Mumbai, India based post hardcore band PACIFIST are putting out their EP Greyscale Dreams tomorrow, and today we’re giving you a chance to hear the full thing in its entirety! The band takes inspiration from the anxiety & despair of urban existence as much as it is inspired by the lyrical & emotive range of 90s hardcore, the minimalism & loud-soft dynamics of post-punk, coupled with a sound that’s awash in noise & melodic crescendos to deliver powerful, fuelled performances. Mastered by Brad Boatright of Audiosiege Studios, their new, diverse and captivating offering can be heard below!
The band takes inspiration from a range of influences, from the alternative leaning riffage of 90s era Helmet, Quicksand, Handsome & Snapcase to classic post-hardcore acts like Drive Like Jehu, At The Drive In, Glassjaw & Unwound, as well as a smattering of 90’s hardcore like Converge and Integrity. The sounds & themes stem from the angst of the daily grind, the people that get lost, perish in the process & remain forgotten in the apathetic, vast populations of Mumbai, the city the band is based out of.
‘Greyscale Dreams’ explores sounds and themes that stem from the angst of the daily grind, the people that get lost, perish in the process and remain forgotten in the apathetic, vast populations of Mumbai, the city the band is based out of. The lyrics are a commentary on the human condition in a bleak, black-white-and-grey world where the world gets farther from the light with each passing day.
The band’s record release show dubbed Against The Tide will take place tomorrow, June 16th, in Mumbai. Joining them on stage will be The Riot Peddlers, The Lightyears Explode and Runt.
See the full track by track commentary below:
Reactionary:
The song is about the digital ‘outrage culture’ that we’re living in. People who gain pleasure & satisfaction from just putting people down on the internet & triggering others online, reveling in their rage & fuelling more hatred. Labels & words like ‘incel’ ‘cuck’ ‘feminazi’ ‘bhakt’ – nobody is willing to critique or view things objectively & resort to insults & reactionary behaviour to vilify the other party. Everyone’s made up their minds, picked a side & not engaging in any actual productive discourse or real debate. They just want to enrage & win at all costs.
Double Down:
The song is about personal betrayals & the selfish nature some people have, where they fend for themselves feeding off other people’s time/money/energy & take them for granted. A very prevalent & annoyingly common occurrence in urban city life, where people tend to take everyone for a ride.
There’s a betting reference in ‘doubling down’, betting blindly, with double crossing & putting everything you own on the line just for the sake of maintaining a toxic relationship.
Pedigreed:
This stems from a personal anecdote from a previous advertising job where I was told my state-university degree & education probably was not of the same ‘pedigree’ as some creative professionals who’ve graduated abroad & from esteemed, expensive private institutions & how I can’t possibly compete with that.
The song basically critiques the workplace – how people are blind about their own privileges, how unfairly norms are set in offices & puts others at a disadvantage, and how people have to play along as a ‘team player’ to appease everyone and win at the corporate game. Also, general fake behaviour professionally to just get into people’s good books & succeed. Fuck that.
Greyscale Dreams:
The song was inspired by the rather horrifying & depressing incidents of public stampedes at a railway bridge that killed almost over 23 people in Mumbai’s Elphinstone Road station. Countless other daily incidents continue to occur in Mumbai, with building collapses, accidents & people drowning in the floods/rains & general lack of value for human life in the city. So much for the ‘City of Dreams’ – the illusion of how opportunity quickly cascades into sheer desperation & barely getting by in the ruthless grind of Mumbai. The tone is bitter, pissed-off, yet sad & melancholic, the voice of people losing hope with each passing day.
