Enigmatic Drab Majesty guitarist and vocalist Deb (a.k.a. Andrew Clinco) has a new, equally enigmatic side project VR Sex, a trio of post-punk provocateurs whose lead single "Surrender" contains elements of Drab's foggy, dreamlike sound but with a harder-hitting backbeat and a more aggressive vocal approach mixed into the ethereal atmospherics. Equal parts lush and dreary, there's a post-apocalyptic feel to the harsher passages before the death rockers give way to lighter hypnotic sections.
Lyrically, the group's forthcoming album, Human Traffic Jam, focuses on fading human interaction and the upsetting force of social media on interpersonal relationships, and these themes manifest in the music in the form of its anxious edge, which adds a sense of danger to the otherwise delicate and soothing sounds. The "VR" aspect of the project refers to the idea that through simulated sexual experiences we can stabilize the ecosystem and humanity by reducing the number of children born.
Pre-orders for Human Traffic Jam are available in an array of formats, including a clear pink or white and pink splatter vinyl variant, via Dais Records. See the record's cover art, by Brooklyn-based artist Adam Helms, and track listing below.
Human Traffic Jam track list:
1. Surrender
2. Downgrade
3. Epiphany Gridlock
4. Sacred Limousine
5. Maiden China
6. Psycho Cybernetiks
7. Cheek Detritus
8. Facts Without Faces
9. Corridor (Epilogue)
