Purchase "Dissociate" photo zine here: bit.ly/2I9EkNd

The idea for Caverns Of Pine is to dedicate an entire musical project to the ways different people survive the traumas of sexual violence. From survivors of different backgrounds and various genders, to the people who care about them. It’s about telling stories that reflect different perspectives on healing and reckoning and coming to terms with the fact that another human being could act with such cruel disregard. Or not coming to terms with any of it, and still finding a way to live.

I’ve been actively working on the "Dissociate" record/project for the past 3 years. I had most of the songs and all of the lyrics rattling around in my head for far longer. But it is truly the result of a musical and visual collaboration with good friends in the creatively rich city of Richmond, VA.

Graham Scala was invaluable in helping me turn my early demos into these songs. "The Body Keeps Score," "Carved," "Hexed Reckoning," and "Cheap Grace" all became far better because of his collaboration. He also co-wrote the music for "All Instinct" with me during this process.

Graham, along with Patrick DeWitt and John Martin made this feel like a real band. Together we wrote the music for "Heaped Upon Us." Me, Graham, Patrick, and John recorded the record with Ricky Olson at The Ward in Richmond. Ricky's engineering, mixing, and overall production was completely aligned with the vision I had for "Dissociate," and without him this project would have never seen daylight.

The radical Julie Karr came and lent her wondrous and haunting voice to "Carved," "Cheap Grace," and the very end of "The Body Keeps Score."

Ricky and I played organ on "Carved," "Heaped Upon Us," and "Cheap Grace."

Josh and Sarah from Self Aware Records are old friends, and believed in this project enough to make it part of their catalog.

Stefanie Lutz designed the digital cover art.

Zach Wish took the photos, along with help from Stefanie.

Brittany Lynn Justice and Dan Wagner (of Studio Somewhere) worked with me to make the photo zine accompanying "Dissociate" a reality. Brittany's interpretations of these songs, lyrics, and our conversations for the photo zine surpassed every expectation repeatedly. I couldn't imagine any physical artifact connected to this recording being a better complement. (Thanks to Maya Walters, Jesse Harrison, Stefanie Lutz, Brittany Lynn Justice, and Dan Wagner for death mask modeling.)

Deep thanks to my family -- Tara, Oliver, Felix, Mom, and Dad -- for keeping me inspired and supported in life.

All profits from digital and physical sales of “Dissociate” will be donated to FORCE (www.upsettingrapeculture.com) because this project is meant to sit in empathy with those who have survived the inhumanity of sexual violence, or who have seen the pain it inflicts up close.

It’s meant to be in solidarity with survival.

It’s meant to be defiant cry against a world still eager to disbelieve.