Shadows from the Walls of Death by Nonconnah

When we look out at the accelerating pace of human technological progress, we often cynically wonder just how much unknown harm we’re inflicting upon ourselves in our blind chase of higher highs. Documenting a specific historical case of these suspicions becoming substantiated, Nonconnah’s new record Shadows from the Walls of Death recounts the process of learning that the Victorian era’s beloved ornate wallpapers actually contained debilitating levels of arsenic. Throughout the record, the experimental duo puts us in the shoes of Icarus as he feels his wingtips get grazed by the sun, crystallizing the feeling that at some point everything extraordinary and beautiful eventually starts doing more harm than good. The record feels overexposed as the duo takes aim at various extreme sonic landscapes, generally overshooting them and instead arriving at a place of warm noise with eerie background samples and synths. Much in the same way that people trip over their own feet to entertain and amaze each other, these honorable attempts at stabilizing an extreme sound show the limits of what humans can do before corrupting their creations, their bodies, or their minds.

- Michael