Tag: Allegories Constant

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Allegories Shares a Woozy New Single

Allegories — childhood friends Adam Bentley and Jordan Mitchell — can trace their project’s origins to their penchant for indulging in unconventional musical pursuits. After founding anthemic, indie rock outfit The Rest, Bentley and Mitchell embraced any opportunity to indulge their more outeé inclinations and desires. 

Back in 2014, Bentley and Mitchell began writing and recording material with no clear destination in mind, dabbling in everything from neoclassical compositions to hip hop. Gathering further inspiration from DJ’ing house and hip-hop nights, the act began to create electronic music that often shifts between the mainstream and underground spectrum. 

Throughout the past decade or so, the duo have had very busy schedules: Bentley currently works behind the scenes in the music industry. Mitchell operates a restaurant. But Allegories almost always found a way to creep back into their lives — even if only as a private amusement between the pair. 

The duo spent the better part of a decade winnowing down 35 song ideas into their nine-song album Endless, their first full-length album in over 14 years. “There’s a moment during the marking of an album, where you don’t know if you’ll finish it,” Bentley and Mitchell say. “Endless was riddled with these cynical epiphanies. It’s unavoidable when you’ve spent over half a decade tinkering away. But as we closed in on the finish line, there was a sense that this could be the last work you ever complete. That spurs the process on, giving urgency. 

If you spend 14 years between albums, you want to make every note count.”

In the lead up to the album’s release earlier this year, I wrote about three singles:

  • “Pray” a bizarre yet winning mix of menace, irony and sincerity paired with an Evil Heat era Primal Scream meets Sound of Silver era LCD Soundsystem-like production.
  • “Constant,” a sugary sweet endorphin and dopamine rush centered around oscillating synth pulse and achingly plaintive vocal delivery paired with euphoric hooks. The end result is a song that simultaneously feels pleasant but also kind of off in a way that’s visceral but you can’t quite put your finger on. 
  • “Always True,” a glittery, late night, house banger centered around ominous synth pads, thumping beats and achingly plaintive vocals that slowly builds up to a woozy and dizzying crescendo before gently fading out. The song’s narrator wearily pushes on through some awkward social interaction that ironically enough they’ve desperately longed for because they’ve been isolated for so long. 

After the album’s official release, I wrote about “Funny Way,” a slow-burning and atmospheric track centered around woozy synths and skittering thump paired with plaintive vocals. While the previously released singles were off-kilter and dripping with irony, “Funny Way,” may arguably be the most earnest song of the album. 

“‘Funny Way’ is in many ways the beating heart of Endless. It is chronologically the earliest recording on this album, bridging a gap between two musical worlds in our lives,” the duo explain in press notes. “‘Funny Way’ holds a unique and earnest place within our catalogue of music.” 

Endless‘ fifth and latest single “Tell Me Before I Forget” is centered around glistening synth arpeggios, skittering beats, whispered and cooed falsetto vocals and insistent thump paired with the duo’s uncanny knack for infectious hooks. Much like its immediate predecessors, “Tell Me Before I Forget” is a woozy and mind-bending mix of earnestness, sneering irony and menace.

The accompanying video by Andrew O’Connor is a fittingly kaleidoscopic, satellite view of ocean waves crashing against a rock — with the visual pulsing in time to the music.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Allegories Share Slow-Burning and Woozy “Funny Way”

Allegories — childhood friends Adam Bentley and Jordan Mitchell — can trace their project’s origins to their penchant for indulging in unconventional musical pursuits. After founding anthemic, indie rock outfit The Rest, Bentley and Mitchell embraced any opportunity to indulge their more outeé inclinations and desires.

Back in 2014, Bentley and Mitchell began writing and recording material with no clear destination in mind, dabbling in everything from neoclassical compositions to hip hop. Gathering further inspiration from DJ’ing house and hip-hop nights, the act began to create electronic music that often shifts between the mainstream and underground spectrum. 

Throughout the past decade or so, the duo have had very busy schedules: Bentley currently works behind the scenes in the music industry. Mitchell operates a restaurant. But Allegories almost always found a way to creep back into their lives — even if only as a private amusement between the pair.

They spent the better part of a decade winnowing down 35 song ideas into their nine-song album Endless, their first full-length album in over 14 years. “There’s a moment during the marking of an album, where you don’t know if you’ll finish it,” Bentley and Mitchell say. “Endless was riddled with these cynical epiphanies. It’s unavoidable when you’ve spent over half a decade tinkering away. But as we closed in on the finish line, there was a sense that this could be the last work you ever complete. That spurs the process on, giving urgency. 

If you spend 14 years between albums, you want to make every note count.”

In the lead-up to the album’s release late last week, I’ve written about three singles:

  • “Pray” a bizarre yet winning mix of menace, irony and sincerity paired with an Evil Heat era Primal Scream meets Sound of Silver era LCD Soundsystem-like production.
  • “Constant,” a sugary sweet endorphin and dopamine rush centered around oscillating synth pulse and achingly plaintive vocal delivery paired with euphoric hooks. The end result is a song that simultaneously feels pleasant but also kind of off in a way that’s visceral but you can’t quite put your finger on. 
  • “Always True,” a glittery, late night, house banger centered around ominous synth pads, thumping beats and achingly plaintive vocals that slowly builds up to a woozy and dizzying crescendo before gently fading out. The song’s narrator wearily pushes on through some awkward social interaction that ironically enough they’ve desperately longed for because they’ve been isolated for so long.

Endless‘ fourth and latest single “Funny Way” is a slow-burning and atmospheric track centered around woozy synths and skittering thump paired with plaintive vocals. While the previously released singles were off-kilter and dripping with irony, “Endless,” may arguably be the most earnest song of the album.

“‘Funny Way’ is in many ways the beating heart of Endless. It is chronologically the earliest recording on this album, bridging a gap between two musical worlds in our lives,” the duo explain in press notes. “‘Funny Way’ holds a unique and earnest place within our catalogue of music.”

The accompanying visual is a lysergic affair featuring explosive flashes of color that look like auroras. Moving geometric shapes, which appear like flowers before quickly disappearing and reappearing are superimposed over the aurora-like flashes. Tune in and tune out to this one, y’all.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Allegories Shares a Glittery House Inspired Banger

Allegories — childhood friends Adam Bentley and Jordan Mitchell — can trace their origins to their penchant for indulging in unconventional musical pursuits. Even after founding anthemic, indie-rock outfit The Rest, they embraced any opportunity to indulge their more outré inclinations and desires. Back in 2014, Bentley and Mitchell began writing and recording material with no clear destination in mind, dabbling in everything from neoclassical compositions to hip hop. Gathering further inspiration from DJ’ing house and hip-hop nights, the act began to create electronic music that often shifts between the mainstream and underground spectrum. 

Throughout the past decade or so, Bentley and Mitchell have had busy schedules. Bentley currently works behind the scenes in the music industry. Mitchell operates a restaurant. But Allegories almost always found a way to creep back into their lives — if only as a private amusement between the duo. Eventually, they would wind up spending the better part of a decade winnowing down 35 song ideas into their 9-song album Endless, their first album in over 14 years. 

So far I’ve written about two of Endless‘ singles:

  • “Pray” a bizarre yet winning mix of menace, irony and sincerity paired with an Evil Heat era Primal Scream meets Sound of Silver era LCD Soundsystem-like production.
  • “Constant,” a sugary sweet endorphin and dopamine rush centered around oscillating synth pulse and achingly plaintive vocal delivery paired with euphoric hooks. The end result is a song that simultaneously feels pleasant but also kind of off in a way that’s visceral but you can’t quite put your finger on.

The album’s third and final single “Always True” is a glittery, late night, house banger centered around ominous synth pads, thumping beats and achingly plaintive vocals that slowly builds to a woozy and dizzying crescendo before gently fading out. The song’s narrator seems to wearily push on through some awkward social interaction that’s also strangely, something they desperately long for — because we’re all social creatures after all.

“‘Always True’ feels like the dark part at the end of the night,” the band explains. “The wrong side of 5am. A dark warehouse bouncing to ominous synth pads, and 909s. A sudden surge of energy, a second wind, one more dance while the night wears off.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Allegories Share a Euphoric New Single

Allegories — childhood friends Adam Bentley and Jordan Mitchell — can trace their origins to their penchant for indulging in unconventional musical pursuits. Even after founding anthemic, indie-rock outfit The Rest, they embraced any opportunity to indulge their more outré inclinations and desires. In 2014. Bentley and Mitchell began writing and recording material with no clear destination in mind, dabbling in everything from neoclassical compositions to hip hop. Gathering further, inspiration from DJ’ing house and hip-hop nights, the act began to create electronic music that often shifts between the mainstream and underground spectrum. 

Throughout the past decade or so, Bentley and Mitchell have had busy schedules. Bentley had worked in the music industry. Mitchell operates a restaurant. But Allegories almost always found a way to creep back into their lives — if only as a private amusement between the duo. Eventually, they would wind up spending the better part of a decade winnowing down 35 song ideas into their 9-song album Endless, their first album in over 14 years.

Late last year, I wrote about “Pray” a bizarre yet winning mix of menace, irony and sincerity paired with an Evil Heat era Primal Scream meets Sound of Silver era LCD Soundsystem-like production. Endless‘ latest single “Constant” is centered around oscillating synth pulse, an achingly plaintive vocal delivery and a euphoria-inducing hook. The end result is a sugary sweet, endorphin and dopamine rush that feels both pleasant and yet somehow kind of off.

The song is what the duo call a “timid diss track to oneself and all that you love.”

Endless is slated for an April 29, 2022 release.