Bruner is an American artist who has just come to my attention thanks to the release his new indie-punk album that’s quite unlike anything else out there. It’s called My Descent into Madness.

By Graeme Smith

My Descent into Madness follows on the heels of Bruner’s debut EP Everybody Wants to Be a Cowboy, which was released earlier this year. This new album marks a change of direction without losing any of the experimentation introduced by that EP.

It opens with Granola. It’s a relatively calm start, with a soft groove and vocals that are somewhere between spoken word and singing. Jangly electric guitar meets bright percussion during a mid-track instrumental before the second verse draws us deeper into the album’s story of heartbreak and breakdown.

Specter is a short but slow-burning rock interlude before With You gives us a cantering and energetic moment rich with simmering frustration. Jack-O-Lantern is an explosive and emotional highlight. We begin to get hints of the chaos that’s to come later in the album.

Another Slow Song is delicate and vulnerable with some rumbling bass and pleasing, looping melodies. How Come? is bluesy and stripped back. Monster Mash sees things start to unravel with a cacophonous effort before Road Trip lightens things slightly with a bouncy, fiery and reflective number. It’s another highlight.

Descent into Madness is where Bruner leaves it all out there, giving a vibrant and all-encompassing track that brings together disparate genres of rock, electronica, and drum and bass before suddenly changing up into something a little more dream pop. Psychedelia runs right through it providing another highlight. Won’t Last then closes the album with an intimate, acoustic farewell.

My Descent into Madness was produced by Fritz Rango, and recorded in the band Whippet’s basement studio. You can give it a listen below.