Two years ago I had an absolute blast witnessing Erotic Secrets Of Pompeii live for the first time, at the Fulford Arms in York. In my review of that night I used the opening narration from Rod Serling’s original Twilight Zone TV Series to try and give some flavour and explanation of what Erotic Secrets Of Pompeii are like. Having listened to their new single “Sing Medieval” I think Rod Serling’s words still sum them up perfectly. Those words are “You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension – a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You’re moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You’ve just crossed over into the Twilight Zone“
The new song is frantic and full of warped post punk angst and energy. The angular guitar riffs are a punky take on Tome Verlaine and Television. There is a 60s cinematic feel to the track and a sprinkle of the B-52s “Rock Lobster”. The lyrics might have been made by someone throwing all the violent parts of nursery rhymes and fairy tales into a blender and spewing them out in swirling staccato voice shots. Word pairings like “I am trickster, mischief maker” and the infectious “Here comes the chopper, to chop – to chop, chop off their head” refrain are like no other lyric and work incredibly well because of that. Thomas Hawtin’s voice and delivery is reminiscent of early Talking Heads when David Byrne’s voice was weird, jagged and other-worldly. The band are on fire in this frenetic journey through the darker parts of the world and its bloody history. Erotic Secrets Of Pompeii are a truly and wonderfully different band and one that is perfect for this century and this sad, mad world that we live in. “Speak Medieval” is simply another step to world domination by Erotic Secrets Of Pompeii.
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