When everyone talks about Houston's "sound," the focus is almost exclusively on our contributions to the world of rap. I'm not knocking that or anything. I'm as proud of the Dirty South as I can be, but there are other sounds that seem to fly under the radar.
PopeNQM is a great example of the second wave of electronica that I like to call H-Two Electric. (Not to be confused with the aggressive noise scene we're also very underrated for.) Around the turn of the millennium, the city's electronica sound was internationally known for its big gothic suckerpunch until Tonezone Records failed and most of the musicians moved onto other things. Now we're seeing a new, more minimalist noise revolution hallmarked by ethereal dreams. BLSHS, Bang Bangz and Frank Ortiz are good examples, and PopeNQM's Ioep is a worth addition to the Houston synth pantheon.
The five-song EP tends towards the dystopic and sad rather than the more melancholy stuff you typically hear from those other groups. Destruction plays a big part in the lyrical themes of songs like "Texas Burned" and "Halo"; the latter especially, which comes out like the Book of Revelation if God had dictated it to a Korg instead of John of Patmos. Burning steel from the skies makes for a wicked counterpart to PopeNQM's surrealistic beats.
That's not to say there are not happy moments, though sinisterly gleeful would probably be more accurate. "Night in Our Noses," for instance, has a lovely Placebo vibe that is screaming to be used in some seedy club scene in a movie. It's probably my favorite selection from Ioep. The music is gloriously meticulous and repetitive like an old glam rock remix, grand and flat. It's also where PopeNQM really drops the mike hard, showing he has both crooning skills and an almost hip-hop delivery that has a slightly messianic quality. Or it would if it wasn't a tribute to being blasted out of your mind on the dance floor.
The only real knock against the EP is that it is rather, well, unfinished. I'm a champion of records made in your bedroom that sound exactly like a record you made in your bedroom. I've done it myself on several occasions, but Ioep feels a little too insular sometimes. Some albums grow in the studio like it's a womb, but others stay trapped there like in a cage. It's really only until Ioep finishes off "Halo" that PopeNQM fully realizes his vision. There's a more experimentation, more voices, just more. Truth be told it's not all that epic a song, but after the previous four it's like a damned Sisters of Mercy tune.
PopeNQM has all the makings of a big wheel in one of our excellent but still sadly under-recognized music scenes. Ioep is a very solid entry for those of us who enjoy good, weird beeps and boops to accompany a bad mood. It's so decadently mood-altering.
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