Behind The Tracks: Shekler - Desolate Land (Single) (2023)

This song depicts an apocalyptic setting in the future. We listen to the protagonist describing the world as he sees it right now, broken and destroyed. As he seems to be the last living being on the planet, he seeks to find a way to rebuild civilization again after he gets back some courage and strength. Moving forward, the song gets heavier and stronger, building up that very specific feeling the protagonist feels on his journey to rebuilding.

The song finishes with an open end, leaving the listener with their own interpretation of the song's outcome: Will the protagonist succeed or fail? With the iconic tape-stop effect in the end, it might also be possible that this whole story is a journey from the past.

Writing this song was a little wild. Moving from soundscapes to different instrumental effects, inspired by bands like Sleep Token, gave me a rough idea of where this track might be headed. I surely wanted the chorus to be heavier and meaningful, the verses a little softer, and a solid breakdown leaving a different feeling in the song. The breakdown came last though, as the rest of the song came together quickly. I scrapped a lot of different sound ideas though before coming to this final finished state of the song sound experience.

A very strong driver in the song was the story and the scenery I wanted the listener to imagine. All the different parts of the song are supposed to create a very specific image − and that's what I generally like to do in my music. Creating songs with feelings that let your mind travel to different places and through different scenarios.