“I Practice Dying (in The Spare Room)” mixes synthesizers with thick bass and drums to create a soothing tune, a meditative gaze on life, death, and rebirth. A reincarnation of a song, Half Shadow masterfully sets the mood for an art-rock track that tackles the senses and sets the table for an enchanting Tibetan chant, a neo-progressive rock that delivers more than it promises. On a yoga class or a meditation session, a chant-like “I Practice Dying (in The Spare Room)” is the perfect companion for tired souls, what with its highs and lows, bursts of energy, and a mouthful of air.
For Half Shadow, death is not the end of things. Mortality does not mean the destruction of the self. Metaphorical death blends in with the disappearance from life but rather an amalgam of existences. “I Practice Dying (in The Spare Room)” retaliates stagnant notions of how life and death are two separate entities by relying more on the isolated state of quarantine in which the song -alongside others from the band’s third LP- was recorded with notable contributors sending their parts from afar. The result is a deep meditative healing song that calls for attention and conquers with peace.
Follow Half Shadow on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Spotify, and Bandcamp.
Jaylan Salah
