(From Three Winters Magazine #1 December 2002)

Elizabeth

Elizabeth is a spoken work gothic fantasy tale in six parts, by a Tasmanian writer here known only as '7'. Highly atmospheric musical backing is provided by Sin-Nanna and Paul C., two well known Hobart musicians, and by Brad Storch and Jimmy Zeitgeist, who I believe might have something to do with the Melbourne necro-metal band Subterranean, now known as Injury-to-Eye Motif. 7 himself provides the music for the final track. The release is complemented by excellent centrefold artwork by Bill Dean, known for his illustrations in The Fall of Because magazine. The music is repetitive, hypnotic, and succeeds in giving each of the six 'chapters' a completely different colour and mood.

The first track sets the scene, introducing us to the eponymous heroine Elizabeth as she begins her nightly hunt for the blood that keeps her alive. The second track deals with E's loneliness and despair at her condition, which sets her apart from the rest of humanity - she sees no meaning in existence. The more jaunty music of the third piece introduces a note of hope into her futile existence, as it seems her beloved Hector (spelt Hectter) may still be alive. Then things take a necromantic twist, as she, like other questers before her, must consult the dead. She learns that the earth has not forgotten her after all, and that she is destined to fulfil an important mission. Then, in the place she dislikes the most (ie. the city), she and her beloved are reunited, only to be separated again. The last track deals with the final showdown with the (false) Judeo-Christian god who, in a Gnostic-derived twist, is shown to be the usurper, a mere demiurge. Elizabeth and her companions fight on behalf of the true god, known as Satan or Lucifer, in a violent apocalyptic confrontation. Elizabeth combines idealism and romance, in a fine piece of musically-enhanced storytelling.


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