A biofilter is a pollution control technique that uses natural microorganisms to break down pollutants in contaminated air or water. The contaminated material passes through a bed of porous materials like wood or soil, where the pollutants become trapped in a biofilm and metabolise from the microorganisms, naturally converting them into less harmful substances.
Acting as a palette cleanser in a world that at times can feel chaotic, Naarm four-piece Birdsnake offer their own natural filtration system through their textural, aquatic debut longerplayer Biofilter.
Biofilter is built on its own bed of dub and elongated synthwork, where a wonderland of its own modular organisms dance, build, bite and decay over top. Fluid in nature, this elemental sound design offers tiered depths, as a leisurely swim in the shallows can soon have you submerged into open water depending on how much you allow the album to enfold you.
Where these entities exist within each individual song, the album itself is intended for listening chronologically; and even goes beyond romanticising texture in that motion plays a big part in the listening experience, too. Through the rhythmic flow of Biofilter, curvature is established as the album trajectory bends away from its fluffier beginnings to a harder hitting completion.
Soundscapes of a sublime nature, the motifs, rhythm sections and melodies are delivered by unconventional sounds, as Birdsnake employs both organic and digital instrumentation.
A curious glimmer tip toes into ankle-deep water, as leading single ‘Rare Amulet’ opens Biofilter. Inspired by the scaled blanket caused by the refraction of light bouncing off the sand in the shallows, the ocean’s surface invites us to frolic and float hypnotically to the intricate harp work of collaborator Genevieve Fry.
A returning character of Biofilter, the harp ebbs and flows amongst subsequent tracks, where fellow creatures begin to reveal themselves as the water grows deeper. Just as your wits sharpen and you lap to stay afloat, title track ‘Biofilter’ pulls you under; for the marine beneath suddenly surrounds you entirely. Succumbing to its hold, a sense of calm engulfs you as the noise of static land above expires, allowing you to slowly flow with the rhythm of the deep. A true centrepiece, ‘Biofilter’ neutralises the sonic palette, as we enter the B-side of the record.
Melding into the opposing angle of Biofilter’s concave architecture, ‘Mariana’s Trench Coat’ plummets into the dark, cold channels of the sea floor at its farthest. As if on a steadfast mission, a stark, consistent beat pounds its way down, as a myriad of opposing forces ping pong against each other in order to stay inline. A title playing on Earth’s deepest trench, the coat resembles the elusive demeanour of our domineering protagonist, for the unknown it dives towards creates discomfort in this ride of uncertainty.
Largely aquatic in its theme whilst establishing a spectrum of light and depth, the sounds of Birdsnake are an ode to the complexities of our natural world. Agreeing that we are not against, but in fact a part of nature itself, Biofilter simultaneously exists as an echo chamber to humanity, as it demonstrates the all-encompassing range of human emotion.
Biofilter is the debut album by Naarm outfit Birdsnake, and is available for stream and on vinyl via Bathtub Music.
Words by Hannah Galvin