With two heavily stacked samplers teasing the public into near madness, the drop of Forbidden Society’s next epic album, Lonely Road, is almost upon us. From said samplers, punters will have gleaned that the LP is varied, heavy and a study in sound science, which are all par for the course for the Czech bass mad scientist. Listening to the fully album in its entirety, however, will bring an altogether different experience laden with artistry, emotion and heavy concept.
With the title as it is, many fans may have guessed that Lonely Road is a musical journey, and the album is indeed laid out as such. Starting with ‘Sunrise’ and ending with ‘End Game,’ it seems to reflect not only the journey of an artist through stages of creation but really any creative or healing journey. While, like it says on the tin, these are often singular and solitary journeys, they are also relatable. Forbidden Society Uses all the tools at his disposal: genre, beat pattern and the deepest frequencies to create tone, undertone and nuance in each track. Each representing an integral part of any creative journey, each track is also a trip in its own right. Each track tells a mini story and leads into the next phase. The melodic ‘Deep Blue’, for example, represents a calm, a beautiful immersion in sound and the creative process before the aggressive halftime track ‘Posers,’ the chaotic techno ‘Empty Field’ and the glitchy ‘Reaching Zero’ make the next steps in the process intense, chaotic and difficult. There’s an ebb and flow to this journey, but no one moment, no one process, is ever the same as the last or the next.
Sometimes someone can be found hiding in the noise. Away from light, cloaked in distortion, breathing under the concrete. They might be found to speak, a lone transmission like a resonant peak in a storm. Their voice is dwarfed by the violence, but if you listen closely, you can hear their story.
For Forbidden Society and indeed for any artist, the creative process is a very personal journey of self-discovery. It’s fitting that the last premiere before we all embark on the Lonely Road with Forbidden Society should be the title track. Full of all the sounds he’s about to use swirling around him, this heavy and evocative D&B cruncher of a tune is contemplative as he takes the first step. It must be a familiar feeling, beginning on each album journey again, knowing there will be twists and turns, doubts and problems, but he’s also stepping into the unknown, as even the most organised of artists can never fully predict the end result. With the ominous ‘Lonely Road’, Forbidden Society immerses his audience into this solitary world with him, with all the sounds floating around in the ether, waiting to be turned into music.
With all its technical prowess and creatively pushing the boundaries, Lonely Road is also intensely personal and vulnerable. Forbidden Society has given fans a raw look into his process via the music he produces. Everyone can walk this road, but ultimately it’s an individual one that can only be experienced alone.
Lonely Road drops on Vision Recordings Thursday, 13th June. Pre-order or pre-save here.
Listen to the other available tracks:
