Fearsome Engine (LP)

Fearsome Engine is the debut LP of sci-fi psych-rock duo Ripship (Callum Lincoln and Eva-Rae McLean). The nine-track album is an evolution of their genre-bending 2020 EP Greebles, expanding on themes of space exploration, technological anxiety and exponential growth. With the help of producer Peter Ruddell, Fearsome Engine makes no compromises. Lush synthetic soundscapes ebb and flow over polyrhythmic drum grooves and crushing guitars, and vocoded vocals provide robotic low-end. An uneasy sense of existential dread lies just beneath the goofy, tongue-in-cheek lyricism of Lincoln and McLean. The opening track, The Great Filter, begins with the division of cells in a systematically noisy march. The closer, B13, guides the listener through an eldritch nightmare. From computer supremacy to climate change, Fearsome Engine is an album about everything that ever was, and everything that will ever be.

Guitars were recorded by Ryan Brand at Cordial Studios, the rest was recorded and produced by Peter Ruddell (Sulfate, Soft Bait, Jazmine Mary). The album was mastered by James Goldsmith.