“The Exodus of Gravity is a metaphor for the times we’re living in. Up is down, down is up.”

That’s Arcadea’s Core Atoms on the title of the band’s second album. After releasing their self-titled debut in 2017, the psychedelic synth explorers are back with a revamped lineup and a more infectious sound. Joining the core duo of Atoms and drummer/vocalist Brann Dailor is João Nogueira, the live synth player for Dailor’s other band, Mastodon. And this time, Dailor handles lead vocals on all 12 of the album’s tracks.

The roots of Arcadea go back 30 years, when Atoms and Dailor played together in Gaylord. The Exodus of Gravity carries the prog-funk echoes of that long defunct band while reaffirming the duo’s lifelong friendship. “This album was a super joy for me because it was the first time I got to return to some of the funk that we’re rooted in and Brann is so great at playing,” Atoms says. “He doesn’t always get noticed for that the way he does for his awesome metal chops.”

The Exodus of Gravity’s storyline takes place in a post-human universe five billion years in the future, roughly five years after the events described on the debut. Atoms wrote a multi-layered sci-fi treatment from which the album’s lyrics are drawn.

In his futuristic vision, Andromeda has merged with the Milky Way. New Arcadea, the planet the story takes place on, is losing gravity while a remarkable resurrection is taking place. “New Arcadea has many remnants of our past life,” Atoms explains. “But it's all AI, robots, stuff like that—non-sentient things. Then these spores and microorganisms get inhaled, and life starts happening again, along with empathy and love. All these things start flourishing again—but for the machines. So, it’s a new consciousness through a mixing of machine and microscopic life.”

But whereas the self-titled debut was labyrinthine and progressive with an emphasis on experimentation, The Exodus of Gravity takes a different approach. “I think the object was to get a little more dancey and a little more fun,” Dailor says. “As much as we liked how proggy the last one was, it reminded me of what I already do in Mastodon. We wanted to explore the idea of doing something different. So, I wanted to really concentrate on groove and dance and embracing the electronic aspect of it.” Focusing on groove allowed the songs to open up for Dailor’s vocals to take center stage. “It made for these super catchy choruses and verses,” he says. “It became a fun, psychedelic adventure mirroring the cool story Core came up with. I really look forward to playing these songs live because I think it could be a really fun experience for the audience. I don’t wanna look out and see a bunch of guys staring back at me with their arms crossed. I wanna see some asses wiggling.”

It helps that Dailor feels a deeper connection to The Exodus of Gravity. “With the first album, I would come home from tour, and Core would be like, ‘I’ve got some stuff for you play on,’” Dailor explains. “I would come in, listen, play on it and then have to leave again. I’m very happy with the way the first record came out, but I feel less ownership of it. This time we got to jam out together and work on the material more, and I feel more emotionally attached to it, especially the vocals. To me, it feels like a more evocative record.”

According to Atoms, each song deals with an element of human emotion. Lead single “Fuzzy Planet” sets the tone with a gush of interplanetary optimism and warm synth tones as Dailor sings of a silver future. “There’s something really hopeful and uplifting about it from a musical aesthetic,” Dailor says. “I just see fuzzy balloons lifting off into the sky and a beautiful clown sort of dancing around, but that's just me. I always have a beautiful clown conjured up somewhere in my mind.”

“It’s about that first fuzzy feeling you get when you fall in love,” Atoms adds. “Our lead character is recognizing that the spore has gotten in them and they’re starting to change. They’re awakening to all the beauty that’s around.”

Dancey, robotic and otherworldly, the title track is an environmentally minded tune with obvious correlations to our own time and planet. “It's about recognizing how rough things have gotten with the atmosphere and life on the planet, but it also deals with anxiety about the future,” Atoms says. “On New Arcadea, the thing that everyone counts on to hold everything together—gravity—is starting to separate. It’s a bad situation, but the lyrics are hopeful.”

Elsewhere, “Lake of Rust” explodes with a steady blast of synth stabs as Dailor’s heavy metal vocal delivery tears across the stereo field. “This is where our hero is crossing this giant lake of lava with floating icebergs in it,” Atoms explains. “They’re heading towards the galactic lighthouse where New Arcadea’s mysterious source of light originates. This is everything they see on their adventure. In terms of human emotion, it’s power, anger and revenge. It’s about getting there and saving the day no matter what.”

For all its emotional peaks and valleys, The Exodus of Gravity ends on a positive note. “I feel like there’s enough negative crap out there,” Atoms says. “I’m an optimist, and I think even if we get to a point where there’s no human life, it doesn’t mean there’s no life. By the end of the album, more life is taking root in the machines, and our hero is starting to experience friends and a world that’s being reignited and coming alive. What happens next? You’ll have to wait for the third album.”

The Exodus of Gravity was recorded at West End Sound, in the basement of Mastodon’s practice facility, Ember City. It was produced by Arcadea and engineered by Tom Tapley.

Arcadea will be hitting the road before you know it. Dailor is more than ready. “I’m going to have to pull a Phil Collins—put the overalls on and get out front,” he says. “We’ll have to see if Chester Thompson is available to pick up the slack back there on the tubs.”