New single from Until They Burn Me

Cody Carlyle and Travis Jordan have been making music together as two lifelong collaborators spending more than three decades creating, building a creative relationship that stretches back to their time in The Dry Season before reuniting in 2021 as Until They Burn Me. Based in the USA, the duo have developed a sound that draws from Americana, folk, punk, roots music and dark country to create songs that feel cinematic, atmospheric and instilled with storytelling. Their work forms in the overlap between old-world folklore and modern energy, combining rustic textures with a desire to break free from genre boxes.

As Until They Burn Me, they use songwriting for exploration, offering music which moves through murder ballads, garage rock punch, punkgrass aesthetic and haunting country tales, creating a body of work that feels as influenced by imagination as it is by music itself. Eschewing a predetermined path, the duo have allowed their songs to form naturally, resulting in a catalogue that feels full of surprises yet thoroughly their own.

That adventurous style was present on their 2024 debut album Mud Music which was created from the simple desire to make the kind of music they themselves wanted to hear. It served as a well-received introduction to the project, marking Until They Burn Me as artists invested in atmosphere, character and story-focused songwriting. Last year saw the release of A Carnival of Reveries, a sophomore album that expanded their creative vision even further. Dreamlike and dangerous in equal measure, the record demonstrated the duo’s ability to dance between reality and fantasy via a soundtrack to a world constantly shifting between beauty and disarray.

Now the duo return with their latest release, bringing us their brand new single titled “Dead Water and the Seeds of Despair,” a track that continues their fascination with immersive storytelling and gripping imagery. Landing as an instrumental tribal summoning, the track forms in a unique space within their growing catalogue as a musical moment designed to create an experience, drawing listeners into a world where sound functions almost like ritual. Ultimately, “Dead Water and the Seeds of Despair” is intended as a theme for aligning frequencies and tuning vibrations for the falling of the sky.

It’s an ambitious concept that reflects the duo’s ongoing mission of creating music that extends beyond normal songwriting structures. Set up by distant laughter and audio crackle, the trance-inducing patter of percussion sets a hypnotic rhythm as the twang of Eastern instrumental and pulse of sliding bass notes forms an immersive soundscape. Building with the rattle of drums and transportive instrumentation, the track rolls with steady groove as layers of flickering textures and plucked notes crafts a wholly absorbing listening experience unlike any other.

Peppered with subtly unnerving crowd laughter, the menacing energy surges with moody guitar riffs to deliver an utterly enveloping sound that’s dark, mesmeric and fiercely original from start to finish. As their catalogue continues to grow, Until They Burn Me remain steadfast in following their own creative compass and with “Dead Water and the Seeds of Despair,” they once again showcase their ability to transform unconventional ideas into compelling musical experiences.

Listen to Dead Water and the Seeds of Despair below

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