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Chicago post-punks Deeper have shared another single from their forthcoming second album Auto-Pain (March 27, Fire Talk), “Lake Song.” The band has also unveiled new spring tour dates in North America and Europe.
“Lake Song” finds Deeper further incorporating electronics into their sound while still maintaining deft control of tone: The song begins faintly, then steadily grows more forceful, like a negative thought overtaking a troubled mind. Built on a drum machine beat and thrumming bass line, the song interweaves dizzy guitars with phosphorescent synths as singer/guitarist Nic Gohl conjures up the complex feelings of nihilism and helplessness that come with caring for someone beset by mental illness—“I just want you to feel sick,” he sings, ruing a problem he can’t solve.
“We grow up learning and eventually intuiting how to take care of people who are physically hurt or sick,” says Gohl in a statement. “On the other hand, caring for those struggling with mental illness is a constant process of grappling to understand the complex nuances that then dictate the best care and approach. ‘Lake Song’ is about supporting a loved one struggling with mental illness and wishing the pain they experience was easier to cure, like a head cold or broken bone.”
Deeper’s new album comes, after all, from a place of profound grief and loss: The band’s late guitarist Mike Clawson died by suicide after leaving the band in 2019, and with Auto-Pain, Gohl, guitarist Drew McBride, bassist Kevin Fairbairn and drummer Shiraz Bhatti strive to honor their fallen friend, as well as to call attention to the invisible struggles Clawson and so many others, in the music world and beyond, deal with every waking hour.
“I think most people with problems with depression or mental wellness don’t really seek out help, especially in our generation and older. I don’t think we’re taught to reach out. I guess we are now gradually destigmatizing it,” Gohl told Paste in January. “But growing up, if I were to tell my mom I was depressed, she would flip shit, you know, like, ‘What’s wrong with you?’ I feel like we’re not taught how to treat that kind of illness. We’re taught how to treat a head cold or a scratch on the arm, but when it comes to your mental health, people are afraid to talk about it in an open and productive way.”
“Lake Song” is the second single from Auto-Pain, following the January release of “This Heat.” Paste named that track one of last month’s best. Auto-Pain, meanwhile, follows Deeper’s acclaimed 2018 self-titled debut.