Singled Out: Fall Of The Albatross' Glucose Guardian

08-20-2023

NYC-based prog metal up and comers Fall Of The Albatross just released their new album, "Rite", and to celebrate we asked Harold McCummings to tell us about one of the tracks. He selected "Glucose Guardian." Here is the story:

The title Glucose Guardian actually comes from a gender neutral term for "sugar daddy". Going back to the early days of the band, Colin and I kept a log of silly song titles that we hoped to one day use, and during the Rite writing sessions we were really digging into that. Some of the titles would eventually change, but Glucose Guardian was too good to leave on the table.

This song started coming together at a time when I felt that as a band we were leaning a little too much into softer, chiller territory, and I wanted us to get back to the intensity that we embraced in our early years. Glucose Guardian is easily one of the most difficult songs we've ever written; it has some of the most tricky guitar work on the album. Structurally, it's meant to feel disjointed, but there are themes that tie everything together. I wanted to use small motifs from which I could create imaginative variations, similar to what one might get from a film score.

This song was written at the height of the pandemic at my desk. One of the downsides to writing like that is you never know how hard it is to perform live until you stand up and play it in a rehearsal space. Glucose Guardian is one of my favorite tracks off the new record, and I'm very proud of the end result.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more about the album here