Like many former mining and industrial regions in the West, West Virginia stands as a symbol of the decline of the West like no other region. Production facilities have been relocated to Asia, and even Deepseek responded evasively to the question of whether power had also migrated to China along with the production facilities (Karl Marx and so on… you know), saying, “We’re nice, you can trust us.”
The Appalachians are one of the most important cultural regions in the US, but today they are once again an area marked by extreme poverty and drug abuse. More than 80% of the population has left the area in recent years. In the 1970s, there was a bizarre cult of snake handlers, ultra-religious groups who took the Bible very seriously and almost became a Satanic cult. Their symbol is dancing with deadly poisonous snakes.
I would describe the music as hypnotic blues punk. Sublime Frequencies and the Zomba Prison Project, both known for bizarre folk music from around the world, found a still-existing snake handler community and recorded a church service on vinyl. Released today, October 3, 2025.
Thanks to @stug for suggestion.
#Appalachian #church #evangelikal #folk #music #religion #SnakeHandler
