Mark Benincosa, teaching associate professor in music technology and production, has released his latest project — a nine track reinterpretation of some classic and not-so-classic tracks through a fusion of guitars, synth textures, multiple vocal styles and cinematic arrangements.
Released under Benincosa’s musical project, Black Hole Zion, “Wormhole Aliens” features songs like “Walking in My Shoes” by Depeche Mode, “I Started A Joke” by the Bee Gees, Ozzy Osbourne and Lita Ford’s “Close My Eyes Forever” and David Bowie’s “Starman” — each reimagined with a distinctive sonic approach.
The album features contributions from Tony Rohrbough on guitar, Michael Fowler playing bass on several tracks and Natalie Benincosa performing a duet with Mark on “Close My Eyes Forever.”
Benincosa handled vocal, programming and additional keyboard and bass duties. The album holds a special significance as it includes the final recordings of Benincosa’s friend and former bandmate, Stanley Benkovic, playing keys/synthesizer on four of the tracks. Benkovic, who passed away in 2021, was a research associate in neuroscience at WVU. Benincosa describes Benkovic as a “wonderfully kind human being and probably the smartest person I’ve ever known.”
The first single, Anthrax’s “Only,” was described by V13 magazine as being a “loud, gritty guitar-led track” with “tastefully textured synths” and “vocals packed with raw energy and power.” That said, Benincosa and his collaborators also experimented with other textures in tracks like, “I Started A Joke,” “Mad World” and “Starman.”
His previous work has garnered attention from WVUToday, including his role as recording engineer on the Grammy-nominated classical album
“Mademoiselle – Première Audience,” and his contributions to the Mutant Football League video game soundtrack with the track “8-Bit Rage.” His solo album “Meditations: Vol. 2” was also highlighted for its ambient explorations.
“Wormhole Aliens” is available on Spotify and all major streaming platforms.