Over the course of two EPs (and a Deerhunter cover), LA-based ensemble Draag have been juggling their backgrounds in genres as diverse as no wave, classical, jazz, and mariachi to land on a sound that blends dream pop and slowcore in a way that diverges from the paths of peers like alt-country up-and-comers Wednesday and the metal-affiliated Greet Death. The culmination of this work, they’ve announced today, will arrive on April 28 with their debut full-length Dark Fire Heresy, a crushing shoegaze venture interwoven with eerily warped tape samples and a fantasy aesthetic recalling the weirdo charm of The Garden or the hyperpop canon.
The first single from the release arrives today with “Mitsuwa,” the album’s second track and a tunneling documentation of vocalist Jessica Huang’s experience early in the pandemic. “I had just taken my grandparents to the Mitsuwa market in Torrance, and they were already feeling apprehensive about COVID as I tried to reassure them they’ve been watching too much TV,” Huang shares of the track’s inception. “During quarantine, I was finally able to deeply reflect on the lengthy spiritual abuse that took place in my past.”
The video plays into the fantasy element of the release, with Huang casually wielding a sword while blindfolded (and reading a book), yet still vanquishing all foes. “The process of making the music video was a way for me to indulge in what used to be forbidden, but that I inherently loved and was fascinated by as a child—such as the many versions of the goth aesthetic, Buddhist altars and traditions (to name a few) that the video touches on. As I discussed the concept with friends, strangers, and collaborators, I was so unaware of how many still struggle with religious trauma and how similar our experiences are.”
Check it out below.
