Ides of Gemini - Hexagram 45 7"

About a month ago it was Record Store Day, a celebration of all things vinyl. It is also a time where many bands/labels put out special and rather limited releases. To be honest I didn't even bother to go to my local record store this year, they didn't really have anything that sparked my interest. There were however a few things from some of my favourite labels that I wanted to get my hands on. The first is the latest 7" by Ides of Gemini, Hexagram 45.

Since their awesome split with Vermapyre I have been a fan of this band and when Magic Bullet announced they were releasing the new 7" for RSD I was hoping they would have some left over for mail order. While Magic Bullet didn't have any to send directly, their distributors, Cobraside, where able to send me out a copy in what seemed like record (get it?) time.

I have absolutely no idea about the pressing information for this one. According to the Magic Bullet webstore there are four different versions, but I'm unsure in what quantities these are. Mine is a cool pink, that has a smidgen of green blended in right at the top. The centres have some interesting words inscribed on each side; side A has "I got a grey kitty, white one and a tabby too" and side B has "And a big orange guy who put snakes in my shoes". Any idea what it means? Me niether.

The 7" has two new tracks, "Spectral Queen" and "Darkness at Noon". The former is what you would expect from the band; a track much like Ides' earlier work, drawing on the slower, droney aspects of the metal spectrum. However, the latter is something quite different. It is played entirely on piano with Sera Timms' hauntingly beautiful voice resonating over the top.

In fact I feel the layout of the record goes really well with this track. There is something very ghostly and haunting about the people on the back and insert, it is almost like they are being summoned by the track.

If you weren't quite lucky enough to get your hands on one of these, you are in luck. Thanks to Decibel Magazine the whole 7" is streaming online. Enjoy