Matt DeMello
Cassandra Abandoned, I & II [Marion's Version]
post-christmas / psych / prog / garage rock / noise / ambient
'Cassandra Abandoned, I & II [Marion's Version]' represents an amalgam of B-sides, also-ran projects, and various holiday-skeptical or -oriented works DeMello put together in December 2021.
The album spiritually followed the release of the Dr. Strangelove-friendly post-satire 'Don't Look Up' and the Beatles' 'Get Back' documentary, along with the controversial season 3 finale of Succession as a double-LP psych rock Christmas podcast.
Described by DeMello as a "podcast version of a rock opera about Cassandra the red-nosed reindeer's communist revolution against the north pole in the War on Christmas," Cassandra stands out in the songwriter's storied discography as a love letter to the many sub-genres he's encountered on Twitter, TikTok, and beyond since the beginning of pandemic.
"A spectacular one-man cabaret show which defies any attempt at classification, partialization and imitation." - notafatclips blog
"A wild ride." - Caroline McKenzie
"Some of DeMello's finest work." - General Director of NEWSPACE Audio, Alex Busi