Ecce Shnak Put Operatic Vocals on a Hardcore Chassis in New Single "Vincent"

By Daniel Okafor

Ecce Shnak's new single "Vincent" sets operatic vocals over a mid-tempo hardcore groove. It's the first taste of 'Dandy Variances', the New York band's forthcoming full-length album, announced through Records, Man Records.

The five-piece formed in the mid-2000s inside New York City's experimental music community. The lineup: composer, bassist and vocalist David Roush; singer Bella Komodromos; guitarists Chris Krasnow and Gannon Ferrell; and drummer Henry Buchanan-Vaughn. The name, for the record, is pronounced Eh-kay sh-knock.

Their influences read like a shuffled playlist: Mike Patton's eccentric experimentation, Deerhoof's adventurous arrangements, Gogol Bordello's theatrical energy and Meshuggah's rhythmic intensity. Somehow that adds up.

What does "Vincent" actually sound like?

Roush gives a precise description: "Vincent is a mid-tempo, jumpy, flash-in-the-pan hardcore song with classical art song vocals."

He originally composed the piece for an unrealized film imagined by a fellow student at Temple University in Philadelphia. The title character is an everyday antagonist, a person whose smugness and inconsiderate behaviour test everyone's patience. The narrator answers through music.

The song's most quotable moment lands as pure theatre: "I'll destroy your equipment with my voice!" Instead of conventional punk-rock aggression, Ecce Shnak turn the confrontation into humour, vocal experimentation and intricate rhythms. The construction is careful; the result feels spontaneous.

Who made the video?

Director and editor DJay Brawner helmed the clip, drawing on classic alternative-rock and metal videos including Meshuggah's "Bleed" and 311's "Down." Brawner produced it alongside Brooks Jones, Beth Narducci and Roush. The video nods to an era when clips were vehicles for ambitious visual storytelling, not merely promos.

Why are they connected to EMF and Spacehog?

Ecce Shnak have toured with British alt-rock favourites EMF (the band behind the early-90s hits) across the United States and the United Kingdom on multiple occasions. Roush describes the collaboration with considerable enthusiasm, celebrating the chance to bring the band's adventurous sound to EMF's audience.

The relationship reached the studio. Ecce Shnak contributed to EMF's track "LGBTQ+ Lover," with Roush and Komodromos adding vocals; the video was filmed while the two bands toured together. Ecce Shnak have also shared stages with Spacehog.

What came before?

The previous EP, 'Shadows Grow Fangs', had serious studio pedigree:

• Recorded and produced by Jeff Lucci
• Mixed by Nicholas Vernhes, whose credits include Animal Collective, Deerhunter and The War on Drugs
• Mastered by Grammy-winning engineer Joe LaPorta, who has worked with David Bowie, Foo Fighters, The Weeknd and Vampire Weekend

That team helped the band's expansive arrangements land with clarity.

What's next?

'Dandy Variances' promises more of the band's collision of heavy music with unexpected sources — an operatic passage emerging from a hardcore groove, an elaborate arrangement folding into a melodic hook. If your playlist runs from Björk to Meshuggah, this band has built you a bridge. "Vincent" suggests the album will reward anyone willing to cross it.