If you’ve been keeping track of our album/show/interview sections here on PAN M 360, you know that we have a deep and profound adoration for the local experimental, psychedelic, alternative label, Mothland. Since their debut on the scene almost six years ago, Mothland has been an independent extra-dimensional entity, with a goal of sharing and curating their diverse musical tastes—basically anything outside of the realm of “mainstream,”—for music fans looking for something a bit darker and obscure. That falls under the wheelhouse of krautrock, post-punk, new wave, no-wave, synth wave, art punk, art pop, psych rock, shoegaze … all the good ones for dancing and burning the dusty neon nights away.
On top of being a label, Mothland also runs the adored Distorsion Psych Fest, Taverne Tour, and curates the lineup for FME (Festival Musique Emergente) in Rouyn-Noranda, QC. Their reach is quite legendary for being a family-knit team of five.
Following up on their 2020 compilation tape Sounds From Mothland, Vol 1.—when they were but a mere larva or caterpillar—Mothland has announced Vol. 2 with some newcomers to the Moth Universe; like the indie shoegazers, Karma Glider, We Owe—the solo project of Christopher Pravdica (Swans, The Medicine Singers, etc.)—and vintage melodic rockers, Night Lunch.
Until the official release date of July 14, Mothland has dropped the first three singles on this 14-song sonic Rubix Cube.
First off we have “Deep [Demo Version],” by the trans-disciplinary art indie punk troubadour, Petra Glynt. This track begins with monolithic synth lines and Petra Glynt’s smokey vocals (that remind me of someone like Juliette Lewis and the Licks). But instead of a balls-to-the-wall rock n’ roll, “Deep [Demo Version] has a more hypnotic, goth rock vibe, like a Dummy era Portishead. Following it up is another synth-focused number, “Entertainment,” by the dark evil disco punks, CDSM. The lyrics are tongue in cheek, a love story about being shackled to capitalism and the industry’s almighty dollar. In the band’s own words, it’s “A tribute to being held hostage at will, to be endlessly chasing a carrot, the fruitless hunt for a golden ticket paved in broken promises and underscored with a negative bank balance.” The song also comes packed with a whacky new music video that follows the band as the galavant through Europe, decked out in meth-cooked paintball jumpsuits.
Last but certainly not least in “Angry Arboretum,” by noise punks Gloin. My personal favourite of the three, this track is inspired by M. Night Shymamalan’s blockbuster flop, The Happening. In the track, nature, tired of being tossed to humanity’s curb, rises up and infects the world’s population, causing them to lose their minds. The instrumentation in this track offers a more grooving experimental punk drive for Gloin and might be one of their most danceable tracks, but it’s rife with Gloin’s signature, nebulous noise, and screeching guitars. This is a rare B-side track we probably never would have heard if it wasn’t for Sounds From Mothland, Vol. 2. We eagerly await the rest of this beast of a compilation.
