Manchester post punk/new wave band IST IST have unveiled their new single “Mary in the Black and White Room“.
The song is taken from their forthcoming third studio album ‘Protagonists‘, set to arrive on March 31, 2023. Pre-order it here.
With shades of classic OMD, The Cure and New Order, “Mary In The Black And White Room” effervesces in the darkness with its potent blend of layered synthesisers, darting basslines, and labyrinthine lyrical intrigue.
“Mary…” is inspired by a thought experiment proposed by the philosopher Frank Jackson that has since become known as ‘the knowledge argument’ (or ‘Mary’s room’).
Speaking about the track, frontman Adam Houghton says:
“Mary in the Black and White Room is about trying to figure out if experience trumps knowledge. See ‘the Knowledge Argument’ where the subject, Mary, exists in a black and white world but has extensive descriptions of colour, but you don’t know if she knows what they actually look like until exposed to it. Really interesting stuff.”
Stream it below.
