If you’re deep into the never-ending classification of biological organisms, an album titled Bugland that depicts a snail on the cover might catch you off guard. After all, snails are not technically bugs, right? Yet, this ambiguity is just a fine addition to the enigmatic soundscapes of No Joy’s latest release. Equally as dreamy as a snail wandering through the post-storm calm, but increasingly chaotic like the asymmetry of their shells.

Montreal’s shoegaze/dream pop outfit No Joy is no stranger to noise and dissonance. Their debut’s spacey soundscapes were layered with piercing riffs, while 2013’s follow-up Wait to Pleasure radiated with bliss found within intensity. Originally a four-piece and now the solo project of Jasamine White-Gluz, No Joy has enlisted multi-instrumentalist Fire-Toolz for their latest release. Their journey on empty rural highways listening to the mixes is woven into Bugland, translating this sense of isolation and serenity into sonic landscapes that echo the solitude of becoming one with nature.

Arriving five years after 2020’s Motherland, Bugland is an endearing exploration of how to dissolve chaotic noise into dream-pop. Electronic noise is what greets the listener on the opening track Garbage Dream House, which transcends into a classic shoegaze track at first, only to be disturbed by a guitar riff you’d expect to find on a post-rock tune around the
2:30 mark. Still, it all flows seamlessly, masterfully orchestrated to make sense of these divergent ideas within a single track.

White Gluz’s venture into trip-hop and drum machines on 2020’s Motherland is fully realized on Bugland. Serving as the lead single, the title track opens up with a sequence of punchy drums. Meanwhile, Bather in the Bloodcells employs a crisp and rewarding drum pattern throughout its duration. No Joy never gets stuck in the past; instead, White Gluz builds upon her past work, propelling the trip-hop influences forward.

In 2016, the band took to Facebook about the elusive nature of their lyrics, joking that they are “p(retty) shy & normally don't feel comfortable sharing this #super #classified #information”. Correspondingly, Jazamine White-Gluz’s lyrics take the backseat to let the
melodies shine on most tracks, but don’t be fooled: her songwriting reminisces of paganism, glorifying nature to remind us of all its beauty. The title Save The Lobsters may sound wacky, but White-Gluz’s ethereal voice drowning within the glitchy production provides a diaphanous texture.

All of these ideas culminate in Jelly Meadow Bright, the eight-minute penultimate track. Featuring producer Fire-Toolz, the song journeys through shoegaze, ambient, trip hop, noise pop – the shrieking vocals vanish seconds after they hit you – and even jazz. Evidently, the track, and Bugland overall, precisely showcases the DIY aesthetic that No Joy has embodied since their debut.

One thing is clear: No Joy’s effortless genre-hops are fantastic. Boundaries are meant to be broken, and Bugland is the product of their vision: bold, ethereal, and no less mesmerizing in its uncanniness.

Pre-order Bugland by No Joy HERE