“Artist Dan Goldsworthy was invited into the process from demo stages and had access to all the lyrics and animal references littered throughout the record. Taking references from Greek mythology (Clytemnestra and Agamemnon) and pop culture (Spiderman/Dead Alive/Enemy), the final cherry on the cake was finding lyrical inspiration from the likes of Cannibal Corpse songs to cement the tongue-in-cheek nature of the piece.”ĭoes Fauna's cover illustration have a specific meaning? To tackle this subject, we found an opportunity to parody ‘80s power pop disguised in a prog metal song. “When researching and coming up with ideas for interesting facets of the animal kingdom, it was our drummer Ray Hearne that was insistent on one of the tracks being about the mating rituals of the black widow spider. Let’s discuss the track “Lovebite,” and its lyrical meaning. “‘Elephants Never Forget’ is a standout track for me with its memorable chorus (‘I remember another way/I remember a better day’) and is the long format song that takes you on a bit of a musical journey that was always a staple on previous Haken records.” Which tracks on the album are standouts for you? Fauna reintroduces returning and founding member Pete Jones on keyboards, whose unique approach to his instrument has given the band's sound a fresh lease of life in my opinion, but also honors the much loved Haken sound design from our formative work. “Unlike the previous three records we've made, Fauna moves away from the narrative-driven concept album format, instead focusing on letting each individual track have an identity and story of its own. However the rising popularity of instrumental electronic music might mean more appreciation for instrumentals might be near.How does Fauna compare to previous Haken albums? Lyrics provide an easy emotional connection point that often requires little to no interpretation. This stems from people having difficulty dealing with abstract artistic elements and connecting to them emotionally. Music without a strong visual to hold attention can’t become popular. ![]() Shows focus on lights, visuals dancers over musical performance. Music becomes more derivative, repetitive and commercial. The instantaneous access to music means less people learn to play an instrument and thus less people have an appreciation for musical talent and instrumental performers. The only popular instrumental music comes from tv and movie soundtracks. MTV in the 80s saw a surge of artists focusing on image rather than performance and this trend continued heavily in the 90s. ![]() The seventies saw a focus on pop music and instrumentals becoming more commonplace as something experimental or reserved for live performances. Instrumental music was widely popular in the 40s, 50s and 60s. I get the impression that a lot of people don’t listen to instrumental music because a general lack of appreciation for music and art in American culture. They like to sing along and relate to the artist thru their poetry. I think a lot of people find vocals humanizing. It leaves a lot more to the interpreter and is more universal. ![]() The beauty of instrumental music is emotional communication without the specificity of lyricism. It is more difficult to connect with due to it’s abstraction and the easy accessibility of lyrics. TLDR: cultural focus on pop music and visual aesthetic have done away with the popularity of instrumental music.
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