Hidden Exits
By
The Human
Remains
It is always good to have a new release from Plague on the
blog, and this is no exception. As always with Plague the run up to the release
of this has been steeped in mystery with cryptic postal drops and social media
posts. Sadly, due to my current circumstances, I’ve not been privy to the
postal drops as yet…
What I have read regarding Hidden Exits by The Human
Remains seems to demand more that just a standard review, nothing new here
then. The promo material gives us a hint that The Human Remains is formed of
three creative minds. Those creative minds come with a history that is immersed
in 90’s Rap and experimental electronica. The description of the sound of the Hidden
Exits album also gives hints that this could well be like nothing we have
heard before. Other promo material points toward Hidden Exits bringing new
sounds and a broad spectrum of influences that might boggle most minds.
The only way to approach this is to step outside the warm
comfort of everyday life and to look to that ‘cold dark night in the bowels of
winter’ where you can take a walk for the next forty minutes or so, passing
into realm where anything is possible and where the only impossible thing is
nothingness.
So, feel free to join me as I take my own walk alongside The
Human Remains, into a world where the only exits are Hidden Exits, and
beyond the normal…
My trip begins with the opening track It’s Who? Where
the first introduction to The Human Remains brings a sound which is almost like
a heartbeat, pounding with sonic elements, but softened into the background
allowing the vocals to step to the forefront. For an opening track this one is
packed with messages that touch on faith and the struggles around it, mental
health and relationships. It leaves you with a lot to think about, especially
if you consider who you are too. Almost stopped in my tracks by what I’ve heard
already, Left Behind drifts into my awareness bringing heavy guitar from
Charlie Romijn, organ notes and more giving this a proper head nod vibe. This
one hits on a level that tests the resolve of the toughest mind. Understanding
the depth of this one may well bring a tear to the eye. This one has a deeply
personal edge, especially for anyone who has lost someone close to them, and
anyone who knows me will know the losses I have experienced. Any journey comes
with tough times, and this one brings a huge energy that allows you to
understand the personal edge and realise what being left behind is all about.
The road ahead of me now seems a little blurred as the extra moisture coats the
surface of my eyes. The heavy pounding sound of Wired hits my ears and I
blink a few times as the sound grabs my attention immediately. The vocals and
electronic elements of the sound burst though my ears. I realise that this one
reminds me of my own writing process, this is all about inspiration and finding
the right way to get the words flowing. Music is something that always gets
words flowing for me, but what about those who write the words or craft the
sounds I hear, what are their inspirations; this one helps you understand that
inspiration is something that helps us all, regardless of where it originates.
Ash hits with a nerve-jangling sound that twists your
mind into some universe that perhaps exists alongside our own, but at the same
time, maybe it does not? Here we have the guys doing some straight up story
telling. Transported to some post-apocalyptic landscape where one walks on a
quest whist ash rains down around him. I almost felt I was that person, seeing
these things, meeting someone who speaks in riddles that twist your mind. At
one point this all seemed prophetic, perhaps foretelling what is to come in our
own world. Then a felt back in reality, I looked down at my right hand and
opened it to find two dice. The two dice heralded the next track, Dice Roll.
The sound here is one that is full of electronic and sonic sounds. It twists
you mind and your nerves somewhat but has a vibe that is almost ragga of dub.
This one speaks on relationships, those of the past, present and, perhaps the
future too. It seems crafted by a mind that is in love, but at the same time feeling
an emptiness that something is about to pass, and the grief of another loss
coming to pass. The journey through this album seems to be taking me on a trip
that hits me in different ways at every step. Next up is Portals where
the sound is pounding, but in a way that seems to keep you bouncing around,
randomly. That feeling of random information hits you in the lyrics too, and
that assault of the senses puts you in mind of the act of Doom Scrolling. Most
people can associate with the random information and other things that comes
from scrolling through a news feed, a thing that often leaves you feeling
exhausted and questioning your own sanity.
Remnant finds my journey through this strange,
twisted world suddenly enter a new vista, accompanied by a sound that stretches
your nerves to breaking point. The sun beats down and a dead gunslinger rises
from the grave. His skeletal fingers claw at the earth, his only focus is to
avenge the wrongs that were buried with his bullet riddled body. There is a rawness
here that accompanies the sound, and it leaves you wondering just where the
vengeance will end. As I move into the second half of this album the idea of
finding an exit, even just a temporary respite comes to mind, but those exits
are all Hidden Exits and the albums title track hits with a heavy bass
sound that is not quite heavy enough to shake you to the core but, it vibrates
your entire body. Any chance I had of finding a way out are barred at every
turn by somewhat playful wordplay that keeps me looking over my shoulder at
every turn. Is it dark here, is it light, I’m not sure. Before I can see where
the sound of bells is coming from, the Wendigo bars my way and everything goes
black. From the haze of darkness, a scene forms itself before me. I see a
strange key, the Stolen Key and then the music starts. Weird bells,
plodding drums and electronic sounds fill my ears and a heavy dark tone fills
me with dread. Scenes of strange rituals fill my mind as groups of people crowd
around. Who are they, freemasons, some strange occultists or what. This one
will twist your mind and take you to a hidden world where certain people
congregate to do who knows what, in the name of who…
Bone Grubber continues the high strangeness, just
when you were hoping no more could happen. This little skit see’s a strange man
calling out. He is collecting all the bad things you’ve experienced, all those
thing’s that you would rather forget. Where is he taking them? I don’t know,
and right now it does not matter. All that does matter is to be rid of these
things before I take another step into this weirdness. Nexus brings a
strange sound that seems to encompass nature sounds blending them that
electronic sounds to carry you along. For once I see a world that is more
familiar, the lyrics brings images of nature, the wheel of the year, death and
rebirth. This is very much feeling like an ode to nature, looking at the how
our connection with nature brings so much to our lives. The wheel of the year
brings birth, then death, then rebirth. Living in conjunction with nature can
bring so much to our lives and it is something we should not forget. Beyond
that, it is about both sides of the coin, within and without and where the
things that inspire you, really come from.
The penultimate track of the album brings me to the Red
Room a place that is opened by the Stolen Key. The sound has a sound
that invites thoughts of darkness, fear and the unknown. The lyrics twist and
turn the scene as I walk through this imagined room, a pandora’s box, a place
where fear itself grips you, feeding on everything within you. The final track
brings an ending to sight with Human Error. The sound is sonic and
electronic transporting you to a world of one’s and zeros. The lyrics are
delivered with an electronic distortion to them, making you wonder who you are
listening to, man or machine, physical or digital, AI or true consciousness. There
is a Sci-Fi aspect to this one, exploring possibles futures that may or may not
come to pass. By the end of this on you realise that once you open that door to
the exit you have found, what will be on the other side of that door, the
reality you just left forty odd minutes ago or something totally different…
It is not often that I get the chance to do something
completely different with a review, but Hidden Exits gave me that
chance. It does that by transporting the listener to some nightmare world, a
parallel universe that exposes the listener to the raw reality of what the
world around us is like. Now, you might think that from what you have just
read, that The Human Remains just see the world as a dark place where there is
no escape from. But that is just not the truth. The reality here is that whilst
this might show the darker side of reality, it is all subjective, and your view
of this will depend on your own lived experiences as they a huge part in how
you see what the music gives you.
Hidden Exits is, without a doubt, one of the most
interesting experimental albums I have heard to date. The production come from
Stuart Matthews, who brings this sound which mixes Hip Hop, electronic and more
into these soundscapes that have a dark edge but, also an energy that keeps
you moving, in some way, throughout. The lyrics from Ian and Bub are delivered
in a way that you can hear, allowing you to feel and digest every part, letting
the complex wordplay elicit and individually personal response. Their
inspirations range from the likes of H.G. Wells to Fallout 4 (PS4) and family
related stories to magic mushrooms, movies, folklore and so much more.
What The Human Remains have done with Hidden Exits is
to show you both sides of the coin in such a way as from deep personal
experiences. This allows you to associate with so much of what you hear. It
also begs the question that ‘with so much sounding dark, where is the light’?
The light is there, because how can there be darkness without light in the
first place? In fact perhaps Hidden Exits presents you with a vision of
darkness so well, you forget that there is no darkness in the first place. You
only saw darkness because is was described so well!
Hidden Exits might not be for everyone, but it is one
of the most cleaver and poignant albums I’ve heard in a while. It shows you
that not everything you see around you is real. It invites you to look beyond
what you can see, question everything and retain a connect to the natural world
before it is lost forever.
Hidden Exits is on pre-order for physical copies now
and released everywhere from 13th November. So, whatever you do,
have a listen to it and see where it takes you. I promise it won’t disappoint.
My humble thanks to
Dan at Plague for the chance to immerse myself in this one.
See you soon.
Steve
LINKS
Pre-order physical copies Here:
https://plague.co/album/hidden-exits
The Human Remains Socials:
https://www.instagram.com/thehumanremains/
https://www.thehumansremain.co.uk/
Plague Socials:
https://www.instagram.com/plague_11/
https://www.facebook.com/plague11
