Hear Insect Ark's Eerie New Psych-Doom Instrumental "Philae" | Revolver

Hear Insect Ark's Eerie New Psych-Doom Instrumental "Philae"

Band features current and former members of Swans, Angels of Light, Zeal & Ardor and SubRosa

Instrumental psychedelic doom duo Insect Ark — currently comprised of founder Dana Schechter (Swans, Angels of Light, Zeal & Ardor) and Andy Patterson (SubRosa) — have been making nightmarish, cinematic music since 2011 and across two full-lengths, 2015's Portal / Well and 2018's Marrow Hymns. Things get even darker and denser on their forthcoming LP, The Vanishing, due February 28th via Profound Lore. (It's available for pre-order now via Profound Lore and Bandcamp.) The album's theme, according to Schechter, is "the impermanence of life itself, trying to retain perspective of how small we really are," and that plays out over six ominous, dynamic tracks, including "Philae," which makes its debut above.

"The song 'Philae' traces the epic narrative of a robotic voyager on its journey to a comet near Jupiter," she says. "The travel, alongside its host the Rosetta Spacecraft, took over 10 years. Philae crashed, was pulled by the comet's gravity, and for over a year was sitting lost in the shadow of a cliff.

Schechter continues, "When I wrote 'Philae,' it was all about space. Not outer space, but physical space — or more specifically, negative space. I wanted the song to feel unmoored, as if it existed in place utterly empty and airless, collapsing, with the dual senses of sinking and floating. I heard about the (true) story of Philae after I'd finished writing the song, and it just felt like the music and the story coexisted perfectly."

See the cover art and track listing for The Vanishing below.

insect ark cover art

The Vanishing track listing:
1. Tectonic
2. Three Gates
3. Philae
4. Danube
5. Swollen Sun
6. The Vanishing