Meditate & Destroy: 3 Moons – 3WordSword (Sonic Meditations)
Energy follow attention.
This may be the simplest, most direct axiom in occult philosophy. We are masters of our own destinies, defining our paradigms and our reality tunnels with countless obscure impulses, biases, wishes, desires, and daydreams. Consider trying to get a job you really want. If you go into the interview well-prepared, well-rested, and confident, you’re likely to nail the interview, which gives you a much better chance of making an impression. On the contrary, if you’re uncertain, unconfident, staring at the floor, hemming and hawing and not really selling yourself or your abilities, you’re not likely to rise to the top of the resume stack.
3WordSword is the first in a projected series called Improvised Visions, constructed around the theme of “meditate & destroy” (with a focus on the meditate part), from Oakland’s 3 Moons. 3WordSword acts as a mental/spiritual sonic drill, blasting through those calcified layers of conditioning and negative self-speak we mentioned earlier.
“Distorted Peace” calls the faithful to prayer, descending to dank Cthonian depths with gently ebbing, droning bass guitar frequencies casting shadows on the wall of some dark cave, as an ominous dark wind belches forth from some unseen depth. “Kiss The Tomb” is what Miles Davis‘ In A Silent Way if the jams had occurred in Amando de Ossorio’s Tombs Of The Blind Dead, as bowing, groaning, scraping gongs meet aimless, ominous Fender Rhodes. What sounds like an Armenian duduk creeps in a third of the way through, giving a Middle Eastern ritualistic feel to the chapter.
“(Science) Cruci-fiction” reminds us why Jefferson’s one of our favorite avant-guitarists in existence, with trance-inducing geometric five-note clusters creating an odd, beating hypnosis against meandering melodica and dyslexic harmonica. Oscillators flicker in the distance, like the wings of giant bats marring a vast red rock horizon. It’s like some doomed Western ritual on some far off alien planet – equal parts Jandek, Morricone, and Rene Laloux in one fell swoop.
3 Moons manage to bring in almost every form of meditative music on Earth (and most likely beyond), fusing ancient mysticism with a particular flavor of speculative fiction and a kind of Fortean spirituality that’s hard to put a name on, that brings to mind epiphanies reading Man, Myth, and Magic, and watching weird UFO conspiracy documentaries and back episodes of The X-Files.
3 Moons initially donated all proceeds from 3WordSword towards supporting the protesters at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. Construction on that pipeline has since been halted, giving one more support towards the idea that magick does work, that energy does follow attention, and that the art that we make helps steer our reality towards a future we want to see.
Sadly, since the victory at Standing Rock, there’s been more tragedy in 3 Moons’ hometown of Oakland, CA. For those who’d like to help support the victims of the Ghost Ship fire, you can donate over at Youcaring.com. Every little bit helps, as does spreading the word!
I met Jefferson at a particular point in my creative and critical career. I’d been feeling self-conscious about releasing abstract, droney art and stream-of-consciousness album reviews into the ether. Running my existential woes by him at a Pierced Arrows show in SE Portland, he answered simply, “You’ve got to sharpen the blade.”
I’ve tried to do that, every day, since receiving that mantra. We firmly believe that delivering quality, heartfelt, interesting art into the universe helps make this world a more magickal, more empathetic, more interesting, more free place. It also calls upon us to fight against the tide of apathy, greed, fear, and unconsciousness sweeping the land.
So sharpen your blades, dear readers! Make art as protest! And consider listening to 3WordSword while you do so.
3WordSword is out as a digital download, and as a limited edition cassette from Sonic Meditations, with a slightly different running order.
forestpunk 
Blade = sharpened. Good advice.