Massa Nera - "Emptiness" LP

Our present moment sees us grappling with the rise of end-times fascism, the annihilation of collective, shared meaning, and the looming threat of climate catastrophe. It is within this landscape that Massa Nera release their urgent, genre-defying 3rd LP, "The Emptiness of All Things."

Having been given a commission by the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music to create a work that addresses the climate crisis, Massa Nera embraced experimentation, confrontation, and musical malfeasance in an attempt to capture the hellish inanity that defines our reality. Where once their songs bounced, they now alternately lumber and convulse. Their former impulse towards dance has mutated into a desire for destruction.

Lyrically, Massa Nera has shunned autobiography in favor of something more character-driven, more literary, more speculative. They offer a snapshot of capitalistic delusion and existential paralysis, rooted in the anxieties and fractured psychologies of the here and now. In short, "The Emptiness of All Things" is a lyrical call to arms, delivered not as a rallying cry but as an obituary. It is a mirror held up to the abyss, reflected back at the listener without pity or mawkish sentiment.

Despite this, the band has not abandoned melody. The predominant mood of ugliness is counterbalanced by passages of beauty, longing, and even undisguised gentleness. This gentleness, however, is not in service of an unearned, misplaced optimism. It is offered in the spirit of reflection, allowing listener and band alike to take a breath as they stare into the void.

"The Emptiness of All Things" was recorded and mixed by Matt Michael (No Man, Majority Rule) and mastered by James Plotkin (Khanate). The LP comes packaged in a gatefold jacket with newsprint poster insert and limited colored vinyl.

TRACK LISTING:

01. A Body

02. Pelerin

03. Avalon Cove

04. The Best is Over

05. Mechanical Sunrise

06. City of Mines

07. Lavender

08. Death Shall Flee From Them

09. The Emptiness of All Things

10. New Animism