Dust off your The Gloom In The Corner lore book and open that hefty tome to the “Warfare” page, kids. Continuing the thread of the Melbourne band’s conceptual story to date, the series of three songs – “Violence” released in April, “Warfare” released on Friday, and a further single to come – are collectively intended to firmly tie up any loose ends in the aftermath of Flesh & Bones. Vocalist Mikey Arthur sums up the three song release as being “a last chapter and an epilogue”, with the artwork of each fittingly forming a larger picture, in the style of the Last Supper.
As chaotic and huge as “Violence” before it, “Warfare” comes with a greater sense of eeriness, as well as being hauntingly menacing. The presence of whispers are as unsettling as the song’s bluntness, and the atmosphere is dark and crushing. It’s at the chorus and its lead-up that there’s a break in the storminess, and the moment comes across like a shining (yet still bleak) light, with rumbles of thunder threateningly remaining.
There’s a cinematic quality to it all, with the viewer being led to a horrific climactic moment. With a peak in the sense of conflict, it’s as if the expected “God abandoned me” mantra has been shed and replaced (at least for this song) with a bold show of power:
“No god is above me”
It’s warfare indeed, where destruction knows no bounds, and where neither loyalty nor authority mean anything. There’s potentially a lot going on with “Warfare” that goes over my head in terms of specifics to the unfolding storyline, but thunderous tones and plaintive strings all but promise a murderous end to come. A cacophonous breakdown and earth-shattering close acts as a firm committal to this imminent destruction.
Watch and listen to “Warfare” via YouTube below and listen at your usual streaming places: https://ffm.to/warfare
