 MellowTraumatic
News Archive (2005 and previous...)
Please
note: missing photos and links will return soon. November
20, 2006 Ladies
and Gentlemen, last week, as you'll surely remember, we gave the Muruch
review five stars. This week we have chosen to allot an additional set of stars
to J. Burka, who commented
on the Muruch review. (One of the delightful things about blogs is indeed
their interactive nature. ) Mr. Burka writes:
"It may be worth noting that
the title of 'Of Longing and Otherness' is actually drawn from Wicked —
there's a scene when Elphaba is in college and she and her friends are sitting
in a cafe and Elphaba sings a song; Maguire describes the haunting melody as being
of longing and otherness... while most readers might read that as a brief, throwaway
line, Hannah Fury shows how brilliantly she understands the source material when
she picks up on that line and uses it to describe the intro/outro of her Wicked
song cycle!"
Sigh. If Mr. Burka were here we would flutter our eyelashes
at him. We are giving his comment five stars.
November 13, 2006 Hannah
has been working diligently on designing her album cover artwork.
In other news, The Thing That Feels has received a perfect review on Muruch,
a very well-respected music blog which features unusually in-depth writings on
a wide variety of artists. We say "perfect" because we have recently taken to
reviewing the reviewers. This review scores a five-star rating due to the writer's
thoughtful and intelligent insight and detailed commentary, as well as her refusal
to rely on any of the standard music-review cliches.
October
30, 2006 Happy
Halloween, Everyone! Whilst
awaiting the delivery of her album cover photographs, Hannah has completed another
collection of jewelry. Please visit the Boutique.
September
18, 2006 Hannah
Fury is travelling to New York to work with photographer Mia Hanson. The objective
is to complete the cover artwork for Hannah's new CD. All should go well if Hannah
can refrain from running amok in the big city. We are all keeping our fingers
crossed, and the MellowTraumatic rescue and recovery team is at the ready should
anything unsavory occur.
September
4 , 2006 Hannah
Fury has, once again, been causing trouble wherever she goes. We got a frustrated
call from Kansas Mayhem, who told us that Hannah recently attended a show at Cabaret,
which is part of the Philly Fringe Live Arts Festival. Apparently, after hearing
several cool bands, Hannah could be seen standing in the corner of the club, gesturing
fitfully to herself and muttering, "I should be playing this show... I'm the one
that should be playing here," over and over again, until she had to be dragged
forcibly from the premises by artist Kim
Traub. And just yesterday, Hannah was unceremoniously escorted out of the
Philadelphia Academy of Music building on Broad Street, into which she had wandered
unnoticed until security forces discovered her in the halls. Hannah insists that
she was bothering no one and only wanted to look at the building's beautiful interior,
not realizing that this would be considered "trespassing" by the powers that be.
Thanks to quick thinking by Kansas Mayhem, all ruffled feathers have now been
smoothed. In
other news, fans of Gregory Maguire's story Wicked: The Life and Times of the
Wicked Witch of the West have been having a lively forum
discussion about some of Hannah's songs. (Thanks to N.A.J. for alerting us
to this!)
August
14, 2006 The
MellowTraumatic offices will be closed for the remainder of August. Hannah is
mastering her new album and will not be able to answer e-mail until the project
is finished. During this time, the rest of the crew is taking a much-deserved
vacation. However, we have arranged for orders to continue being processed as
usual, so please feel free to visit the Boutique and
make purchases just like always.
August
7, 2006 The
second installment of "Ask
Sennette" has been published.
July
31, 2006 We
don't normally call your attention to reviews of Hannah's past work. However,
we have chosen to make an exception. This review
of Soul Poison, written by Top 10 Amazon Reviewer E.A. Solinas, is both
lovely and insightful, and we would be loathe not to mention it. "Light years
ahead of anything you'll hear on the radio," says Solinas. Damn straight, say
we! Go, E.A.! Also,
Hannah is still seeking band members. Please
note that the new jewelry is selling
like extreme-high-temperature petit fours. We suggest you get yours now or you
shall be left shivering, unadorned, in the cold and unforgiving moonlight. Well,
there will be more jewelry eventually, but Hannah's work in this area is quite
sporadic and we can only guess as to when the next collection will be made. 
July
24, 2006 Hannah
seeks band members.
July
17, 2006 We
begrudgingly admit a certain degree of admiration for Hannah's jewelry-making
enterprise. We are not personally swayed by these glittering baubles and trinkets,
however, we concede that the designs are quite cunning and enchanting if one is
susceptible to shimmery impracticle things. These painstakingly conceived pieces
are most certainly relevant to Hannah's music in the symbolic and visual sense.
We know from listening to her incessant laments that Hannah grows weary of the
unimaginative articles typically presented by recording artists and their labels
— and we do acknowledge that she is making a venturesome attempt to
offer something a little more provocative and classy. So even though these admittedly
unimportant souvenirs are intended primarily to entertain, we feel they do so
whilst still being conceptually and aesthetically aligned with the greater cause
and mission of MellowTraumatic Recordings. Thus,
we are delighted to offer you new MellowTraumatic jewelry in our Boutique.
July
10, 2006 Subterfuge
has recieved another glowing, albeit short, review: "Echoey
piano goth pop with an electronic heartbeat. Pure creative genius! Bonus DVD disc
features the eye feast of a video for 'Carnival Justice (The Gloves Are Off) Part
II.'" — Media
Shelf And,
as promised, we have posted the first installment of the "Ask Sennette" advice
column. It is in the Diversions section. Why don't you go there
now...
July
3, 2006 We
are so happy to tell you that our friend and accomplice Scott
Radke is featured in the current issue of Gothic
Beauty (#20, to be exact). It is a lovely article/interview and is accompanied
by a beautiful pictorial of Scott's work. We would like to congratulate Mr. Radke,
and rustle our feathers at Gothic Beauty in acknowledgement of their excellent
taste. We urge all of you to pick up a copy and relish the gleaming, glossy darkness
contained within. In
other news, Hannah has just notified us that the first installment of "Ask Sennette"
will appear next week, so cross your fingers and hope for the best. Clearly, there
is a bit of a power struggle going on (see last week's news), but we have chosen
to overlook the problem for now, and welcome the charming Miss Sennette to our
establishment. We wish the best success for her advice column.
June
26, 2006 Hannah
Fury has, once again, defected from MellowTraumatic Headquarters. As a result,
there has been no news for some time, and there is grave speculation as to her
current mental state. We believe that she has taken up residence "on the east
coast" (of the US, we presume), for we have no reason to doubt the authenticity
of the following missive which arrived on our doorstep only a few hours ago. Hey
Ladies, I'm
on the east coast causin' a ruckus. I am having a great time walking everywhere,
and enjoying the old buildings and cobblestone streets. The locals are streetwise
and no-nonsense, but thankfully most are also blessed with intelligence and kindness.
I took most of the jewelry with me, since y'all are so against sparkly stuff.
I'll be posting them in the boutique in the next few weeks. Also, I thought you
should know that I'm refusing to release the album until fall. It just isn't really
summer music, you know? I've found a friend here already. Her name is Sennette,
and I've hired her to write an advice column for MellowTraumatic. If you don't
like it, that's just too bad. She is already under contract. I think she'll fit
in splendidly with the rest of the crew. I'll let you know when her first installment
is written. She has a lot going on, so don't expect it to be a regular column.
Has Vincent finished recovering that stupid article/"interview" yet? I told you
he was very confrontational throughout the whole thing, didn't I? It wasn't a
very pleasant experience, but I do hope it will eventually amount to something.
Soon I'll be looking for a band (if you hear of anyone, let me know). But first
I've got to get settled in here. In the near future I'll send for you all, and
MT Headquarters can be relocated to this fine, crumbling and opulently dark city. Love,
Hannah
It seems that Hannah is under the delusion that she pulls the strings around here.
She'll send for us? Ha! And as you can see, she has neglected to
give her exact location. Won't she be surprised when we catch up to her this time?
The bloodhounds have already been released. But whilst Hannah has been rattling
around the globe — "relocating," as she's sure to be calling it — we
have collected two new reviews of Subterfuge.
"Imagine walking into a haunted house and all you hear is the piano playing, the
wind whipping through the white curtains and someone who is a cross between Siouxsie
and Kate Bush singing. Voila!...Hannah Fury. In other words...divine!!!" —
Jules of Graveconcerns
"...This album is her unique brand of delicate etherea and yet is bolder than
her previous releases. Rich melodies swirl with lyrics that paint poisonously
vivid and unsettling imagery... Recommended to fans of bittersweet ethereal and
devotees of finding beauty among decay." — Mistress McCutchan of Morbid
Outlook. (Read the complete review here.)
May
22, 2006
It was with extreme anguish that we learned that Hannah Fury has been shirking
her responsibilities to MellowTraumatic. Our informants reported that, rather
than finishing her album as promised, Hannah has spent most of these past two
weeks undertaking various frivolous entertainments. Apparently, she has been making
jewelry with obsessive earnestness and total disregard for MellowTraumatic Recordings'
cash assets, and it has also been brought to our attention that she has spent
increasingly long hours each day writing and re-writing poison pen letters to
various perceived "enemies." Fearing that these evasive tactics could
be symptomatic of a greater unrest, we insisted upon a meeting — during which
we intended to "rattle her cage," as they say in the music industry.
Much to our chagrin, Hannah came armed with the finished multi-track tapes of
the very last song for her upcoming album. She pulled out each track separately
from her bag and draped them, one by one, across the table, and then reached over
and threw them about the room as if they were a collection of colorful party streamers.
She then laughed wickedly and assured us that she will be setting up her final
mixing date this week. Note:
Hannah will soon be making her ornamental handiwork available for purchase. And
though we strongly question the validity of such things, we would like to invite
those who enjoy sparkling lockets, glinting charms and other regal adornments
to visit the MellowTraumatic Boutique in the near future.
May 15, 2006
Cloaked only by the dark of night and our own aptitude for concealment and deception,
we managed to break the heavy iron padlock which secures the MellowTraumatic Vault.
The lock, despite being heart-shaped, was a menacing challenge. There were several
moments during which we very nearly abandoned our pursuit. As we approached a
degree of collective depression that would have left most people unable to move,
much less have allowed them to skillfully command sharp-toothed implements, the
metal obstacle finally gave way. Casting aside our saw and pick axe, we exultantly
found ourselves inside the sullen rooms which house all manner of MellowTraumatic
artifacts. But our celebration was initiated too soon, for through the darkness
we could hear the muffled and most unattractive sniffles of an unexpected guard.
Quickly we set to action. After having lulled the lone watchman into a false sense
of security with a flurry of extraordinarily feminine sighs, giggles and fan-waving
maneuvers, we ambushed the unlucky fellow with a textile scrap soaked in ether.
After we had rendered him insensate, we continued into the easternmost room, and
from within that dusky chamber we extracted several copies of Hannah Fury's "Meathook"
single. Please
note that these are not the signed, limited-edition copies — those
sold out long ago. However, the version we have uncovered offers the exact same
CD — it is only the packaging that is different. After having received many
requests, we are now making this alternatively packaged "Meathook" single
available for purchase. You may do so in the Boutique.
May
8, 2006
It seems that Hannah Fury has been spending her time going to films as of late.
We received the following message from Hannah just last night, and we include
it here since there is no real "news" this week. Please note that Hannah
covered Daniel Johnston's beautiful song "True Love Will Find You in the
End" on her 2001 "Meathook" single, and has repeatedly mentioned
Daniel as one of her songwriting heroes, so this is relevant to MellowTraumatic's
greater mission, though perhaps somewhat indirectly.
Kansas!
Eudora and Eustasia! Have
you seen The Devil and Daniel Johnston yet??? If not, you absolutely have
to go. It is such an amazing documentary — so sweet and emotional
and beautifully done. When I first heard that this movie was in the works, I was
worried that the director, Jeff Feuerzeig, wouldn't be able to do Daniel justice
— I think many of Daniel's fans feel pretty protective of him, and I just
wanted a documentary about him to be done right, you know? Well, I shouldn't
have worried. It wasn't just done right, it was done perfectly. Mr. Feuerzeig
captures Daniel with all the complexity, terror, beauty and love that Daniel himself
expresses so well in his music and art. If I could grab every single person by
the scruff of the neck and drag them to see this movie, I would do it. I really
think that even those who are unfamiliar with Daniel's work will find this film
to be inspiring. My heart was torn apart and stitched back together a million
times as I watched it. Please, please, please go see it if you have the
chance. Love,
Hannah
May
1, 2006 Hannah
Fury's friend and accomplice Mia Hanson has been interviewed in the Chelsea Hotel's
"Living
with Legends" blog. Mia is responsible for the ghostly blue photograph
that adorns the cover of The Thing That Feels, and there are illicit plans
in the works for her to take the photographs for Hannah's upcoming album as well.
The imagery will be diabolical.
April
24, 2006 MellowTraumatic
will soon begin sending Hannah Fury's Subterfuge to independent and college
radio programmers. If anyone has any suggestions regarding stations — or,
even better yet, specific shows and DJs — that may be likely to play Hannah's
music, please do tell. Your thoughts on the
subject are most welcome.
April
17, 2006 You
cannot possibly know the aggravations we suffer as we attempt to extract information
from Hannah Fury regarding her upcoming album. Before she would speak to us, she
demanded that we take her out for a very expensive dinner, which, upon her insistence,
included cocktails and dessert. Then she called for an arm-wrestling match
between herself and Eudora. It was a brutal spectacle made even worse by the fact
that Hannah seemed unaware of her unfair advantage over the 76-year-old Ms. Splinterglass,
who, while not exactly frail, was certainly no match for Miss Fury. Only after
Hannah had declared herself the "winner" of this dubious contest did
she finally allow us to discuss business. She told us that, with the exception
of one song, the entire album is now recorded and mixed. Hannah is re-recording
the vocals on that final song because, at the last moment, she became disenchanted
with her singing and decided to do it again. As soon as the aforementioned song
is finished, the mastering will begin.
April
10, 2006 Oh,
we have conjured spell after spell in an effort to infuse ourselves with the talent
for understanding Italian. Unfortunately, and to our great consternation, it has
not yet come to pass. The reason for our futile exploits, you ask? Hannah Fury's
Subterfuge has been reviewed by Musicaroma,
and we can't read a word of it.
April
3, 2006 Hannah
Fury's Subterfuge has been reviewed by Venus,
and at long last someone has had the good sense to mention the winsome fashions
that were featured in Hannah's video. Read the review here.
March
27, 2006 After
a series of scuffles that were most unbecoming for ladies of our stature, we have
finally managed to wrestle "Girls That Glitter Love the Dark" from the
grasping, willful hands of our charge, Hannah Fury. It has long been our belief
that this song should be available as a free mp3 download. Though she had been
against it until now, Hannah has been persuaded to see reason at last. You can
get it from our Recordings section or from Hannah's
MySpace page.
March
20, 2006 The
missive from Mistress McCutchan arrived late one stormy evening in the not-too-distant
past. We gleefully pried the damp scroll from the fingers of the messenger and
carefully unfurled the parchment to reveal a lively set of Ten Questions who
all began shouting at once. Hannah has paired each of them up with suitable answers
which you can read at Morbid
Outlook. This web site, founded by Mistress McCutchan, has long been established
as the definitive portal for those possessing a more shivery and mysterious
aesthetic. We strongly suggest that you go there now.
March
13, 2006 Oh,
hell yeah! Our boutique has just added an item so gravely spectacular that
viewing it is almost painful — we daresay the uninitiated should shield their
eyes at first. Without further ado, we unveil the Subterfuge Marionette Button.
Could anything be more luscious? Adorn your scarves or knapsacks, your puffy vests,
legwarmers, or your black hoodies. There is a rumor that one fine gentleman in
England wore his whilst shopping for vegetables at the local market. Excellent
choice, say we! 
March
6, 2006 It
is with mild regret that we announce the end of our promotional pricing on Hannah
Fury's "I Can't Let You In" single. The special two-for-one offer will
still be honored through March 31, 2006, so if you have a treasured friend or
romantic quarry upon whom you wish to bestow this most thoughtful of gifts, please
remember to do so this month.
February 27, 2006 Hannah
Fury's Subterfuge EP continues to receive delectable reviews: "Subterfuge
is the most sinister thing to come out of Texas since the Bush Administration,
and all the better for it... [P]erhaps the finest distillation of Fury's particular
brand of musical malaise is the multimedia track 'Carnival Justice (The Gloves
Are Off) Part II.' Whether heard alone or in tandem with Chris Ohlson's creepy
video featuring a pair of custom-made marionettes (The Queen of Hearts and Anathema
Rose to their friends), it's an undeniably spine-tingling experience. So precisely
layered are the distorted, whispery vocals, it's almost as if she were singing
in parseltongue." — Alan Pedder of Wears
the Trousers. (Read the complete review here.) "'Je
Taime,' 'A Latch to Open' and 'Girls That Glitter Love the Dark' (best Fury song
title ever) are glimmering, ethereal things, like the golden sparkles in which
Zeus would take form to seduce earthly maidens. The deceptively pretty 'My Next
Victim' is a great example of Ms. Fury's patented lovely creep-outs. 'Carnival
Justice (The Gloves Are Off) Part II' adds percussion and drive to swirling vocal
overdubs that are the audio equivalent of wraiths filling the screen of a Tim
Burton film." — Michael Toland of High
Bias. (Read the complete review here.)
February
20, 2006 As
devoted visitors to this MellowTraumatic portal may remember, in July of 2003
we announced that Hannah Fury had been asked to contribute vocals to a song by
The Synthetic
Dream Foundation. The long wait is over, as TSDF's album, Tendrils of Pretty,
has now been released on the classical/dark experimental label Mythical
Records. Hannah appears on "Trapeze," which Virus!
magazine calls the CD's "most intimate moment." Hannah wrote the lyrics
and vocal melody, recording and mixing the layered voices over TSDF's gorgeously
lamenting piano piece. Hannah's contribution was so well-received by TSDF that
she was graciously allowed to give the song its title. Other guest vocalists on
Tendrils of Pretty include Summer Bowman (The Machine in the Garden), Aaminah
Kerdelen, Tamara Kent and Samantha Bouqin. Audio
clips of "Trapeze" can be heard on the Mythical Records album
detail page and at CD
Baby. Tendrils of Pretty is available for purchase from both of these
fine establishments as well as from Amazon. Please
visit The Synthetic Dream Foundation's
official web site f or more information about this intriguing composer whose
lushly decadent music Hannah was thrilled to be a part of. MellowTraumatic
Recordings will soon include The Synthetic Dream Foundation in our Accomplices
section. Until then, we offer you this excerpt from the Mythical Records web site:
"One of the main things which distinguishes the sound created by TSDF from
other electronic artists is the fact that all the beats and melodies are actually
performed on instruments and not 'programmed' or 'produced' like most industrial
and electronic artists do on a computer. The subtle nuances that actual performance
imbues a piece of music with can be heard, making all the compositions less cold,
and more emotional than typical electronic works."
February
13, 2006 Subterfuge
is now available from Amazon,
and has garnered some more reviews: "These
songs are layered lush masterpieces, every single one of them. There's so much
going on here I feel like I have to listen over and over and very loudly (or with
headphones) just to hear even half of it... Let me just say the video is stunning.
I watched it three times in a row. It was like I couldn't stop. There is something
both creepy and wonderful about those puppets that are mesmerizing (that's them
on the cover art). I love things that are beautiful and a bit scary at the same
time and this whole record, but especially the video, is one of those things."
— Amy Lotsberg of Collected
Sounds "...
a dark, dreamy and epically romantic masterpiece... Fury's mixing of this album
illustrates that she is an alchemist, with a unique vision all her own. The dense
production washes over you but you cannot resist the sensation to drown in the
sonic prisms, echoes and wails. There are layers upon layers of dreamy elements...
The bonus "Carnival Justice (The Gloves Are Off) Part II" DVD is a treat. Directed
by Chris Ohlson, it features Scott Radke's marionettes — the Queen of Hearts
and Anathema Rose. They co-star with Fury and create an atmosphere of desire and
retribution. Evocative and haunting, it is a wonderful accompaniment to the EP..."
— Jo Gabriel for Musical
Discoveries In
addition, the Hannah Fury page on The
Ectophiles' Guide to Good Music has been updated to reflect initial reactions
to the Subterfuge EP.
February 6, 2006 A
note from the MellowTraumatic Publicity Department: Dear
Peeps, If
you like Subterfuge, please TALK about it. Might we suggest instigating
discussions with your friends over coffee, in your blogs or newsgroups, or at
your dinner parties? We advocate the latter particularly if red wine or some other
lusty potion is involved. We hope that you will think Subterfuge is FIERCE.
And we believe emphatically that word of mouth is the most reliable and honorable
form of advertisement. We are thrilled that so many of you have heard about Hannah's
music from your friends. Please continue this admirable tradition. It also helps
immensely when you leave descriptive comments in the review sections of Hannah's
CD Baby and Amazon pages. Conversely,
if you hate the music, find it utterly useless, or if it exasperates you in some
way, please feel free to talk/comment about that as well. Hannah is very aware
that Subterfuge will not appeal to everyone, and she feels strongly that
responses should be encouraged whether they are positive or negative or even somewhere
in between those delicious extremes. Also,
we are infinitely grateful whenever you link to the MellowTraumatic web site or
to Hannah's free MP3s. Sincerely,
Kansas Mayhem
January
30, 2006 We
are happy to announce that Hannah Fury's Subterfuge EP is now available
from CD Baby. In
addition, it may be of interest to some that lyrics to the songs on Subterfuge
have now been posted in our Lyrics section. We
would now like to take a moment to thank DJ
Misery Tree of The Happy Death
Show (KBVR 88.7 FM in Corvallis, Oregon) and Jason and Kristin of The
Sky's Gone Out (WEFT 90.1 FM in Champaign, Illinois). Both radio programmes
have been loyal supporters of Hannah's music in the past and are now playing songs
from Subterfuge. We love these DJs very much.
January
23, 2006 Early
reviews of Hannah Fury's Subterfuge EP are starting to trickle in from
various sources, including this one from one of our favorite music critics: "When
we last heard from Ms. Fury, she set her dark tales against romantic piano balladry.
Her voice was low and delicate, and she added a dark glamour to the girl and a
piano subgenre. Her new six-song EP, Subterfuge, is something else entirely.
There are elements of the romantic piano pieces, but they are drowned in claustrophobic
loops and drum programs. Her whispery voice is augmented with echoes and overdubbed
screams and moans, and she sing-speaks some of the words. Organs and weirdly tuned
synths compete with the piano. The gallows humor quotient is upped: one of her
couplets is 'My heart is like the Moulin Rouge/All lit up in subterfuge.' The
new, dense production is perfectly suited to these tales of despair, self-loathing
and ennui. It's a kaleidoscope of sound and imagery. Fury's new sound is more
like the spooky experimentalism of Jarboe (Swans) than like Tori Amos. Beauty
hides in the jagged shards." — Craig
L. Gidney
January
16, 2006 Subterfuge
has finally arrived and will begin shipping tomorrow as promised. Also,
we have updated our Accomplices
section to include a write-up of filmmaker Chris Ohlson, who directed the video
for "Carnival Justice (The Gloves Are Off) Part II."
January
9, 2006 At
this moment Hannah Fury's new EP, Subterfuge, is still undergoing the
delicate and time-consuming cloning procedure. While "art" and technology
collide in a secret laboratory on the gritty shores of Jersey, we at MellowTraumatic
are busily preparing our shipping department for the work ahead. Our crew is enduring
a strictly regimented program that includes heavy weight-lifting exercises as
well as a variety of activities designed to promote cardiological health. And
we are happy to announce that we still expect to begin shipping your orders next
week.
January
2, 2006 Hannah
Fury's music was recently featured in a short film entitled Elemental Justice.
First-time filmmaker Jim Hard licensed the old standards "The Necklace of
Marie Antoinette" and "The Last Piece of Cake," as well as "Status,"
a new song which will appear on Hannah's upcoming full-length album. The film,
which was shot guerrilla-style in Paris and Greece, deals with the age-old themes
of fear, weakness, betrayal and revenge. Miss
Fury was in attendance when Elemental Justice premiered at the Hideout
Theatre in Austin, Texas, on December 28, 2005. The wine flowed generously and
an enjoyable evening was had by the boisterous invitation-only crowd. There was
an after-party at the posh Stephen F. Austin Hotel, which Hannah, unfortunately,
was not able to attend. Some were rumored to comment that it was probably just
as well, since Hannah would almost certainly have ended up with a lampshade on
her head, and then MellowTraumatic would have had yet another public relations
fiasco to contend with. We
will notify you if there is any further news about the film.
MellowTraumatic
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