I don’t know about y’all, but I’m very frequently frustrated by the fact that the music I listen to while I traipse around the city in which I live (Chicago, thanks for wondering!) isn’t sufficiently “sweeping” and “darkly cinematic” enough to make me feel like the lonely-but-awesome super hero that I obviously am in my own mind.
Well, no more! Stoic, forlorn-but-virtuous Batman: HERE I COME, because Norwegian multi-instrumentalist and composer John Erik Kaada (DBA Kaada) has just announced the impending release of his latest LP of ethereal avant-garde-ery — entitled Closing Statements — on Mirakel Recordings.
Best known for his collaborations with Mike Patton and various extremely well-regarded experimental releases on Ipecac Records way back in the day, the Norwegian composer is back to help us all feel just the right kind of BAD/GOOD with Closing Statements’s “visceral collection of compositions melding strings, keyboards, and subtle centered around goodbyes, farewells, and deaths.”
Ooh, and hey; speaking of “statements,” here’s one now, courtesy of Kaada himself:
Closing Statements [consists of] fifty minutes of new music composed and recorded over twelve month period. It’s been one of the most enjoyable records to make in my life, if not the most fun ever.
Or at least the happiest I’ve ever been making a record. This might seem a bit contradictory, since the theme of the album circles around obituaries and last words before death.
The titles are quotes and fragments from different farewell utterances. Things that people (apparently) said when they were about to die. There is a mysterious aim over the final words of the dying. What does these last words reveal about life, death and consciousness? These words give a glimpse into the individual’s overall feelings and experiences.
The underlying message of the album is that we have to listen to each other. In a modern world where people mostly don’t have the time or interests to get to know one another, we need to be reminded that we need to listen. At least…when somebody is about to say their last words.
Damn. Sold, yet? Then by all means, join me in one of my favorite exercises ― “stiffening your upper lip while weeping on the inside” — as we listen to two cuts from the album down below, and pre-order the whole heavy AF affair here ahead of its May 25 release date. Your own proudly dark inner life will thank you.
Closing Statements tracklisting:
01. It Must Have Been The Coffee
02. Farewell
03. Everything Is An Illusion
04. Unknown Destination
05. Wonder Out Loud
06. On The Contrary
07. Useless,Useless
08 Clearing Out
09. More Light
10. Hey Unfair, That Was My Exit
11. Home In The Dark
More about: Kaada
