Spaces between world and underworld, dream and reality, Somnia: an element not yet unearthed or discovered.
What distinguishes imagination, fantasy, and truth? For Steve Moore, on the lonely, cold and grey Shooter’s Hill, a miniature gem-like Greek moon goddess statue is as real as any other lover, fiction and magic dictate all, and life is sustained by a dream spine of “thought meat” and “conceptual vertebrae.”
Unearthing is the creation of comic book writer Alan Moore (best known for his graphic novels, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, From Hell, V For Vendetta, and The Watchmen), photographer Mitch Jenkins, and a team of musicians. The two-hour fusion of spoken word and eerie sounds tells the tale of Steve Moore and his gloomy life story. The narrative, written by Alan Moore and spoken in his quintessential British accent (which, for some reason or another, helps emphasize the intense, drearily epic story being told) begins with Steve Moore’s family’s experience through the second world war, leading to our protagonist’s birth and awkward, lonely childhood. Moore embarks upon a life long obsession with science and astronomy, then fiction and magic. He endures a life of various professions and projects, writing short stories, comics, and novel, Somnia, sketching, and working at different publications, all the while experimenting with forms of expression of mysticism. Reality and imagination are close to one and the same to our philosophical character, exemplified by the stark differences between him and his brother Christopher, who also lives with Steve on the lonely Shooter’s Hill. For Steve, true love is not a strong point: a friend’s loneliness is mistaken for love, an exciting affair dwindles to nothing, and heartbreak is common. Moore has no other choice than to turn to his goddess, the deity that gathers substance as years go on, breaking through and becoming as real as any other female in his life. Moore states there is a simple explanation to all of this – madness. The subject of our story experiences “psychological denouements,” where living in dream is the only way he is able to satisfy his needs as the real world is unable to give him sustenance and nourishment.
All the while, a musical score lingers below the narrative, produced by Andrew Broder and Adam Drucker of Crook&Flail, and comprised of an array of skilled musicians, such as Stuart Braithwaite of Mogwai, drummer Zach Hill from band Hella, Justin Broadrick of Napalm Death, Godfelsh and Jesu, as well as alternative rock star and Faith No More frontman, Mike Patton. The musicians recreate rain, clouds, haze, water, loneliness, and nostalgia, embracing Moore’s words throughout the two-hour saga. Additionally, award-winning photographer Mitch Jenkins contributes ghostly images to the album art.
Unearthing is truly a unique product of a number of talented creators. Alan Moore’s voice leads you along a smooth journey, never fully stopping for breathe, plunging you into an intense darkness that is all the while captivating. Not for the weak of heart: upon listening, you too will question the importance of daily life, of what is real, and where the line between fantasy and reality ends.
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