New Song 'Terminal Woes', those that will bring about the end of us
On our new song 'Terminal Woes', phonetics in music, new video, album announcement & looking for a manager
TL;DR We have a new song called Terminal Woes. The creation process is unpredictable and gibberish can give way to breakthrough ideas. We made a music video you should watch and announced our second studio album, which you can pre-order on vinyl. We’re looking for a manager and shows, if you are one or know of anyone who’d love Salt Cathedral, please share!
1. Terminal Woes: creation and meaning
The creative process is mostly unexplainable and unique in that it’s not repeatable. Anyone who’s dabbled into art making will identify with the feeling of not knowing how you got to something and not being sure you’ll ever be able to make anything like it again. That is perhaps what makes this process so magical.
In music, songwriting specifically, phonetics or stream of consciousness words that come out might lead to an idea that becomes transcendental. Sometimes, I find my subconscious knowing what I really think and feel before I do. Just like in Jonathan Haidt’s theory of the elephant and the rider where the elephant is our subconscious and the rider our consciousness, (the logic with which we retroactively justify the elephant’s behavior) I too find ways to justify my brain’s phonetics or random word choices as ideas that may have existed in my subconscious.
Finding what fits my gibberish is a process of imagination. That’s how I came up with ‘Terminal Woes’. If a melody comes into existence with a certain sequence of vowels, I have a sense that it must live there. When I came onto the phrase ‘Terminal Woes,’ it spoke to me and sparked all these ideas around what it entailed. It spoke to my fears of the future in this planet, to my rage against corporate greed, to my love for nature and to my fear for an entire future generation/the thought of having children.
“who’ll dance at the break of dawn, when the heat’s begun, when our mother’s gone?
last chance! every living thing, every breathing being, everything that’s green
it’s not just a human’s world, just a human’s world just a human’s world
we’ve got to reverse this flight for our future child, for continued life”
Nico had produced the marching like beat and once we had the verse and “terminal woes” phrase we knew there was an idea worth developing. In a thrift store, I’d picked up a record of Ravi Shankar playing his Concerto for Sitar and Orchestra alongside the London Symphony Orchestra. It played on repeat and I think some of it’s spirit seeped into the vocal melodies on this song (and some guitars in other songs on the record.)
2. Terminal Woes Music Video
The music video for Terminal Woes is as close to my heart as the song is. It was a labor of love, shot in Peru with some of my closest friends. I labored away the edit and learned color grading for it. (I’m doing it for others now so reach out if you’d like me to work on your project!)
In it, there is an auction scene where suited people are fighting to be the highest bidder. It’s my interpretation of corporate greed, companies fighting to make more profits and get more customers, usually harming the planet on the way. It’s juxtaposed with outdoor scenes and abandoned spaces - showing that which we forget - that what gets decided indoors has a connection to the great outdoors.
If you want to stream/add to playlists you can find the song here - Terminal Woes
3. Album Announcement, Before It’s Gone
With the release of Terminal Woes we also announced our second studio album, Before It’s Gone. I made this newsletter to write more in depth about the album - its process and themes so expect more on that.
For now, you can pre-order the record on Limited Edition 12”Vinyl on our Bandcamp Page!
Nico and I worked so hard on this record to give you music of the highest quality and hopefully meaningful art. We hope you love it and if you wish to share this newsletter or the music with a friend or a loved one, here’s an easy way!
And lastly, we’re looking for a manager, if you are in the music industry, are a manager or know of anyone who’d love Salt Cathedral, please share!
xx
juli