We wouldn’t rush to say that “Asia”—the second song to drip off of Salem‘s much-anticipated debut album—is our favorite tune from the 11-track King Night, but if ever radio stations could be welcoming to such twisted amalgamations of goth, shoegaze, industrial, and rap music, the trio might find a good single here. And that’s primarily because the band’s oft-disturbing lyrical content is rendered completely indecipherable (so the FCC will leave them be), though, that’s bolstered heftily by the phantasmic synth melody, which somehow overpowers the song’s smash of distorted drum-machine beats to tip “Asia” further onto its ‘beautifully creepy’ side. We’re not imagining any Nine Inch Nails or Skinny Puppy scenarios here, but maybe, one day, Salem could eventually reclaim the misdirected angst of certain sub-cultures and turn it into something that transcends the stubbornness of contemporary pop culture. Here’s to dreams.

02 Asia