New York-based duo -ness – comprised of Jesse Weisberg and Ethan Peck – has been hard at work on their album whatever’s unclear to you, it’s the same for me, which will make its debut on November 11th. And when we say “hard at work,” we’re not saying it lightly. The guys wrote every track in its entirety during a 6 month timeframe in Tel Aviv, Israel, and then performed, engineered, mixed and mastered the entire piece by themselves when they returned to NYC. We’ve got the exclusive premiere of their new single, “The Propagandist”.
Although the track immediately begins with an upbeat tempo, dazzling synth leading the tribal vibe on, it isn’t altogether a track that boasts a positive thought process. “This song originated from a place of deep uncertainty about what to believe in religion, politics, media, who to trust, what to do with our lives after college, etc.,” -ness explains. “We were looking for a philosophy, a way to think it all through and make this life our own, instead of just molding into a cluster of narratives injected into our everyday lives. We began writing to make sense of it all, and the first product was ‘The Propagandist’.”
Regarding the entire record as a journey for a hypothetical protagonist, “The Propagandist” is the staple first track on the album, depicting the beginning of the adventure. In fact, the instrumental composition makes it feel like a fun, thrilling adventure to be on, while lyrics like “simmer down, gather ’round / the king has come to speak” actually serve to show us that this upbeat demeanor is enveloped around a sinister, confusing reality. Sampling a speech given by Hitler in reverse, the duo hits the nail on the head by demonstrating that the medium always trumps (ha) the message.
Poignant as its message might be, we’d still play it at our next big party.
“The Propagandist” is included on whatever’s unclear to you, it’s the same for me, out November 11th. Keep up with the guys via Facebook and nesstheband.com.
