vISION of Tragic Black and DJ Evil K

Nostalgia, It’s Not What You Think It Was: A Flashback to the Sounds of the...

Music Interviews

“If you go back to the ’80s or the ’90s, there weren’t any rules,” says Evil K. “Back at Confetti, I was playing new wave, industrial, ethereal and gothic stuff. In my head, what I thought people would like and what actually ended up working was different. A lot of the songs I was playing I had never heard in a club before. There was no precedent.”

The genesis of Nostalgia Night goes back to vISION’s writing process for Tragic Black’s new album. The band had been heading into a heavier sound, and he wanted to redirect their trajectory.   

“I was really wanting to do music that got me into the scene in the first place,” vISION says. “When I was looking for inspiration, I would just sit and listen to music for a few hours—Peter Murphy or Switchblade Symphony, something that reminded me of when I was younger.”

vISION came to the goth scene in the mid ’90s when the artistic movement was at its peak and loved the chaotic nature of the sets Evil K was playing. It’s what made him want to be a musician in the first place. He was also there when the wheels started to come off and goth became something far more defined and boxed in.  Debates about what defined goth had been around for as long as any of us can remember, but the whole concept discussion of “pure goth” reached ridiculous heights. Tragic Black have often been thrown into the argument over the years and vISION doesn’t know how their fanbase will react to the new album.

“I don’t know how people are going to receive it because it is all over the place, kind of like the goth scene was in those days,” says vISION. “I have one song that kind of sounds like Skinny Puppy and the next song—‘What the hell does that sound like?’ It sounds post-punk. It touches on all those genres. It’s the kind of music that I’m really inspired to make right now.”

With Nostalgia Night, he and Evil K hope to bring a little of the past into the present, and to remind those who were there the first time around of how unique and wonderful the local scene was. For those who missed it, here’s your chance to visit the exotic sounds of yesterday (and possibly tomorrow).   

Nostalgia Night: A Flashback to the Sounds of the ’90s Goth Scene takes place Friday, July 15, at Area 51 (451 S. 400 W., Salt Lake City). Dancing starts at 9 p.m.  

Nostalgia, It’s Not What You Think It Was: A Flashback to the Sounds of the ’90s Goth Scene
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