CASS / THE HUMAN ELEPHANT — Circle around the moon

"Circle around the Moon" is a complex collection of recordings made by John E. Donald over the past few years, connected in a random and emotional way, not by time or by a session. While "White Thunder" (Umor Rex 2011) shows The Human Elephant (John E. Donald) within certain parameters of post-punk and with the characteristics of a band, "Circle around the Moon" is a completely internal draft, without an official setup and a schematized lineup, which includes some collaborations with Sam Shackleton and Bernd Jestram from Tarwater. "Circle around the Moon" has moments with pop elements, but this album is something completely heterogeneous and different, where John E. Donald has opened the spectrum to experimentation and other forms of attire, without leaving behind the distinctive characteristics of The Human Elephant or improvisation. There are analogies with soul music, where the central axis is the use of old samplers, there are exotic dub interludes, and instrumental pieces that seem like terrifying but beautiful lullabies. There is also space for the references one usually finds in his work, and pieces that show his close collaboration over the years with Bernd Jestram (Tarwater), with whom he formed the band Rats Live On No Evil Star. The invisible but well-interwoven line connecting the ideas in this album reveals networks that are within John E. Donald's imagination, which is in a moment of musical experimentation, playing with different forms without completely straying from his melodic pop vein and exotic psychedelia.

All music by Björn Granzow. Photos by Corentin Kopp. Design by Daniel Castrejón.