{"id":43602,"date":"2025-08-05T12:15:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-05T16:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=43602"},"modified":"2025-07-21T20:12:51","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T00:12:51","slug":"midwife-matt-jenciks-never-die-is-a-haunting-minimalist-masterpiece","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=43602","title":{"rendered":"Midwife + Matt Jencik\u2019s \u2018Never Die\u2019 is a haunting, minimalist masterpiece"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Midwife and Matt Jencik are ready to take us deep into the ether with\u00a0\u2018Never Die,\u2019 a collaborative album that confronts death, memory, and meaning with eerie tenderness and sonic grace. The LP is out now via Relapse, and it&#8217;s already shaping up to be a quietly devastating listen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The latest single <em>Only Death Is Real<\/em> comes with a stark and dreamlike video from director Yannick Mosimann, whose visual interpretation matches the track\u2019s aching sense of space and beauty. As Mosimann puts it:&nbsp;<em>\u201cJencik and Midwife\u2019s music feels like it barely touches the ground \u2014 it\u2019s slow, heavy, full of silence and grief, but also strangely bright.\u201d<\/em>&nbsp;And he\u2019s right: this isn\u2019t just music, it\u2019s an atmosphere, a weight, a soft gaze into the dark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rFKMmIjRxAo?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-CA&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><br>The collaboration itself was years in the making. Johnston (aka Midwife) and Jencik (you might know him from Implodes, Don Caballero, or touring with Slint) first crossed paths in 2015, bonding again in 2018. By 2019, Jencik had started writing a set of voice-driven songs \u2014 a departure from his past drone-heavy releases. He tracked the skeletons of these songs straight to four-track cassette in his basement. They passed briefly through another collaborator\u2019s hands before he realized the right voice for the project had been glowing in the periphery all along: Johnston.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Johnston\u2019s minimalist approach and her unique, haunting voice were exactly what the songs needed. They struck a deal: Jencik would write all the words and melodies; Johnston would bring them to life. And bring them to life she did \u2014 not just vocally, but as an engineer and arranger. Working remotely from her home in Trinidad, Colorado, she layered keyboard, lead guitar, and spectral textures around Jencik\u2019s barebones recordings from Chicago. Together, they sculpted something immersive, intimate, and deeply felt \u2014 all without ever stepping into the same room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That emotional and physical distance bleeds beautifully into the album\u2019s sound. Jencik\u2019s voice is earthy and immediate, while Johnston\u2019s floats somewhere just out of reach, like a ghost singing from another dimension. Their vocal dynamic dances on a fine line between grounded and ethereal, the real and the imagined. It&#8217;s the kind of music that slowly hypnotizes you \u2014 looping, swelling, dissolving \u2014 until you forget where it started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2018Never Die\u2019&nbsp;doesn\u2019t pretend to have answers. But it isn\u2019t afraid to sit with the big stuff \u2014 grief, finality, the temporary flicker of life. And in doing so, it reminds us: everything ends, yes, but we still get to feel, and love, and sing. The title may insist we\u2019ll <em>Never Die<\/em>, but in every track, the presence of death is a constant hum \u2014 one that only makes the beauty burn brighter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Never Die<\/strong>&nbsp;is out now on Relapse Records.<br>Cue it up, dim the lights, and let yourself drift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5265.jpeg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"900\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5265.jpeg?resize=900%2C900&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Never Die cover artwork\" class=\"wp-image-43605\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5265.jpeg?w=900&amp;ssl=1 900w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5265.jpeg?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5265.jpeg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5265.jpeg?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>\u2018Never Die\u2019 <b>track lis<\/b>t<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Delete Key<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Don\u2019t Protest (Too Much)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Flower Dragon<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Last Night<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Bend<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Never Die<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Only Death Is Real<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>September Goths<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Organ Delay<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Rickety Ride<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>Midwife and Matt Jencik are ready to take us deep into the ether with\u00a0\u2018Never Die,\u2019 a collaborative album that confronts death, memory, and meaning with <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=43602\" title=\"Midwife + Matt Jencik\u2019s \u2018Never Die\u2019 is a haunting, minimalist masterpiece\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Midwife + Matt Jencik\u2019s \u2018Never Die\u2019 is a haunting, minimalist masterpiece \u2014 and \u2018Only Death Is Real\u2019 brings it to life #indiemusic #music","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2,"attached_media":[{"id":43604,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5264.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[22,23,28,29,30,1907],"tags":[12931,9160,9302,12932],"class_list":["post-43602","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guitar-rock","category-indie","category-music","category-music-video","category-new-release","category-news","tag-matt-jencik","tag-midwife","tag-never-die","tag-only-death-is-real"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/IMG_5264.jpeg?fit=900%2C462&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2B2TV-blg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":39300,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=39300","url_meta":{"origin":43602,"position":0},"title":"Midwife + Vyva Melinkolya\u00a0share \u2018Miss America\u2019 single","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"April 28, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"As they prepare for the release of their synergistic new album\u00a0\u2018Orbweaving,\u2019 Madeline Johnston (Midwife) and Angel Diaz (Vyva Melinkolya) have shared the second single Miss America.\u00a0The haunting new track features gorgeously layered instrumentals backed by ghostly vocals. It sparkles and smoulders, and receives a complementary video treatment from Johnston. Watch\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;electronic music&quot;","block_context":{"text":"electronic music","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"Midwife + Vyva Melinkolya","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1A1391F7-19CF-4C10-8340-7FCC58891966.jpeg?fit=900%2C409&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1A1391F7-19CF-4C10-8340-7FCC58891966.jpeg?fit=900%2C409&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1A1391F7-19CF-4C10-8340-7FCC58891966.jpeg?fit=900%2C409&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1A1391F7-19CF-4C10-8340-7FCC58891966.jpeg?fit=900%2C409&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":34051,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=34051","url_meta":{"origin":43602,"position":1},"title":"Midwife release new LP \u2018Forever\u2019","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"April 15, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"On her new LP\u00a0\u2018Forever,\u2019 Midwife\u00a0combines ambient and dream pop into nuanced, reverb-soaked music that is equal parts haunting and moving. The album is informed by Denver-based multi-instrumentalist Madeline Johnston\u2019s experiences during + post-Rhinoceropolis, a local venue\/co-op where she lived until 2016, when its doors were shuttered due to high tensions\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"Midlife press photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/AEA9AB0B-4D4F-42D6-B2BA-69E5D9336A84.jpeg?fit=1000%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/AEA9AB0B-4D4F-42D6-B2BA-69E5D9336A84.jpeg?fit=1000%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/AEA9AB0B-4D4F-42D6-B2BA-69E5D9336A84.jpeg?fit=1000%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/AEA9AB0B-4D4F-42D6-B2BA-69E5D9336A84.jpeg?fit=1000%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":36711,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=36711","url_meta":{"origin":43602,"position":2},"title":"Midwife shines and smoulders on \u2018Christina&#8217;s World\u2019","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"May 1, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Midwife has shared her new single Christina's World. The song is lifted from her new album\u00a0\u2018Luminol,\u2019 out\u00a0on July 16. Watch the Alana Wool-directed video for the lead single via YouTube below. https:\/\/youtu.be\/Vx2dNUFZAeo Midwife\u00a0is the moniker of multi-instrumentalist Madeline Johnston; she lives and works in San Miguel, New Mexico by way\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"Midwife press photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/A0F07740-457D-4897-B528-1DD4AC08D516.jpeg?fit=1000%2C667&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/A0F07740-457D-4897-B528-1DD4AC08D516.jpeg?fit=1000%2C667&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/A0F07740-457D-4897-B528-1DD4AC08D516.jpeg?fit=1000%2C667&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/A0F07740-457D-4897-B528-1DD4AC08D516.jpeg?fit=1000%2C667&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":32645,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=32645","url_meta":{"origin":43602,"position":3},"title":"Hey Bulldog release new single &#8216;Death &#038; Greed&#8217;","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"October 28, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Manchester garage rockers Hey Bulldog have released a new single titled Death And Greed. The track is out now via Doing it to Death Records & Sister 9 Recordings. Listen to the album via Spotify below. https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/6mrw6HUVU7y08vuMFWasAC The grungey riff-based track, the bands' heaviest to date, is a lament of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;guitar rock&quot;","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"Hey Bulldog press photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/a4ce38d4-ff5f-4ac3-b565-a06f7bd9f584.jpg?fit=1200%2C873&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/a4ce38d4-ff5f-4ac3-b565-a06f7bd9f584.jpg?fit=1200%2C873&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/a4ce38d4-ff5f-4ac3-b565-a06f7bd9f584.jpg?fit=1200%2C873&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/a4ce38d4-ff5f-4ac3-b565-a06f7bd9f584.jpg?fit=1200%2C873&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/a4ce38d4-ff5f-4ac3-b565-a06f7bd9f584.jpg?fit=1200%2C873&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":41141,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=41141","url_meta":{"origin":43602,"position":4},"title":"Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs announce new album \u2018Death Hilarious\u2019","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"February 7, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Official Video for New Single\u00a0Stitches\u00a0\u2013 Watch Now via YouTube below https:\/\/youtu.be\/TJ1M2i-7gF4?si=SCvGV504M0cwtakr Newcastle\u2019s\u00a0Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs\u00a0return with their fifth studio album, \u2018Death Hilarious,\u2019 set for release\u00a0on\u00a0April 4\u00a0via\u00a0Missing Piece Records (North America) and Rocket Recordings (Rest of the World). 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Take a listen below to the single and remixes via Soundcloud which will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"Woodpecker Wooliams","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/Woodpecker-Wooliams.jpg?fit=500%2C374&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43602","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=43602"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43602\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43607,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43602\/revisions\/43607"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/43604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=43602"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=43602"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=43602"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}