Description

Comprised of founder Dana Schechter (Swans) and now joined by drummer Andy Patterson (SubRosa), INSECT ARK have been crafting uncomfortable soundscapes that feel both intimate and icy cold since 2011. Nightmarish horror film-like visions, outer space travel, and gritty noir textures were explored in their previous offerings — the much-praised “Portal / Well” (2015) and “Marrow Hymns” (2018) — but now, something far greater is coming with “The Vanishing”.

Not a work for the faint of heart, “The Vanishing” is INSECT ARK’s most harrowing and punishing record to date. Though many parts of it veer off into mind-expanding outer realms territories, the interplay between the bass, lap steel guitar, synths and drums is tighter and closer to song format than ever before, and that’s essentially what “The Vanishing” really represents – a strong and defiant collection of songs that demand your exclusive forceful attention. “The Vanishing” is heavier, darker and denser than anything INSECT ARK have ever done, yet without losing any of the writing characteristics that have become synonymous with their personality, like the persistent coating of eerie psychedelia, the alien feel of the melodies or the ominous dread the tracks often exhale.

“The album’s title refers to a recurring daydream I had of disappearing completely – floating out to sea alone, and never being found,” offers Schechter of the themes driving the record. “On a much bigger level, it’s about the impermanence of life itself, trying to retain perspective of how small we really are.” Recorded and mixed by Colin Marston (Krallice, Dysrhythmia) and featuring artwork by Sonia Merah, track listing for “The Vanishing” goes as follows:

1. Tectonic
2. Three Gates
3. Philae
4. Danube
5. Swollen Sun
6. The Vanishing