Getting to Know Amelia Arsenic
Amelia Arsenic has just dropped her new video clip and is about to hit the road. We asked her to tell us about herself:
I am… Amelia Arsenic, a musician and designer recently back in Sydney, Australia. I get called goth industrial or a cyberpunk a lot, but I think of it more as just following my natural interests and being a professional weirdo. My following is mainly from those subcultures. I’m so lucky to have such cool fans, but I think my latest stuff is going to speak to a wider audience. Check it out!
My upcoming Australian tour will be… an industrial show with a femme edge. I put the tour together with another female fronted band called SNUFF to bring something new to the often uber masculine vibe of the industrial scene.
It’s also just after Halloween time so I’m hoping people will chose to wear those Halloween outfits that arrived late in the mail because who needs an excuse to dress up and get spooky? Maybe some people from outside the dark scene will decide they don’t want to take off their halloween ghoul face and come along.
It will also be the first shows that I’ve played in Australia for ages since returning home from adventures overseas so I’m keen to play with some new Aussie bands and see what’s wicked underground.
Aside from music… I am a fashion designer and art director. I’ve worked with a lot of alternative beauty brands such as Sugarpill and Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics. Believe it or not I even styled David Hasselhoff once! The jewellery from my brand A is for Arsenic has even been stocked in Patricia Fields in NYC. I’m pretty lucky to have had opportunities across different mediums. I’m just happy when I get to make stuff.
Home is… Sydney, Australia. After spending years living in Berlin, New York and London, coming home has been a welcome treat.
I spend too much time… watching Star Trek and being an alien space babe. Trek yourself before you wreck yourself.
I’m currently listening to…
Clipping – Wriggle
Wow, can this guy use the thesaurus! Jokes aside I have loved clipping from the moment I heard ‘Body and Blood’ a few years ago, so I was stoked to hear their latest offering ‘Wriggle’. An infectious combo of power noise and cerebral rapping will make brain tick and your legs move.
MSTRKRFT – Operator
This is such a killer album. Super sexy as we’ve come to expect from them but with some surprisingly harsh industrial moments peppered throughout. If you haven’t seen the music video for the track ‘Runaway’, stop what you’re doing and watch it immediately. It’s my favourite film clip of the year hands down.
Autolux – Pussy’s Dead
I’m pretty much obsessed with these guys. The mix of sonic aggression, fragile vocals and noise is addictive. I’ve been following them for a few years but I feel like this new album perfects that dirty sweet vibe that I’ve come to adore.
Huoratron – XXVI Crimes Of Love
The only thing that’s disappointing about the new single from Finnish producer Aku Raski is that it’s not a part of a whole album I can devour right away. ‘ Crimes of Love’ is dark, pounding and stompy as hell.
Battle of Mice – A Day of Nights
Julie Christmas is my new girl crush which makes me sad because Battle of Mice broke up in 2009. Sludgy, evil doom rock layered with psychotic vocals. Perfection.
It might surprise people to learn that… I’m actually a total nerd and love reading about science all of the time. My song ‘Carbon Black’ is inspired by a magazine article in New Scientist about the concept of quantum death. I thought it was a pretty romantic notion that even if you had broken up with your sole mate in this reality, there exists a parallel reality in the multiverse where you stayed together forever. The lyric ‘carbon black we will burn’ relates to the concept of ‘heat death’ which describes the end of the universe.
In the future… I hope the world is bright and optimistic like it is in Star Trek. It’s pretty much the only Sci-Fi that isn’t pessimistic. My music might sound dark, but I’m really an optimist at heart. I reckon we can work it out! I also just think that being a member of Star Fleet would be pretty badass.
What’s most appealing about this kind of future is that we would have gotten through to the next stage of human evolution by resolving wars and taking care of the planet, which would leave us ample time for creativity and holodeck adventures.
Oh and being a space alien babe would be totally legit. If I was exploring space then being an earthling would be alien to someone else. Guess that’s why I like touring so much.
Tour dates:
Sydney – Friday 4th Nov – Hermann’s Bar
Newcastle – Saturday 5th Nov – The Vault at Newcastle Leagues Club
Canberra – Friday 11th Nov – Lobrow Gallery & Bar
Melb – Saturday 12th Nov – Ding Dong Lounge
Brisbane – Saturday 19th Nov – New Globe Theatre
Keep up to date with Amelia at her website and Bandcamp and follow her on Instagram.
Interview by Bobby Townsend.
