‘Lost’ Secret Machines Album ‘The Moth, The Lizard, And The Secret Machines’ Coming Soon

Secret Machines will finally release their album, The Moth, The Lizard, And The Secret Machines, on February 17. The band previewed the long-shelved project with the lead track and single, “There’s No Starting Over.”

Secret Machines made their critically acclaimed debut in 2004 with their debut album, Now Here Is Nowhere. The band followed with the well-received Ten Silver Drops in 2006. Co-founding guitarist Benjamin Curtis parted ways with the group in 2007, amicably leaving in order to focus on his new outlet School of Seven Bells. Sadly, Benjamin Curtis died in 2013 from a rare form of cancer.

Remaining co-founders, bassist Brandon Curtis (Benjamin’s brother) and drummer Josh Garza were then joined by Phil Karnats on guitar. The trio released a new self-titled Secret Machines album in 2008. The next Secret Machines album, Awake In The Brain Chamber, would wait until 2020 to come out.

“If you listen to them in order,” Brandon Curtis stated, “Awake In The Brain Chamber is basically a reaction to the Moth record — very tight and verse/chorus/verse/chorus rather than loose, sprawling and unconventional.”

The sessions for what became The Moth, The Lizard, And The Secret Machines were held after Brandon Curtis, Garza and Karnats recorded and released Secret Machines. Initial work was the result of freeform recording done in Karnats’ home studio, which was different from their more meticulously planned approach to tracking. Without the pressure from a label – their previous distributor shuttered after their last album – and with open-ended studio time, the results were unlike anything the band had done before.

Garza detailed the making of the album, stating:

“We were actually in a pretty dark place at the time and felt that the only way to not get lost in that darkness was to play a couple chords, breathe, and get lost in this weird head trip. After a few days, Brandon would listen back to what we did and be like, ‘Hey, this part is kind of cool.’ Then we’d start recording over that. The drums and vocals were often the last thing we added, because we didn’t even know there would be songs. I thought they were instrumental exercises for a while there— just us trying to generate happiness out of music.

“This album is really special to us because it represents a band playing music with no other agenda than to connect with one other. My main hope is that people will hear it and say, ‘These guys went somewhere weird, man.’ I feel like Secret Machines finally delivered the crazy album everybody knew we had in us.”

Brandon Curtis shared his thoughts on the album:

“It was a little bit challenging for me when we were doing stuff in the moment. I felt like a fish out of water because my role would normally be to sit and agonize over something for weeks and then present it. I’ve finally figured out how to deal with things exactly how they are. Unfiltered guitars and raw drums don’t have to be fixed if they already sound perfect. I fell in love with this record when I stopped trying to make it something it wasn’t — when I left enough space for creativity to bloom rather than holding on for dear life and squeezing so hard my knuckles would turn white.”

Slowdive’s Simon Scott mastered the album set for release on TSM Recordings. Listen to “There’s No Starting Over” from The Moth, The Lizard, And The Secret Machines below:

The Moth, The Lizard, And The Secret Machines Tracklist

1. There’s No Starting Over
2. I Think It’s Light Outside
3. You Want It Worse
4. Even Out The Overflow
5. Last One Out
6. The Answer
7. Crucifixion Time
8. Run Out The Silver Light
9. The Finalizer