Crisis Hotline’s “God Burned Down My House” is a jagged labyrinth of self-reflection, raw experimentation, and grim resilience. Rarely does an album oscillate so freely between chaos and fleeting moments of melody, leaving you both exhilarated and unsettled.
It’s abrasive, unpolished, and deeply personal—a reflection of an artist who embraces both the futility and necessity of creation.
Halifax, Nova Scotia—a place often described as ten years behind trends—hardly seems like fertile ground for such boundary-pushing music. Yet, it’s here that Crisis Hotline, the one-man project helmed by an artist determined to embody both humility and strength, crafts its fractured opus.
“I want to keep it broad and abstract,” the artist explains, “I’m not expressing myself but I guess I do think of it as translation. Actually, that’s kind of a lie.” This duality—the push and pull between abstraction and personal history—defines their sound. “My dad got me into stoner rock and doom metal when I was younger, and then I discovered Aphex Twin from a CKY2K DVD when I was in junior high. So I think that shaped me.”
The live energy channels “artists like NAH and BLACKIE,” though, as they admit, “I like those other two more nowadays.” Layered into the chaos are nods to “Prince and Lady Gaga,” with the hazy nostalgia of The Avalanches and the dark atmospheres of SpaceghostPurrp rounding out a sound that’s as disorienting as it is immersive.
From the car-crash motifs of “Flipping,” inspired by the industrial chaos of Crash Worship, to the paranoid gibberish of “Angelrainer,” the album thrives on unpredictability.
Tracks like “Black Circles” and “Ritual Mocking of the Victim” underwent years of transformation, stripped down and rebuilt until the original versions were unrecognizable. The former, once a Christmas jam session gone awry, now features absurdly chopped samples and a tongue-in-cheek vocal performance. The latter tackles the pitfalls of a persecution complex—a theme the artist is keen to avoid but seems drawn to explore.
“God Burned Down My House” stands out as a visceral exorcism. Accompanied by a video that’s equal parts dangerous and absurd, it’s a striking example of the album’s visual and sonic coherence.
The minimalist approach to music videos—focusing on environment, color, and raw performance—mirrors the album’s core ethos: simplicity as a counterbalance to complexity.
Halifax’s scene—dominated by pop-punk and pub rock—is far removed from Crisis Hotline’s avant-garde ethos.
“I get told I’m not a real musician for making shit on a laptop a lot,” the artist admits. Yet, connections forged online with figures like Spencer Hewitt and the collective Forced Resignation Records provide a lifeline of inspiration. These relationships highlight the evolving nature of underground music, where geographic isolation is no longer a barrier to creative collaboration.
View this post on Instagram
The album art, described as “a more primitive gothic version of the crucifixion,” encapsulates the project’s themes of powerlessness and suffering.
The weight of existence—both personal and collective—is a recurring motif, one that’s reflected in the artist’s approach to both music and life. “The world is a fucked-up place, suffering is inevitable. It’s not a big deal in my opinion,” asserts Crisis Hotline. It’s a philosophy that informs not just the music but the DIY ethos behind the project. From self-producing and recording to booking a small North American tour—“wherever I know people who can give me a couch to sleep on”—Crisis Hotline embodies resilience in the face of adversity.
The album’s backstory is matched by a tracklist that demands exploration. A breakdown of the tracks is available in the full commentary from the project’s one man wizard Michael Coolen.
Flipping:
Like most of these tracks, this song is pretty old. I think its from 2021. I finished it in 2024 by adding drums and vocals. For around a year I would go to my local jam space (Radstorm) after hours (I have the code) and I would record all night secretly without paying. Somehow, magically the drums on this track were captured with only one overhead mic. The lyrics were inspired by the recurring motif in my work of car crashes which clicked when I discovered the band Crash Worship.
Angelrainer
This song began in 2020. It’s just paranoia, the lyrics are nonsense.
Ritual Mocking of The Victim
This one was from 2019. I sent it to VOILA and Domino, two artists I discovered through collaborating with A2B2. I couldn’t get my vocals right, so I redid the instrumental in 2024, then I found it much easier to finish. The lyrics are just about having a persecution complex, something that I want to avoid at all costs.
Black Circles
Began in 2019, its so different now that its not even remotely the same song. It’s like that boat where they replaced all the parts. After redoing the instrumental like 30 times, and recording vocals like 50 times I just go so fed up. It was christmas and I was at the jam space, so I just added that sample chop and said the dumbest shit I possibly could. I think it works pretty well and its pretty funny. If you want to hear a completely different and absolutely terrible version of this track, watch my set from WizardZ Fest on youtube, I think its time stamped under the original title “falling awake.”
Christmas Miracle
Not sure when this one was made, but its old. I didnt want to include this one at first but my friend Aidan who I’ve collaborated with a lot over the years wanted to try recording for it. We went to the jam space and he recorded the hook… and that was it. He just stopped there and was like “thats it, thats all i want to do” I was pissed at first, but then it clicked for me and it inspired my vocal performance. I did my vocals in one take, reading random notes and poetry from my notebook and freestyling ways to make it rhyme. (most of the lyrics on the album come from my notebook)
God Burned Down My House
I think the point of this one is quite obvious. This song was “new.” I love the video that me and my friend Ben filmed for this one. I think this one was also done in one take.
First Time Driver Remix
The original song is one of my favourite songs of all time (unfortunately its not on streaming anymore and might be lost to time). Outside Hire knew a lot of the same people as me, but I asked to remix this track before I had ever met him, I didn’t even know who he was. I thought he was Ben (who I mentioned earlier). I’m really grateful he let me remix it. I had to ask like 5 years after the fact if I could include it on this album, and he graciously was super down for it. A label wanted to sign me for this track but I turned it down because they wanted to shorten the album lol.
Hey Sweety I’m Gonna Call You Later (Instrumental)
I produced this on a train to Montreal in 2019 after a friend of mine had passed away. The title was an autofill on my phone, I bought it used so I guess that was the most common thing they would type. Finished this in 2023 after a sudden burst of inspiration after making amends with an old friend.
Nightmare Room
Recorded around the same time as the previous track. This one is untouched from the original version. I recorded the vocals with a mouthguard to make me sound like a lunatic being restrained. The lyrics are just psychosis, nightmare bullshit inspired by Layne Staley’s death apartment.
So Much
No comment? Continues the doom metal theme established in the previous song. Commentary on how fucking long it took me to finish this album.
