“It’s never a shame to be ashamed.“
It has been a long wait for new a Drab Majesty record, being just over four years since their masterpiece Modern Mirror. Tracks such as “Oxytocin” and “Ellipsis” invoked atmospheres of other-world digital sci-fi that remained grounded in human complexity of emotions and existentialism. It was all backed by electronic beat and delicate guitar-work that created an almost perfect soundtrack for the digitised world. A question many artists face, after producing such a high level of work, is where to go next. To carry on the same furrow and look to top it, or look to take another path of influences and sounds.
On An Object in Motion, Drab Majesty begins to answer that question, bringing in psychedelic soundscapes that grow throughout the record, as well as a more traditional, “folk-like” sensibility to the record. The change in direction becomes evident with opener, and lead single from the EP, “Vanity“.
Featuring Rachel Goswell of Slowdive, the track keeps its beats sparse unlike your typical Drab Majesty number. The focus is all on the vocal melodies that are truly entrancing: “If the valve breaks, then the earth quakes“. It strikes an emotiveness that was somewhat present in previous Drab Majesty material, but didn’t sit at the forefront as much as it does here. There is a hauntology intertwined on “Vanity“, which dances to the slides of the guitar and Goswell‘s vocals, as if the track is reflecting on by-gone pasts.
What follows sees Drab Majesty take an unexpected turn, with instrumental track “Cape Perpetua“, that sees the plucks of vocalist and guitarist Demure’s 12 string take the lead. There is unsettling atmosphere that pushes away the descriptor of “dream-like“, feeling something more akin to looking into the unknown through a vast kaleidoscope.
The warm embrace of familiarity returns on “The Skin and the Glove“, as the familiar staples of Drab Majesty’s sound introduce themselves. The distinct vocals of the duo take command here, backed by a bassline and beat that has, until this EP, been ever-present. There are elements of jangle-pop weaved into the track, and at times moving itself towards the stylings of a Moby-esque trip hop sound.
Covering the ground of nearly half the record, comes “Yield to Force“, a 15-minute journey through sounds that bleed themselves into the ear and mind. Its gentile plucks acting as the gravitational centre of the track, having an entrancing effect. All the while, the synths move behind in motions to create a wide, krautrock-inspired soundscape. At 15-minutes, it will be a hard-sell to many, it’s a track that each listener should give time to venture through.
There is an element of boldness to An Object in Motion, and while it might not be what the EP looks to define itself as, Drab Majesty have looked to challenge barriers of their own and of the listener. A spectacular feature from Rachel Goswell, a first on a Drab Majesty track, helps to ushers a shift in sound. They even dedicate two-thirds of the record to a psychedelic-styled instrumentals, and somehow managing to make this work. There is an intrigue injected towards Drab Majesty here that perhaps hasn’t existed before, and it will be that which keeps listeners on their toes for what comes next.
8/10
An Object in Motion is out August 25th via Dais Records, and can be pre-ordered here.