Perception Is/As/Of Deception

Description

The group ADULT. makes a triumphant return after the success of their 2018 album *This Behavior*. This new opus takes the form of *Perception is/as/of Deception*, a veritable hurricane of anxiety that only ADULT. is capable of channeling. While *This Behavior* was recorded in the remote, snowy woods of northern Michigan, *Perception is/as/of Deception* took shape in a temporary space created by the duo by painting their windowless basement completely black, with the pure intention of depriving themselves of their senses, questioning their perceptions, and witnessing the resulting effects. With over 23 years and an immense discography left in their wake, Adam Lee Miller and Nicola Kuperus have spent their entire career within the group ADULT. blurring genres and styles. With a history as unsettling as ADULT.'s, the tracks that make up *Perception is/as/of Deception* could be perceived as their most punk and introspective work to date. The elements of frustration and apprehension constantly found in their work are here at their peak, although reinforced by a more direct and virulent approach. Tracks like "Have I Started at the End" successfully maintain the duo's signature EBM and aggressive synths, cradled by a mysterious mantra that asks... what's it all for? "Why Always Why" offers us a disorienting mutation of classic dance music sounds, like a remix escaped from prison and now on the run. The dystopian anthem "Total Total Damage" is performed with a frantic energy where Kuperus's provocative chants evoke society's increasingly degenerate state. The glam and dramatic synths found throughout the album, though sometimes menacing in nature, also seem to remind us that through *Perception is/as/of Deception*, it is possible to revel in chaos. While a sense of emptiness reigns in the minds of many today, there are still few efforts to sincerely recount these human qualities, however sad and commonplace. Fortunately, ADULT. has long been renowned for creating the soundtrack to our anxieties, and *Perception is/as/of Deception* further strengthens this status.