Dead Emerson has always created music that makes you feel like a main character, one listen to his past release Siddhartha and you’ll spontaneously be leaping in your car and venturing out onto the open road with the wind in your hair, not knowing where you’re going but just excited to be going somewhere. His music invigorates us as he finds that little spark that can ignite a forest fire of passion, whether it be through his observations of adolescence or the commercialisation and myth of the American Dream he makes empowering manifesto driven statements with pure ferocity. Summer anthems, introspective thought-provokers, cathartic anger belters, whatever mood you’re in Dead Emerson has a song for it and he’s showcasing that today as he finds the beauty within the uglier moments of life.
Going down as my favourite track of his to date, Eleventh Hour is an evocative single that highlights the raw beauty of his vocal, reminiscent of alternative rock during the early 90’s, as he channels his dissociative feelings through a poetically poignant lyrical display. Utilising a sonic palette of abrasive grunge influence guitar riffs and thumping drums, we envision his struggle to answer the question of what his identity is. Every moment feels like we’re witnessing his pain, all he wants is to feel at home again within his skin but is battling every moment of it and can’t seem to get a victory. His upcoming EP And, Action! looks to answer this question as he searches for his resolution, be prepared for a marvellous project if this is just a small taste of what’s to come.
“A while back I had a long dissociative bout where I felt that every day was an out of body experience. I think it happened, in part, because I was struggling to answer serious questions about my identity, belief system, and self. I’ve always been a skeptic, but it backfired on me and put me in a place where I became paranoid. I think my conscience kept trying to remove itself just to cope. I woke up in the middle of the night and began telling myself that I couldn’t do this anymore; I just wanted my body and self back. And so I began writing the lines of the chorus because it was the only thing I understood– my body was not my body and I just wanted to be in my own skin again.”