Chelsea Wolfe
Hiss Spun

If in the Mojave Desert a letter were found buried beneath the fine and dusty sand, it would be dedicated to Hiss Spun. It couldn't be found anywhere else in the world, except in California. An absolute certainty awakened from the depths of the abyss with a single possible signature at the bottom: Chelsea Wolfe. The singer-songwriter from Sacramento rises again after navigating states of consciousness with Jungian inspiration. The fog lifts along with the solitary depth of the night. Through the windows of an old lodge filters the first scorching sun, for an awakening that erases all the sleepless moons lived. From the fall can only rise a new dawn. "Hiss Spun" is born as a true damned child of the Californian state and Chelsea Wolfe's introspection, deciding to rationalize her internal storm and throw it back into the world's cruelty. To conceive such an explosive concentrate, she called in first-rate allies: Kurt Ballou in production, guest stars Troy Van Leeuwen and Aaron Turner to further ignite her demons. I don't need to tell you the bands of the aforementioned gentlemen, do I?

But why California, you may ask. Chelsea's music has always been extremely personal, driven by instincts. There has never been anything artificial, honesty is the key to enter her galaxy. So she decides to get closer to home, specifically Sacramento, moving away from the alienating Los Angeles. If there is one thing I remember with absolute clarity, it's the landscapes you encounter on the journey that leads you toward the capital. I'm not talking about the splendor of the Pacific Highway, but the sensation of barrenness that Central California transmits to you. If I had to use a keyword, abandonment would probably be the preferred one. Mind you, that's why I love it, in its own way. And perhaps, it's also the reason why I love every single composition by Chelsea Wolfe since the lo-fi days of "The Grime And The Glow". In her hometown, she reunites with an old friend, Jess Gowrie. As girls, they played together, and when interviewed, she describes her as one of the critical people who helped her overcome the shyness that led her to perform with a veil covering her eyes. Her entry into the band, along with historical partner Ben Chisholm, meant that they experimented at increasingly higher volumes. The energy unleashed is emblematic of Hiss Spun.

Symbolism, often natural, between nymphs and refuges, is another indispensable component in Chelsea's life. Here's a hint: "Hiss is the white noise of the universe, the comforting sound. Spun is the addiction and the withdrawals." And there's more in highlighting the cyclicality of the words appearing in the 50 minutes of Hiss Spun: "Flux represents movement and flow, hiss is the positive life force, welt is the brutality of life, and groan represents sensuality and death." Defining "Hiss Spun" as liberating is therefore essential, first and foremost for Wolfe herself, who exorcises fears doing so in the best way she knows: spectral. She increasingly draws from her cave, inserting samples of scratches during the reading of a book by Walt Whitman, or relying on trusted Chisholm who, on a desert night, records coyote howls and samples them in "The Culling." The meticulous care in crafting the malignant atmospheres makes Chelsea Wolfe a queen of darkness who feeds off her weaknesses "You cut me open, you lived inside, you kill the wonder, nowhere to hide", the betrayals suffered "I swore off obsidian thoughts, and lay awake on broken glass, I bled out more than once", the lost loves "I am depleted by love", to build her magnetic strength: "Though you try to swallow me whole,
I succumb to nothing."

Observing the oppressive decay of the Salton Sea, Chelsea conceives in her mind the idea that would transform into "Vex," just to continue the thread of how all her music is a very clear reflection of her personality. Hiss Spun burns like never before. The ethereal soul resonates with the violent doom and sludge distortions of the guitars. These are no longer just influences; they are the vital essence. An essence magnificently captured by Kurt Ballou in his God City Studios. Chelsea's bewitched litanies are no longer the sole heart of the compositions. The memories reappear not only in her life in Sacramento but also on a musical level, with vague influences from the times of "Ἀποκάλυψις." The noise fragments, the apocalyptic folk, and the electronic layers set the table for an explosion reminiscent of cathartic cries. It's as if Chelsea gathers all her hidden thoughts, compresses muscles, veins, and, opening her eyes, decides to vent with no mercy or filter. This is Hiss Spun. It is no longer the state of stasis and narcolepsy of "Abyss," it is the repulsion taking shape:

"I don’t need your help or your hindrance. You stay the fuck away from me."