by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Freak Genes, the UK’s own weirdo rippers, are ready for album number six, a pivotal time in their eight years of synth punk mayhem. The duo of Charlie Murphy and Andrew Anderson have never been known to stay in one place for too long, reconfiguring their formula with each release to create caustic yet shifting moods that seem drawn to a theme. Their latest, Delirik, due out September 6th via Feel It Records (Artificial Go, Citric Dummies, The Drin), revolves around delirium, the state of disorientation and the allure of half realized fever dreams. It’s a confused state that serves the mutated machinations of Freak Genes well.
Having shared lead single “Reflective Surface,” the band return with “Insect Politics,” another warped and bugged out take on their damaged electronic punk. Designed with industrial music influences, there’s a sharp robotic clamor to the song, buzzing and skronking like a transmission lost to interference. The energy and the manic state of the melody however retains the band’s swarming punk sound, creating a distorted sci-fi freakout that feels jittery to the ears. It’s a boatload of anxiety riddled fun, the pursuit to satiate ourselves, delivered in fits and starts.
Speaking about the song, Murphy shared:
“With the music for this song I wanted to make something that sounded almost itchy, inspired by a general feeling of agitation. Andrew wrote the vocals and lyrics, as well as processing the instruments to make them sound more full and to give them an extra intensity.
Anderson added:
“The lyrics are about how we all deceive ourselves: our style is fresh, we’re safe drivers. But really we’re all just giant lizard-brained insects doing our best to survive, saying whatever we need to say to ourselves in order to convince everyone else that we’re not naked. It’s also an excellent excuse to reference The Fly and use the word ‘carapace’"