Track By Tracks: Bad Absalom - Bad Absalom (2026)

So we came together as a band and were just getting fatigued by all the A.I. wank that was perforating the entire music industry. We decided to do some live studio recordings. Which is 3 out of the 4 tracks on the EP. Things were pretty off the cuff. Obviously, the songs had been previously written, but the decision, when we were in the studio, to just give some live recordings a run was pretty spontaneous. Our mate 'Bobby Big Balls' came in and produced and recorded the thing. The funding for 'Pretty Vile' we had actually won at a band competition. Our singer got really stoned after, and when we won, he could barely get a comprehensible sentence out to speak to the judges. Anyway, we are pretty happy with the result. The artwork was done by Jari Tanduk. We have a bit of a running theme with Jari of the Grim Reaper on our music covers. Clayton Segelov and Angie Watson mixed and mastered the EP. The Performers were Mongoloid Jones, Meth Hendrix, Torment Tez, and Jaiden Clarke.

1. Pretty Vile:

This track is about addiction and the ensuing despair that comes with it. The first riff is one of the oldest riffs our singer, Mongoloid Jones, wrote while in Nepal, back in 2013. It was placed in another song initially, but the song was scrapped because it was too disjointed, and then the riff was shelved for a long time. The lyrics to the chorus were originally written over a completely different chord progression, but our singer ended up hating it. So he came up with the one in the song fairly quickly. The first bridge riff was written by our singer and Bobby Big Balls together, and then our singer added the 2nd bridge riff from his archive of riffs that he has written. The verses then all evolved over time, and a lot of editing was done. The extended ending was our guitarist, Meth Hendrix's, idea, and he placed his extended guitar solo over it. The organ at the end was our singer's idea, but it was played by Bobby Big Balls, who also did backing vocals during the chorus. Drums by Torment Tez. Bass performed by Jaiden Clarke. Singing and songwriting by Mongoloid Jones with help from Bobby Big Balls. Guitar performed by Meth Hendrix. Solo written by Meth Hendrix.

2. Church of the Godless (Live in the Studio):

This track begins with a groovy blues lick that our singer came up with while in Wollongong during the pandemic. He was listening to a lot of the band 'Down' and was inspired by their blues-based riffs. The song then grew from there. The lyrics were not as forthcoming as the riffs, and it took quite a while. They are based on Mark Dutroux, the Finders Cult, The Mothers of Darkness Castle, The Son of Sam, John Wayne Gacy, and Charles Manson. As there is a conspiracy that they are all linked to a greater ongoing group. Drums by Torment Tez. Bass performed by Jaiden Clarke. Singing and songwriting by Mongoloid Jones. Guitar performed by Meth Hendrix. Solo written by Meth Hendrix.

3. Fuck Ole' Big Liz (Live in the Studio):

This song is pretty transparent about what the theme is. We are not fans of the monarchy because of its clear links to pedophiles. Andrew was best mates with Epstein. Charles was best mates with Saville. You simply can't argue that they didn't know, as there is an insane level of security checks you'd go through, by MI6, to even get anywhere near the royal family. MI6 would know what you had for breakfast last month, even if you don't remember. The song structure is another frankensteining of riffs that were written at very different times. The hook and bridge riff were written while our singer was in Russia and was very drunk on vodka. They are both in Phrygian dominant. The chorus and verse came after the lyrics much more recently. Both are just pentatonic. Drums by Torment Tez. Bass performed by Jaiden Clarke. Singing and songwriting by Mongoloid Jones. Guitar performed by Meth Hendrix.

4. Sex Vibe (Live in the Studio):

This song is nonsense. Our singer wrote it while on a bender and only remembered he did when he checked out a recording of it on his laptop a few days later. What the song is about is up to your imagination. We aren't exactly sure. Genre-wise, it does step out of what we usually do. It has more of a folk punk feel. The verse riff is in Dorian mode. The chorus is a mode of the A minor harmonic scale. It's a fun song to play live, and we are told it is a bit of an audience favourite. The ending was inspired by 'For the Benefit of Mr Kite' by the Beatles. Drums by Torment Tez. Bass performed by Jaiden Clarke. Singing and songwriting by Mongoloid Jones. Guitar performed by Meth Hendrix. Solo written by Meth Hendrix.

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