Album name: Into The Hollow
Artist: Mothman and The Thunderbirds
Alex Parkinson: Guitar, Bass, Vocals, Vocoder, Programming, Mixing & Mastering
Released: May 2021
Label: Mothman Records
Rating: 5.5/10
Album Art by Drahma R.
Tracklist
Mothman Takes Flight
Hollow Earth
Nomad
Indrid Cold
Infinite Ocean
The Simpsons = Real Footage
Agarthan Riders
Cloud Giant
Squonk
Roko's Basilisk
Hollow Sun
'Into The Hollow' by Mothman and The Thunderbirds, which will be released on the 21st of May 2021, was a project that caught my eye because of the references to conspiracy theorys and mythical things. You may notice that the song titles are named after these fanciful things. The project was created by Alex Parkinson and is a one man band that features quite a few special guests. Mothman and The Thunderbirds was created in Philadelphia, USA and could easily be described as sludge/prog rock. The album itself creates this other reality surrounding the conspiracy based ideas but within that it sees Mothman as this almost superhero like character tackiling real life issues of anxiety, isolation, global warming, war and manufactured consent.
"The band name was inspired by a binge-watch session of the beloved program Ancient Aliens. In one of the episodes, a host posited that the Mothman may be a Thunderbird. I thought to myself, 'hey, Mothman and The Thunderbirds would be a really dumb, but great, band name' and the rest was history!" - (Alex Parkison on the origins of the band)
Another thing that I found to be really interesting about 'Into The Hollow' was the versatility that is shown. There were many moments where I found myself questioning if I was still listening to the same band. The whole thing begins with this stereotypical heavy, aggresive, shouty metal but as 'Into The Hollow' progresses I began to hear songs that were completely different to how the album began, things like 'Infinite Ocean' which was the first single from Mothman and The Thunderbirds, this track feels more like a classic rock piece than something metal. The vocals are softer and it over all just feels a little more chilled out. I actually prefered this sound to the one I had been previously experiencing. Nearer the end of 'Into The Hollow' there's tracks such as 'Cloud Giant' and album closer 'Hollow Sun' which feel a lot more like stoner metal, very chilled out and actually probably my two favourite tracks on 'Into The Hollow'. 'Into The Hollow' features a lot of guests to create this full sound.
The people featured are:
Jason Roberts (of Breaths/CHNNLR): Lead Vocals on verses 3 & 4 of 'Infinite Ocean'
Kirby: Lead Vocals on 'The Simpsons = Real Footage'
Sam Parkinson: Guitar solo on 'Agarthan Riders'
Joe Sobieski: Lead Vocals on 'Cloud Giant'
I find 'Into The Hollow' to be a really interesting project and I like the creativity behind it but for me the music just wasn't there and I think that's the most important thing. Songs such as 'Indrid Cold' and 'The Simpson = Real Footage' felt like they were shouting at me rather than inviting me in. Sadly if I was just a casual listener I would've turned this off before reaching the end which is a whole other story. With songs like 'Cloud Giant' it became this whole other sound and as I've already mentioned felt like a completely different band, I actually really enjoyed this one and others around it. Mothman and The Thunderbirds even go back to the heavy sound that was at the start of the album with 'Roko's Basilisk' yet I found myself enjoying this more than the tracks I had heard at the beginning of 'Into The Hollow'. If you're interested in bands such Mastodon, Conan and Devin Townsend then you may enjoy this album. Even though the first half wasn't necessarily for me I would recommend checking out the second half of this album.
You can pre order 'Into The Hollow' HERE
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