FERMENTÆ - "GLOSSOLALIA"

Out soon through MERZTAPES
"FERMENTÆ features the solo project of audiovisual-surrealist KEVIN GAN YUEN, who is also one-third of San Francisco's celebrated blackened noise trio SUTEKH HEXEN.  

"Glossolalia," in some respects, illuminates the underside of nature-inspired dark ambient with passages manipulating foreboding, discordant overtones.  Culturally, the glossolalic denotes an act synonymous with the phenomenon of purportedly speaking in tongues, which, in turn, constructs a new mode of articulating thoughts by uttering words rooted in an unknown language.

Disclosing sonic, yet speech-like syllables exercised in a ritualistic context, FERMENTÆ "Glossolalia" inculcates an idea of language that reintroduces the threat and allure of the magical.

MT02: FERMENTÆ "Glossolalia" CS
Side A: First Contact (Eve) / Side B: Warmest Rapture / Six Farewells
Release Date: March 22, 2012

Edition limited to 100 black shell high-bias, ink-imprinted chrome cassettes.  This cassette will be made available for PRE-ORDER in late March 2012.

Art by Kevin Gan Yuen of VIRALOPTIC // Mastered by Bryan W. Bray of GATES."

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SUTEKH HEXEN interview in REGRESS ZINE #02

"REGRESS ZINE issue 2 now released. 
Interviews with VUCUB CANE / SUTEKH HEXEN / ONE TAIL, ONE HEAD / SVARTRIT / NASTRAN /  GRAVE MIASMA / TERENCE HANNUM + reviews

Ordering information: USA orders $7 / WORLD orders $8

Make payment via paypal to republikawake@Hotmail.com

PLEASE MAKE SURE TO PUT MAILING ADDRESS

WHOLESALE PRICES AVAILABLE. All zine related inquires:REGRESSZINE@GMAIL.COM"

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - PLEASE CIRCULATE THROUGHOUT ALL RELEVANT CHANNELS

SUTEKH HEXEN Announce February Release Date for 'Larvae'

"Black noise" seems like the most vague description possible for a metal (or metal-influenced) sonic entity, but take one listen to the malignant sorcery conjured up by Bay Area entity SUTEKH HEXEN, and it becomes the most apt title imaginable. Swirling vortexes of chaotic distortion, overwhelming walls of fuzzed-out, menacing noise, tormented howls and sepulchral murmurs - this is black metal forced through a madman's synapses. Black metal, drone, noise, field recordings, spoken word, acoustic guitars, blighted melodies - this is what they offer, these are the elements they harness. 

SUTEKH HEXEN have gained well-deserved recognition as of late, thanks to a slew of sold-out releases and West Coast live actions, but with this, their debut release for eclectic collective Handmade Birds, the project has truly reached its apex. Larvae is manifested as a three song, thirty-minute LP, which will be released on February 21, 2012 on digipack CD and a special edition, colored gatefold vinyl (100 on clear with pink splatter, 200 on black). 

LARVAE TRACK LISTING: 

A1. Isvar Savasana 

A2. Lead Us In Warfare 

B.   Let There Be Light

As part of a longer, glowing review, Lurker's Path described the album as,"the platonic form of catharsis. That is Larvae by Sutekh Hexen, who have grown over this last year to become the forerunner in noise addled black metal. Layering their din over barely audible drums, treble-firey guitars and a vocal approach akin to murder are all just the starting blocks. What ascends from beneath the raging waves of sound is nothing short of uplifting, transcendent. Larvae is the crowning achievement of this rising star... I give Larvae LURKER’s highest recommendation for its colossal ability to affect the listener. "

Aquarius Records described the band itself as something "more than black metal...it's a darkly  epic, strangely textured assemblage of buzz and blast, howl and  pound, the sound a living black entity, sonic chaos given form. This is the real transcendental black metal. All should be worshipping before the altar of the priests of SUTEKH HEXEN” 

Larvae features the talents of many. The album was mastered at 45rpm by James Plotkin and brought forth from the void by Scott Miller (electric guitar, field-recordings, found objects, vocals), Lee Camfield (acoustic guitar), Kevin Gan Yuen (electric guitar, field-recordings, found objects), Dwid Hellion (vocals), Thomas Rodahl Dedekam (vocals), with a pair of conspirators (Yuen and Hellion) collaborating on the haunting album artwork as well." 

SUTEKH HEXEN - "LARVAE" LP/CD // 2012 and beyond...

New Years Greetings to all:

The lack of digital-presence should not be measured for a lack of creative activity...

In these last few months, between my day-job and personal-life (or lack of) I have been working on the completion of several recordings for my band SUTEKH HEXEN. We have been very proactive as a unit since our inception in 2010 and in fact, have expanded from our core-duo of Scott Miller and myself into adding a new member: Lee Camfield and are now performing as a trio. 

Specifically, I have been focused on the deadline and release of our forthcoming, second full-length LP titled "Larvae" which will be released on 21 February, 2012 via Handmade Birds (TX) in LP/CD formats, the latter being packaged in a lavish DVD-digipakage with spot-UV printing. This has been over a year in the works. The opening-track: "Isvar Savasana" was actually our opening track that we played on tour in 2011. The logistics alone with this effort has been a massive undertaking to get all of our parts edited/mixed and mastered alone: it was recorded in San Francisco, CA // Oakland, CA, Ghent, Belgium and Oslo, Norway. 

Anyone who has ever been involved in a working band, a professional artist or a player of team-sports can vouch that there is immeasurable time and hard-work invested in "making it work". With that being said: with the new record(s) on the horizon, immense support from the underground and vision: We are doing good.

A preview of the artwork/packaging are attached below: It was a collaborative effort between Dwid Hellion and myself; the photographic collages and dark-paintings succesfully evoke the haunted visions inspired by the three tracks on this record... although texturally rich: we decided the less is more approach would be most effective: black and white gatefold printing, spot-UV elements (logos/lyrics). 

There will be updates of personal projects and art/design-related works for close-friends/associates in the coming weeks (there are 2-3 in the works),  but I will be taking a back-seat on visuals for a bit while we prepare for another tour in support of the new record(s), write/record/rehearse. etc.

Thanks for reading.

Wolves in the Throne Room: Celestial Lineage tour 2011 prints now available for purchase.

My design for the WITTR 2011 tour series curated by Andrew Crawshaw (Brokenpress, Seattle, WA)  is now available for purchase: $15 + shipping. These are hand-screen printed, numbered and signed by the artist. Please email: kevin at viraloptic dot come for details.Print details:

- 18x24" black poster stock

- x3) color print: metallic copper, gold and silver inks

- coverage dates for the tour:

9/16/11 Bethlehem, PA
9/17/11 Richmond, VA
9/18/11 Greensboro, NC
9/20/11 Sheffield, AL
9/21/11 Nashville, TN

Printed by Andy @Brokenpress in Seattle, WA.

777 & SUTEKH HEXEN pt.II

Sutekh Hexen // @ Eli's // 110411

SUTEKH HEXEN - "Luciform" ltd CD/CS editions.

Out soon on WANDS.

Servile Sect - "Realms of the Queen" vinyl edition

"Realms of the Queen is our proverbial popcorn trail stretching into the dripping mysteriis of psychedelic mindfulness. Re-issued for vinyl by King of the Monsters.  Featuring a beautiful 

re-design by Thee indica arsonist/tryptamine visionary Kevin Gan Yuen. Limited edition flying saucer-inspired artwork with "irradiated cum from Christ's cosmic cock" 12" vinyl INSANITY"


Process: layout and photography. the primary photograph that makes up this design is a close-up of our tour-van's break-pads that was taken with my iPhone, while on tour with Sutekh Hexen and Folivore back in August. Days prior (coming back through Arcata, CA), I had noticed an awful grinding sound under the floorboard and lack of responsiveness from the vehicle when I was driving. At that point, in L.A. I said: "when we get to San Diego, we absolutely needed to get them inspected..." sure enough, the break-pads were completely fucked. 
As per-usual, it is in the details...


CMYK + 1 (metallic silver ink) on the strips of lighter gray in the photograph and the vinyl center-labels and spot UV (raised-ink) on the LP jackets lettering, which will only be visible at certain angles. 


The guys in SERVILE SECT asked me to do something textural with simple typography. When Luke mentioned textures, he wanted something akin to the side of a crash-landed flying-saucer... not that any of us have ever seen one, but it made sense to me and this was the end-result. I will post pictures of the complete packaging/etc when they arrive. Out soon from: KING OF THE MONSTERS RECORDS.

SUTEKH HEXEN - (live) 10.21.11

NOOTHGRUSH @924 Gilman 10.23.2011 "Dualistik Pantheism" print

A collaborative effort between myself and SF print-maker M. Osborne. It is a ltd. screen-print to be sold @924 Gilman tomorrow night (10/22) >> celebrating the reunion of the Bay Area sludge/doom band NOOTHGRUSH. They were one of if not thee West Coast forerunners in the metal sub-genre that really brought about the new wave of unapologetic, down-tuned filthy-aggression to the unassuming ears of the masses. DISPRIT and ATRIARCH are equally amazing as well - but, I will leave you to check all these bands out on your own accord... assuming that heavy-metal is your cup of tea... this will be a true night of sonic-variety.

Process: this a involved 12x15" wood-block carving, photography, typesetting and hand-pulled // screen-printed by yours truly in 3-colors: metallic-turqoise, wine and black on French Paper Co. (Kraft) stock. Measuring 18x24" ltd. to 35 hand-numbered/signed prints. These are literally still drying as I type this post!!!

I can't really say too much more about this other than projects like this make me feel truly alive... that is:
Working with my hands and creating an end-result: being tangible item that is not on your cryPad, cryPhone of cryPod...

GATES - "Moths Have Eaten the Core" repress

The IMMENSE debut album from Toronto's drone-scape mastermind Bryan Walker Bray's project: GATES is getting the second-pressing treatment through dear friends @IVORY ANTLER shortly and the artwork/packaging was moderately altered to distinguish this between pressings: the violet-theme, updated disc graphic and I believe this edition will be printed on matte-uncoated stock.

Please tune-in to GATES here and take some time to check out/support IVORY ANTLER releases here.

777 & SUTEKH HEXEN

A preview of the tri-fold, screen-printed packaging that will house three 7-inch records, collecting the first three out-of-print cassette demos: "Constellation", "Ritualistic" and "Alters" // Forthcoming on DEAD SECTION (Denmark) // the glare is caused from the metallic silver ink. Art direction by myself and the haunting illustrations were executed by the highly skilled Si Clark (UK) whom we worked with previously on the "Daemons" 7".

SUTEKH HEXEN - "Ordo Adversarial : Daemons : Shadows" CD

OUT NOW: breaking the vinyl format with this disc, collecting the first three 7" releases + a scathing live recording from our set @₮ΣRMI₦ΛL in Oakland, CA. Respect: Karl @Fall of Nature, S. Wilson, R. Jencks @TERMINAL and L. Camfield.

You can order it HERE.

via. Fall of Nature: 

"Pitch black and malevolent, noise drenched occult Black Metal. These hymns demonstrate a sonic representation of ritualistic sounds and occult darkness, collected from extremely limited and sold out vinyl releases and live material.

Professionally pressed CD, limited to 250 pieces in a high quality digipak with artwork S. Wilson / Black Uroboros Illustration."

We will have copies of this CD, the "Shadows" 7" and a new shirt design by Demian Johnston. for sale on our upcoming CA mini-tour Oct 21-23.