{"id":583648,"date":"2023-07-20T19:01:34","date_gmt":"2023-07-20T16:01:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/agricultures-debut-album-is-a-study-in-dark-ecstasy\/"},"modified":"2023-07-20T19:01:34","modified_gmt":"2023-07-20T16:01:34","slug":"agricultures-debut-album-is-a-study-in-dark-ecstasy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/agricultures-debut-album-is-a-study-in-dark-ecstasy\/","title":{"rendered":"#Agriculture\u2019s debut album is a study in dark ecstasy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a36dc5bcede2\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a36dc5bcede2\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/agricultures-debut-album-is-a-study-in-dark-ecstasy\/#The_extreme_metal_band_discuss_the_making_of_their_new_self-titled_EP_premiering_a_day_early_with_The_FADER\" >The extreme metal band discuss the making of their new, self-titled EP, premiering a day early with The FADER.<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"deck\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_extreme_metal_band_discuss_the_making_of_their_new_self-titled_EP_premiering_a_day_early_with_The_FADER\"><\/span>The extreme metal band discuss the making of their new, self-titled EP, premiering a day early with The FADER.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"content_blocks\">\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-250399\" class=\"content_block paragraph image triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<p>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_760,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_220,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 220w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_300,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 300w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_400,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 400w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 600w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_750,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 750w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_840,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 840w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_960,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 960w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1260,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 1260w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1800,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 1800w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_2400,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_fxeec2\/agriculture-photo-by-math-erao.jpg 2400w,\" sizes=\"60vw\" alt=\"Agriculture\u2019s debut album is a study in dark ecstasy\"><span class=\"img_caption\"><\/p>\n<p>    <span class=\"caption\"><br \/>\n      Agriculture. Photo by Math Erao.<br \/>\n    <\/span><\/p>\n<p>  <span class=\"credit\"><br \/>\n      \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-250400\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/agriculturemusic.bandcamp.com\/\">Agriculture<\/a>\u2019s music is sublime chaos. The Los Angeles four-piece consisting of lead guitarist\/vocalist Daniel Meyer, drummer Kern Haug, guitarist Richard Chowenhill, and bassist\/vocalist Leah Levinson make extreme black metal that\u2019s both thoroughly m<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ed and spontaneously combustible, like a bomb planted under an empty corporate office building. Their 2022 EP <i>The Circle Chant<\/i> introduced the world to their white-knuckled style, but it was only a small sample.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            Their self-titled, debut album \u2014 premiering now with The FADER, a day before its July 21 wide release \u2014 is both a punishing and deeply rewarding endeavor. From the slow descent of opener \u201cThe Glory of the Ocean\u201d to the all-out catharsis of closer \u201cRelier,\u201d it more than achieves the band\u2019s goal of evoking a visceral, sometimes terrifying ecstasy in the listener \u2014 the way only the best hardcore can.<\/p>\n<p>            In advance of <i>Agriculture<\/i>\u2019s release, I spoke to Dan and Kern over email to discuss the process, themes, and inspirations behind their band\u2019s remarkable debut. Stream the album exclusively below, and scroll further for the Q&amp;A.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-250402\" class=\"content_block paragraph video triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"video_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"fluid-width-video-wrapper\" style=\"padding-top: 56.25%;\">\n<p>    <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Agriculture - Agriculture [Full Album Stream]\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/L6_vvlJiwFU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n \/\/trackYouTubeVideo('250402');\n<\/script><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-250401\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            <b>The FADER: I\u2019ve noticed more artists who make extreme music describing their art as \u201cecstatic.\u201d What do you think separates ecstatic black metal from the non-ecstatic kind? Is there a degree of ecstasy in all hardcore?<\/b><\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            <b>Daniel Meyer:<\/b> At its best, extreme music is about pushing every aspect of the musical experience towards something that feels like a limit. On a musical level, that might involve playing hella fast, super-dense textures, detuned guitars, impossible drumming, and screaming. But it\u2019s also the live show, which can involve moshing, weird dancing, or just the act of listening to something so intense. In the past, even though a lot of artists have used these techniques to describe horrible aspects of the human experience, the live shows are often scenes of communal ecstasy. I bet that anyone who has ever been to a good black or death metal show can attest to the sense of catharsis and joy that comes from gathering to listen to such intense music.<\/p>\n<p>            So I think in that sense, there is ecstasy implicit in all extreme music. <i>However<\/i>, our idea is to reach for that ecstatic communion from the jump. We\u2019re trying to call attention to the fact that feelings like joy, ecstasy, and relationship with spirit are just as intense as more traditional metal expressions like depression and fear \u2014 and, ideally, draw attention away from those feelings and towards something brighter. It\u2019s not that feeling shitty is bad or fake or unimportant; it\u2019s just that it\u2019s not any more or less important than any other feeling. The techniques of extreme metal are useful for getting that across.<\/p>\n<p>            When you read descriptions of religious ecstasy, those experiences are usually described as <i>super<\/i> intense. In Zen Buddhism, &#8220;practice enlightenment&#8221; is often likened to swallowing a ball of molten iron. You just have to let it become a part of you. So we\u2019re trying to make music that celebrates the ecstasy of connection \u2014 with spirit, with each other, with music, etc. Maybe that sounds corny, but to me, that\u2019s just a description of what extreme music shows, at their best, are already about.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            <b>\u201cThe Glory of the Ocean\u201d is this massive saga of a track that\u2019s quite a bold statement for an album opener. Its first few minutes feel almost like an overture. Were you drawing on any Classical or Romantic music for that first section?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>            <b>DM:<\/b> Richard and I both studied classical composition and that tradition crops up in our music \u2014 mainly in the attention we pay to form and moving from one musical structure to another. I\u2019ve always been interested in listening to music in the way that someone might look at paintings in a gallery. You spend some time with one piece in an easily perceptible frame, then you move on to something else. You get something out of the experience of observing them sequentially. They talk to each other in your brain. That\u2019s really apparent in \u201cThe Glory of the Ocean\u201d because it\u2019s so obviously sectional, but I think you hear that all over the record.<\/p>\n<p>            <b>\u201cThe Well\u201d also sort of operates as an overture, presenting themes from the album\u2019s three-part centerpiece, \u201cThe Look,\u201d in a less extreme way than we eventually hear them. Do you feel they hit harder this way than if you jumped right into the extreme bit?<\/b><\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            <b>DM:<\/b> One of the things I like about screaming in a musical context is that it gives a listener some choice in how they want to engage with the vocals. Obviously, most screams are incomprehensible, so if you want, you can just engage with the screams as another instrument that kind of humanizes the whole texture. I really like listening this way, particularly with bands that write beautiful music but all the lyrics are about human sacrifice or being a vampire or whatever. I expect some people will probably want to engage with our music this way, especially since we use words like \u201cGod\u201d to describe spirit and some people are uncomfortable with that. Knowing that people won\u2019t know what you\u2019re saying also gives you a lot of freedom as an artist. I change the lyrics during our live sets all the time. <\/p>\n<p>            But sometimes, lyrics are important. \u201cThe Well\u201d is kind of like an articulation of our mission statement as a band \u2014 particularly the lyric \u201cThere is Always Plenty of Water\u201d \u2014 so we wanted to make it as clear as possible.<\/p>\n<p>            <b>The very quick free jazz saxophone break in \u201cThe Look, Pt. 1\u201d reminds me of something you might hear on a late Scott Walker album. Is he an inspiration for you, and are there any other experimental artists outside the black metal canon whose work informed this album?<\/b><\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            <b>Kern Haug:<\/b> Scott Walker is definitely an inspiration for me. I first heard his song \u201c<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=T5xjyUKL308&amp;pp=ygUSZmFybWVyIGluIHRoZSBjaXR5\">Farmer in the City<\/a>\u201d on a compilation, had no idea who it was but I started trying to sing like that, and shortly after performed at the International Noise Conference in 2012, where I did my best Scott Walker impersonation. Afterwards a friend said, \u201cYou going for a Scott Walker sound?\u201d I said, \u201cWho\u2019s that?,\u201d and he told me about Scott Walker. I was like, \u201cSounds cool, I gotta check him out,\u201d and then I did and realized that yes, I had definitely been going for a Scott Walker sound.  <\/p>\n<p>            On a less comic note, though: I\u2019m a drummer and that was my first time performing without drums. Through that eerie vocal style, I felt like I could capture a lot of the feelings I access behind the drum kit. So, vice versa, on drums, I\u2019m frequently looking to get into an unsettled space, but one that\u2019s forcefully presented, which is how I hear Scott Walker\u2019s music.<\/p>\n<p>            <b>DM:<\/b> Some of the artists we were talking about a lot are Bob Dylan \u2014 I am constantly trying to push Bob on this band. I\u2019ve made everyone listen to \u201cTempest,\u201d his 15-minute opus from 2012 about the sinking of the Titanic at least 5 times in the van \u2014 John Coltrane, Mount Eerie\/the Microphones, Mahler, Bruce Springsteen, Josquin des Prez, John Dowland, and My Bloody Valentine.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            <b>\u201cRelier\u201d feels like a seven-minute exclamation point on the album, in that it\u2019s pretty full on all the way through. Was it the most cathartic track for you to write and record? If so, do you still feel that way when you listen back to it?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>            <b>DM:<\/b> It\u2019s funny: \u201cRelier\u201d is probably my favorite song on the record to listen to and one of my least favorite to play. I think when I play it, I just wish I was listening. It\u2019s so intense the whole time, and the subject matter is more exposed and personal than anything else on the record. It\u2019s really a prayer. And like any other spiritual thing, it\u2019s a lot easier to receive than to deliver. <\/p>\n<p>            But I really love the song, and I\u2019m really proud of how we put it together. We re-recorded the vocals for it like 7 times. I think we ultimately got it right. <\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-250409\" class=\"content_block paragraph embed triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\">\n    <iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm?p=TFI7834680816&amp;light=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"482\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"author\">\n    <span><br \/>\n      By <span class=\"credit_name\">Raphael Helfand<\/span><br \/>\n  <\/span><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thefader.com\/2023\/07\/20\/agricultures-debut-album-is-a-study-in-dark-ecstasy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The extreme metal band discuss the making of their new, self-titled EP, premiering a day early with The FADER. Agriculture. Photo by Math Erao. \u00a0 Agriculture\u2019s music is sublime chaos. The Los Angeles four-piece consisting of lead guitarist\/vocalist Daniel Meyer, drummer Kern Haug, guitarist Richard Chowenhill, and bassist\/vocalist Leah Levinson make extreme black metal that\u2019s&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":583649,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/c_limit,w_1024\/c_crop,h_533,w_1024,x_0,y_141,f_auto,q_auto:eco\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_ubwh4e\/agriculture_by_math_erao_2023_-_27_1_ubwh4e.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[79387,144608,87515,107126,95938,87510],"class_list":["post-583648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa","tag-agriculture","tag-black-metal","tag-experimental","tag-hardcore","tag-noise","tag-rock"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=583648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583648\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/583649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=583648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=583648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=583648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}