Aural Aggravation

KEN mode has released ‘These Wires,’ the latest single from its upcoming album, VOID.

The sequel to last year’s acclaimed NULL album, VOID will be released September 22nd on Artoffact Records.

Stream ‘These Wires’ here:

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KEN mode frontman Jesse Matthewson gives this statement about the new song: "Why would anything feel right again? Do you get the sense that a lot of people have been fundamentally damaged by the pandemic? The psychological fallout of this event is going to be seen for years to come, and this is its anthem."

An 8-minute epic, building from an icy lament into a deluge of distress, "These Wires" is perhaps the song that best expresses VOID’s story of sorrow and dismay. Centered around a simple piano melody, courtesy of newest member Kathryn Kerr, and Matthewson’s fragile spoken words, the song erupts into thunderous rhythms, propelled by the machine-like interplay of bassist Skot Hamilton and Jesse’s brother Shane Matthewson on drums. Jesse’s pleas hit with all the directness of Henry Rollins (whose "KEN mode" acronym, described in his book, Get in the Van, provided the Matthewsons with the inspiration for their band’s name, almost 25 years ago) as he belts out the song’s crucial six-word phrase: "Why would anything feel right again?"

Released in September of last year, KEN mode’s eighth album, NULL, was inspired by the bleakest days of the COVID-19 pandemic and saw the band create some of the rawest, harshest material of its career. The album also marked the official debut of multi-instrumentalist Kerr, who helped install a new palette of No Wave and industrial-tinged sounds into the band’s trademark mix of metallic hardcore and noise rock.

Amongst other honors, NULL earned KEN mode the front cover of Decibel Magazine, wherein the music was described as "evocative, guttural, Howl-esque poetry laid over frantic, Godflesh-ian soundscapes." A review from Stereogum stated: "NULL is KEN mode at their peak as composers."

Arriving exactly one year after NULL, VOID is KEN mode’s ninth full-length album. More than merely the follow-up to NULL, VOID is a companion to that album, inspired by the same events, and written and recorded within the same time frame. Where NULL embodied the chaos and shock of the early days of the pandemic, VOID is the sound of disappointment and sadness that followed.

Upon VOID’s release in September, KEN mode will embark on a tour of Europe, including dates with Fange and Lingua Ignota, followed by US dates with Baroness and a slot on the next Decibel Metal & Beer Fest in Denver.

Tour:

Sep 24 – Porto, PT @ Amplifest

Sep 26 – Rouen, FR @ Le 106 w/Fange

Sep 27 – Lille, FR @ L’Aéronef w/Fange

Sep 28 – Paris, FR @ Point Ephémère w/Fange

Sep 29 – Angoulême, FR @ La Nef w/Fange

Sep 30 – Clermont-Ferrand, FR @ La Coopérative de Mai w/Fange

Oct 1 – Yverdon-Les-Bains, CH @ L’Amalgame

Oct 2 – Karlsruhe, DE @ Jubez w/Fange

Oct 3 – Dresden, DE @ Ostpol w/Fange

Oct 4 – Wroclaw, PL @ Klub Łącznik w/Fange

Oct 5 – Berlin, DE @ Urban Spree w/Fange

Oct 7 – Aalborg, DK @ 1000 Fryd w/Fange

Oct 8 – Aarhus, DK @ HeadQuarters w/Fange

Oct 10 – Liege, BE @ La Zone w/Fange

Oct 11 – Haarlem, NL @ Patronaat w/Fange

Oct 12 – Bruxelles, BE @ Le Botanique w/Fange

Oct 13 – Brighton, UK @ The Hope & Ruin

Oct 14 – London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall w/Lingua Ignota

Oct 31 – Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre w/Baroness

Nov 3 – Seattle, WA @ Crocodile w/Baroness

Nov 4 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre w/Baroness

Nov 6 – Edmonton, AB @ Union Hall w/Baroness

Nov 7 – Calgary, AB @ The Palace Theatre w/Baroness

Nov 10 – Saskatoon, SK @ Amigos Cantina

Nov 11 – Winnipeg, MB @ Good Will Social Club w/Tunic

Dec 1 – Denver, CO @ Decibel Metal & Beer Festival

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Photo: Brenna Faris Photography