Otherworldly Folk

Brooklyn’s Damon McMahon has been putting out otherwordly folk music since his 2009 release, DIA. Rooted in traditional song and sound, his spiritual, introspective music is the product of constant sonic expansion and an unforgiving sense of self-expression and self-discovery. “I think of Amen Dunes as elemental song, gothic songwriting, drug music, man music,” says McMahon. Following 2013’s release of the highly experimental Spoiler LP—one that his own label turned down—McMahon switched gears last year and put out Love, his most actualized and accessible collection of songs to date. “I’m a singer-songwriter at heart and I was tired of not letting that self out more fully in the world,” he explains. “For Love, I wanted to imagine an album of songs inspired by the great singers—Marvin Gaye, Elvis Presley, Van Morrison—backed by late-period Talk Talk/Alice Coltrane/Pharoah Sanders.” Seeking to escape the confines of New York City, McMahon headed up to Montreal and joined members of Iceage and Godspeed You! Black Emperor to record the album. At the fore of Love is McMahon’s spirit-guided vocal croon, which warbles atop the droning ambience of his divine collaborators to create a meditative and hallucinatory listening experience unlike any other. www.facebook.com/amendunes