The message behind all this is blunt and harsh. In their sleeve artwork, Somalgia go to great pains to represent their bleak and dystopian vision. I read such slogans as “Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored”. Then I look at the lyrics. “Thanks for all the emptiness”, begins “Final Utterance”. I see modern expressions: “New world is new normal”. Somalgia draw on the image of an Orwellian nightmare in polarising the real-world and inverted hierarchy, as they describe it. The process, represented in the words, incorporates the struggle and alienation from consumerism and technology overload. The scene is set. I sense I’m being told and not allowed to think. Given that this is an album, all this messaging means nothing without the music, which we’re told “covers an eclectic range of influences & genres from black metal, trip-hop and folk to progressive & psychedelic rock”.
The brief and direct titles – “God is Dead”, “Consumer”, “The March of Tyranny” and “Dear Rulers” amongst others – reinforced my impression that this might all be heavily didactic, but let me say that the heavy messaging is presented in a most interesting way. “God is Dead” is robotic, but equally cosmic and retro in style. What “track and trace me” could be referring to, I wonder? The mechanically emitted words form a set of dark images, supported by a gamut of music styles. “Recalcitrant” is growled prog theatre of the psychologically intrusive and playful kind. We’re taken to another, almost nightmarish, yet engaging world. It’s as if the aliens have come out to play in a scene of horror. The aliens dance and flicker. On the surface it’s all very jolly but the dark growls and overall atmosphere are actually chilling. From this we go to the melancholy of “Wonderland”. The narration seems to be from a faraway place and reflects disorientation. The music has a strong progressive edge to it, and transports us through retro sound, sublime guitar work and electronic sounds through a strange world.
Dark techno accompanies the diction of “Consumer”. Stylistically it reminds me of Clan of Xymox or Front Line Assembly. The chorus is delightfully childlike. Further electro disturbance runs through “The March of Tyranny”. Mid way there’s a sample about coronavirus and wearing masks but what I prefer to remember this piece for is its electronic energy. This is replaced by a dreamy Floydian piece of defiance called “Dear Rulers”: “We will not comply with you. We won’t back down. We see right through”. The vocal narration is disarmingly gentle and convincing, while putting two fingers up to the establishment and its lies. Yet it’s also a very engaging, powerful and emotive piece. This is an album where you discover more with each listen, but of all the songs “Dear Rulers” touched me the most. A black cloud of darkness cuts in, as it is prone to do through this unconventional and multi-faceted album. Of all the songs on this album, “Dear Rulers” touched me the most. As the album comes to a close with “Final Utterance”, melancholy was perhaps to be expected. To the backdrop of an acoustic guitar and keyboard, a female voice delivers an airy, emotive piece.
Whether this is a statement or a protest is perhaps immaterial, but what was most interesting to me was the creative thought behind its musical and vocal presentation, and its connection to the theme. Stylistically there are tinges of black metal, large doses of classic prog, fresh commercial choruses, spooky touches, dark electronica and a lot of retro style keyboard work. “Inverted World” is highly theatrical, and almost music hall with elements of a West End musical at times, yet there’s space for lush, lofty and dreamy guitar work which raise and expand the unremittingly surreal atmosphere. This is different, and whether you’re interested in Somalgia’s messaging or not, I guess that’s the idea. I appreciated very much the uniqueness, sophistication, imagination and cleverness of this album’s delivery. “How deep does the rabbit hole go?”, is the question asked on the sleeve. Well I don’t know the answer, but I do know that Somalgia carry out a deep artistic exploration with “Inverted World”, and have come up with a multitude of discoveries and riches.
(9/10 Andrew Doherty)
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