Order of Owls confront the demons of mental health on incisive new single What Becomes.
Order of Owls have dissected the stigma around mental health on searing new single, What Becomes.
Premiering today (January 29) on Happy, the track is carried by thunderous percussion and the sneering vocal performance of bandmate Tim Leopold.
In what marks the band’s first collaboration with an artist, What Becomes also features a blistering guitar solo courtesy of Jake Webber.
There’s an infectious frenetic energy that courses through What Becomes, with raucous instrumentation purpose built for an angsty commute home with the windows up.
Toeing the line between the sonic aesthetics of metal and the grittiness of classic punk, the single dips into the styles of rock’s broad umbrella without losing sight of its own unique, alt-rock signature.
At any given moment, Order of Owls draw upon an eclectic palette, from the emphatic rhythms and loud distortions of staple metal to the incisive lyricism that defines punk rock.
Here, the band dive deep into the process of healing from mental illness, pairing their teeth-bearing sound with an equally cutting message. “[The single] asks the question: We have overcome many issues and are on the path to our better selves,” Leopald explained.
“But what is next? What becomes of the healed?” It’s the kind of heady introspection that only true virtuosos can muster, but Order of Owls’ mastery stretches beyond the recording booth.
What Becomes is accompanied by an official music video, which was shot at the notoriously haunted site of Victoria’s Aradale Lunatic Asylum.
This setting amplifies the track’s darker themes, but the shoot itself was fittingly plagued by spooky experiences. “The generator kept cutting out and struggled to run the haze machine at half power with the lights,” guitarist Nathan Mesiti recalled
“When you’re in rural Australia and the light pollution is non-existent, that particular darkness was unsettling.”
All of it makes for a single that brims with cathartic anguish, yet another dark and captivating entry into Order of Owls already illustrious catalogue so far. Listen to Order of Owls’ new single What Becomes below.
