Pigeon Opinion Featuring an Interview with Blackout Transmission

New Mexico-based post-punk shoegaze collective Blackout Transmission returns with their highly anticipated sophomore effort "Twilight & Resonance,". This mesmerizing eight-track exploration finds the band trading urban sprawl of Los Angeles for the high desert expanses of the Mountain West, marking a significant evolution in their sonic palette while maintaining their signature lysergic intensity.

Interview with Blackout Transmission

How did relocating from Los Angeles to the Mountain West influence the writing and sound of Twilight & Resonance?

It was a natural influence. I moved from Los Angeles to the Mountain West during the last months of the pandemic. It was a very surreal time in our world — relocating to a comparatively more serene location wherein I was more directly connected to nature definitely shaped the lyrical motifs throughout the album.

The album is described as both a geographical and spiritual journey, how do these themes manifest in the music and lyrics?

I would say there are two converging ideas that are at play regarding your question. The first was coming out of the global pandemic — that forced isolation due to pressing public health concerns is a lot to process and recover from. The second was indeed making a new region of the United States my home. These happened concurrently. As a result — themes of finding stillness, solace, nature, and mindfulness seep into the songs. I didn’t realize this until there were a batch of songs that felt connected enough sonically to be another album.

What was the inspiration behind the album’s title, Twilight & Resonance?

This title come from a lyrical idea within the track “Las Estrelals en Alta”. It involves the notion of “earthing” — a theory suggests that by coming into direct contact with the Earth, the body absorbs electrons, which can act as antioxidants to neutralize free radicals that contribute to inflammation. Some research suggests potential benefits, including decreased inflammation, improved sleep, and reduced stress. We have spectacular sunsets where I live — so it became a habit of mine to go outside, be still, and take in a sunset fairly regularly — this is where the title idea comes from but it has broader implications in terms of the passage of time and reflections on meaning.

How did the high desert landscape shape the textures, atmospheres, and mood of the album?

Adapting to a completely new landscape and drinking in all of its grandeur shaped the sonics quite a bit. There are less anxious, angular melodies giving way to thicker textures and more evocative melody lines.

Can you walk us through your approach to blending post-punk, shoegaze, and neo-psychedelic elements in this record?

I would say that those elements are representative of my records collection. What moves me and inspires me personally as a music listener often imbues the songs that I’m working on in a very general sense. I didn’t set out to record a song with these genres in mind — they just naturally happen as the songs were appearing and getting developed with my bandmates. Nate Donaldson and Scott Holmes were critical collaborators along the path to finalizing these 8 songs.

How did collaborating with Jeff Holmes (design/layout) and Jonathan Keeton (artwork) enhance the visual identity of the album?

The visual artwork completely aligns with the lyrics and sonic textures of the record. Portual-based artist Jonathan Keeton gave me permission to use one of his stunning images as the main cover art. I love this photo for a wide-range of reasons - it’s a location that I frequent for walks, this image has a bit of chiaroscuro in that is shows both light and shadows, it occurs towards twilight. All of these things provide deep and authentic meanings to the body of songs.

Jeff Holmes took this amazingly compelling image and masterfully provided some treatments and overall design layout work that provided a sense of cohesion and connection to the music. It’s hard to articulate what Jeff did — but you really *feel* his artistry when you hold the physical record. I’m forever grateful to both of these artists for their contributions to our overall artwork for this record.

Which track on the album do you feel best captures the essence of Blackout Transmission’s evolution?

This is a hard question to answer! I feel that this album as a whole represents a widening of the aperture for our work to date. That said, the album closer “Kairos” has a wonderful dynamic with many textures and sonic elements that align with the lyrical content really nicely.

How did the 34-minute runtime influence your decisions on track sequencing and album flow?

As I started writing this next group of songs — I stopped around the 12 song mark to step back and look at them as a potential body of work. These 8 tracks were selected as a cohesive body of work that would connect across a listening journey. It wasn’t just 34 minutes — but we deliberately considers Side A vs Side B as we pressed vinyl again. Therefore - these 8 songs were very deliberately selected and sequenced.

We released a promotional EP in August 2025 that featured a ‘single edit’ of the album track “Beyond the Sight Lines” along with 3 B-Sides. Two original songs “Losing Light” and “Ourselves United” were written and recorded during the same timeframe as the full album of songs that comprised “Twilight & Resonance”. We re-mastered our cover of The Cure’s classic single “Lullaby” from their 1989 album “Disintegration” to round out the EP.

Are there specific lyrical or sonic motifs that listeners should pay attention to during repeated listens?

I would want to the listener to realize those ideas on their own with repeated listens. There are elements that reveal themselves with more time.

How do you hope fans old and new will connect with the atmosphere and story of Twilight & Resonance?

The feedback thus far has been overwhelmingly supportive of the new record. It has been reviewed positively far and wide across the globe — for which we are tremendously grateful. The band is rehearsing the new materials — and will say that the old and new songs work really well together in upcoming setlists.

(•)> That's all, Folks! Check out Blackout Transmission on the Pigeon Opinion Playlist