MELONCHOLIAGRAPHY

Wormholes are not as dangerous as we once thought. Unimaginable horrors were commonly expected upon entry into the naturally occurring phenomenon, and, like most misconceptions that are soon debunked, officials advised the creatures of the Universe to avoid them at all costs. For Logaan-X and the members of Jump To Oblivion, wormholes were a summer mainstay. You see, dear Audionauts, wormholes are not inherently dangerous; they become life-threatening in their application and landing point. Beyond the safety issue, as it turns out, the residents of Othezor (in the Hodie Star Belt) had harnessed this technology several millennia ago. Where you or I might take a hovercraft, use our hooves or tentacles, or even a wheeled vehicle to traverse simple or complicated terrain, it was Othezorians who were beboppin' across their planet with the help of self-controlled wormholes through activation wristlets (and, at one point, embedded data chips). While highly convenient, their application as a prank, at least among Logaan-X, Cotos, and Barnilliam (lead keyboard, bass, and drums, respectively), made it most effective. Every summer, the trio was shipped off (read: banished) to Camp Carfungibo, a somewhat dilapidated sleepaway camp far from the reaches of the Hodie Star Belt. Here they would pretend to fall from high places, only to disappear (through a wormhole) and appear safely elsewhere on the property. These summer days and nights form the basis of The End of It All, an ode to the first and last days of friendship and commiseration. The album cover belied a harsher tone, though there are moments of dread in the closing track, Slaughterhouse Three, it is primarily an uplifting affair, rife with summer synth and humming bass. The Glory Days are far behind us, and "Remember When" may be the lowest form of conversation, but The End of It All is about the warmth of that friendship, the daze of growing up, and the realization that your former you will never return, so enjoy it now before the end of it all.