Uniform have no issue with aurally offensive sounds. As a band, they’re so considerate of literally everything mental and emotional and, as they should, they pride themselves on being that way. No matter how much of a delightful shrillness they exude, there’s so much more to the cacophony of their sounds, and their new song “Permanent Embrace” is proof of that.
Like other songs on American Standard and in the rest of Uniform’s discography, the lyrics on “Permanent Embrace” are informed so heavily by vocalist Michael Berdan’s life—the ups, the downs, the mental violence, you name it. Of the song, he spoke very candidly of its roots.
“It touches on a facet of the disease that I’m incredibly wary of facing. Built on a narrative foundation laid out by author and lyrical collaborator Maggie Siebert, the song revolves around the idea of a person holding a loved one as an emotional hostage. Seeing perverse beauty in a story about a car crash, the narrator relates the analogy of two automobiles twisted together to that of his last standing relationship. As he has broken down over time, so has the one who continues to stand by him. The object of his manipulative guilt trips remains locked in a hopeless situation, terrified of what he may do to himself if they were to finally leave.
“The music reflects the psychic violence of the lyrics, as riffs and rhythms that wouldn’t feel out of place in the Unsane catalog careen into giant synth melodies before collapsing into itself. This is kind of our misguided interpretation of what Faith No More were doing on ‘Angel Dust’, and we hope that our tip of the hat to those masters of madness can hold a candle to their horrific splendor.”
“Psychic violence” is probably one of the best descriptions I’ve ever heard, and its accuracy is unmatched in this regard. Watch the video for it below and reflect on the guilt within your own soul.