Esther Joy Turns an Obsession with Aliens into Thrashing Electro
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Music

Esther Joy Turns an Obsession with Aliens into Thrashing Electro

The London producer tells us about writing a whole sci-fi narrative to go with her upcoming EP 'The Acid Caves.'
Daisy Jones
London, GB

Have you ever Googled the size of the observable universe? I did this morning and it took me a while to comprehend because, yeah, it’s fucking huge. Here’s a relatively digestible way to explain: if you placed a penny in front of you and imagined it was the sun, at that scale, the Milky Way galaxy would be about 7.5 million miles away. And that’s just a tiny section of the universe. The whole thing is, scientists predict, currently a sphere of around 92 billion light years, but it’s always expanding, and it could be infinite. In other words: aliens definitely exist and if you think they don’t, my dude, you are wrong.

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Esther Joy – the London producer we first noticed back when she toured with Charli XCX and have since discovered makes her own v sick music – is also obsessed with aliens. It’s an obsession that sits at the core of her upcoming second EP, The Acid Caves, for which she’s written an accompanying sci-fi narrative with the same name. We’re premiering the first track from that EP below – “Day 1 (Silipur Leaves Home)” – a brief but ferocious, thrashing electronic explosion in which Esther's voice slices through like another layer of synth. So sink your teeth into that, and afterwards, let's get into the fiction behind it.

The Acid Caves is based in a universe in which all planets are connected by an energy system called ‘The Chaos’,” Esther writes to me over email. “The Chaos is the energy that sustains all planets and life forms. It's the emotional, spiritual and supernatural.” In other words, it's basically like what the sun is – giving light and energy to planets beyond our own – but in a more emotional, overarching sense.

Esther continues: “Over the last millennium, all lifebloods (non-humans) developed the ability to physically see and manipulate this energy, leading to huge advancements in better mental health and supernatural power. For humans, however, their ego and transfixion with technology significantly stunted their natural evolution and they are now the only life form unable to see or understand The Chaos." If that sounds like a lot to wrap your head around, imagine that aliens have become enlightened empaths, while humans remain relatively sociopathic in comparison. It's not that they don't have emotions, they just don't understand or see them in the way non-humans do. Good? Okay, here's more.

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“Despite their ignorance, humans play a vital role in supporting the universe by pumping huge amounts of emotional energy into The Chaos system,” Esther explains. “Humans cannot use or manipulate this energy like other beings on other planets, so they have been serving as a powerful and sustainable source for others.” Are you still with us? Basically, they're kind of like blissfully ignorant Care Bears, beaming emotional power out to other life forces, but without knowing that's what they're doing.

All of this, however, is going to change. “Each step closer to virtual life has reduced the power of human contact, and with that, The Chaos is fading, Earth is dying and the destruction of the universe is inevitable…” Esther writes. “As the threat of extinction grows, all planet leaders will join together and travel to Earth via The Chaos system in an attempt to warn humans of their destruction. The gate to Earth has never, and will never be opened again, as humans are considered too unpredictable and dangerous. It will be a one-way journey for those who depart.”

That's just the background info though. The entire EP follows a character called Silipur, a “cynical lifeblood who chooses to abandon her planet illegally for Earth. She is one of many who will try to break through the temporary gate in hope of tasting Earth’s purest energy”. The above track is the first volume in her story. As Esther explains: “Silipur is alone. She has family and friends but Silipur – is – alone. Just because you can see The Chaos doesn't always mean you have enough, doesn't mean you don't crave more emotion. In fact, seeing it makes you need more. Silipur feels pain as she craves to feel more. Her pain is more than a human could feel.”

“Silipur slips quietly out of her pod and down to the newly opened Earth portal. Gate E. She sits, heart pounding as she wrestles with the idea of jumping. It is illegal to cross planets without permission, punishable by death as the trade could take a human's life. She doesn't care. She has never liked humans, but longed for a planet so overwhelmed with The Chaos. Beautiful Chaos. She can feel it's energy – she would never hurt again. Somewhere on Earth, a girl is crying. She cannot do it anymore. Silipur jumps. And so does she.”

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Esther Joy's The Acid Caves is due for release on 27 April 2018