Progressive tech death band Artificial Brain will be unveiling their new studio album \u201cAntillia\u201d through Profound Lore on November 13th. That record, their first since 2022\u2019s self-titled opus, is described in a new press release as being, \u2018nine tales of cosmic woe repeatedly invoking images of invasion and penetration: strange diseases filter down from the sky; pollutants corrupt the water and soil; medical nanobots trigger cancerous plagues; alien subversives undermine terrestrial governments. Again and again, humans are defiled and transformed as they struggle to navigate the sea of stars.\u2019<\/p>\n
That same press release further went on to state:<\/p>\n
\u201dAntillia\u2018 brings a new degree of urgency to this distinctive formula. It is their shortest and most aggressive album to date; its blastbeat-laden cacophony is by turns punctuated by riotous solos and shrouded by a nimbus of hazy textures. Despite its ferocious clamor, Antillia\u2019s primary emotional affect is melancholic, even wistful. A sense of loss and surrender permeates the record, most strikingly articulated by its title track\u2019s ode to a homeworld irretrievably abandoned to the void: \u2018Was it ever real? Was it ever real?\u2019 For Artificial brain, the future has ceased to serve as a repository for optimistic dreams. It is here, now, in all its horror, visiting itself upon our bodies and minds, whether we like it or not.\u2019<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t have to rely solely on words to envision what the group have in store on this new outing however, as the first single \u201cQuantum Malignancies\u201d is now newly streaming below. The band\u2019s bassist\/vocalist Samuel Smith said of it:<\/p>\n
I am excited to be releasing \u2018Quantum Malignancies\u2018 first because I think this song is a good reflection of both the change and continuity in our sound on \u2018Antillia\u2018. The track opens with a mess of guttural vocal noise courtesy of Paulo Paguntalan, who has featured on all of our albums, and it contains a characteristically wistful arpeggiated section at its midpoint. Ian\u2019s mix and the contributions of our new members, Mike and Alex, have imbued this material with a new sense of immediacy, though. The frantic energy of this song culminates in dueling guitar solos, which are another key part of this record\u2019s distinct identity.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for the album, vocalist Mike Paparo (also of Inter Arma, Dreamless Veil, etc.), offerred:<\/p>\n
\u201cOn \u2018Antillia\u2018, I wanted the lyrics of the record to reflect the human struggle with the universe and all of its horrors and unknowns. With \u2018Quantum Malignancies\u2018, humankind is presented with a technology that could positively alter society and its future. However, this technology becomes perverted and transmuted by the grifters and plutocrats in power, leading to a massive, calculated depopulation. A cold, heartless narrative set to cold, unforgiving music.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ian Jacyszyn (Miasmatic Necrosis, Aeviterne) oversaw the tracking and mixing of the album, while Colin Marston of Krallice, Gorguts, etc. fame took on mastering it.<\/p>\n
\u201cAntillia\u201d track listing:<\/p>\n
01 \u2013 \u201cThe Wandering Star Prion\u201c
02 \u2013 \u201cQuantum Malignancies\u201c
03 \u2013 \u201cObsidian Agents\u201c
04 \u2013 \u201cDeciphering The Anachronistic Tongues Of The Relic Satellites\u201c
05 \u2013 \u201cPlanet: Carrion\u201c
06 \u2013 \u201cAgainst The Furthest Reaches Of The Light\u201c
07 \u2013 \u201cCosmic Death Church\u201c
08 \u2013 \u201cSolar Ark\u201c
09 \u2013 \u201cAntillia (In Chromatic Aberration)\u201c<\/p>\n