What happens when a tortured God and a yearning human cross paths? Well, you get KiNG MALA’s new concept record And You Who Drowned in the Grief Of A Golden Thing. Inspired deeply by Robert Eggers’ The Witch (a fave of the singer), this new LP tackles the delicate impermanence of mortals, the beauty of sex, and the power struggle of our two main characters.
In classic KiNG MALA fashion, she intertwines her own experiences and life observations into this classic tale to craft a truly unique piece. With her experimental alternative sonics, stunning visuals, and clever storytelling, KiNG Mala is in a league of her own.
Of the title, the artist notes, “The ‘golden thing’ is power [that] this God character has that our human wants. The whole story is the consequence of her desire for more.”
idobi Radio had the chance to chat with KiNG Mala, aka Areli Castro, and dive deeper into the story of all twelve tracks. Check out our full story breakdown track-by-track below.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
1. POSSESSION
When we discussed the concept of the album, I was like, “Oh, it’s a possession story.” Our entity, our God, possesses our human and it’s their relationship. It’s their fight for the body. It’s their fight for power. To me, our entity is born of the violence of men, specifically. And the relationship between our human and our entity is very feminine in nature, but our entity is born of the violence that men enact on women. There’s a sense of revenge. And this song is our entity going, “This is what I am.” It’s sort of like a circle of violence, the entire story.
2. SWEET LAMB
It’s our call to action. Each song is a step in the hero’s journey, like a skeletal literature model. And “Sweet Lamb” to me is like our entity being like, “Hey, do you want power? Do you want more than what you have?” And our human being like, “Yeah, I’m down.” Then the story commences, and it’s sort of this moment inspired by The Witch—that moment of Black Phillip asking, “Wouldst thou like to live deliciously?”
3. GOD
[The human] said yes, so we’re in. And it’s a little bit more like, “Okay, so you want this. This is actually what it’s gonna be. [This story is] going to be terrifying. [“GOD”] felt like a really good introduction to the vibe [of the full LP], even just sonically.
4. SALVATION::VIOLATION
“SALVATION::VIOLATION” is our entity being like, “All right, girl, let go. I know it’s scary, but you have to let me fully take control.” I imagine our entity entering the [human] body and there’s sort of like this second of struggle.
5. DEVOTION
“DEVOTION” is [about] surrender(ing) to this entity. It’s our human being like…I am your devotee. I am your follower. I am your worshipper. I’m in.
6. FUN
It’s like when you’re going down the hill on a bike and suddenly you’re going really fast and the wheels are starting to shake. Our human is experiencing power and greatness, and our entity is experiencing being a human. Our human wants to be a god, our god wants to be a human. She wants a body, she wants to live. She wants to feel things, to eat, to orgasm, to be with the people, to party. They’re both getting everything they want, but it’s scary.
7. GARDEN
For me, “GARDEN” is from the perspective of our human. She’s in the depths of it, and she knows she’s in danger. But she’s like, “If I can just make it to the top, this purified place of greatness like Eden, where nothing is wrong and there is no pain, then I’ll be okay.” But this entity is using her.
8. LITTLE DEATH
This is our song about sex. Our entity loves being in a body. Being in a body means that you’re like decaying slowly, and as an immortal being, it must feel so painful. But “orgasm” translates to
“the little death.” If I’m gonna be mortal, at least let me enjoy myself. So they’re getting the thrill of human pleasure.
9. ODE TO A BLACK HOLE
In a toxic relationship, you know that this person is killing you slowly from the inside out. You still love them, and you can’t figure out why, and you can’t detach yourself. You’re still so invested and so in love with them. That is this moment for our human. It’s almost like our swan song for our human of…I’m going to die and you’re going to kill me, but I love you.
10. THE GRAND DECAY
Our entity is leaving the body and our human is realizing everything that this relationship has taken from them. To be human is to be dying. [This song is] a reckoning with all of the horror.
11. YOU DON’T KNOW ME
The entity is telling our human I am far beyond your comprehension. The way I feel about you is so much darker than you imagined. Like you are a thing for me to use, abuse, and enjoy. And then I’m out. That’s what this is. And it’s really dark. So, this song is from the perspective of the worst person you’ve ever met and known.
12. I STILL FEEL IT IN THE BONE
This was sort of the most personal moment for me on the record, just because I was reckoning with my own trauma and the things I’ve experienced. After something really horrible has happened to you, you…everyone’s like, “Oh my God, you’re such a survivor. Wow, you made it.” But this is the beginning of a very different existence for me. I will never be the same, really.
This song is very much like…you have burrowed into my spine. So it’s almost this sort of moment of a horror movie with the final girl. Our monster is dead, but its finger moves. It’s never really over. There’s more violence to come, and it loops back into “POSSESSION” perfectly.
