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Jul 01, 2022 By Joey Arnone

The Anchoress (aka Catherine Anne Davies) has collaborated with Band Spectra (aka Robert Manning) on the new song “Human Reciprocator,” from Manning’s forthcoming album. A video for the song, directed by Callum Henderson, has also been shared. View below.

In a press release, Davies states: “I like to think of it as my modern day reincarnation of Genesis’ ‘Jesus He Knows Me’ (which I was obsessed with as a kid) in that I’m singing from the point of view of a pretty unsavory character.”

Davies adds that the song was “heavily inspired by an overdose on the toxic news cycle, ruminating on privilege and abuse of power in politics, deception, hypocrisy and the slow slide into a Britain steeped in poverty and a cost of living crisis while a political elite bluster and lie their way through a decade in power. Growing up with periods of my childhood relying on free school meals I am increasingly horrified at the proliferation of reliance on food banks while those in power become ever more detached from the realities of the working classes. ‘Human Reciprocator’ is a reflection on the current state of affairs.”

“Band Spectra began as a therapeutic endeavor following a passing recommendation by a neuropsychologist to use music as an aid to try to combat a decline in my health as a result of Multiple Sclerosis,” adds Manning. “Recognizing the frustrating lack of visibility and significant barriers faced by disabled musicians within the music industry and with the help of Arts Council funding, I made an album of remote collaborations during a challenging period of shielding, with the intention of celebrating and raising awareness of disability and diversity.

“‘Human Reciprocator,’ the first song written for the album, started as a primitive idea: a 909 motorik beat; a driving Moog bassline and Leo Abraham’s cacophonous experimental guitar saw the tentative beginnings of what (18 months later) translated into the perfect hostile foundation for Catherine’s powerful and veracious political lyrics.”

The Anchoress’ most recent album, The Art of Losing, came out last year via Kscope. View our interview with Davies on the album here.

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