Release Date: 2nd February 2024
Take a look at the cover art for Plantoid’s debut album, the jazzy, prog-rock opus Terrapath. In a desolate, misty landscape, a massive half-vegetable, half-machine structure resembling a spaceship looms above figures shrouded in shadow. It’s weird and eerie, but it also ignites a feeling of wonder and nostalgia, like cracking open your favourite sci-fi novel as a kid. It harkens back to ‘70s rock artwork, where ornate fantasy scenes gaze back at you from dusty vinyl gatefolds—and yet it was created with the decidedly modern AI software Midjourney. In short, it’s the perfect visual for a band that is able to marry both the old and the new in a fresh and exciting way.
Musically, Plantoid’s cauldron harnesses multiple subgenres at once to concoct a sort of primordial soup, the molecules of which are built as much from progressive rock as they are jazz, fusion, folk, and even a bit of ‘70s hard rock for good measure. The band began as the brainchild of Chloe and Tom, who formed the band Mangö and started gigging around town with drummer Louis Bradshaw, who Tom had been good friends with since secondary school.
After making a name for themselves locally, the three relocated to London and recruited bassist Bernardo Larisch, who they met at a uni freshers party. Now a four-piece, and renamed Plantoid, the band were ready to dig even deeper into their shared influences, ranging from Miles Davis to Todd Rundgren, to Jeff Buckley, all the way around to the more acute experimental fare that gives Plantoid their razor-sharp edge.
Emotion, whether it be through their music, lyrics, or performances, is a large part of Plantoid’s creative impetus. Think back to that little alien searching for meaning with his big green spaceship: through all the crazy solos, elastic basslines, acrobatic vocals and supermassive drum beats, Terrapath is a story about finding yourself through the music you love.