World Eater Recordings

11/29/2025

Watching a Japanese film as a teenager changed Arthell Isom's life. Today, he and his brother Darnell run Japan’s first majority black-owned animation studio...

As boys, twins Arthell and Darnell, from New Jersey, US, watched the 1995 Japanese classic Ghost in the Shell. It set the course of their future lives.

The brothers loved the film so much, that at the age of 17 they made a pact:

"We wanted to make a company, a film and animation studio," says Arthell. "And we decided the only way we can do this is we both kind of kind of split up and learn different crafts."

The brothers decided Darnell would learn special effects - and Arthell would learn animation. So that's what they did.

Arthell went to the Academy of Art in San Francisco, but he found the traditional, western-style of art taught there restrictive - so he made a new plan. He'd leave the US and go to Japan's biggest animation school, the Yoyogi Animation Academy.

Without hesitation, Darnell drove him to the airport.

"Then I got to Japan. And I realised that, yeah, I don't have a place to live. I can't speak Japanese. I don't have a visa," says Arthell.

So Arthell returned to the US and spent a year learning Japanese. He returned to the Yoyogi Academy - and the teachers were so impressed, they took him on.

On his first day in school, he wrote down that he wanted to work under Hiromasu Ogura, the art director of the original Japanese version of Ghost in the Shell - the movie the brothers had seen aged 17.

"I remember my teacher coming to me was like, oh, no, no, you probably can't get that job... And then I was like, oh, no, no, this is, this is where I want to work. I only want to work here."

Eventually, he got an an interview with Hiromasu Ogura himself. He had ten minutes to impress his hero - but this didn't phase Arthell.

"There's this expression in America - they always say never meet your heroes. And I don't know who came up with that because I totally disagree."

The thing was, Arthell knew everything about Ogura-San. All of his art, his paintings, his movies. The master was so impressed he gave him the job.

Arthell worked on some iconic projects at the studio, finally leaving to set up D’Art Shtajio with his brother, Japan’s first majority black-owned animation studio. The childhood pact had come true.

🎧 Hear more on Outlook: https://bbc.in/4pg4iSN

11/27/2025

YOU’RE NOT A SUPERHERO. YOU’RE A HUMAN BEING.

There’s a lot of content out there that glorifies what touring professionals “endure.”

The 20-hour days.

The time-zone swings.

The dehydration, the jet lag, the no-sleep turnarounds, the diet built on whatever’s within arm’s reach.

It’s usually framed as proof that we’re a different breed—some kind of ultra-adaptable, fatigue-proof species.

But here’s the truth most of us learn the hard way:

You are not special because you can survive this.

You are human—and that’s the entire point.

The industry loves the mythology of “grit” because it distracts from the cost.

The real cost.

The one that hits your body first.

Then your mind.

Then your relationships, your sense of self, and your ability to feel grounded in the world.

Most had to learn that the hard way.

Not as a badass.

Not as a warrior.

Not as someone who can “power through” anything.

But as someone who finally realized:

I suffer like anyone else.

And pretending otherwise almost broke me.

We don’t need to be celebrated as superhumans.

We don’t need to be told we’re exceptional because we can take a beating.

We need support.

We need infrastructure.

We need systems that don’t require superhuman endurance just to stay afloat.

The job is demanding enough.

The culture doesn’t need to pile on.

Your humanity isn’t a weakness.

It’s the thing worth protecting.

11/26/2025

11/24/2025

Shrine for the Black Madonna is a New York City band whose music crosses territories of hardcore punk, Delta blues, deep funk, electric jazz and noise pop-performed in service to the Divine Unknowable.

"Someday, Monday", the newest single from the original Bed Stuy RocknRollas, brings a kinetic and fist pumping rumble of heavy hardcore reality, with a dose of hopeful glorious purpose-providing a powerful and inspirational anthem fit for every pair of earbuds, accessible carplay systems, and any available mosh pit.

track by Shrine for the Black Madonna

11/22/2025

RICANSTRUCTION is elated to announce that one of our (new) songs has been selected to be on the Black Rock Coalitions (BRC) latest compilation, Rock 'n' Roll Reparations, Volume 5!!!

The BRC will be having a record release party at their (40th anniversary) Founders' Day event on Dec 7 at National Sawdust in Brooklyn, and the compilation will be made available for digital download on that day!

RICANSTRUCTION will be up in Woodstock, NY recording some more tracks for a new full length 2026 record release of our own(!!!) on that day, so we will not be attending the event, unfortunately...

But the BRC will be playing tunes from the compilation throughout the night, so if you would like to hear our new track, entitled, Water Into Wine, stop by on Dec 7th and support our peeps/familia/compa's/comrades/co-conspirators/co-compilationers and the BRC!!!

@

National Sawdust
80 North 6th Street
Brooklyn, NY

Doors: 6:30PM

Scheduled to perform that night:

Key Hutch
Faith NYC
Honeychild Coleman
Kim Nicky
Corey Glover

with an opening set by DJ Logic

11/20/2025

As Cat Stevens, he helped define the singer-songwriter. After converting to Islam, he became a lightning rod. His new memoir explores it all.

11/16/2025

11/16/2025