Episode 4: Justin Pearson - ”The Holy Mountain” (1973)

SoundCheck Flix Co-Hosts Tim Pyles and Graham Stevens sit down at the Casbah San Diego with the prolific musician Justin Pearson, who many of you know from The Locust, to discuss Alejandro Jodorowsky’s 1973 film The Holy Mountain in SCF episode 4. The Holy Mountain (1973), written, directed, and starring Alejandro Jodorowsky, is a beautifully captured surrealist film in which an alchemist leads a messianic character and seven others (and its audience) to the Holy Mountain on a journey through illusion and truth. If you haven’t seen The Holy Mountain, it’s a surrealistic trip we recommend. And, if a recommendation from a member of The Locust isn’t enough for you to watch the film, perhaps after you learn more about Justin, you’ll follow his lead on The Holy Mountain. When thinking of the prolific musician Justin Pearson as an artist, there are a multitude of bands/projects one can look to, each of which his presence as a bassist/vocalist is distinctly felt alongside the immense talent of the countless others he’s worked with. The most well-known of his long resume is probably The Locust or, most recently, Dead Cross. The Crimson Curse, Some Girls, Holy Molar, Head Wound City, Retox, Deaf Club, Planet B, and Satanic Planet are only some of the others– each unique, but also unified in their intensity. He has collaborated in various capacities with an array of artists including Mike Patton, Martin Atkins, Dave Lombardo, Kool Keith, and Satanic Temple co-founder, Lucien Greaves. This fervency goes well beyond playing music. He is also the owner of Three One G Records, started in 1994. In 2010, Pearson further expanded his list of talents by becoming a published author with the release of “From the Graveyard of the Arousal Industry.” This was followed in 2011 by “How to Lose Friends and Irritate People,” and a comprehensive collection of his lyrics titled "The Race to Zero" in 2018. Justin found himself acting for the first time in 2013 under the direction of Asia Argento and alongside Charlotte Gainsbourg for the film “Incompresa,” of which he also contributed to the soundtrack. In 2016, he even ventured into the realm of cartoon voice overs, taking on the role of a vegan snack elf on Cartoon Network's Uncle Grandpa. He has also more recently taken on the world of Podcasting alongside co-host and Planet B/Satanic Planet bandmate Luke Henshaw in the form of Cult and Culture.