Exoplanetary by Ruptured World (Review)

The “Planetary” series launched (npi) with 2018’s Exoplanetary and the mission’s arrival on Proxima Centauri b. Static-laden journal entries by Dr. Hector Macrae, the mission’s chief science officer, describe their difficult descent to the planet’s surface, his impressions of the planet’s flora and fauna, and a growing realization that Proxima Centauri b is not as uninhabited as they thought.

As expected, Exoplanetary is filled with barren drones and foreboding soundscapes as befitting an album about an expedition to a strange planet lightyears from home. While there are moments of awe and even beauty in songs like “The Sunken Valleys” and “Future Cries of No Tomorrow,” the prevailing sense is one of doom and ruin.

With each passing song, Dr. Macrae’s entries grow darker as he describes the mission’s encounter with an intelligent and deadly alien race called the Krivren. Part of the album’s eerie effect stems from Dr. Macrae’s calm, detached voice as he describes the mission’s increasingly desperate state, including a last-ditch effort by the mission commander to establish peaceful contact with the Krivren. Given the album’s final melancholy strains, however, it’s easy to guess the success of such efforts.