The Full Story
About The Rapture
casserole of absurdity is SO MUCH FUN. From a samba
Political:
While Four Dumb Presidents Snore, While They Settled Their Score, A.M.O.C., Make a Better World & One Day
WHILE FOUR DUMB PRESIDENTS SNORE is a piece of alternative-country irony. sarcastically going through the fatal mismanagements of the pandemic by authoritarian governments. The song itself is an experiment, a deconstruction of the country style, beginning with chirping birds (happy nature enjoying the freedom of human confinement): "The birds were happy, the air was clean. We couldn't have imagined a better scene."
The music is distant, almost otherworldly. A synthesised drone and a thumping kick drum introduce an acoustic guitar coming in with the vocal. The guitar plays a simple and monotonous riff, underscoring the stupidity of the whole mess:
"By drinking bleach, and posting tweets, one president made the whole thing sweet. Our world groaned while the leaders moaned, and 4 dumb presidents snored". The song is as messy as the situation. Madadkin was playing with chaos here. The final Moog 'solo' is accompanied by laughter and, finally, a very ironic applause drifting back into chirping birds.
WHILE THEY SETTLED THEIR SCORE: This is a fast rock song, the most of which was recorded in one take, reworking the criticism of the Abominable Preachers who get our votes by selling us lies, whereas the only reasons they have for being in power is to settle their own personal scores.
A.M.O.C is an ecological concern, about the imminent collapse of the North Atlantic gulf stream that will bring catastrophic climate collapse to the Northern Hemisphere. A strong rock song with a lo-fi mix.
MAKE A BETTER WORLD contemplates a different world, a better world, and how we can make it come about. Weird and quirky.
ONE DAY is a call to be optimistic and open our hearts to the possibility of a Utopia. The piece opens with rather grey swirls and dark bass riffs but gradually becomes brighter and brighter, ending with a sparkling passage with bright synth chimes and vibraphone.
AVANT GARDE
Kicking Lacan
KICKING LACAN is Madadkin's first example of the collage piece, using authentic recordings of the philosopher, mixed into the jazzy collage with a strong dialogue between an upright bass and a lo-fi piano.
Postpandemic:
The Age of the Mask & This Aint No World of Mine
THE AGE OF THE MASK was released earlier as a single. It sounds seemingly like a 'light' ballad sung over an arpeggiating piano, but if one pays attention to the lyrics it is a brutal description of the Covid reality ambiguously drifting between the tragic and the comic, between the despair of the pandemic and the difficult but inherently positive message it holds for humanity.
THIS AINT NO WORLD OF MINE: Is a kind of pop anthem. It deals with the world created by the pandemic, but it is more pessimistic in its tone than The Age of the Mask. Humanity is disappearing into a technological fog while the world around us turns into an overcrowded cesspit of rubbish and human alienation.
Personal Stuff:
The Artist's Song & The Angel (I & II)
THE ARTIST'S SONG: This was an old ballad, sometimes performed in the café concerts but had never been recorded before. It starts with a questioning and muffled slide guitar intro, before bringing in the ringing acoustic fingerpicking.
THE ANGEL (I & II): These two versions take a male vs female perspective of the same event, although the songs are both the same. Version I is sung by Ariadna and II is sung by Paul.
These ballads (both The Artist's Song and The Angel) are different from most Madadkin material as they are more subjective and personal, relating a private scene rather than being social commentary.
Apocalyptic:
The Rapture & The System is Vile
THE RAPTURE: The album’s title song, and also the longest, is based on text drawn from the biblical book of Revelations, implying that the Apocalypse has already arrived.
THE SYSTEM IS VILE: Also uses Biblical language to create an apocalyptic soundtrack.