Birmingham post-punk trio Mutes release stellar 4th album ‘…buried where you stand’
Recorded almost entirely live at Megatone Studios with Mark Gittins, the band’s fourth album sees a return to their roots. Shedding the lavish technicolor approach of their recent releases, they’ve embraced the raw immediacy that defined their early sound.
On “…buried where you stand,” the band aimed to capture the essence of their live performances with unflinching honesty. The recording process was intimate and organic, with all tracking done together in one room, minimal separation between instruments, and hardly any overdubs. It’s their nod to Steve Albini’s raw production style.
Vocalist and lyricist James dives deep into introspection with this album. “Thematically, it’s an existential manifesto, a way to reclaim lost parts of myself,” he says. “It’s a distillation of the relentless internal monologue from juggling infinite choices and facing endless consequences. Instead of drawing from our country’s socio-political turmoil, I found inspiration in the inadequacies of my own existence. The themes explore spiritual ambivalence, substance abuse and recovery, the human condition, fugue states, and the pendulum-swing of living.”
