ENANTIODROMIA (/əˌnan(t)ēəˈdrōmēə/): the tendency of things to change into their opposites, especially as a supposed governing principle of natural cycles and of psychological development. Similar to the principle of equilibrium in the natural world, in that any extreme is opposed by the system in order to restore balance.
There is a constant drift in all things, a tendency for polarities to switch — that which is solid melts into air, and over time the intangible solidifies into matter. This drift is everywhere and exists at all scales, from the cosmic to the microscopic. In most things, it isn't just a curiosity: it's essential for existence. The drift is the stability.
There is another kind of drift that happens in all of us as, but that drift is not inevitable. It happens in the mind and heart, turning us from what we know ourselves to be into what we hoped we’d never become.
You’ve seen it happen so many times: the punk friends you grew up with turn into conservative reactionaries. Friendships drift from trust to suspicion. Confidants become enemies, loathing turns into love and back again. The compassion in yr heart hardens and you calcify, only to be softened once again by events you didn’t expect would bring you back to openness and vulnerability.
A big struggle for a lot of us is to not become the very things that we push against — this is particularly difficult because the process of pushing against something means that we come into very close contact with it. To really push against something means we have to put our hands on it, to lean our muscles into it, and to try to understand it. In the process of getting so close to The Problem, it seems inevitable that we’ll get some of The Problem on us, too.
But is it inevitable?
A giant star slowly drifts into becoming a black hole. Life becomes death and death becomes life in a relentless cycle. We drift from shining brightly and taking no shit to joining the Grey Forces if they cut us a big enough cheque.
ENANTIODROMIA is the name of my new record, and it sits right in the midst of these drifts, watching them go by.
I realize this description is abstract, even vague. Don’t worry, the record is not. In this case, there are about 3,050 pointed, specific words that will help you to understand the title and the themes.
On a musical note (ha), I think this is the best self-produced work I’ve ever done. This record features way more live playing than I’ve ever done before, everything from tambourines and percussion to synths to guitars to keys. I played all all of the instruments and did all of the programming, sampling, and composition. I spent way longer on the details. The record was mixed professionally by my homie Tyler Martin here in Peterborough. It was mastered by Harris Newman at Grey Market mastering in Montreal. I put my whole ass into this record, and I hope you can hear it (lol).
thanks for listening, garbageface.