The song itself is a mystery. An enigmatic, intriguing, brooding mystery. Everything about it, and its film clip, embodies the paradox. It is sinister yet harmless, sparse yet lively. It is both a trance and an instant. It may seem like I’m being a little abstract, so if you have not yet watched the film clip, stop reading this right now and do so. Let the tumbling drums carry you along, haphazardly, as the grinding synths churn you over and over. Experience the pilgrimage of the hay people, and only come back once you resonate with their plight. 



Conceptually it seems to explore the dichotomy of the synthetic and the organic. The marriage of live drum hits (the inclusion of the squeaking hi-hat stand throughout the song is so innately human) and the robotic synth lines highlight this relationship. The film clip itself shows all natural elements, behaving in a very unnatural way. Cuts between strange stone formations and dilapidated agricultural structures, a foraged drum kit and two curious creatures made of hay. 



The film clip was directed by Sophia Mero, and shot on 8mm film, which gives it an otherworldly quality, as though we are examining found footage of a strange civilisation. The hay costumes were constructed from two bales of hay, and took six people two weeks to build. Recalling the experience, Brain Drugs' record label share “it was only after they made the video that the Brain Drugs fellas discovered the true market value of hay and then realised that they were grossly overcharged by a man selling bails out of a city block in Maroondah - pretty much an analogy for the whole record.
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Brain Drugs is the partnership of Michael Beach and Pete Warden (previously bandmates in Michael Beach, Onion Engine and Shovels), who plan their upcoming full length album to be the first release on budding label Cannery Records. The band themselves are nothing if not elusive, so the label, Cannery Records, deciphered what they received from the band. They told us the band’s biggest influences were their five earthly senses, and that “all quotes attributed to them are from memory [or] a few clandestine recordings and are quite possibly incorrect. The senses are ranked in order of the degree of fragmentation of perceptions received through them.”

Thankfully, this should clear a few things up for us all.


Sight

Mike was very adamant that I stressed the importance of a vision that he and Pete had one afternoon with friends near the Merri Creek Labyrinth. Apparently within an hour of sitting down on a patch grass, a 10 metre high wall of ivy nearby began vibrating vigorously, eventually growing in power such that each of them were forced to lay down on their backs, with Pete needing to "hold on to the rails" throughout. During the experience, several people in brown robes were seen to congregate nearby in what was later discovered to be an unrelated pagan book launch.


Hearing

Pete told us recently he was largely influenced by frog calls: “Frogs (and toads) are master musicians that provide ample lessons for any musician. This band is no different. Many of the sounds heard on the recordings can be traced back to the pulses, drones and clicks of our amphibious companions. For those new to music, Charles M. Bogert’s Sounds Of North American Frogs (Folkways Recordings) provides an excellent introduction with lessons on timbre, frequency and modulation, as well as tips for duets, quartets and hybrid calls.”


Touch

Apparently Mike and Pete were both stung by bees before writing many of the key passages on the record. The main toxin released by a bee sting is melittin. We’ve been unable to confirm for certain that the band was using bee venom recreationally, but the song’s affinity to the movements of bees and their well documented ‘waggle dance’ seem undeniable.


Smell

According to Mike: “One of the major disadvantages to making an electronic album in a home studio is not understanding electricity. This is especially complicated after moving from areas overseas where electricity does not hurt you as easily or as badly as it does in Australia. This record was made using a large amount of high voltage run through a haphazard maze of cut-rate power boards and step down transformers. We often knew by the smell of electrical burning whether we going to have a good day in the studio or not.”


Taste

Pete says this: “Diet can have a much deeper effect on music than is generally considered. While difficult to quantify, the effects of Ping’s Dumpling House on the band are pronounced. Alchemical combinations of chilli and garlic suggest possibilities, pointing to what can be achieved with a few simple ingredients. What are a plate of dumplings if not a rhythm of repeated forms? Wet. Cloud-like. Endlessly varying while maintaining their uniformity.”