Gothic darling Chelsea Wolfe channels the world of Carl Jung in her forthcoming full-length Abyss. Informed by eerie dreams and sleep paralysis, the highly anticipated follow up to 2013's Pain Is Beauty, which featured "Feral Love" and "We Hit A Wall," Wolfe's fifth studio album extends the cerebrally dark and haunting imagery that has defined her signature sound.
In her latest interview with LA Weekly, Wolfe expressed her deep fascination with the subconscious (although not quite befitting the textbook definition of Jungian) makes her most recently released track "Carrion Flowers" even more ethereal. "Sleep and dream issues have plagued me my whole life," she stated. "I think this was my first album where I've confronted it and things inside myself." Comparing the experience of confronting her subconscious and dreams by writing songs, she likens her creative process to a "prophetic experience," Her process, much like Jung's work, reveals itself to be both intriguing and satisifyingly complex.
Her most recently revelaed track "Carrion Flowers" begins with hypnotically-buzzing vibrations and progresses into a somber ballad depicting the physical and plausibly psychic experience of sleep paralysis. Amplified by the mid-song shift in tempo, the anxiety of being caught in an unconscious state is illustrated perfectly by the track's instrumentation. A mere glimpse into the magnificent gloom of Abyss' "Carrion Flowers" is an audible and nearly spectral force to be reckoned with. Even without subsequent listens, it becomes clear why Rolling Stone recently crowned her as "the reigning dark princess of goth-scarred art rock." Flawless vocals paired with symbolism seeped in Jungian theory and pulsating backbeats prove that her inspirations go hand in hand with her aesthetics seamlessly. Set for an August 7 release date, Wolfe's Abyss much like sleep parlaysis or a strange dream will undoubtedly leave you transfixed. Listen to "Carrion Flowers" below.
