“No fucking fear,” says David Castillo about his music. Under the artist name Confines, Castillo’s most recent EP, Work Up the Blood, is blistering, industrialized EBM. With a background in metal and hardcore, Castillo took on Confines as a solo project that derived from his experience in New York City’s nightlife for the past couple decades. “Oro Y Muerte” best exemplifies the range of Confines with its undeniably danceable groove, the metallic sounds sampled from his dad’s machine shop, and his vocals that fluctuate between constrained whispers to gravely screams. The track, though severe, contains an underlying softness of a melody that accentuates the vulnerability of Confines’ music. This duality creates a unique sound that is entirely his own, a concoction that’s perfect for the dance floor.
The intensity of “Oro Y Muerte” is reflected in its video. Castillo enters a rage room with a baseball bat and begins to annihilate any object in his path. Shards of metal and porcelain litter the floor like confetti as illustrations by Anthony Lucero are interjected sporadically. It is a practice in catharsis—a reflection of the debilitating lack of control that any of us have against current times.
Watch “Oro Y Muerte” below:
Work Up the Blood is available on cassette and digital.
Follow Confines on IG.
