Crna Žuč Crna Žuč cassette
New project from Dragana, the bassist/vocalist of Serbia’s APSURD—the dark, anarcho-accented drive of ex-YU punk paragons TOŽIBABE is an obvious point of departure for both projects, with CRNA ŽUČ leaning harder into TOŽIBABE’s goth/post-punk underpinnings in contrast to APSURD’s stripped-down hardcore bash. The six tracks here are recorded with a raw, unpolished immediacy, cloaked in Cold War-era Eastern Bloc greyscale gloom and tapped-telephone paranoia, with vocals rising from shadowy narrations to desperate shouts, drums charging ahead of the beat toward an uncertain future, and sinister, descending minor chords that bring the record label’s WIPERS-referencing name full circle. All of the unease and high anxiety comes to a head on “Niko I Ništa,” where textured, moody guitar drone is staggered with insistent death-disco rhythmic breaks as Dragana’s icy reserve gradually cracks into a seething snarl. Proceed down CRNA ŽUČ’s ill-lit corridor and watch your back.