Vatican Shadow

Vatican Shadow is the military-inspired project of the Hospital Productions label boss Dominick Fernow (Prurient). Drawing upon and manipulating images of the harrowing realities of modern U.S. warfare, Fernow created his shadowy, harsh electronic sounds by using stems and tracks and then separating them onto cassettes, which were then re-layered and distorted. Weaving the cassettes into each other like one would use turntables, the hypnotic and sometimes sinister noises were first heard in 2010 on the limited-edition EP Byzantine Private CIA in 2010. Ten more of these limited releases would follow between 2011 and 2012 on his own Hospital Productions label. His first long-player was Kneel Before Religious Icons in 2011. It received a rapturous reception, with critics lauding Fernow’s unholy amalgamation of an intelligent and thought-provoking concept with brutal and despondent sounds. In 2012, he released two albums (Atta’s Apartment Slated for Demolition and Ghosts of Chechnya) on his own label, and Ornamented Walls on Modern Love. He also made guest appearances on other labels by releasing the 12” September Cell on Bed of Nails and Iraqi Praetorian Guard on Blackest Ever Black. It was during this year that he embarked on a European tour, pummeling audiences with some powerful and unforgettable performances. ~ Aneet Nijjar