Back in 2022, we were witness to the sinister “Teeth” music video by Guelph’s gothic noisegaze duo, Bonnie Trash. At the tail end of 2022, we got the monolithic Malocchio full-length, a sonic horror story derived from familial truth. Now, two years later, we have a new EP from Bonnie Trash, who, like all things, has gone through an evolution, as it were. Now as a full-fledged four-piece, the sisters Bortolon-Vetto have added touring members, Emma Howarth-Withers (bass), and Dana Bellamy (drums), affixing a permanent and heavy rhythm section to the romantic madness.
The new EP, My Love Remains The Same, is a short one, but has Bonnie Trash locked the hell in on their tones, atmosphere, and mystifying crescendos. Emmalia’s lead guitar is piercing and layered, sounding like a maleficent banshee, while Sarafina’s vocals are all-encompassing—like a spirit gnawing at the back of your brain—while the bass guitar from Howarth-Withers holds the friction together like a sculptor glue. The themes of love, grief, and loss are felt immediately during the darkened shoegaze single “Kisses Goodbye,” a song that feels a bit Slowdive if they listened to more Christian Death. The drums sound like they are being played by sticks of pure lead, so much so that I wonder what the Bonnie Trash toms look like—cause they are taking a beating.
“What Have You Become,” might be the most danceable track Bonnie Trash has ever produced, with its discordant post-punk bend and longing chug. The outro is easily a highlight of the album with the evil-trilling lead guitar that wraps up the ungodly atmosphere in a nice fraying bow.
Last we have a doomy cover of “Red Right Hand,” by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds—a song covered by a legion of musicians from PJ Harvey to the Arctic Monkeys. But Bonnie Trash’s spin is heavy, like a death knell, and probably fits the best in terms of the dirge-like quality Nick Cave loves. In fact, the cover makes sense, as Sarafina’s vocal style, the way certain words are enunciated and left to fester like a wound, is very Nick Cave. The little synthy haunted house bridge is also pure candy for any audiophile, a perfect cover from the Sisters Bortolon-Vetto and Co.
