Tongues Of Fire Release Cathartic “Burn My Body Clean” EP & Reveal “Clean” Video

North Carolinan post-punk group Tongues Of Fire have returned with the Burn My Body Clean EP that is now available via Florida’s Godless America Records on cassette and digital streaming. The group’s songwriter, singer and guitarist, Lowell Hobbs, endured the loss of his mother after a gruelling cancer battle during the recording of 2019’s Everyone Hates Us, but it is now, on Burn My Body Clean, where he has had the opportunity to truly process and explore the experience. These songs represent five stages of the grieving process; each written at a different time and each contributing to the furious catharsis that is borne out in the arrangements. While not clearly delineated into denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance, each of the five tracks tackle distinct periods in their own ways. From the self-imposed depressed isolation of Room, through the visceral anger of Clean, to the more acceptant Inst, which features a sample of the voice of Lowell’s mother.

Lowell’s mother is part of this record in more than just her voice and influence; in a profound symbolic act, her ashes are mixed with the EP artwork. Lowell explains, “I’d heard about human ashes being used in art and thought it’d be a really amazing way for my mom to be a part of the album because it goes out to her in so many ways. She was a huge supporter of the band and everything I did. I contacted local artist Victoria Arnish who takes care of her ailing mother and we had an instant connection. She understood exactly what I was going for and we’ve spent a lot of time listening to the music, talking and figuring out how to convey what we want to.”

The band have also released the official video for Clean. This video was directed by Asheville film-maker Adam McMilllan, to whom the band gave carte-blanche to interpret their music as he saw fit. In Clean, Adam harnesses the dark, chaotic pain that he felt being delivered in the song and translates it into a tense visual that features a protagonist trying to find his way home after being thrown into a highly stressful and disorienting experience. The video is also notable for the way that it showcases the unique biodiversity of the Asheville region; creating backdrops from rainforest, to grasslands, lush beaches, urban skate parks, train depots and beyond.

You can stream and purchase Burn My Body Clean EP here