Hades

* Digital Artwork
* CD Artwork

***Hades*** is the 34th studio album by The Residents, originally released digitally on October 10th 2009 via the Robot Selling Device. It was re-released in 2011 by The Cryptic Corporation as a limited CD-R under it's full title ***The Rivers of Hades***.

## Background

### Recording

Written concurrently with The Bunny Boy and Postcards from Patmos in 2007. *Hades* continued in the ambient direction of Patmos, creating intricate sonic environments through length tracks; with each here representing a different mythological river of Hades. The music was designed to accompany an art installation by Pore-Know Graphics and it's associated figures in August of 2008.

The group had intended for all five of the album's tracks to be played at once on 12 surround sound speakers at the exhibition, but this proved impossible for technological reasons.

### Release

The exhibition debuted on August 22nd, 2008 in New York City, accompanying the release party for Steven Cerio's line of Residents figurines.

***Hades*** was released over a year later, as The Residents' 34th studio album, initially only available through the group's webstore, *RSD* starting on October 10th, 2009. In 2011 the album was given a physical release by The Cryptic Corporation as a limited CD-R, retitled *The Rivers of Hades*. In 2015 it was released on CD by Klanggalerie, in a box set featuring two other soundtrack pieces, Strange Culture and Haeckel's Tale.

Charles Bobuck's first solo album, *GOD-O*, was created and released in similar circumstances.

## Track listing

#### *Hades* (RSD digital release, 2009)

1. Acheron River (3:22)
2. Cocytus River (13:13)
3. Lethe River (8:29)
4. Styx River (11:01)
5. Phlegethon River (8:46)

#### *The Rivers of Hades* (limited CD-R, 2011)

1. Acheron (3:23)
2. Cocytus (13:14)
3. Lethe (8:33)
4. Styx (11:01)
5. Phlegethon (8:47)

## Liner notes

> *The Rivers of Hades was part of an aural art piece to accompany the release of The Residents action figures which had been designed by Steve Cerio.*
>
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> *The original music was conceived to utilize two DVD players that were programmed to randomly play abstract bits of music.*
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> *The project (which required 12 speakers placed in a circle around the gallery) was entitled 'Chaos Is Not Just A Theory'. In Greek mythology, Hades was a child of Chaos.*
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> *As these kinds of things go, it never quite worked out. The gallery never agreed to provide the sound system and some people felt it would be unpleasant for attending guests so by the time the toy release actually happened (there were several lengthy delays) The Residents had lost interest and had moved onto other projects which did not allow them to even attend the toy release opening.*
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> *However, Homer Flynn, Leigh Barbier, and Steve Cerio did attend and showed non-Residents artwork.*
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> *2008*
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## Credits

* **Written & Performed**: The Residents
* Pale Pachyderm Publishing **(BMI)**
* **Drawings By**: PornoGraphics
* **Package Assembly**: Sammi Selmo
* **Produced By**: Chuck Bobuck & The Cryptic Corporation

## Release history

 2011
 2015
 2017

## Buy or Die

* Strange Culture / The Rivers Of Hades on Klanggalerie's Bandcamp

## See also

* *Heaven!* and *Hell!*
* Charles Bobuck

## External links and references

* *The Rivers of Hades* on The Residents Historical
* *Hades* on Discogs

**Ralph Records (1972 - 1987)**
*Meet The Residents* (1974) · *The Third Reich 'n Roll* (1976) · *Fingerprince* (1977) · *Duck Stab!/Buster & Glen* (1978)*Not Available* (1978) · *Eskimo* (1979) · *Commercial Album* (1980) · *Mark of the Mole* (1981) *The Tunes of Two Cities* (1982) · *George & James* (1984) · *The Big Bubble* (1985) · *Stars & Hank Forever!* (1986)
**Ryko and Enigma (1988 - 1989)**
*God In Three Persons* (1988) · *The King & Eye* (1989)
**East Side Digital (1990 - 2002)**
*Freak Show* (1990) · *Our Finest Flowers* (1992) · *Gingerbread Man* (1994) · *Have A Bad Day* (1996) *Wormwood* (1998) · *Demons Dance Alone* (2002)
**Mute Records (2004 - 2007)** *Animal Lover* (2005) · *Tweedles!* (2006) · *The Voice of Midnight* (2007)
**MVD Audio (2008 - 2015)**
*The Bunny Boy* (2008) · *Lonely Teenager* (2011) · *Mush-Room* (2013)
**MVD Audio and Cherry Red (2016 - present)** *The Ghost of Hope* (2017) · *Intruders* (2018) · *Metal, Meat & Bone* (2020)

**Fan club / off-label albums**
*Buckaroo Blues* (1989) · *The 12 Days of Brumalia* (2004) · *Night of the Hunters* (2007)***Hades*** (2009) · *Dollar General* (2010) · *Night Train To Nowhere!* (2012)
**Soundtrack albums**
*Whatever Happened To Vileness Fats?* (1984) · *The Census Taker* (1985) · *Hunters* (1995) · *Icky Flix* (2001) *I Murdered Mommy!* (2004) · *Postcards From Patmos* (2008) ·  *Strange Culture/Haeckel's Tale* (2010)*Chuck's Ghost Music* (2011) · *Theory of Obscurity Soundtrack* (2014) · *Sculpt* (2016) · *Music to Eat Bricks By* (2019) · *Triple Trouble* (2022)
**Collaborative albums**
*Title In Limbo* with Renaldo & The Loaf (1983) · *I Am A Resident!* with You? (2018)
**Live in the studio**
*Assorted Secrets* (1984) · *Roadworms: The Berlin Sessions* (2000) · *Talking Light Live In Rehearsal, Santa Cruz, California* (2010)*Mole Dance 82* (2021) · *Duck Stab! Alive!* (2021)
**Related articles**
The Residents discography (W.E.I.R.D., 1979) · Ralph Records discography

1. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20080821200631/http://www.residents.com/files/a74e9ffc4ed216525feb9ad443e57d51-108.html