"The Predator/Prey Discourse" by Dylan Donovan (Inter-Review)

Happy Friday, everyone!  Thank you all for reading; today we have a review of an EP titled "The Predator/Prey Discourse" followed by an interview with Dylan Donovan.  Dylan and I actually met back in October of 2024 when I played a small show that was hosted at his house.  He is a great guy, super kind and compassionate, and I have been looking forward to doing this inter-review for quite a while.  This EP holds six tracks, clocks in at exactly twenty-seven minutes, and was released by Dylan Donovan on October 13th, 2024 (my birthday).  Dylan Donovan is a solo artist from Allentown, PA and he experiments with genres spanning across alt-rock, funk, and hip hop.  This EP is quite the experience, so strap in and let's get going! 

Frozen Fish:

The first track from "The Predator/Prey Discourse" is genuinely one of the most insane songs I have ever heard in my life,  but it's also incredible.  "Frozen Fish" by Dylan Donovan is a biting commentary on modern consumer culture, particularly the way people are conditioned and trapped by mass production and corporate-driven consumption. The metaphor of "frozen fish" stands as a symbol for mass-produced, lifeless products that are sold as a quick and easy fix but lack genuine substance.  The song's repetitive focus on "frozen fish" serves as an emblem for how consumerism commodifies everyday life. The fish—once fresh, now frozen and processed—are symbolic of how we often consume without considering the implications of mass production or the disconnect it creates from nature and authenticity. The lyrics also explore the disillusionment that comes with being trapped in this cycle, like a fish stuck in frozen water, unable to escape.  The repeated mention of "corporate bosses," "assembly lines," and "frozen storage" suggests an industrial, soulless world where individuals are reduced to passive consumers, manipulated by media and advertising. Lines like “The future’s ice cubes, crammed in that brain you misuse” reflect the numbness that comes with mindlessly following trends or purchasing products without understanding their true cost, either socially, ethically, or spiritually.  The track also seems to allude to the numbing effect of modern life, where individuals are stuck in a routine, lacking agency or meaningful choice. It’s an insightful commentary on how culture and society have been shaped by convenience, profit, and industrialization, often at the expense of personal connection, creativity, and genuine satisfaction.  Despite the intentional weirdness of this music, Dylan does portray a very unique skill for vocals, displaying so much range so quickly, line to line. There is A LOT going on musically,  and it is deliberately made to be disorienting, clustered, and noisy, but each individual track of the mix does have its own quality and exemplifies Dylan's musical talent.  My favorite part was towards the end with 

"There is nothing to do

Nothing to choose

When you’re frozen

I've got nothing to choose

Nothing to lose

When I’m frozen

I’m a fish stuck in frozen water"

The way it is sung, fast-paced and synchronous with the horn section, really itches my brain and eardrums in such an odd, yet enjoyable, way.  By the end of the song, the lyrics "fish stuck in frozen water" were stuck in my head like a fish stuck in frozen water.  Also, I think I took too much acid and peyote.  

March of the Hyenas:

Track number two starts off and I immediately feel like "The Monster Mash" was cut short because Dracula and Frankenstein revealed that I am, in fact, not a monster, and now they're pissed that I would ever think, for even a second, that I would be welcome to partake in their mash.  The song starts with booming organs straight out of a haunted house, and some very sharp synth that sounds the way spider legs feel crawling up your spine; "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" WISHES they could write this song.  There is a masterful level of dissonance coming from the instruments that really set the eerie tone, specifically from the guitar.  I especially enjoy the static and crackle of feedback that is used periodically as if it is an instrument itself.  Dylan should really go into voice acting as well, because his ability to pull off so many varying vocal performances is bizarre and impressive.  Especially after having met and spoken to him in person, it is significantly difficult for me to imagine these sounds coming from his mouth.  The imagery in the lyrics is rich and visceral, with phrases like "crushed bones," "rotting flesh," and "the foul stench" creating an atmosphere of decay and death.  The lyrics also draw attention to the cyclical nature of death and decay, with lines like "reaped souls of the dead" and "slaughtered dreams in dried-up streams" suggesting that the hyenas' feasting is part of an inevitable and unrelenting cycle. There's a sense of fatalism here, as if no one can escape the harsh realities of life, death, and consumption, whether in the animal kingdom or in human society. The constant question, "Do you hear that sound?" reinforces the tension, drawing attention to the ever-present threat.  There is an existential line "I don’t know why nature’s so cruel and unkind to hyenas" which introduces a moment of reflection, questioning why nature can be so harsh, not just to the hyenas but to all creatures caught in its unyielding grasp. It’s as though the speaker is grappling with the unfairness of nature's cruelty, recognizing that the hyenas are simply playing their part in a much larger, often crueler, system.  Is this indica, bro?  Did you seriously just let me smoke indica?  You know I can't smoke that shit, oh my god, holy shit oh my god.  Bro...I'm freaking out, bro.  Please, bro, talk me down, man, I'm freaking out! 

I Don't Understand:

Track three seems to have more of a hip hop inspiration in parts of the instrumental, but still as chaotic and crazy as we'd expect by this point. There are a lot of electronic and laser sounds throughout that I really enjoy.  The language is abstract and fragmented, with vivid imagery and wordplay that suggests the speaker is caught in a cycle of questioning, unsure of their surroundings and even themselves. There are elements of cynicism, but also vulnerability as the speaker tries to make sense of complex, often contradictory ideas like happiness, success, and community.  The repetition of "I don't understand" serves as a powerful expression of confusion and disconnection with the people or world around the speaker. It conveys a sense of alienation, as the speaker grapples with the paradoxes of human behavior, societal norms, and their own place within it.  The song's core revolves around a deep disconnection from society. The speaker questions how people can be both happy and struggling, thriving yet troubled. This paradox highlights a frustration or inability to relate to the dual nature of human existence. The repetition reinforces a growing sense of estrangement.  Lines like "Main vein plain Jane seen as equals" and "Lame brain same stain please be peaceful" critique societal norms, equality, and the contradictions within social expectations. The speaker expresses skepticism about whether people truly see each other as equals or if they just pretend to.  

Bar Food (Lovize):

This track seems like a natural progression to follow "I Don't Understand", in the sense that it is different enough to be its own individual song, but it shares some similarities as far as more of the electronic aspects and fast-paced vocals.  I really enjoy the chaos in this song; there is a lot of overlapping tracks all cutting off or cutting in and out of each other, as well as a lot of very iconic samples.  It sounds like channel surfing on a glitchy TV.  This is easily one of my favorite songs on the album, not for any super in-depth reason beyond just really enjoying the jumbled-ness of these sounds all throw together.  These lyrics are rich with wordplay, social commentary, and existential questioning, blending surreal imagery with a critique of modern love, consumerism, and personal identity. The structure moves between poetic abstraction and pointed critique, using a mix of rhyme, alliteration, and irony to deepen the meaning.  The opening lines establish a call to action, but with an ironic twist:

"Boys and girls, it's time to uprise, Stomping ground under which love lies."

This suggests a rebellion, but one that is built on a foundation of buried love, perhaps hinting at how modern uprisings are often driven by something other than pure emotion. The following lines:

"Clap along with the crowd and get hypnotized"

Critique mass conformity, where people are drawn into movements or emotions not through genuine belief, but through social conditioning.  The speaker presents love as something manipulated rather than felt authentically:

"Analyze a bond with my patent method: Lovize."

Here, love is treated like a scientific experiment, a formula to be studied rather than an organic experience.  The song frequently shifts between profound ideas and absurd phrases like "Sanctions on sandwiches, sandals, and stir fries."  This humorous exaggeration pokes fun at how regulations and controls extend into even the most trivial parts of life.  The lyrics blend social critique, emotional disillusionment, and existential musings into a dense, surrealist poem. Love is depicted as both artificial and doomed, institutions are failing, and the world is decaying while people remain distracted. The playfulness of the wordplay contrasts with the underlying despair, making the song feel both thought-provoking and satirical.  

Pearly Gray: 

Almost at the finale, this song starts off with some pretty piano thumps that resonates like flowers blooming in spring.  The music conveys are warmth and awakening until you start to hear distant bangs from a drum that sounds like bombs being dropped.  The instrumentation subtly begins to fall about and dissolve into madness, with a slight semblance of familiarity and recognition to what it once was.  Once the vocals begin, it starts to sound like a song that The Beatles would write when they were DEEP into their drug days, and I think the vocal choices are deliberately poking fun at the voices of The Beatles, it legitimately sounds like a joking impression of them.  These lyrics explore existential uncertainty, perception, and the tension between seeking meaning and accepting ambiguity. "Pearly Gray" serves as a poetic symbol of transition, doubt, and hope, while the wordplay and repetition reflect the cyclical nature of thought and experience. The song ultimately suggests that, while understanding may be elusive, we continue to search, question, and wait.  The song contrasts light and dark, clarity and confusion, touching on ideas of growth within decay and the way life unfolds like a performance. There is a sense of existential questioning, as the lyrics move between observing the world, struggling with meaning, and engaging with fleeting emotions.  Repetitive phrases and wordplay, especially in the "want not, waste not" section, suggest philosophical musings on desire, consumption, and purpose. The rapid-fire listing of actions and emotions creates a feeling of chaos, reflecting the unpredictability of life and human experience.  Ultimately, the song embraces mystery. The closing lines suggest an acceptance of uncertainty, where the speaker doesn’t fully understand life but continues to wait and observe. It presents a contemplative, dreamlike meditation on existence, open to interpretation.  

Comments: 

The sixth and final song on this EP is called "Comments" and it features Mason McGowan and Malāna Wilson.  This finale to the album is a clever recreation, interpretation, and embodiment of an online comment section or public chat threads on social media.  Consisting of overlapping spoken word yelling, back and forth arguing, and endless interruption.  These lyrics are fragmented, chaotic, and highly satirical, presenting a sharp critique of modern discourse, specifically and especially online commentary, identity politics, and the way people interact through digital platforms. The song seems to reflect the overwhelming noise of social media, where personal attacks, objectification, and reactionary arguments dominate conversation.  The repeated mentions of body parts like "Veins, Hands, Veins, Hands" and "Dainty toes and button nose" highlight a fixation on physical traits, reducing people to mere attributes rather than whole individuals.  There is a creative and overwhelming, almost machine-like repetition, mimicking the constant stream of unsolicited opinions online.  The phrase "comment cannibal" reflects how discussions, especially online, often devolve into tearing others apart rather than meaningful dialogue; and this line suggests that people consume others through their comments, feeding off attention, drama, and negativity.  This ties into the larger theme of how people use commentary to either elevate themselves or tear others down. In the digital age, visibility is currency, and whether through admiration or criticism, every comment feeds into an endless cycle of public consumption.  A major shift happens in the middle of the lyrics when the song moves into an absurdist debate about race and identity:

"It’s cause you’re white!

What? You’re white

No

You’re white too

You’re just so white

Fuck you!"

This passage seems to parody the way online discussions about identity can become circular, reactionary, and devoid of real meaning. It highlights how labels and identity markers are often thrown around in aggressive or performative ways, sometimes losing their original context in the heat of digital arguments.  

"Go get a life

I have a life

Go start a podcast

Maybe I will"

This interaction reflects how social media culture has turned personal grievances into opportunities for public branding. The idea that starting a podcast is a response to criticism pokes fun at how many people, when challenged online, react by doubling down on their visibility rather than engaging in self-reflection.  It is seemingly much easier for people to cultivate an echo chamber of viewers and followings that will blindly and mindlessly latch on to your every word and opinion and will go to extreme lengths to agree with and defend you.  The song offers a darkly humorous but unsettling look at modern communication, where the desire to comment, judge, and react has become almost compulsive, turning people into "comment cannibals" and making the internet a breeding ground for both validation and destruction.  "Comments" is a biting, satirical deconstruction of online discourse, touching on themes of objectification, digital addiction, identity conflicts, and the dehumanizing nature of public scrutiny.  This track was a genius way to end the EP, really leaning into the title "The Predator/Prey Discourse" and really holds a mirror right in front of our faces.  

I hope you all consider sitting with this EP for some time, neither Dylan or myself will lie to you and say this release is palatable for everyone, but I think the commentary made through this EP is important to ponder and reflect on.  Whether or not you like the vehicle of sound these concepts are delivered on, they are ideas that should be discussed and thought deeply about.  Down below, you can learn more about Dylan Donovan and this wild EP, and he graciously provides a lot of very interesting and helpful context to help understand what his intent was with this release! 

Interview

Thank you so much for answering some questions for me, I've been looking forward to this inter-review for quite a while and I think it will be very beneficial for listeners to get to know you and your music on a deeper level! 

How long have you been creating original music? What got you started in it?

Dylan: I've been writing and recording music for about six years now. I had some musical experience on and off growing up with various instruments and my father is a guitarist but what really got me into recording was just experimenting with garageband on my iPad when I was in High School.

Do you play all the instruments on this EP? What was the first instrument you started to play, and how many do you play now?

Dylan: The instruments on this EP are all midi programmed with an exception for the electric guitar and bass parts. All the midi parts are entered in real time as performances through my digital piano with some parts being programmed within the DAW. I started in my youth with piano inconsistently playing on and off. After that I harnessed guitar and bass and a touch of percussion which I use to my advantage as much as possible now.

What/who inspired you while writing and recording this EP?

Dylan: My biggest inspiration musically is Frank Zappa, to me he is a quintessential musician's musician. His work has driven me to constantly expand the boundaries of my music through exploration of genre, subject-matter, and sensorial prodding. Aside from that is a litany of art ranging from modern pop and classical music, comedy and avant-garde film, political affections and personal struggles. I try not to exclude any of my lived experience and sensory intake from potential inclusion into my music. Specifically though for this EP I tried to channel the concepts of the title, Prey and Predators. Aside from Pearly Gray which is more of a soliloquy the tracks on the album bring to surface concepts of consumption, domination, confusion and conspiracy, and relationships. All things that blossomed out of this natural food chain dynamic hence the title of the album.

This EP is VERY out-there, give me a quick sales pitch for who you think should listen!

Dylan: My sales pitch is if you are partial to pretentious drivel and tonally jarring music boy do I have the thing for you. My own sweat, blood, and tears with none of the replayability of the band blood, sweat, and tears. Folks let me level with you this is by no means real music and it is a testament to the state of music today projected through my definitely unstable brain chemistry. A rickety roller coaster in the worst part of new jersey you can imagine. A sketchy food vendor with a license that font doesn't quite match the format. A cynical post-ironic critique of culture with the substance of something you could pierce a flimsy paper straw through. The depressing presence of my music in this all encompassing and exponentially growing landscape of tracks, singles, and LPs is something you have to struggle with. As I have had to struggle with being an artist in my own morally bankrupt little existence. So give it a listen and during that listening if you're torn between bopping your head, questioning systemic power structures, or making love to the person nearest to you you're listening to it correctly.

What is your favorite seafood and what is your favorite bar food?

Dylan: I'm a self-admitted glutton and will eat almost anything put in front of me. Shrimp is at the top of my seafood list, just a very nice texture to have on dishes although not very flavorful. As far as bar food goes I love that classic American staple, the Burger. With a fried egg on it if one is available. Perhaps a shrimp burger with egg is needed in the world in honor of this album.

You had mentioned to me that you do sketch comedy on YouTube on the channel Monky Flip Media, how did you get involved in that? How long have you been a part of this channel? Is there anything you'd like to promote or tell us about it?

Dylan: MonkyFlipMedia is a project I run with my two friends Mason and Conner, which we have been doing for about a year now. We are just silly fellas and we want to make the world laugh through an audio/visual medium and tasteless humour. We are always working on videos so make sure to give us a follow on Youtube and Instagram.

Have you played in other musical projects before, or have you always stuck with doing music solo? Do you prefer creating music by yourself or with a group? What are some of the pros and cons of making solo music vs. with a band?

Dylan: I have been in a few bands and never got the point of recording music with them. All my recordings are solo but I have had contributors and features on that music. Working with other people gives you solid creative borders and the opportunity to compromise and make something fulfilling with a community. I don't have a preference for one over the other because I don't think I have enough experience working with bands in comparison to my solo work to give a definite answer. But if I could get an outfit together with six horns, auxiliary percussion, a string section and the works just to perform my solo works. Well I'd be a very happy camper.

How long was the process to make this EP, from writing and recording to the finished project being released on streaming platforms?

Dylan: The process I went through making this EP was a few months, writing and recording was very streamlined after I had solidified all the ideas which sort of developed in a frenzy. Originally this was supposed to be a release of just the first few tracks but then I had started to craft my own sort of pulverized and processed narrative of sorts to turn into this six track EP.

What's next for you? Do you have any exciting upcoming releases or anything fun you can share with us?

Dylan: At the moment I'm working on a music video for a new single that will be released simultaneously. Simply entitled "Revolution". Also performing in Jesus Christ Superstar at the Civic Theatre of Allentown next month. Last thing is I'm producing some music for my friend Cyan Xavier.

I make it a priority to make sure artists are able to shout-out and give credit to anyone they'd like; here is your space to do so!

Dylan: Another shoutout to MonkyFlip's own Conner and Mason. You can also find Mason's musical works under Mason McGowan, if you think my stuff is far out wait till you get a whiff of that. Also Douge Wilde on youtube is another friend and video creator we work with. Shoutout to Amenmane who has been helping me produce my most recent tracks for the past year.  Shoutouts to all of these artists from the valley area: I didnt water my orchid last week, akor dore, My Messy Hands, Hopeless Romantic, Brushburn, Running with Scissors, Flytrap, Milan Stevens, Higbee, Emma Bockrath, Leadpetal, Rubix Pube, Foodtruck the Band, Felt Rite, Hakobo, The Smoke Mitote Group, Malāna Wilson (hard working mother and aunt), El Dingo, Raid, and all the other dope artists I forgot to mention. Also shoutout to The Erly, White Water Drive, Soft Spot, Jae Star, Heartbent and of course the ever classy Strangeness In Proportion

Thank you all for reading and making it this far down!  I really enjoyed speaking with Dylan and listening to his art, and I hope you enjoyed too. You can find all of Dylan Donovan's important links HERE! 

( https://linktr.ee/dylandonovan)