occult rock

Contact : Aluk Todolo c/o Riedacker - 2 rue Botzaris - 75019 Paris - France aluktodolo@amortout.com amortout.com/aluktodolo

Shantidas Riedacker : Guitar Antoine Hadjioannou : Drums Matthieu Canaguier : BassShantidas Riedacker : Guitar Antoine Hadjioannou : Drums Matthieu Canaguier : Bass

ALUK TODOLO is an instrumental power trio performing Occult Rock since 2004. Their music is a methodical exploration of the powers of musical trance. Part occult black metal fiend and part snide kraut menace, the band conjures rabid obsessive rhythms and abyssal disharmonic guitars, subliminal spiritualist vibrations and bizarre, magick summonings. ALUK TODOLO reduces psychedelic improvisation to a bare, telluric instrumentation, in which dry, spare percussion grievously mines the scrapes, shrieks and shimmer of mutated guitar and bass. The band’s sound is monolithic and stabbing, hypnotic but unpredictable, minimalist yet teeming: a dangerous, noxious coil of all things black. The name ALUK TODOLO was brought back from a mountainous region of South Sulawesi in Indonesia, it’s an ancient religion with animist beliefs meaning «the Way of the Ancestors».

The band toured in USA in 2009 and 2012, Southern Europe in May 2010 (France, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal), Northern Europe in April 2011 with MENACE RUINE (France, UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Czech republik, Switzerland) and Eastern Europe in May 2013 with the one man band LUSSURIA from New York (Belgium, Netherlands, Czech Republik, Poland, Austria, Hungaria, Croatia, Solvenia, Italia, France)

ALUK TODOLO opened for FAUST (German krautrock pioneers) in New York in October 2009.They have been invited by SUNN O))) to play the Roadburn Festival 2011 in the Tilburg - Netherlands and opened for them in June 2012.

ALUK TODOLO released 3 full length albums, a 7»ep, a 10»ep, a live tape, a 4 way split LP, and a collaborative album with der Blutharsch. Their latest double album «Occult Rock» has been released in september 2012 by the cult labels The Ajna Offensive (US) and Noevdia (FR) ; this opus summarizes and transcends all preceding aspects of the band’s discography and perfectly reveals the raging energy that leads them on stage.

on the powers of the sphinx4 way split LP 2010 - CD 2013

with Nightbringer, Nihil Nocturne, Saturnalia Temple

The Ajna Offensive - USA

ordre10ep vinyl 2011

The Ajna Offensive - USA

finsternisCD 2009 - LP 2010

CD on Utech records - USALP on Public Guilt - USA

live at the music hall of williamsburg the first of

october mmixTape 2011

Amortout Productions - France

occult rockDCD - DLP 2012

The Ajna Offensive - USANorma Evangelium Diaboli - France

finsternisreedition CD - LP 2013

The Ajna Offensive - USANorma Evangelium Diaboli - France

a collaborationwith der blutharsch & the infinite

church of the leading hand CD-LP 2011

WKN - Austria

descensionCD-LP 2007

CD on Public Guilt - USA LP on Riot Season - UK

aluk todolo7ep vinyl 2006

Implied Sound - USA

discography

Eastern Europe tour with Lussuria - May 2013 - Swamp Booking :2013-05-26 Geneve - Switzerland - Ecurie De L’ilot 2013-05-25 Grenoble - France - L’amperage - with St Barthelemy’s Temple, Satan & Blacklodge2013-05-24 Vittorio Veneto - Italy - Bianconiglio 2013-05-23 Ljubjana - Slovenia - Gromka 2013-05-22 Zagreb - Croatia - Kset2013-05-21 Budapest - Hungary - Trafik Klub - with Scivias 2013-05-20 Vienna - Austria - Arena2013-05-19 Krakow - Poland - Kawiarnia Naukowa - with Entropia, Thaw & Outre 2013-05-18 Praha - Czech Republik - K42013-05-17 Utrecht - Netherlands - DB’s - with Nadja & Vampillia 2013-05-16 Kortrijk - Belgium - The Pit’s2013-05-15 Bruxelles - Belgium - DNA2013-05-14 Antwerpen - Belgium - Kavka - with Grown Below

2012-12-08 Paris - Saint Ouen - Mains d’Oeuvres - Festival Arrache-toi un oeil 2012-12-01 Rennes - France - Le Terminus - with Stephen O’ Malley2012-11-30 Nantes - France - Le Lieu Unique - with Stephen O’ Malley

United States Of America shows - September 2012 - Wonder Booking :2012-09-23 Tahoe National Forest, CA - USA - Stella Natura Festival - with Blood Axis, Sabbath Assembly...2012-09-20 Chicago, IL - USA - Ultra Lounge - with Lord Mantis & Murmur2012-09-19 Brooklyn, NY - USA - Saint Vitus bar - with Lussuria & Villains

2012-09-14 Colmar - France - Le Grillen - Colmar festival de Jazz Off - with Christian Vander ...

European Support for Sunn O))) - June 2012 - Odyssey Booking :2012-06-16 Paris - France - La Gâité Lyrique - with SUNN O)))2012-06-15 Hoboken - Belgium - Fort8 - with SUNN O)))2012-06-14 Amsterdam - Netherlands - Milkweg - with SUNN O)))

2012-03-17 Utrecht - The Netherlands - DB’s - with Bunkur & Lebensessenz2012-03-16 Ghent - Belgium - The Frontline - with Bunkur 2012-03-15 Brussels - Belgium - Magasin 4 - with Der Blutharsch, Deutsch Nepal & Bain Wolfkind

Northern Europe shows - October 2011 :2011-10-30 Tallinn - Estonia - Von Krahl Bar with Edasi2011-10-29 Helsinki - Finland - Korjaamo - Mega Therion Festival (headlining)2011-10-28 Durbe - Latvia - Zemlika Festival (headlining)2011-10-27 Brussels - Belgium - LR6 - with Aksu

2011-10-20 Paris - France - La Miroiterie with Huata & Monarch !2011-10-11 Lyon - France - Le Buffet Froid with Stephen O’ Malley2011-10-13 Martigny - Switzerland - Les Caves du Manoir with Stephen O’ Malley2011-09-10 Speyer, Germany, Halle 101, The Sinister Howling Festival with Bethlehem (headlining)

Northern Europe tour with Menace Ruine - April 2011 - Conspiracy Booking :2011-04-25 Lyon, France- Grrrnd Zero2011-04-24 Bern, Switzerland - Rössli Dachstock with Herpes Ö Deluxe2011-04-23 Praha, Czech Republic - K42011-04-22 Berlin, Germany, White Trash2011-04-20 Malmo, Sweden, Singsang Studio2011-04-18 Gothenburg, Sweden - Nefertiti with Sabbath Assembly & Earth2011-04-17 Copenhagen, Denmark - Loppen2011-04-16 Leipzig, Germany - UT Connewitz2011-04-15 Tilburg, The Netherlands - 013 venue, Roadburn Festival (Sunn O))) curated’s day)2011-04-14 Brussels, Belgium - Magasin 4 with White Hills2011-04-13 London, England - The Borderline with Year of No Light2011-04-12 Paris, France - Le Point Ephémère with Year of No Light

2011-02-19 Paris, Bagnolet, France - Le Pixi with Lugubrum

Southern Europe tour - May 2010 - Gure Hitzak Booking :2010-05-24 Le Mans, France - La Péniche Excelsior (Allonnes) with Saunterer, Vegemite & Carnalisme2010-05-23 Bordeaux, France - Hold’em Saloon with Tormenta2010-05-22 San Sebastian, Spain - Mogambo with Las Sfintters, Los Sfinters & Los Taikonauts2010-05-21 Gijon, Spain - Savoy Club2010-05-20 Braga, Portugal - Insólito with Altodêpega2010-05-19 Porto, Portugal - Fábrica de Som with Eugène Robinson2010-05-18 Madrid, Spain - La Boite Live with Scumearth vs Dorje & Under Vultures2010-05-17 Alicante, Spain - Bar Coyote2010-05-16 Sant Feliu de Codines, Spain - La Fonteta Civic Center with QA’A2010-05-15 Marseille, France - L’embobineuse with Mein Sohn William & Kill The Thrill2010-05-14 Lyon, France - Grand Guignol2010-05-13 Grenoble, France - Le Champollion2010-05-12 Genève, Switzerland - La Cave 12

2009-10-22 Paris, France – Point Ephémère with Lawrence Wasser & Sister Iodine

East Coast tour - Fall 2009 :2009-10-04 Brooklyn, USA – Union Pool with Malkuth, Castevet & Woe2009-10-03 New York, USA – Lit Lounge with The Psychic Paramount2009-10-02 New York, USA – Fortune Cookie with Lussuria, Sentient & Radiation Blackbody2009-10-01 Brooklyn, USA – Music Hall of Williamsburg (WFMU Festival) with Cold Cave & Faust2009-09-30 Baltimore, USA – The Golden West Café with Lussuria & Darsombra2009-09-29 Richmond, USA – God’s Haus with Lussuria & Cave Caverns2009-09-28 Philadelphia, USA – Danger Danger Gallery with Lussuria & Bee Mask2009-09-27 Brooklyn, USA – Secret Project Robot Basement with Baron von Wüste & White Hills

2009-09-20 Tilburg, The Netherlands – Little Devil - Incubate (zxzw) festival2009-09-05 Nancy, France – Bar L’Alhambra with Givdøl & Habsyll2009-09-04 Paris, Bagnolet, France – Le Pixi (Bagnolet) with Habsyll2009-05-30 Rotterdam, The Netherlands – Worm with The Psychic Paramount2009-05-23 Le Mans, France – Péniche Excelsior with Monno

2008-09-19 Bruxelles, Belgium – Le Bunker with Silvester Anfang2008-05-17 Barreiro, Portugal – Out.Fest with David Maranha, Mike Flower, Chris Corsano...2008-05-08 Utrecht, The Netherlands – Impakt festival with Alkerdeel & Magic Markers2007-09-21 Paris, France – Point Ephémère Sessions Magnetiques with Träd Gräs Och Stenar, Psychic Ills2007-08-03 Paris, France –La Miroiterie live collaboration with Andy Bolus (Evil Moisture)2005-07-10 Grenoble, France – La Boum with Lucio Fulci films2004-06-21 Grenoble, France – Rue des Clercs2004-05-28 Grenoble, France – Le Crocoleus with Zool Arben & Moon Sheep2004-05-05 Grenoble, France – Ecole d’architecture2004-04-03 Grenoble, France – Le Crocoleus with Into The Yaya, Breaker of Civilisation & Michell Sardou

live shows

press reviews

aluk todolo : occult rock - 2012“ Over the course of three albums and a few split releases, French instrumental avant rock trio Aluk Todolo (who take their name from an Indonesian animist belief system translating as way of the ancestors) have carved out a unique space for themselves. Their last release, 2009’s Finsternis, was a Faust ian journey, the relentless, minimalist rhythm rocks-teady through five tracks even as the guitar ventured into psychedeiia, Noise and Metal by turns. But Occult Rock is their most expansive work to date, in every sense.A double disc, as long as Finsternis and its predecessor Descension put together, Occult Rock is an eig ht-track suite that combines all the elements featured on the other two records; but there has been technical improvement (they’re better players) as well as some fairly radical evolution on the compositional front. It begins withjackhammer Black Metal, but later tracks feature the repetitive drum patterns of Can, topped with screaming, stormcloud guitar worthy of Keiji Haino. The group members seem to possess an almost intuitive interplay, speeding up and slowing down repeatedly throughout the tracks (only one of which is less than ten minutes long) without ever losing each other or sounding rehearsed. Their music, at least on this release, has the ritualistic power of prime mid-1990s Fushitsusha, with the infi-nitely patient, inexorable momentum of trance-oriented groups like SubArachnoid Space or Bardo Pond. At times, they explore a more overtly Metallic type of heaviness. The final track is a nearly 12 minute Doom excursion somewhere between Electric Wizard’s Dopethrone and Naked City’s monolithic Leng T’che. But each of Occult Rock’s eight mo-vements is as rewarding individually as the album as a whole. This is one of the most impressive works of psychedelic music anyone has made in years.” - The Wire

aluk todolo : ordre - 2011“ Leave it to the always-swank Ajna Offensive to bring us just what the world needed right now -- namely, new occult hypno-skronk from the mysterious and brilliant Aluk Todolo. In this case, though, «new» is not quite the correct term, since this is actually a track recorded around the time of the material that appeared on their first full-length, DESCEN-SION, appearing here split into two parts to suit the vinyl format. It’s very much in the vein of that album’s sound, too; plodding drums shuffle along in simple but cryptic rhythms as wooly bass oozes out of the speakers in near-ambient fashion and the guitars make strange buzzing noises, only to coalesce in a marching black metal sound disfigured by more sawblade buzzing and other strange bursts of sonic otherworldliness. Flip the disc over -- and this is high-quality vinyl, by the way -- and the track just gets noisier and more psychotic, triangulating an unnerving signal between the points of black metal, ritual occultism, and flat-out noise. Eventually the madness fades away into a disappearing tor-nado of howling guitar that turns into a buzzing drone over the simplest beat ever (and I mean that in a good way). The band already has a sterling reputation for combining elements of black metal, ritual music, mutant prog rock, and noise into something diabolically occult and beautifully sinister; this only adds to the legend. As with all their other releases, the packaging matches the music by being simple yet striking, with a heavy occult vibe. You need this, and it’s almost certainly limited to some absurdly small run, so you shouldn’t dally in acquiring it.” - The one true dead angel

aluk todolo + der blutharsch and the infinite church of the leading hand : a collaboration - 2011“ Here we have a collaboration of two projects that in their own worlds, simply lead the pack. Putting them together could either end in complete despair or triumphant brilliance. Well, lucky for me (and you) this pairing of occult mastery has lead to something strange, unique and singularly outstanding. For those who do not know; Der Blutharsch have been creating martial industrial/psych-rock explosions for the better half of fifteen years. Aluk Todolo is well-known for their kraut rock inspired psychedelic blackened noise. Put them together and you have something not only good for medita-tion, but also a bad acid trip. Tribal drones, militaristic percussion, synapse melting noise, epic synth and psychedelic freakouts are scattered throughout this record. One moment is calm and tranquil, while the next is scathing enough to cause panic attacks. The occult ambiance of this record is incredibly profound, there is a dark cloud of DMT and the Magic of Ma’at that follows each track, creating a truly suffocating aura. Needless to say, this album is outstanding. A collaboration that works tenfold to create something unique, profound, calming and terrifying, all at the same time. If you want something for late nights, bad dreams, occult rituals, meditative journeys or psychedelic excursions, you have found your match. Let the Infinite Church of the Leading Hand bring you to the edge of sanity and back, unless you choose to stay towards the edge...” - The Inarguable

aluk todolo : live at the music hall of williamsburg the first of october mmix - 2011“ I’ve always heard these guys are better live, and even though I generally liked them to begin with, after hearing this live recording I think I may see where they’re coming from. As far as I can tell, the first two tracks on here are new, and a good bit more aggressive than most of their back catalog, the third track is Woodchurch from the Descension LP. The first two tracks, Sheol and March, are wailing sonsabitches that employ everything you could love about this band into a hypnotic whirlwind of driving, drugged-out, black psychedelia that will, no doubt, have you snatching up any ticket you can find the minute you hear of their impending presence of your general location.” - The Celestial Manifest

aluk todolo : finsternis - 2009“[...]considering they’re a three piece, a power trio, drums, guitar, bass. Nothing else, no synths, no strings, just the basic rock band instruments. It’s testament to the power these three wield, that they can do so much with so little. Or more accurately, so little with so little. As the music of Aluk Todolo, is disarmingly simple, subtle and minimal, but in its mi-nimalism, lies its power. The power of rhythm, of texture, of mood, these five long pieces are so evocative, so expressive and strangely emotional. Even at its most spare and skeletal, the sound is palpable, almost a physical presence, which is surprising again considering just how stripped down Finsternis actually is. […] like Descension, Finsternis is an intense and emotional journey through sound, a haunting and hard to describe exploration of rhythm, mood and texture, a slow shifting otherworld defined by This Heat, Geronimo, Laddio Bolocko, Can, Faust, accessible only via the three shadowy figures that make up Aluk Todolo, whose magic and mystery has been rendered in these glorious black rhythms. Housed in a multi panel jacket with super striking original artwork by Stephen Kasner, on the always impressive Utech label. [...]” - Aquarius Records (Record of the Week: June 5th, 2009)

Somehow managing to simultaneously cover krautrock, black metal, noise, and post-rock, this trio’s second full length album is somewhat of a departure from the largely drone oriented URSK series on Utech, yet keeps enough of that ethos and ambience to not seem out of place, but stands out as a more metallic shard amidst the warm murkiness. […] While the black metal scene is thought of as being entrenched in its preference for flat percussion and simple musical structures that always take a backseat to an illegible logo or incantations to various demons and deities, here the best elements of it (dissonant, yet somewhat musical noise) are married to a sharp rhythm section that feels so much more than just frustrated Norwegian teenagers with a four track. It’s a complex combination that can be studied as well as headbanged to. ” - Brainwashed

aluk todolo : descension - 2007“ Having Aluk Todolo’s Descension in your CD collection is like having to choose between the proverbial red pill and a load of blue pills. Take the blue pill (or: any other CD) and you’re back in safe territory. But, let the damned curiosity prevail, go on, choose the red one that’s been beckoning you and tickling your imagination — and face the consequences. You’ll need strong constitution and considerable mental stability, but even then, who knows where or in what state you’ll end up. There’ll be some damage to your system; but the stronger you are, the smaller the amount of it will be.” - Maelstrom

aluk todolo : first 7ep - 2006“ Holy fuck, this record is amazing! Ominous krautrock rhythms over Einsterzende style industrial clatter, some lost seventies psych rock holy grail channeled through modern post rock. Dreamy and dark and mesmerizing. Hypnotic guitar lines and simple shuffling rhythms that build into clattery propulsive jams, all clanging angular riffs and dense tangled drumming. VERY This Heat like, and reminiscent of the late great Laddio Bolocko. Some sort of dangerous and mysterious postrock / krautrock hybrid, lo-fi but thick and dense and amazingly heavy.” - Aquarius Records