Australian two-piece Vessel will release their fourth album, The Somnifer, this Fall through Majestic Mountain Records, and since it’s August, I’ll assume that means somewhere in October or November. A specific date and preorders are both coming soon, but to go with the announcement of the album’s existence — a prospect that’s more exciting than the put-you-to-sleep implications of the title might lead you to believe — a video for the first single “Rapid Eye Movement” is premiering below ahead of hitting streaming services this Wednesday, Aug. 7. Guitarist Jordan Forster and vocalist/bassist Mason Matheson — as well as Marcus Ryan, who played drums on the album — are joined for a backing guest spot by D.Lolli of Majestic Mountain labelmates Mama Doom, and the bluesy croon behind the spoken-word lead vocals enhances a poetic atmosphere that coincides with the three and a half minutes of centralized heavy roll.

As you’ll probably notice, the clip for “Rapid Eye Movement” has the telltale animation style of AI. If this is an emotional trigger for you, well, congratulations on your very easy life free of any and all more important concerns. As a casual reminder, not everyone on the planet either does or needs to conform to your expectations of paying a human artist to do work that would probably take 1,000 more hours to finish if it would ever be finished, and not every artist is interested in doing that work. That’s before you get into questions of a distinct style that might be desirable — that is, what looks cool or suitable, as I’ll gladly argue the quick-morphing images of “Rapid Eye Movement” do — or who can afford such a thing and who can’t, and the discrimination against those who can’t (or simply choose not to) that underlies a lot of the anti-AI-use complaining encountered on social media; dudes on the internet reactionary-whining about a thing that’s new in a one-dimensional vacuum of privilege.

To bottom-line it: art is art, whether it’s made by a person or a person with a laptop, and all art has a place. Are synthesized beats music? If someone loses their job to AI, blame the shithead capitalist boss doing layoffs to pocket a few hypothetical bucks, not the computer, is what I’m saying. It’s like blaming a paintbrush when you don’t understand how a single-colored canvas can be art. Anything can be art, and if you look at it all the right way, almost everything is. We live in an imperfect world, and creative people get screwed and disrespected all the time in myriad ways. The answer is never “less art.” I feel dumber for even engaging the topic. Have a pleasant morning.

I haven’t heard The Somnifer in its entirety yet, so can’t comment on how or where “Rapid Eye Movement” sits in terms of the record as a whole, but ahead of their fourth LP, you can hear Vessel‘s third, 2020’s Vagabond Blues, near the bottom of this post, and when I encounter a preorder link, I’ll do my best to pass it along.

Until then, please enjoy:

Vessel, “Rapid Eye Movement” video premiere

This is the first track from the upcoming album, ‘The Somnifer’, which will be released on Majestic Mountain Records this Autumn! Stay tuned for a release date and pre-orders!

Vessel return from a deep slumber with insights into the depths of minds seeking to move beyond their typical consciousness. New album The Somnifer is a concept album dabbling in the dark synapses between our sleeping mind and our suppressed trauma. Lead single Rapid Eye Movement sees the listener step out of their physical self and explore the world that surrounds their mind. Guest vocals from Mama Doom’s D.Lolli are dialed in from the astral plane over a grunge inspired soft loud structure to accompany Mase Matheson’s dreamy exploration through matter on the back of a wandering bass line.

Says MMR: “We are delighted to once again collaborate with one of our initial signings! Vessel has delivered yet another outstanding album that is sure to amaze you!”

Band: Vessel
Song: Rapid Eye Movement (Streaming August 7th)
Album: The Somnifer (Stay tuned for the pre-order and release date)

Recorded and mixed by Jesse Oberin in Melbourne, Australia.
Mastered by Magnus Lindberg in Stockholm, Sweden.
Guest vocals: D.Lolli (Mama Doom)
Drums performed by Marcus Ryan
Additional synth and sounds by Jesse Oberin
All songs written and performed by Vessel

Vessel are:
Jordan Forster: Guitars
Mason Matheson: Vocals, Bass

Vessel, Vagabond Blues (2020)

Vessel on Instagram

Vessel on Facebook

Vessel on Bandcamp

Majestic Mountain Records on Instagram

Majestic Mountain Records on Facebook

Majestic Mountain Records store

Tags: Australia, Bendigo, Majestic Mountain Records, The Somnifer, Vessel, Vessel The Somnifer

This entry was posted on Monday, August 5th, 2024 at 5:06 am and is filed under Bootleg Theater. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.