Postcards from New Zealand — who for the rest of this post I’ll be referring to all-lowercase, in accordance with their preferences — release their new album, liminal space on Oct. 7. And for anyone who caught wind of their 2020 offering through the uses-capitol-letters Mandrone Records, city lights (discussed here), you know that there isn’t one song that’s going to represent the entirety of the scope of the anonymous post-rock experimentalists’ work. So as you make your way through the video premiere for “taupō,” the opening track of the album below, consider it very much as a doorway opening up to the rest of the 10-song, 51-minute long-player, which from the night-jazz, handclap-inclusive spaciousness of “da’at” to the churning industrial harshness in the later stretches of “kunkunka” and into the avant drum ‘n’ bass of “coshi wa ng’oma,” revels in its unpredictability.

The crucial element uniting all of these varied pieces is the focus on texture as well as atmosphere. There are balances in the mix that feel like they’re being adjusted even as a given song is playing out, and at some of liminal space‘s most brutal points, it is genuinely extreme. But it’s not just one thing even when at its screamiest and barkiest, and “taupō” represents that well. The obvious immediate nod is to black metal, but by the time the song is a minute deep it’s somewhere else completely, and a trade between open ambience and intensity takes hold, but even in that you can hear and feel the different textures playing out beneath the vocals and sundry distorted elements surrounding, and postcards from new zealand — whoever they are, wherever they’re from — continue to push outward on these reaches as they go. Again, “taupō” isn’t speaking for the totality of the album — proved quickly enough by that death-dance chug in the subsequent “tiresias,” which miraculously combines aggro guitar, synth and what used to be called electronica in a way that is miraculously not nü-metal; Gregorian-style chanting helps, I guess — but it is the gateway from which the rest of it unfolds.

It is important to keep in mind the spirit of the band. As they are here, postcards from new zealand are obviously cognizant of writing songs — “kitsune,” the shorter, more outwardly brutal “niizh manidoowag,” “temenos” tipping the balance between prog and gonna-try-this experimentation — but they’re not interested in making it simple. There is no dumbing down these songs to force them into a structural pattern they don’t want, and it’s not that the band aren’t welcoming others on the journey they’re undertaking — translate some of their titles and you’ll find the subject matter as diffuse as the sounds of the material itself, so that works — but the spirit in which they’re doing it is a celebration of the creative act itself rather than something they’re putting out because they’re a band about to hit the road for eight months on an album cycle and they need a new release to keep their social media momentum going. Extreme art is art. That doesn’t make it easy art.

Maybe a bit of a disclaimer there, but I think it’s worth keeping this in mind as you take on “taupō” and eventually the rest of liminal space. If you can meet it on its level — I’m not going to say headphones are mandatory, but they won’t hurt the experience — then liminal space can be as open as it is stark, but I’ll tell you outright that not everyone is going to get there. Nature of the project. Somehow I think postcards from new zealand wouldn’t have it another way.

Quote from the band and PR wire info follows.

Please enjoy:

postcards from new zealand, “taupō”

postcards from new zealand on “taupō”:

“taupō” is a song about potential energy, thresholds and volcano calderas. it’s some kind of psych-electro-rock hybrid that sets the tone for a good part of liminal space.

Venturing into uncharted realms of genre experimentation, postcards from new zealand’s trilogy concluding offering, liminal space, brings a dramatic and extreme exploration of music. An augmented use of electronics and extreme metal, amalgamated with progressive composition and vast soundscapes, combines into this epic and unchained album releasing on October 7th.

The band comments:

“liminal space is a pretty unique album; that’s not to say it’s good or bad, just that it’s different. the songs are born from rhythms from all around the world, it’s got tons of electronics and synths but also a lot of guitars and metal vocals. it’s weird and we love it for that, it’s something we’ve never done and represents another step forward for our project.”

Beginning with the violent burn, witch, burn, followed by the droning and atmospheric instrumental nik-an-ak, the third instalment delves deeper into the obscure. Opening with “taupō”, a smorgasbord of harsh vocals and heavy guitars is entwined with soaring vocal harmonies and textural electronics. Establishing the intense nature of the album and dynamic interplay of parts, the musical style presented aptly conveys the vast ideas of the places in-between – liminal space. “da’at” is infused with oriental scales, white noise-esque electronics, and driving rhythms. The soaring choir melody further reveals the array of vocal styles included across the tracks. From utterly demonic harsh and vocoder effects to ethereal soaring melodies, and even throat singing featuring in “hiranyakashipu”. Thundering into the extreme, “coshi wa ng’oma” unleashes a metal assault – it’s high intensity for an album penultimate track. A thrilling contrast emerges in the finale “incaba kancofula”. Falling into ethereal realms, a haunting and enthralling composition that is beautifully produced, presents both shades of darkness and light.

postcards from new zealand has showcased an incredible array of music across the betwixt and between collection. Unveiling the eerily dark side of humanity that continues to prevail, the project aptly conveys these fascinating and disturbing elements. liminal space is a deeply compelling collection pushing a multitude of boundaries in different directions. It’s a times chaotic and unhinged, but also enthralling and intriguing. An explosive end to this progressive trilogy.

tracklisting:
1. taupō 3:51
2. tiresias 4:03
3. kitsune 3:47
4. da’at 5:01
5. hiranyakashipu 5:25
6. niizh manidoowag 3:16
7. temenos 4:52
8. kunkunka 5:32
9. coshi wa ng’oma 4:25
10. incaba kancofula 4:01

About the betwixt and between collection:

The title is taken from the 1967 essay by Victor Turner in which he explores the concept of liminality, based on the work of Arnold van Gennep and his 1909 book Rites de Passage. The idea was to create three albums that would express our deep contempt towards patriarchy and sexual discrimination in three different ways – not to place blame and increase divisions, but to explore the idea of coming together to support each other.

postcards from new zealand on Facebook

postcards from new zealand website

postcards from new zealand on Bandcamp

postcards from new zealand on YouTube

Tags: liminal space, postcards from new zealand, postcards from new zealand liminal space, Unsigned bands

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