You may or may not have heard the famous quote, “there is no planet B.” Well, you can check that off as verifiably untrue, as we literally have an exclusive Planet B cut to share with you today. Take that, science.
For the uninitiated, the project’s bizarre blend of glitch-y jazz, noise rock, and hip-hop might sound familiar on paper, but trust us, Planet B is purely it’s own thing. Without going full Death Grips or Backxwash, Justin Pearson, Luke Henshaw, Kevin Avery, and Scott Osment employ a gritty sense of guerrilla storytelling with subtle hints of 70’s and 80’s horror soundtracks.
It’s pure Three One G goodness if you ask us – somehow, Justin Pearson continues to sharpen his narratives and delivery, and thanks to a number of strange beds of sound that are particularly unlike the projects that might come to mind when you think of him (The Locust, Dead Cross, Retox, etc.) Planet B’s surrealism and mischief feels refreshing, familiar, and vital.
Check out “Clogged Sync” exclusively below:
As on the nose as the track is, there’s an additional element adding to its weight – the presence of Ethan Campa and Mamaleek‘s Eric Livingston, who passed away last year at the age of 38. Livingston’s multi-instrumental prowess was a recognized force of nature among those who knew him, but perhaps even more than that was his talent for visual art. He made videos for Dead Cross and Satanic Planet, as well as made an action figure for The Locust.
Luckily, it is the kind of song that can make you smirk, smile, and think at the same time, and that is the kind of legacy any artist can be pleased with. Check out that Satanic Planet video here though – come on, you’re done with the song now, aren’t you? Oh, you’re playing it again? Cool, us too.
“Clogged Sync” nails the mission statement you can read on their Bandcamp, which reads:
“Justin Pearson, Luke Henshaw, Kevin Avery, and Scott Osment formed Planet B with the shared purpose of creating music subversive in sound and sobering in message…”
Indeed it does. Maybe what makes it so effective is the fact that the arrangement is airtight, but also loose – the juxtapositional contexts create a feeling of almost hyperextended tension, but it’s strangely enjoyable. We’re gonna spin it a few dozen more times to be sure.
Planet B’s new album Fiction Prediction comes out February 9th – pre-order it here if you haven’t already.