“And I’m Waiting For Something
To Leave Me A Sign,
But Each Time I Get Close
It Won’t Leave Me Alone”
JɆ₴₴Ɇ&₮ⱧɆ₴₱łⱤł₮
Peculiar Living, a highly ambitious science-fiction literary and musical project created by Jesse James (Jesse & The Spirit), follows the investigative journey of an eccentric journalist named P. Fermi into a local billionaire and his company’s outlandish carbon emissions. This scrutiny leads Fermi to the inner workings of the Jupiter Club, “the city’s finest private club,” where his exploration becomes strange, insidious, and psychedelic. Peculiar Living exists as a series of documents, with the narrative delivered through transcribed security cameras, Fermi’s own news articles and journals, phone conversations, and scientific research to create a mind-altering reading and auditory experience, exploring a vast array of themes including free will, climate change, wealth distribution, mental illness, and friendship.
The album, a psychedelic post-industrial sound collage, comprises documents 45-52 of the project, generated by “neural network mapping” of the story’s protagonist and features a wide range of sounds from heavy drum machines and ambient synths to classical guitar, textural noise, and more. Vocals range from whispered spoken word to soaring belted ballads and guttural screams, a post-everything sort of sound.
A few words on the release…
We often wonder the spirit. Whether the spirit be an external being or an internal contemplation, we are present for the summoning in the first track from Peculiar Living. A chant to make most people afraid to move forward. This isn’t your standard Earl Grey or Citrus Green. This in fact isn’t about drinking tea at all. For the sake of example however let’s continue with the analogy. This is a being sitting hunched over a table in a room of mirrors. The tea pot is in site but it’s unclear as to where on the table it rest. The steam pouring from spout is more cloudy than usual and appears to possess something greater that itself. One sip of the tea is a journey. Each journey is another sip of the tea. It’s a trip many are afraid to take. The darkness always appears when one is least expecting it. It’s what we do with that darkness that gives us meaning.
By the time we reach the Olympus Mons we realize that all our judgements about everything we ever thought is not quite what we thought. Can we be comforted? Indeed.
For those that have watched Jesse James perform over the years, this will be a pleasant surprise for the album plays out as performance in and of itself. If you close your eyes and stop trying to think you might make it through. Anything worth holding on to is worth knowing, even the unknown.
As we venture towards (saturn) it’s clear that this isn’t a joy ride. We weren’t brought here just to nod our heads and smile at the end, pretending we had the words to say all along. This is a calling out. A spirit in need with a message to deliver. If we find the time to listen we might just find ourselves in the place we least expected.
The end is without question. All these words and wisdom will linger, far beyond the moment of our return. Consider the message and how it is to be delivered. Open up towards the The Great Dark Spot. It’s only in these connections and understandings that we can understand to connect anything. Be present when the presence calls upon you.
It ends as it begins, yet the end is always changing
Enjoy it Friends,
Frenchpressley and Into Fruition
Peculiar Living cassette + novella is now available through Astralands records. The special edition version includes a professionally-printed 138-page paperback copy of the Novella along with the album on a pro-dubbed blue Cassette in printed o-card case. Limited edition of 25.
astralands.bandcamp.com/album/peculiar-living
Into Fruition collaborative 