I previously wrote that while working on Domes, “Vol. II,” Brendon and I got excited about a group on songs that felt natural together and like something else entire. Not Decortica 4, not Domes 3: to Brendon in particular, these were coherent compositions. We pursued that intuition and defined a concept album by an untitled band whose only imperative was to mine this new vein of post-metal (see Magnalith, “Memento Mori”) and prog rock (see Decortica, “Love Hotel”) at which we found ourselves.

We started to imagine a body of work in response to (among other inspirations) Andrei Tarkovsky’s “Stalker,” “Solaris,” and “Mirror.” The auteur’s thesis of imprinted time was interesting and lyrically provided a means by which to explore existentialism, conflict, human connection, and narrative symbolism.

Following drums at The Lab with Brendon’s old friend, Logan Compain, we all ventured into rural New Zealand with the support of our families to capture the zeitgeist of the record.

From decades old riffs reinterpreted, to field recording tape loop experiments, Neve preamps, geothermic plumes, and mixing it all aboard a 500-tonne lightship on the River Thames, these songs have come a long way.

This Friday, we’ll play them live for the first time. Hope to see you 11 September at Big Fan in Auckland.

M.