Brooklyn-Based Public Memory Shares New Single "Red Rainbow" and Details About His Upcoming Album "Demolition"

Influenced by intertwining themes such as the story of Judas Iscariot, the demise of a relationship, and the omnipotent, pervading essence of night-time, “Red Rainbow” which can be shared at Bandcamp or Spotify, pulsates with layered synths that create a euphoric, expansive experience that yearns for something more.

Demolition, the second full-length album from Public Memory fully embodies its theme and the emotional associations therewith. As Public Memory creator Robert Toher (previously of ERAAS & Apse) cites it, Demolition is (whether voluntary or not) the intentional destruction of something, usually with the intent to reform or rebuild something new in its place. It’s a term that ties together underlying themes from the period in which the record was created.

While the Public Memory's prominent krautrock and trip-hop rhythms found both in 2016’s debut LP, Wuthering Drum and 2017’s Veil of Counsel EP are represented here, Demolition explores a greater range of tempos and an expanse of alien emotions with layers of electronic drums, live drums, Korg synths and samples from nature. Themes of rebirth and reflection imbue the album's atmosphere, rich in tape delay, spring reverb, and textures that conjure a sci-fi and supernatural narrative.

“I set out to make a larger, more widescreen kind of album” Toher explains. “I wanted it to feel more in focus, with harder edges, more discernable lyrics. More clarity… I wanted to explore more and go to places I hadn't been before."

Following on from the album’s opener and lead single “The Line", there is a meditation on impending collapse, "Red Rainbow" begins with an arpeggiated melody that hints at a sense of dread. Like the darkness of night descends, the track unfolds with haunting atmospherics and howling synths, finishing with an unexpected climax that ominously builds until at last, it falls apart, quickly, softly, without incident. The slow-tempoed "Aegis," described by its creator as “the blooming floral centerpiece of the album” or “the sweet interior,” reflects on the banal reality of love lost, with shuffling rhythms, lingering inflections and a growling synth at its core.

Public Memory’s music is a mixture of damaged and dubbed-out percussion, unfurling synths and sparse sampling - all strung together by producer Robert Toher's spectral vocal. Toher's adept use of space and tension articulates the world of Demolition as eerie, emotive, and above all, narcotic. Each track is an existential procession. "Turning out the lights on your illusion," Toher sings to close the album, accepting that change is an inescapable condition of being.

Demolition Track List

1. The Line (stream)

2. Red Rainbow (stream)

3. Mercy

4. Falsetto

5. Aegis

6. Redeemer

7. Doorstep

8. Trick Of The Light

Connect with Public Memory: Instagram