Amen Dunes

The project known as Amen Dunes, led by Damon McMahon, fuses folk, psych-rock, electronic, and industrial strands into a cohesive, exploratory sound. Over time, his recordings earned nods to figures ranging from Roky Erickson and Syd Barrett to Chris Knox, Suicide, and Royal Trux, moving from the hazy, low-fidelity textures of 2009’s DIA toward the expansive, trance-like atmosphere of 2014’s Love. While later works incorporated the buoyant electronic textures of 2018’s Freedom and the concentrated, provocative cultural commentary of 2024’s Death Jokes, the enduring resonance of his vocals and the direct candor of his lyrics remained constant.

Born in Philadelphia and previously active in the indie group Inouk, McMahon released a solo album titled Mansions in 2006. That same year he began working under the Amen Dunes name, isolating himself inside a Catskills trailer to capture largely spontaneous material he had no plans to issue. Relocating to Beijing in 2007, he continued sporadic sessions that refined a somber, acoustic-centered approach. Locust Music brought out those Catskills recordings as DIA in 2009, after which McMahon came back to the United States and established himself in New York. Sacred Bones introduced the project the next year via the Murder Dull Mind EP, drawn from material created during his time abroad. After the limited cassette Rat on a Grecian Urn in July 2011 came the August arrival of Through Donkey Jaw, Amen Dunes’ initial full-length for the label and its first effort tracked with a complete band, yielding some of McMahon’s most approachable songs up to that point. He later issued the self-released Ethio Covers EP in 2012 and, in 2013, The Spoiler, a set of demanding pieces cut between 2009 and 2011 that contained a tribute to avant-garde composer Julius Eastman.

McMahon adopted a fresh method for Love, released in May 2014. Rooted in the close of a lengthy relationship, the album’s polished arrangements and clarified sonics were augmented by input from Iceage’s Elias Bender Rønnenfelt, Bon Iver’s Colin Stetson, and members of Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Early the next year brought the Cowboy Worship EP, which McMahon characterized as a companion to Love and which contained a rendering of Tim Buckley’s “Song to the Siren.”

Amen Dunes’ sound kept evolving on the expansive Freedom, issued in March 2018, which merged electronic and classic-rock palettes with reflections on McMahon’s early years and again involved Godspeed You! Black Emperor alongside regular associates Parker Kindred and Delicate Steve. Largely captured at New York’s Electric Lady Studios, the record also received production from Chris Coady and Italian electronic artist Panoram. Freedom marked a commercial breakthrough for the project, reaching the Top 20 on the U.S. Independent Albums chart in tandem with widespread critical praise. The following year saw a McMahon remix of the Freedom track “L.A.” featuring contributions from Westerman.

Amen Dunes resurfaced in July 2021 with the single “Feel Nothing.” Marking McMahon’s debut release on Sub Pop, it once more paired him with Panoram, added vocals from Sleaford Mods’ Jason Williamson, and was produced by Ariel Rechtshaid. Death Jokes, the project’s first full-length for the label, appeared in May 2024. Developed over nearly five years, the album drew from rap and electronic music—genres McMahon had favored since childhood—alongside an examination of American cultural decay. It incorporated keyboards McMahon had learned during its creation as well as appearances by jazz bassist Sam Wilkes, Christoffer Berg, Panoram, and Money Mark.