Sonic impressions courtesy of VANISHING KIDS
Written by Scott “The Not Vanishing Kid” Belzer | July 15th, 2024
When I first saw the album art for Vanishing Kids’ 2023 LP, Miracle of Death, I had to stop and think about what I was looking at..
The cover depicts two individuals rendered in paint. Something has been splashed onto the canvas to make the paint run downward. Granted, the way the image looks, it’s impossible to tell whether any detail ever existed. Aside from one ear, everything blends together. The individuals’ skin blends with their hair, which blends into their clothing. Their eyes are not comprised of individual irises and corneas, only black holes. You have the impressions of faces, but nothing more. If you stare too long, you lose sight of what’s the foreground and background.
The image has haunted me since first laying eyes on it in October. It’s a beautiful image, one that draws you in and makes you focus. I’d say Miracle of Death’s sound is equally striking, equally seamless and equally haunting.
Vanishing Kids play a dreamy, gothic, psychedelic style of doom metal that’s borderline progressive.. but narrowing it down to one label or another would be missing the forest for the trees. Their sound is transcendental in the literal and figurative sense – it transcends genre while also guiding listeners along a spacey, surreal experience complete with epic guitar solos, violins, keyboards, flowy basslines, slow builds, kinetic synth noises, and riffs as fat as a California redwood.
What truly pushes Vanishing Kids into the stratosphere is vocalist Nikki Drohomyreky’s haunting delivery. There’s equal parts melancholy and nuance to Nikki’s singing that works well with the rest of the bands’ soundscapes. And this is most certainly Singing with a capital S here, folks. Drohomyreky’s tone is quite unique, but one that’s complimentary to the music in every way, and not without extensive skill.
When working together, the end-product is emotionally resonant, cerebral and engrossing. You’ll feel things. You’ll introspect. You’ll absorb all energies in your mind’s eye. Vanishing Kids is here to take you on a journey. Strap in and enjoy the ride, along with the sights and sounds you gather along the way. This is evident not just in Miracle of Death, but the bands’ entire catalogue (which is well worth the trip down the rabbit hole, in my humble opinion).
I’m also a big fan of unifying concepts for art projects, with this being no exception. Vanishing Kids’ over-arching concept is “the idea of fleeting youth and painting your own picture.” Miracle of Death’s album art seems to suggest that, sometimes, our self-made portraits can change or become distorted with age. Sometimes they’re splashed by accident. Sometimes they’re splashed on purpose. Sometimes an accident causes different parts to flow together. Sometimes we’re left with nothing but an impression of what we wanted in the first place. To others it may look striking, “messed up,” or even haunting. But that doesn’t make them any less beautiful.
Sorry.. We’re still talking about music, right? Apologies — I guess Vanishing Kids just leaves that impression on me. With over 20 years’ worth of experience as a band, it’s no surprise that this Wisconsin-based quartet have garnered such power. Can’t wait to see them live.
Come take the trip with me on Thursday, July 25 at Boggs Social & Supply as Vanishing Kids hits the stage with Atlanta psych-hounds Insomniac, noise rock trio Pretty Please and the debut of Black Fractal.
-Scott Belzer
Tickets to see Vanishing Kids, Insomniac, Pretty Please, and Black Fractal in Atlanta at Boggs Social and Supply are on sale here.