Rome 12/01/86, was originally released by Misty Circles in only 50 copies. At that time, the lineup consisted of Crucifige (vocals, synth), Emma (vocals, backing vocals), HannaH (vocals, backing vocals), Foraenovis (vocals, keyboards, backing vocals), THX (keyboards, percussion, backing vocals), and ClauDEDI (synth, percussion, backing vocals). A concert by Ain Soph is quite a rare event (they themselves spoke of the difficulties they encountered during live performances in the book Rumori sacri, citing the Milan concert with Sigillum S). However, the magic they knew how to unleash live is certainly not inferior to that of the first studio albums, as evidenced by this concert (and also by Rituals, the other available live published by Old Europa Cafe produced by Rodolfo Protti). The music here is very raw (even more stripped down, if possible, than what is present in I). Yet, an attitude towards the occult and a "visionary" power already emerges, which remains uniquely theirs to this day and which I have never found in any other group (the early Current 93 did similar things but with a different feeling). Crucifige on vocals seems literally possessed by a higher force and recites magic rituals in a state of ecstasy accompanied by percussion and synth. Here we are in their period heavily influenced by Aleister Crowley, the famous magician who at that time was a source of inspiration for the esoteric-industrial scene, and especially for Current. Perhaps their art can only be fully understood if one has a certain affinity with traditional thinking and with authors like Oswald Spengler, Julius Evola, and René Guenon, as well as with all magical thought. It is no coincidence that they have been defined as "the poets of the Kali Yuga". Nevertheless, their compositions have such strength and allure that they can be easily appreciated even by laypeople and those uninterested in these topics. It is curious then to hear the audience's response (certainly not accustomed to these experiments) to this first concert of theirs: while Ain Soph recited litanies, the audience responded with a string of imprecations, far from evoking malevolent entities, they invoked all the saints including Christ and the Madonna. The new CD version of Live At Piper 1986 is released by SPQRLABEL in only 616 copies in a remastered version with additional notes from the band. Available at the SPQR site at the following link: https://www.spqrlabel.com/out-now/.