you speak
in verse
your wisdom is your curse
you speak
in tongues
your faith has come undone
you speak
of truth
remaining resolute
you speak
of doubt
you are not whole without your gods
they take
their time
they die
i speak
reversed
my wisdom is my curse
i do
no harm
i am the withered arm
i laugh
in time
reflected on the inside
it’s in
our house
it’s up to us to get it out
we take
our time
we die
she owes no debt to any man
she has the strength to force your hand
she is the answer to our call
she is the bringer of the fall
you lack the conviction
you live in self-delusion
your fortress of hatred
will fall beneath her gaze
we all become our sins
to be human
is to suffer
i strive
to reject
the masculine
in all its forms
i strive
to reflect
the feminine,
only i mourn
no one will believe me
there is no promise
of absolution
no comfort in the void
my extremities
turn to sand
i drown without touching a drop
violence
at your hands
it heals but the bleeding never stops
wounded prey
in dark seclusion
no comfort in the void
there is no promise
of absolution
no comfort in the void
no agency to grant yourself forgiveness
a forfeit of the soul for tainted flesh
a bond of blood leaves stains beneath the surface
a burden to be carried to your death
you planted the seeds of hate in me
bereft of my femininity
a chasm of animosity
revulsion at what i came to be
no one will believe me
i fear
all that i was
so masculine
but without form
i fear
all you’ve become
so cruel
and so i mourn
i’ve suffered violence
at your hands
damaged, unable to pretend
your voice still echoes
its demands
i drown in darkness without end
consumed in my confusion
no one will believe me
a wound of cruel illusion
no one will believe me
there is no turning back
a sky of muted black
a path is laid before her feet
an introspective mind
a chasm formed inside
the soul can’t be divided
what are these vessels
but prisons of flesh?
could i absorb you into me?
a twin in utero
could i become a living host?
a pandrogyne composed
you always brought out the worst in me
could i remove this wickedness?
the ache within my gut?
could i become a person, whole?
without a surrogate?
you always brought out the worst in me
but i tied that noose myself
a vast migration
of souls in torment
a population
comprised of ghosts
the great deception
of our oppressors
the longing hope of
our troubled hearts
a false identity
a forced duality
the face i recognize
but never as my own
i feel her breathing
down my spine
a spectral shadow
a wickedness divine
i writhe in darkness
shy away from the light
sequestered by fear
paralyzed by my plight
i sleep in circles
while the fire grows cold
i ask forgiveness
prying open the fold
the beast comes to call
scorch the earth
(let it burn)
have i earned your scorn?
openly i mourn
marching to my death
there’s truly nothing left
count the sands of time
draw the broken line
grace before the fall
flesh of men enthralled
i’d sooner feast upon myself
than take a hand from you
i will transform some day
this flesh
means less
than excrement
unbound
unclean
unsavory
i binge
i purge
i find no relief
bring death
my friend
let it take me
i never wanted to be saved
this desert will become my grave
transformed by death, i am unchained
reborn a woman of the flame
the moon will bring the tide
and the blood that smears my thighs
this womb will never bleed
this wound will never heal
this feeling won’t recede
this woman isn’t real
what do i deserve?
why am i afraid?
what have i become?
broken and decayed
carve out my sickness
with obsidian knives
about
part three of a triptych cycle: "polite" versions of the four main album tracks (devoid of screaming for those who dislike it), dealing with themes of gender & depression
deluxe version also available that incorporates all three albums together
all proceeds go to the Trevor Project, an American non-profit organization founded in 1998 focused on suicide prevention efforts among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth.
For the last decade, Maxwell Shults has recorded a dynamic body of work under the name Everson Poe, exploring everything from doom metal to new wave and even the occasional '50s slow-dance song. No matter the genre, their music has always been characterized by heaviness—not just in sound (although they certainly embody that, too), but in emotion as well. And their latest project, The Body Is Not Sacred is, without question, their most emotionally heavy work to date.
Exploring Maxwell's gender identity and struggle with gender dysphoria, the music embraces duality to convey two distinct halves living in the same being. Maxwell's visceral howl—a sound that many would characterize as being typically "masculine"—contrasts with the softer, ethereal vocals of longtime collaborator DEROSNEC. Both of their faces grace the album cover, embracing gender fluidity and making it hard to tell where one person ends and the other begins.
The duality extends to the arrangements and lyrics as well. On opener "We All Become Our Sins," a crackling spoken-word intro and ghostly wail from DEROSNEC quickly give way to Maxwell's jackhammer drums, guitar, and voice. Likewise, on lead single "No Comfort In The Void," Maxwell screams the phrase "I strive to reject the masculine in all its forms," subverting what listeners and critics have come to expect from even the most emotionally in-tune metal music.
The Body Is Not Sacred has no shortage of ambition. As Everson Poe's first triptych, the self-titled first section contains the four songs that serve as the album's foundation. Part two, The Body Is A Prison, raises the emotional stakes with four hard-hitting instrumentals, and the third and final part, The Body Is An Illusion, consists of "polite" versions of the songs from part one. Softer and more reliant on acoustics, the compositions are what one might call "feminine."
But as The Body Is Not Sacred proves, these kinds of labels mean nothing in the world of Everson Poe. Through their latest and greatest three-part epic, they present a journey where gender is first a puzzle, then a cage, and, finally, nonexistent.
written, performed, recorded, & mixed at hell's half acre studio
april 2017 to april 2018
additional recording & mixing by derosnec in los angeles
produced by everson poe & derosnec
thank you - sarah, alex & tiff, nina & terrence, justine, annelise, dan, mom & dad
Everson Poe is Mae Shults: a trans, queer, multi-instrumentalist from Chicago. Often in collaboration with various
vocalists, she balances elements from many diverse genres while maintaining the goal of merging beauty with loudness. She has been releasing music as Everson Poe for over a decade.
Logo by Sludgework.
Avatar by Unknown Relic....more
Unsettling in a similar vein as some of COIL’s most uncomfortable works, but obviously in a good way. S H R I E K I N G makes some of my favorite music. Everson Poe
if you ever wondered what it would sound like if john carpenter recorded an album in the midst of a nervous breakdown, this has provided a resoundingly solid answer. so creepy & yet so soothing. Everson Poe
The great Oakland atmospheric black metal band Abstracter returns with a punishing new EP pulled from the depths of hell. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 17, 2021
Brooding black metal on Vendetta records, Svartmálm slow the genre’s core ingredients and add bracing emotional heft. Bandcamp New & Notable Jul 20, 2018