Avalon Kane has never shied away from darkness. The Adelaide-based electronic experimentalist has built her reputation on exploring the shadowy corners of human emotion, but with her latest album Dissension, she ventures deeper into the abyss than ever before. Following 2024's transcendental Solace, this new collection serves as the chaotic counterpart to her ambitious double album vision; a stark descent from ambient dreamscapes into visceral, confrontational territories that Kane describes as her "reveal album."
Where Solace offered introspective beauty and calm, Dissension embraces what Kane calls "the side of me that has been hidden for a long time just waiting to come out." It's a journey through gothic gates hidden in dark forests, a sonic exploration of the macabre and the beautiful, bizarre that has always fascinated her. Working once again with collaborator Stu Patterson across six tracks, Kane has crafted an immersive electronic world that transcends genre boundaries while staying true to her most authentic artistic impulses.
From underground techno homages to cinematic soundscapes inspired by westerns and horror films, Dissension represents Kane cementing her position as one of Australia's most fearless electronic artists. With the lead single "The Only One Who Knows Me Is Me" offering the first taste of this darker realm, let's venture through the gothic gates and explore each track of this haunting, cathartic journey.
“Descent”
I picture my albums as a journey. You always start at the Gothic gates hidden in the forest. This forest is dark. Brooding with creatures, living and dead. The sounds beckon you to open the gate and venture further into the unknown. You can’t see much. You can feel. Shadows envelope you, and eyes are watching you. The forest is seducing you. You are descending into its own haunting trap. You know you want to go, but what awaits you? I created the synth base layer, and Stu added the incredible sax layer on top. They intertwine to create this intense atmosphere to welcome you to your own dissension.
“Red”
I had been sitting with Red for about a year before it really came to fruition. I knew it was a powerful song, but just had to bide my time to find the perfect fit. I struggled with the music for a long time. Then one day, it all fell into place. I instantly knew the chords were right, the sounds, the whole layout. Stu’s voice was integral on that track. Red is an extremely personal song about things I am still coming to terms with and probably always will. A lot of us with trauma hold onto demons that we fall in love with and cannot let go. Sometimes I feel I’ll never let mine go as I love them too much. Maybe we don’t have to, maybe we need to. I guess it’s up to us to work that out.
“Acid Etch”
I was a huge underground techno fan in high school. I blasted my eardrums with mix tapes from friends with cuts from Central Station. We never had any money, so we would always help each other out. We used to get into clubs when we were 15 just to hear the dance music. It was so good. This song is an ode to those times. The Avalon is on the school bus with techno in her ears and mixtapes in her schoolbag.
“Devil in the Dust”
Inspiration for songs also comes from visual media. In particular, film and television. Even games can inspire me to write music. This song is a mixture of 3 of them. I’ve been watching a lot of westerns, outback, miserable life, murder shows, and the underlying theme for me is that there is always dust. Death and dust. I thought about what the dust would have seen. When it whips up into the air, the blood, sweat, tears, and life it would embody would be ancient. Sacred, holy and unholy. I wanted to find sounds that the dust would make when rising from the ground with that power. With the weight of the history it carries. The souls it stands for.
“Michael Sheen”
This song was written selfishly by me for Michael Sheen, one of the greatest actors of our time. He is so wickedly clever. I cannot get enough of him on the screen. One of my favourite franchises is Underworld, and he plays the best Wolf ever made. The sounds for Michael Sheen reflect the sexy undertones of Underworld and the unnatural. It was so much fun letting the sounds go into this gorgeous cinematic soundscape with Stu’s amazing, modulated clarinet.
“Laters”
It was a long, regular process recording Dissension. We worked around Stu’s tour schedule with their bands, The Empty Threats and Placement and regularly met on Thursdays, nearly every 2nd week to record in the studio vocals or instruments. One week, I had news that my dear friend Ben had passed away. “Laters” was in the initial stages of building, but it was clear that it was going to be finished with Ben in mind and dedicated to him. Ben and I were friends from age 11 onwards. We loved electronic music, and Ben was the first one to take me to a nightclub just so we could dance! I can see Ben in this track. It feels like him. I’ll see you laters my dear friend x
“The Only One Who Knows Me is Me”
I wrote TOOWKMIM in a few hours. It’s one of those songs that just punches you right in the guts and tells you something. I hadn’t been singing for long, but this one was the first time I really found I had something to say. I felt why singer/ songwriters wanted to sing their own tracks. There is a whole new level of feeling, power you have when you can channel the emotion you have in your writing into your vocals. I have always done this through my sound, but now I have both, which I am so excited about. This track is a reminder to everyone that you alone hold your power. Only you know your story. Your thoughts, fears, secrets, loves, emotions. No one else. Just you.
“Fog”
Fog is a little favourite of mine. It’s got a real kick. It reminds me of my great love of the Chemical Brothers. I can hear their influence in this one. It didn’t have vocals after the first mix; however, I loved singing so much on TOOWKMIM, I wanted to do more. So, I whipped up some more lyrics and away I went again. I wanted to sound a bit like a demented witch ghost wailing through fog, and I think I did that! I can’t wait to play this one live as I’ve mixed it in with an absolute classic Australian dance track from the 90s. I go a bit mental when I rehearse it in my studio. Also, in my live show, this track has a completely original video by Conor Mercury Movies, we filmed just for the live set, so you’ll have to look out for that in my set!
“Where do you go in the dead of night”
I couldn’t have a chaotic album without a seriously deranged track. This is the one. Stu’s saxophone really goes on a full rampage adventure on this one. Not for the faint-hearted or squeamish…
“Seen It Before”
Stu and I had to end the two albums with this song. Of all our collaborations, this one is our favourite. It really sums up what our music looks like after working together for nearly 3 years. Every time I listen to it, I get goosebumps. It takes me back to the day we recorded it in the studio, and the place was nearly coming down with the reverb and noise from the synth and pedals going out of control. We plugged pedals in the little Moog synth and went hell for leather on it. It sounded like a chopper was in the studio at times! It was the best day, though. One I will always remember and look back on as a huge defining moment for the project. It’s the perfect track to end the album.
Stay connected with Avalon Kane: Instagram | Spotify | YouTube
