Blanck Mass

Blanck Mass is a British electronic solo project by Benjamin John Power, one of the founding members of drone band Fuck Buttons.^[1] His track "Sundowner" was used at key points during the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Olympic games.^[2] It was first heard as the Union Flag was brought into the stadium by members of the Armed Forces. Later it was played when the Olympic Flag was paraded, and finally as the Olympic Flame was brought to the stadium in a speedboat. Blanck Mass opened for Icelandic band Sigur Rós on their 2013 UK tour.^[3] In 2014, Power announced that he was close to finishing off a new Blanck Mass album,^[4] and supported Jon Hopkins at the Royal Festival Hall in September.^[5] Power released Dumb Flesh through Sacred Bones Records on 11th May 2015. The vinyl version included an exclusive track "Life Science (Ambient Suite)". Power supported the release with tours and dates in the UK, US, Europe and Australia and received critical acclaim for the album. ^[6] Later in the year Power released "The Great Confuso EP" which featured a brand new three-part track as well of remixes of album tracks by Genesis P-Orridge, Dalhous and Konx-Om-Pax. ^[7] A 12" version of the EP limited to 500 copies in Pumpkin and Mulberry coloured vinyl was released for Record Store Day 2016. ^[8] On 20th July 2016 Power announced a new track "D7-D5" via Adult Swim as part of their Adult Swim Singles 2016 campaign which will be released on vinyl in October 2016. ^[9]

History

Blanck Mass 2011-12

The self-titled album Blanck Mass was released in 2011 through Mogwai's Rock Action Records label and is Benjamin John Power's first solo effort after spending many years as one half of Fuck Buttons. ^[10] This album was Power's first experience with production work and it has paved the way for him to make the album Dumb Flesh. ^[11]

Dumb Flesh 2015-16

Dumb Flesh is the second album by Blanck Mass and marks the switch from the Rock Action Records label to Sacred Bones Records. The album has been described by Pitchforks Nathan Reese as danceable and more accessible than the first self-titled album. He wrote "Power's strengths come out at once: dark noise gives way to a pounding rhythm which, in turn, melts into a tapestry of airy synths". ^[12] Dumb Flesh received ample critical acclaim and it was toured extensively all throughout 2015.

The Strange Colour Of Your Body's Tears Re-Score 2015

The Strange Colour Of Your Body's Tears is a brand new original score to the 2013 Giallo film of the same name. Originally the film had no original score and used music from existing Giallo films instead. The re-score of The Strange Colour Of Your Body's Tears is a stage experimentation and collaboration with different artists from across the globe. Every artist had a different scene assigned and were given complete freedom to score that particular scene however they wanted to. The album was recorded in 2014 and was released by Death Waltz Recordings. ^[13]

Musical style

Blanck Mass' musical style has been described as Drone music, post-rock, electronic and experimental. Power has been influenced by the likes of Carl Sagan and Ennio Morricone to the "infinity of nature". ^[14] Power has also said that in his younger years he was a fan of Mogwai's post-rock instrumentals. ^[15]

Discography

• Blanck Mass (2011, Rock Action Records)
• White Math / Polymorph (2012, Software Recording Co.)
• Hellion Earth (2012)
• Dumb Flesh (2015, Sacred Bones Records)
• Blanck Mass Presents - The Strange Colour of Your Body's Tears Re-Score (2015, Death Waltz Originals)
• The Great Confuso EP (2015, Sacred Bones Records)
• "D7-D5" (2016, Blanck Mass Records)

References

External links

• Blanck Mass on Bandcamp