Bug Teeth contend with grief on new single ‘Landscaping’
It’s been over a year since Bug Teeth made their debut as a full band with Lucky Me, Lucky Mud, a tiny but mighty collection of songs that introduced us to their distinctively dreamy ambience. Since then, the bugs have spent their time together wisely, honing their live performance alongside the likes of Melody’s Echo Chamber, watching their EP be pressed onto vinyl, and perfecting their long-awaited follow-up single, ‘Landscaping’.
Intentional in its intricacies and unparalleled in its beauty, Lucky Me, Lucky Mud seems like an impossible act to follow. But Bug Teeth refuse to falter under the pressure of their masterful debut, infusing ‘Landscaping’ with just as much ethereality and experimentation. The track grows from a gently pulsing introduction into a whole world of glitching and glittering instrumentation, more expansive than anything else they’ve put out so far.
Soft flutes and playful percussion underscore frontperson PJ’s words as they contend with grief, reframing their life around it. “‘Landscaping’ is about how grief rewrites your memories of the person you lost,” PJ explains, “and how the landscape of your life reforms itself to fit around the gap they left.”
Sometimes, their words cut through the skittish soundscapes around them, as if mirroring the shock loss causes. At others, they melt into the instrumentation, taking comfort in the wall of sound, giving into the landscaping. “All at once, it happened,” they sing, taking their time with each word, “It came about, a flash in the pan.”
The song is further proof of PJ’s lyrical prowess, of their ability to contain the personal and the universal all at once, but it’s also a leap forward for the band instrumentally. It marks the first time they’ve recorded outside their basement, working with The Orielles’ producer Joel Patchett, a band whose influence can be found in their own sound.
“The track feels like the culmination of everything envisaged for Bug Teeth as a full band,” PJ explained, “Musically, it was built from the ground up by Alex and Sonny, but inflected with lyrics from me that are both deeply personal and dreamily fragmentary…”
As the track culminates in layers of busied percussion, self-assured vocals, and flutes floating just atop, it feels like Bug Teeth taking ownership, a landscape seemingly coming together. “She’s my background,” PJ affirms, “I’d cut her out, but she’s mine.” Echoing tones fade into a moment of respite, and Bug Teeth take their bow.
On ‘Landscaping’, Bug Teeth channel the unpredictability of grief into a stunning sprawl of whirrs and woodwinds, but the song never sounds chaotic. It’s impossibly precise proof of a band who have already determined exactly who they are.
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