Pharmacist spins a dark tale of manipulation and abuse in the harrowing and noisy passages of “Calculated Violence.” It begins with a splintering and distorted bass line and female vocals that sound like the narrative is being recalled some months and years down the line with the agony and psychological pain coming crashing in and well up all at once in dramatic waves. As the song progresses guitar comes in more as a vehicle for creating texture and noise like a mind becoming fractured and recovering with a desperate energy. In the last half of the song All sounds, percussion, bass, tortured guitar, vocals finally releasing the tension in cathartic, wordless utterances writhe around together upward and collide into the menacing outro. The line “there’s a calculated violence in everything you do” spells out succinctly the dynamic of someone who seems supportive and kind in the beginning of a relationship who gaslights you until you’ve lost your way until an abrupt and almost violent realization snaps you out of that spell and you find out what your real value was to the abuse. The closing line “The only thing that I can think is when you wish that I was dead” is stated almost matter-of-factly it’s chilling. Musically it’s in the realm of post-punk/art punk and noise rock but the execution and style is much more original than one might expect from mere genre tags. Think more Live Skull and Sonic Youth more than darkwave. Pharmacist is hitting upon a particularly creative and potent phase of its songwriting with its new set of releases. Listen to “Calculated Violence” and other tracks from the Swedish band on Spotify and follow the act at the links below.
Queen City Sounds and Art 
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