Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The Emptiness of All Things
by MASSA NERA
massanera.bandcamp.com
Lyrics:
The end is built in the beginning
The ink is lifted from the page
And though our legs are bowed and swollen
we run in place
like dogs trapped in a dream
At night, I glimpse it through my window
suspended above the trees
It lingers with me like a haunting
and crumbles in the terrible breeze
A new animism
A word traced in air
The body collective
with compassion to spare
An act of remembrance
A penitent vow
The bliss of creation
A love that is boundless and pure
Maybe
I’ll do it all again
I’ll chant the same refrains
‘til my mouth pools with blood
I’ll let you gouge my eyes,
break my bones, rend my flesh
I’ll kiss your fissured lips
and drift softly to sleep
-
Music & Lyrics written by Massa Nera
On this record, Massa Nera was:
Aeryn Jade Santillan – Bass Guitar, Synth, and Vocals
Allen Núñez – Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, and Vocals
Christopher Rodriguez – Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Sound Manipulation, and Vocals
Mark Boulanger – Drums, Percussion, Keyboard, and Vocals
Additional Vocals on “Lavender” by Tony Castrati of Crippling Alcoholism
Produced by Matthew Michel and Massa Nera
Engineered and mixed by Matthew Michel
Additional engineering by Massa Nera
Mastered by James Plotkin
Artwork by Christopher Rodriguez
Design by Christopher Rodriguez & Fulgenico Bermejo III
Photography by Wendy De Armas Dominguez
Insert by Christopher Rodriguez & Fulgencio Bermejo III
Center Labels by Christopher Rodriguez
Subjects portrayed by Isaac Jiménez & Keven Salcedo
Additional Printing by Christopher Eustáquio
Recorded at Viva Studio in Fairfax, VA on November 7-12, 2024
Additional recording in Linden, NJ and Jersey City, NJ throughout the remainder of 2024
Mastered at Plotkinworks
Vinyl pressed at Donaldson Record Pressing Co. in Weaverville, NC.
Cassettes pressed at Analogue Media Technologies in Toronto, ON.
Thanks to the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music for granting us the commission that became this album. To our friends, family, and loved ones. To all the people who keep the DIY community alive. To anyone who has seen us play, let us sleep on their floor, or otherwise supported us. To everyone waging the war against fascism, capitalism, and all forms of systematized oppression. To those who embrace community and sustainability, even as we sprint towards environmental collapse. Growth will not save us. Tribalism will not save us. Nations will not save us. All we have is each other. We must dare to invent the future.
-
Follow me on X:
https://x.com/chillwavve
Follow me on Bluesky:
https://bsky.app/profile/chillwavve.bsky.social
Join my Discord:
discord.gg/94QHpXk6yh
The Emptiness of All Things
by MASSA NERA
massanera.bandcamp.com
Lyrics:
The end is built in the beginning
The ink is lifted from the page
And though our legs are bowed and swollen
we run in place
like dogs trapped in a dream
At night, I glimpse it through my window
suspended above the trees
It lingers with me like a haunting
and crumbles in the terrible breeze
A new animism
A word traced in air
The body collective
with compassion to spare
An act of remembrance
A penitent vow
The bliss of creation
A love that is boundless and pure
Maybe
I’ll do it all again
I’ll chant the same refrains
‘til my mouth pools with blood
I’ll let you gouge my eyes,
break my bones, rend my flesh
I’ll kiss your fissured lips
and drift softly to sleep
-
Music & Lyrics written by Massa Nera
On this record, Massa Nera was:
Aeryn Jade Santillan – Bass Guitar, Synth, and Vocals
Allen Núñez – Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, and Vocals
Christopher Rodriguez – Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Sound Manipulation, and Vocals
Mark Boulanger – Drums, Percussion, Keyboard, and Vocals
Additional Vocals on “Lavender” by Tony Castrati of Crippling Alcoholism
Produced by Matthew Michel and Massa Nera
Engineered and mixed by Matthew Michel
Additional engineering by Massa Nera
Mastered by James Plotkin
Artwork by Christopher Rodriguez
Design by Christopher Rodriguez & Fulgenico Bermejo III
Photography by Wendy De Armas Dominguez
Insert by Christopher Rodriguez & Fulgencio Bermejo III
Center Labels by Christopher Rodriguez
Subjects portrayed by Isaac Jiménez & Keven Salcedo
Additional Printing by Christopher Eustáquio
Recorded at Viva Studio in Fairfax, VA on November 7-12, 2024
Additional recording in Linden, NJ and Jersey City, NJ throughout the remainder of 2024
Mastered at Plotkinworks
Vinyl pressed at Donaldson Record Pressing Co. in Weaverville, NC.
Cassettes pressed at Analogue Media Technologies in Toronto, ON.
Thanks to the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music for granting us the commission that became this album. To our friends, family, and loved ones. To all the people who keep the DIY community alive. To anyone who has seen us play, let us sleep on their floor, or otherwise supported us. To everyone waging the war against fascism, capitalism, and all forms of systematized oppression. To those who embrace community and sustainability, even as we sprint towards environmental collapse. Growth will not save us. Tribalism will not save us. Nations will not save us. All we have is each other. We must dare to invent the future.
-
Follow me on X:
https://x.com/chillwavve
Follow me on Bluesky:
https://bsky.app/profile/chillwavve.bsky.social
Join my Discord:
discord.gg/94QHpXk6yh
