Captains of Entropy Unveil Their Single/Video, “Infection”
Every Captain of Entropy project begins the same way as the band did: with a willingness to follow an idea wherever it wants to go. During the long, restless expanse of the pandemic, West LA neighbors Mike Kanon (keys), Reilly Wareham (bass), and Jason Young (drums) started meeting up for casual weekly jams. Coming from various musical and professional backgrounds, they never saw it as just a distraction. It was part therapy, part exploration, and part excuse to stay connected while the world felt suspended in uncertainty. As they grew more comfortable playing together, they let improvisation and pure curiosity lead the way, laying the foundation for what would become Captains of Entropy—a strange and inviting landscape of hypnotic rhythms, melodic detours, and unexpected turns, blossoming from the natural chemistry that brought them together as friends in the first place. Their debut LP, The Flea & The Worm, recorded at the legendary Sunset Sound in Los Angeles, introduced them as patient builders of atmosphere, drawing on everything from lush 70s grooves to spaced-out 90s jams that reflected their mellow West Coast stomping grounds. Every track since has felt like a new ocean to chart, and now is as good a time as any to get on board.
Considering the Captain’s latest offering is called “Infection,” listeners might initially brace for something dark and cynical, sardonic, or spooky. But this instrumental salve is as mellow and intoxicating as the discography they have built over the last few years, sweeping listeners into an effervescent sonic wonderland that creeps, slides, and glides without any friction, as if it were always meant to entrance. Though it showcases this group settling comfortably into their sound and identity, that is not to say “Infection” isn’t experimental. For a band that proudly follows the flow of their music wherever it leads, often sacrificing perfection for playfulness, this track offered this trio a chance to do something they had never done all together: “stay on the grid.” Guided by Kanon’s cinematic ear, each member falls into the rhythm of the metronome, the crisp snare hits, the rubbery bass line, and the syrupy keys oscillating in perfect harmony.
What makes the music video feel so fitting is that it came together just as spontaneously as the song itself. Calling upon long-time friend and filmmaker Matthew Mourgides, the mind behind the band’s debut trippy escapade with no shortage of chaos, the trio trades their usual psychedelic passages through time and space for the warm-lit oasis of New Monkey Studios. The “Infection” music video plays less like a formal shoot and more like stumbling into one of their garage sessions, witnessing the collaborative magic that unfolds every time these three pick up their instruments. Amps plugged in, headphones on, they get lost in the sea of sound as expected—but they also share easy laughter and bright smiles, a reminder that making good music isn’t just work, but play too. Standing side by side, they leave little doubt that they’re destined to burn big and bright, set to sail onward as long as the rhythm keeps calling.