Maheekats return with their powerful new single ‘Monster’ which completes the highly anticipated Circle Of Dominion EP. The song ‘Monster’ brings to light the mental health condition of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in hopes that it will help those afflicted. PTSD is a disorder in which a person has difficulty recovering after witnessing or experiencing a terrifying event. Maheekats released the reflective single ‘The Swans’ earlier this year, preceded by ‘Money Bunny’ (John Fryer Mix).
‘Monster’ was written by Craig Camp in the mid 1990s and was later introduced to Clara who then learned the chord structure and started trying different melodies to sing to it. Writing the melody and lyrics was challenging since she was not accustomed to writing with deeply distorted electric guitars and heavy drums. At the time, the lyrics were meant to reflect the feeling of the music. It wasn’t until after the song was recorded in 2020 that she realized what the song was about. After the song was produced and recorded, they were able to step back, listen, and hear the song for the first time as it was intended.
“It’s different when you’re writing and playing a song. Sometimes it isn’t until after the song is recorded that you can finally sit back and listen to it and see if it’s something you want to release. And when I heard it, I knew what the lyrics were about,” says Clara. The realization coincided with her diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. In the song, the monster represents what happens after being triggered. For those who also suffer from PTSD, they know that they’ll be going along and enjoying life, trying to be normal. Then something will trigger them. It can be someone’s tone of voice, a topic that naturally comes up in a conversation, or something as simple as what was meant to be a loving touch. After the trigger, it’s difficult to know that you’ve been triggered. You’ve lost the healthy discriminating difference between what is real anger and what is past trauma rearing its head like a monster that won’t go away.
“We decided to record the song because a fan kept bugging us to. Now that it’s recorded, we’ve decided to release it in the hopes that people who have been affected by PTSD, either themselves or their loved ones, will find a connection in the song that will help them somehow,” says Clara.
Craig Camp (drums, bass) and Clara Hembree (vocals, guitar) and their band Maheekats, started their musical journey in 1999 with a sound that can be defined by its otherworldly vocals, surreal and poetic lyrics, edgy post–punk, dreamy psychedelic, alternative art rock, old school goth and progressive sonic experimentation. Their debut full-length album ‘God Has A Cadillac Too’ was released in 2001 and an EP ‘Songs From The Woods’ in 2016. They’ve created a good handful of singles over the years and in 2018 released them as an EP, simply titled ‘Maheekats Singles’. They’ve had the opportunity to work with Paul DuGré (X, Toad The Wet Sprocket, Weezer), Mario Calire (The Wallflowers, Ozomatli), and Fredo Ortiz (Beastie Boys, Gogol Bordello, The Offspring and the legendary producer John Fryer.
Maheekats Circle Of Dominion EP is now available for purchase via the bands bandcamp page.
All images courtesy of Maheekats
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