Lung at DRKMTTR with Noun. Photo: Dune Baydoun
Since their inception in Cincinnati in 2016, Lung has gained a cult-like following with their impeccable, candy-coated, melodies atop a whirring, chainsaw, thunderclap of cello and drums. Lung consists of Kate Wakefield, a classically trained opera singer and cellist, and former Foxy Shazam bassist Daisy Caplan on drums. Fierce, ethereal, and heavy as hell, Lung plays with the intensity of early grunge layered with sinister undertones. Described as "loud, dissonant, innovative, and fearless" (Fair Shakes and Just Dessert), Wakefield runs her cello through distortion pedals and big amps, while Caplan pounds out earthquaking beats on epic horn-shaped vintage drums. A relentless touring machine since 2016, Lung has played over 800 shows across North America and Europe, sharing bills with The Jesus Lizard, Dead Bob (ex NoMeansNo), Brainiac, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Guided By Voices, Screaming Females, Big Business, Chat Pile and so many more. The band’s fifth studio album, The Swankeeper, sees them continue to develop and expand their genre defying sound.
On The Swankeeper, Lung have spun off the planet and we’re the special guests along for the ride. Starting with the most wild ride to open an album in ages: Everlasting Nothingness. “It is a roller coaster of a track, and is a fitting beginning to our record. It almost invites you to spin out. The words in the chorus "I could die from the feeling of this everlasting nothingness" change at the end to "I could die for the feeling of this everlasting nothingness". I think we can feel both of those sentiments simultaneously and we often do. The everlasting gut-wrenching screaming into the void feelings of nothingness that is being alive. The roller coaster of reality and what it is to be "sane" on a tiny planet spinning through an endless horrifying and beautiful Universe.” Singer/cellist Kate Wakefield tells us more: ”The Swankeeper is also a major departure from anything we've done because we started to have more fun with different drum textures, and out of the box vocal effects. We also had a really good time touring with our friends in Brainiac, and we were definitely inspired by the creativity and textures in some of their vocal sounds. I think we also just stepped into our weird on this one. The album has themes of exploring the boundaries of our own minds. The horrors and joys of our imaginations and how they boil over and impact our lives for better and for worse”.
The first single “The Mattress” was released on April 22 to abundant fanfare. The next up were “Lucky You” out on May 14 and “Clown Car” on May 22. All three have music videos created by Lung’s visual artist Rachelle Caplan that are inspired by the abstract lyrics and meaning behind the songs. “The Swankeeper came from a character that grew out of our song Clown Car. She made it onto a later track as well. In my mind she is almost like a missing tarot card, and you aren't quite sure whether she's a god or a villain, whether she's bringing truth or fiction. She's probably all of it.” Kate explains: “The lyrics about the Swankeeper sort of came out almost in a possessed way. Those are some of my favorite lyric moments, when lyrics write themselves. The Swankeeper in my mind is this mystical unknowable force, possibly a liar, graceful and ominous, inviting you to ‘Follow the Failed Leader.’”
Drummer and songwriter Daisy Caplan shares the concept behind “Lucky You”, the album’s second single: “Lucky You is about economics. Much has been made about how little fortune is left in artistry without being a legacy act or having some outside industry or financial support, and even then it’s diminishing returns. The rise of generative AI that nobody really asked for has made the situation even more comical and bizarre. Yet us and others like us find a way to take this path, often at great risk to health, sanity, and stability. This is news to nobody, and there’s no grand statement here - we’re just laughing to keep from crying, because what else are we gonna do?” Kate continues: “The album also deals with what our "value" is. What it is to put a dollar sign over each and every one of our lives. It's so easy to feel like a failure in a society that places monetary achievements over all else, while simultaneously ripping you off. Our track ‘Lucky You' was written about this, about giving away yourself and your work for free.”
“The Swankeeper was a longer songwriting process [than previous albums] - it draws from almost 4 years worth of songs. We took our time exploring different kinds of songs and figuring out what kind of album it wanted to be.” Daisy spills the tea on what went on in the studio. “During the pandemic we got more into writing via email for obvious reasons. Some of the weird effects and ideas found that way (distorted drum machines, samples, found sounds, vocal effects, extreme EQ on the cello, cheap/“wrong” mic-ing) started making their way into the final product. John Hoffman’s [sound engineer, recorded/mixed The Swankeeper] creativity in the studio played a big role in the larger sound of the record as well.”
“Daisy started experimenting with new drum sounds and started playing with a drum pad that has totally different sounds on it than we usually use. We also were playing a lot of shows with Brainiac at that time, and were inspired by how they take their vocals ‘off the page’ so to speak. We started experimenting with pedals to find sounds that made us want to write different songs. I think a lot of the songs and sounds developed in an almost simultaneous way.” Kate gives us her intention for the album. “We just went there with this one. We let ourselves be weird - be out there. We let the songs drop any self consciousness, and just strut out and be freaks… I hope this album makes people feel more alive, and seen in their aloneness, in the strange quiet feelings of being human.”
New album from Lung, The Swankeeper. Album art by Rachelle Caplan
Lung at Bogart’s supporting The Jesus Lizard. Photo: Jared Bowers
“The band’s sound crosses many styles and could be better described by feelings rather than genres. Metal and classical music may not seem like a natural pairing, but singer Kate Wakefield’s haunting and professionally trained operatic voice floats above her fervent cello playing alongside Daisy Caplan’s intense and hypnotic drumming.”
Lung at Bogart’s supporting The Jesus Lizard. Photo: Jared Bowers
Lung at Bogart’s supporting The Jesus Lizard. Photo: Jared Bowers
“Atop drummer Daisy Caplan’s cyclonic and atmospheric percussion backdrop, singer/cellist Kate Wakefield evokes a whirl of energy and emotion, creating varying textures on her cello, which often rocks harder than an army of distorted guitars. Wakefield’s dynamic vocals are equally multidimensional, alternately rising with a hair-raising fervor and slinking with a more delicate but no less intent and intense purr.”
Lung at DRKMTTR with Noun. Photo: Dune Baydoun
Lung at DRKMTTR with Noun. Photo: Dune Baydoun
“The resulting music is fascinating, with both heavenly and evil vocals and powerful grunge emanating from the cello. The tracks are amazing post-grunge mixed with a dose of the avant garde. ”
“There simply are so few other bands currently making music at this level, with this emotional resonance and with such innovation and poise. Lung is in a class all by themselves and this album is the just the latest in a string of incredible releases from them. It is expressive, explosive, and an exceptionally powerful gift to the world.”
Photo: Rachelle Caplan
“Lung is the oddest couple since Oscar Madison and Felix Unger. Former Foxy Shazam bassist-turned-drum-beast Daisy Caplan and electric-cellist-to-the-stars Kate Wakefield team up to either A) slap on spandex onesies and fight crime in Metropolis or B) comprise a completely unexpected musical duo that upends genre expectations and pummels Grungy Indie Rock into new and unclassifiable shapes. Come Clean Right Now is Lung’s third and best album so far, a brilliantly dark document of feral intensity and agitated ferocity. “Sugar Pill” and “Landlocked” suggest Tony Iommi teaching a Nirvana class at Julliard, while the title track is the melodic cacophony of a Classical Punk chamber duo being menaced by murder hornets. Lung doesn’t try to fit in — they pry their way in with a velvet crowbar.”
Photo: Rachelle Caplan
CONTACT
Email LUNGBOOKING@GMAIL.COM
Bandcamp http://lunglunglung.bandcamp.com/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/lungtheband/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lungtheband