Written by: The Administrator
If MEGAFAUNA doesn't represent the perfect antithesis of easy listening, I shudder to think what else could have possibly earned that designation. Indeed, in my review of MEGAFAUNA's unsettling and engrossing Venator, released back in April of 2024, I wrote that the project is "not a light nor carefree listen." I also called it "unabashedly weird and intense" and referenced both an "uncomfortable urgency" and a tendency to nail a sense of "terrible disassociation that paradoxically makes you hyperaware of your physicality." In short, I liked Venator very much, and found MEGAFAUNA's articulation of anxiety, fear, paranoia, and depression to be quite poignant. I Owe This Land a Body similarly presents an intense soundscape, leaning into a lonely and foreboding eeriness. This is, after all, an album explicitly exploring the notion that "how dying is the last decent thing we can do." A sense of profound despair implicitly and intentionally seeps forth from the Megafauna corpus, and this latest isn't exactly a cheery listen. With that said, I Owe This Land a Body is less immediately jarring than Venator, and even manages to undercut its own sense of unease with some unexpected bright spots.
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Written by: The Administrator
Those of you with an uncanny memory may recall that, towards the end of my recent review of Megafauna's eerie and excellent Venator, I made mention of a premiere. Here we are, folks. Venator will officially be released this Friday, April 19th, via Syrup Moose Records, but if you're unwilling to wait, we invite you to listen to it in full below. Of course, some preparation is called for If you're invested in full experience, I highly recommend hiking into the deepest darkest forest you can reasonably find. Walk until you find a dilapidated shack, or perhaps a large pile of bones that look suspiciously familiar. Set up camp. Wait for dark, and then wait for your flashlight battery to die. Make peace with the fact that there is almost certainly something in the woods, and i̵̲̾͑̏t̷̜̝̳̏ ̸̼͝i̴͉̥̲̗͋̊s̵̨̬̹͙͓͕̿̈̉̔̌͠ ̵̡̭̜̩͌̈́̽͛̌̚ͅͅw̶̧̹̮̯̌̈ą̴̹̼̮̼̖́̆̑͆̓͝t̵̨̨͇̺̂̇̇̅͆̋͜͠c̶̢̧̻̞̈́̓͝ḥ̶̢͐̉̄̓̓̋i̷̦͈̠̎̇̊͂̔͠n̵̼͛g̴̨̮͉̲̠͆. Check out Venator below, and, as always, we'll meet you on the other side. Much to the chagrin of pretty much everyone, I'm not done waxing poetic just yet. 
Written by: The Administrator
I grew up in a very rural area. Heavily forested and lushly dark, depressive, lonely. As such, I can assert that any creepy tale you've heard about stuff that happens in the woods at night is almost certainly true. There is something in the woods. There is always something in the woods. Indeed, to reiterate: ţ̸̧̨͈̤̞̦̻͛̋̀̀̎̐̃͜h̴̡̬̖̻̽̋̇͊̄͠ẻ̶̲̻̟̣̙̓͆̏͋̇͒͆̚r̴̪͛͆̓͂̀e̷͔͉̹̼̪͖̬̘̳̋̐͊ ̷̘͓̅̓̈̎̓̌̽̓ỉ̶̜̰̻̮͈͐͌̈̅͘̕ś̷̩̘̤̝̭͎̜͕̪̐̂ͅ ̷̟͔̞̊̀̓͜͝͝s̸̺̭̪͊̓͒̈̏̀͒̎ō̴̟̰̳̫̥͊̾̓̀̾͘͜m̷͕͖̜̥͙̮̟̮̥̩̱̐̒͂͠ĕ̵̹̍̎͊̀̍̕͠͝ẗ̶̢͕̠͎̥͕͈̲̝̓͒͜͜h̶͓̦̟̰͈̘̐̄̔͗̆̇̂̈͑͗͝ͅi̴̦͇͎͒̈́̋̿́̆͠ͅn̴̢͇͇̥̫͚̮͗͋͂̉͘̕͝g̷͍͑͗̈̓ ̶̬͚̪̗̺̽͊͂͠i̷̛͚̘͚͑͐̏̈́̑̕͠ņ̸̧̢̹̻̭̘̗̼̳̖̍̆̀̂̃́̿́̎̿̀ ̷̮̐͐̃̅̓̃̕̕͠ṱ̵͓̣͚͈͍̯̮̻̟̠̓̋́̍̀͌̓h̷͔̰̱̤̓̌ẻ̵̛̪͍̅͌̍͑ ̴̼̱̳̞͈̫̟͓̫̗͗͛͑w̶̯͌̈́̽̾͑̔̿̀̊̈̕ǒ̴͎͙̦̮̬̩̝̦͌́͛͋̈̇͊͜o̷͕̳̖͈̙̙̓̏d̶̢͙̹̝͍̜̜̃͒̔̾́s̴̫̘̻͈̹̤̼͕͖̋́͝ British Columbia's Megafauna understands this all too well, whether the woods are literal or figurative or combination of both. Megafauna's bandcamp page self-describes the project as "the soundtrack to your depressive episode." To get a little more specific, Venator was created "in various stages of exhaustion, mental illness, bursts of creativity, fear, anger, sadness, joy, nihilism and limited free time." It may not surprise you to learn, then, that Venator is not a light nor carefree listen. It is immersing and at times quite clever in its use of sound to convey emotion and command atmosphere. It captures some very particular feelings that are often very difficult--practically, emotionally--to illustrate.  Written by: The Administrator
Drone: a severely underappreciated entity 'round these parts. There's something arresting and alluring about the promise of a sustained sound stretching forevermore into the abyss. But, despite the implicit draw, I seldom find myself submerged in the genre. One reliable exception to the trend is the work of Depression Quilt (which, as an aside, is in the running for my favorite band name of all time.) Depression Quilt notably mixes the dronier elements with a dark ambient vibe and flair for atmosphere, resulting in a sonic blend that handily avoids the doldrums of the component parts. It is a conglomerate that provides interesting soundscapes without demanding too much from the listener. 2021's excellent [OVERLAPPING WHISPERS] spent a lot of time in rotation due to a unique ability to calm me down at a point in time when calm was an incredibly scarce resource. Needless to say, I was excited to hear that Depression Quilt was set to release a new album--and on the fantastic Trepanation Recordings, no less. And then when sirshannon asked for a track/music video premiere, I could hardly pass up the opportunity. And so here we are. Check out "The Walking Cure" from the forthcoming [INDISTINCT CLATTER CONTINUES] below! As always, we'll meet ye on the other side. |
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