CNJR – WSTLND
FAR029
Release date: June 07 2019
WSTLND is the debut LP from CNJR. Exploring the struggle to survive the human experience, the complexities of mental health and depression, and the alienation of being queer. WSTLND is a heavily emotive experience. CNJR combines complex electronic sounds, retro synthesizers, recorded instrumentation, and occasional vocals to uniquely create a dark electro/analog tapestry that draws listeners into an introspective experience.
“When setting out to write the music for ‘WSTLND’ I was in the midst of a lot of emotional turmoil. Struggling with mental health, with depression, with what was happening in the world around me. Continuing to struggle from feelings of alienation, feeling misunderstood, feeling different. Struggling with being queer and how to navigate the experience. I felt the angst of my teenage years returning but with a very different flavor, mixed with a far more critical and complex understanding of the world and of why I feel the way I do. I wanted the music to reflect where I am. To be an exploration of this darkness and of the pain and struggle and trauma that all of us endure to survive. I did not necessarily want it to be bleak, because in the experience of this darkness is something that unites us, something shared, and also partially makes us who are. It’s part of being alive, here, right now. Music and Art for me is always partially about escapism, but also about reflection. It’s probably why I love speculative fiction, love sci-fi, adventure stories, myths, and legends. There will always be an element of this sneaking through my music as I tend to be drawn towards sounds and arcs that feel like you are on a journey. Something epic, something bigger than our day to day lives. So as ‘WSTLND’ came together, it sort of naturally fused these two themes. Struggle and darkness, with a journey, a cinematic audio tapestry. The result, i suppose, is introspective dark cinematic electronic. If someone could coin a genre name for that i’d really appreciate it.” – CNJR
