Trevor Powers Surprise-Releases New Album Capricorn: Listen

Trevor Powers—the artist who formerly recorded under the name Youth Lagoon—has released a new album called Capricorn. Recorded in a cabin near the Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho, the new album is a largely instrumental ambient project; stream it below.

After giving up the Youth Lagoon moniker in 2016, Powers released the first album under his real name, Mulberry Violence, in 2018. In a statement about Capricorn, Powers wrote, “Control is our god. But it’s an illusion. We think we can dictate every day of our lives but that’s like playing chess during an earthquake. Sometimes the pieces move themselves.” He added: “We’ve forgotten how bizarre our planet is. Insects are their own gospel choir. Rain is a fucking fever dream. The more Earth I included, the more alien it felt.”

The new album is influenced by Keiichi Koike’s Ultra Heaven, Richard Teschner’s puppets, and ancient folklore, according to a press release. “From the minute we wake up, we’re in a trance,” Powers says. “This is music for our digital coma.”

Speaking further of the album, Powers said:

The field recordings are mostly a patchwork of nature: wind, insects, rain, birds, frogs, streams, thunder but with their voices mangled and played with. I fell in love with the idea that everything has a voice. Combining those with piano melodies felt like some kind of Mister Rogers hallucination. I also created some crude digital instruments out of noise pollution, like planes and highways – but the most natural sounds were always the most alien. I wanted to make something that felt as peaceful as it was haunting. Anything that did that and served the music, I made use of.

In addition to releasing Capricorn, Powers is releasing an accompanying book that includes illustrations by Los Angeles artist Collin Fletcher (Fletcher also designed the cassette artwork for Capricorn), as well as photographs Powers has taken over the last few years.