Mortal Prophets are less a conventional band than a singular, evolving creative vision guided by John Beckmann, a New York–based artist whose work blurs the boundaries between sound, space, memory, and atmosphere. Rooted in New York City yet unconfined by geography or genre, The Mortal Prophets operate in a shadowed intersection of avant-rock minimalism, post-punk abrasion, dream logic, and nocturnal romanticism. At the core of the project is Beckmann’s instinct to treat music not as entertainment, but as an immersive environment, something to be inhabited rather than merely heard. Before music became his primary language, Beckmann founded Axis Mundi Design, a background that profoundly shapes his approach to songwriting and production. He composes like a visual architect, constructing tracks with tension, balance, and spatial awareness. Each piece feels deliberate yet intuitive, engineered with precision but softened by instinct. This architectural mindset gives Mortal Prophets their distinctive cinematic quality, where arrangements unfold like rooms, corridors, and open landscapes rather than traditional verse-chorus structures.
Across a growing body of work, including “Stomp The Devil”, “Me and The Devil”, “Dealey Plaza Blues”, and the instrumental exploration “GUITARWORKS II”, Beckmann has traced a restless arc through Americana, blues, dream pop, and avant-garde experimentation. Earlier releases leaned into mythic American imagery and outlaw folklore, while later works drifted toward abstraction, favoring mood, texture, and emotional residue over linear storytelling. This evolution reflects Beckmann’s fascination with how memory functions: fractured, impressionistic, and often unreliable. Vocally, Beckmann delivers performances that balance intimacy and theatrical detachment. His presence recalls confessional gravity paired with dramatic restraint, allowing lyrics to function as symbols rather than explanations. Lyrically and sonically, Mortal Prophets thrive on ambiguity, where mysticism, romantic longing, and urban unease coexist. Collaborators rotate in and out of the project, drawn from both avant-garde and roots-oriented backgrounds, reinforcing its fluid, shapeshifting identity.
The Mortal Prophets have earned recognition from respected outlets such as Far Out Magazine, Under the Radar, American Songwriter, Americana UK, and tastemakers including The Big Takeover and Earmilk, alongside international and emerging platforms. Yet mainstream validation has never been the goal. The project’s true power lies in its slow-burn appeal, rewarding listeners willing to linger, decode, and surrender to its carefully constructed atmospheres. Released on December 5, 2025, “Under The Influence” is a concise yet fearless statement from Mortal Prophets, a five-track EP that turns musical influence into raw material rather than sacred reference. Rather than offering conventional covers, the project presents radical reinterpretations of songs that quietly rewired John Beckmann’s creative DNA. These tracks are dismantled, reconfigured, and reborn through a lens of tension, minimalism, and dark romanticism. Drawing from art-rock rigor, post-punk severity, Berlin-era experimentalism, and downtown New York no-wave, “Under The Influence” moves fluidly between dreamlike suspension and urban unease.
Each track functions as a dialogue across decades, collapsing eras into a single, charged present. Familiar songs are not preserved in nostalgia but pulled apart, their emotional cores isolated and rebuilt into unfamiliar, cinematic forms. From the hushed, ambient inversion of “Tiny Dancer”, to the hypnotic modern ritualism of “Sister Midnight,” the fractured urban paranoia of “Too Many Creeps,” and the severe minimalism applied to “Third Uncle” and “Repetition,” the EP treats influence as something volatile, alive, unstable, and capable of transformation under pressure. Recorded entirely by Beckmann and refined through precise mixing and mastering, the project feels intentional, immersive, and uncompromising. “Under The Influence” is not an exercise in homage; it is an act of inheritance reshaped by friction. It stands as a bold reminder that influence is not meant to be preserved untouched, but challenged, risked, and reimagined, until something entirely new emerges from the familiar.
Under The Influence EP Track List:
Tiny Dancer:
“Tiny Dancer” takes on a strikingly psychedelic form in Mortal Prophets’ interpretation, immediately immersing the listener in a lush, synth-driven soundscape that feels fluid, dreamy, and emotionally suspended. From the very beginning, layers of synths glide into place, each one carrying a distinct texture, some warm and enveloping, others slightly warped and atmospheric, working together to create an expansive experimental palette. Rather than rushing toward a recognizable structure, the song eases itself open, letting tones shimmer and overlap in a way that feels organic and unforced. The calm, soft beat settles gently beneath the arrangement, acting less as a rhythmic command and more as a steady emotional anchor. This opening establishes a tranquil yet curious mood, where the psychedelic elements are subtle and immersive rather than overwhelming, drawing the listener inward with patience and grace.
As the track develops, the interplay between the different synth layers becomes the defining force of the song. Each synth voice seems to have its own emotional role, some provide a hazy backdrop, others gently pulse or swell, adding motion and depth without disturbing the song’s serenity. The beat remains minimal and tender, allowing the atmosphere to breathe while maintaining a consistent sense of flow. Vocals arrive with a soothing presence, delivered softly and with deliberate restraint, blending seamlessly into the surrounding textures rather than sitting dominantly on top. There is a comforting intimacy in the vocal performance, as if the voice is guiding the listener through the song rather than performing for them. This section highlights Mortal Prophets’ strength in balance, where experimentation never disrupts emotional clarity, and complexity never sacrifices calm.
Toward the closing moments, “Tiny Dancer” feels like it slowly drifts rather than ends, carried by its own atmospheric weight. The synths soften and stretch, gently dissolving into one another as the beat maintains its quiet pulse until it gradually fades. The vocals remain tender to the very end, leaving behind a sense of warmth and emotional stillness. There is a meditative quality to how the song concludes, reinforcing its psychedelic nature while preserving its soothing core. Mortal Prophets transform “Tiny Dancer” into an immersive, synth-led experience that feels comforting, experimental, and emotionally rich, proving that reinterpretation does not require intensity to be impactful. This version lingers softly in the mind, like a half-remembered dream, calm yet deeply affecting within the “Under The Influence“ EP.
Sister Midnight:
“Sister Midnight” by Mortal Prophets opens in a strikingly unconventional way, immediately setting a hypnotic tone through a calm distortion that feels almost mechanical yet organic, like electrical wiring quietly humming before surging into motion. This technically pounding texture does not rush; instead, it pulses with restraint, creating tension and anticipation before the beat fully emerges. When the rhythm finally reveals itself, it carries a subtle electronic trap aura, controlled, modern, and deeply atmospheric, without ever overpowering the song’s meditative core. This introduction feels deliberate and immersive, pulling the listener into a sonic space that is both industrial and serene, where distortion is not aggressive but soothing, acting as the foundation upon which the track slowly builds its identity.
As the song progresses, its most captivating quality becomes its unexplainable flow. The percussion moves dynamically, shifting in texture and placement rather than in intensity, creating a rhythmic language that feels instinctive rather than calculated. There is a fascinating sense of ancient civilization embedded within this movement, as though ritualistic rhythms are being translated through modern electronic tools. These percussive elements give the track a primal undercurrent, while the electronic framework keeps it firmly rooted in the present. Over this evolving rhythm, the vocals arrive soft and cool, almost detached yet emotionally resonant, gliding effortlessly through the arrangement. The vocal delivery feels natural and unforced, blending seamlessly into the soundscape and enhancing the song’s hypnotic pull rather than interrupting it.
Throughout “Sister Midnight,” the consistency of the vibe becomes truly bewitching. Mortal Prophets maintain a carefully balanced atmosphere where nothing feels out of place, despite the complexity of the elements involved. The synths are wonderfully variant, some warm and enveloping, others sharp, airy, or subtly warped, each adding a different emotional shade without disrupting the cohesion of the track. These shifting synth textures keep the listener engaged, offering new sensations with each passage while preserving the song’s core mood. By the closing moments, the track feels less like a conventional song and more like an experience, one that lingers in the mind through its seamless blend of ancient rhythmic sensibilities and modern electronic experimentation. “Sister Midnight” stands as a deeply immersive and emotionally nuanced piece on the “Under The Influence” EP, captivating in its flow, restraint, and atmospheric depth.
Too Many Creeps:
“Too Many Creeps” on the “Under The Influence” EP by Mortal Prophets opens with a subtle yet immediately intriguing sonic tension that feels both eerie and deliberate. The first moments are characterized by a low, humming synth undercurrent that suggests something restless beneath the surface, establishing an atmosphere that is at once calm and unsettling. This initial soundscape doesn’t announce itself with force; rather, it seeps slowly into the listener’s awareness, like a quiet pulse just beyond conscious attention. When the beat finally arrives, it does so with a measured calm, soft, steady, and deeply rhythmic, anchoring the track while leaving space for the surrounding textures to breathe. This early section sets the stage for what becomes a defining characteristic of the song: a balance between quiet unease and immersive musicality, where each sonic element contributes to an evolving emotional landscape rather than simply filling space.
As the track unfolds, the interplay between synths and rhythm reveals a rich tapestry of experimental sound design that feels deliberate and precise. Multiple layers of synthesizers weave in and out of prominence, each with a distinct timbral character that contributes to the song’s intriguing complexity. Some synth lines shimmer with a cool, crystalline clarity, while others pulse with deeper, fuzzier warmth, creating a dialogue of contrasts that keeps the arrangement dynamic and engaging. The beat, though calm and understated, provides a steady foundation that allows these layers to interact without overwhelming the listener. Vocals enter with a tender, almost detached delivery—cool and soothing in tone, yet carrying an emotional subtlety that deepens the sense of introspection within the track. They do not dominate; instead, they become an additional texture woven into the broader sonic fabric, enhancing the mood rather than asserting it.
In the latter stages of “Too Many Creeps,” the song continues to maintain its hypnotic pull, drawing the listener deeper into its atmospheric world. The synth layers evolve subtly, shifting in timbre and intensity in ways that feel organic and unforced, guiding the emotional arc without abrupt changes. The steady rhythm remains consistent, a calm pulse that ensures the track never loses its sense of cohesion even as new textures emerge. There is an almost cinematic quality to how the elements interact, a sense of narrative without words, carried through tone, dynamics, and texture. This culminates in a closing passage that feels both resolved and open-ended, as if the song has expressed all it needed to say while leaving space for reflection. Mortal Prophets’ reinterpretation of “Too Many Creeps” stands out for its atmospheric depth, sophisticated layering, and emotional subtlety, making it a standout piece on the “Under The Influence” EP that rewards both casual listening and deeper engagement.
UNDER THE INFLUENCE transforms musical memory into cinematic tension, proving influence is not homage, but risk, reinvention, and immersive emotional architecture.
In its entirety, “Under The Influence” stands as a disciplined, immersive, and deeply thoughtful work that confirms The Mortal Prophets’ commitment to artistic risk over comfort, and transformation over nostalgia. The EP succeeds not because it revisits influential songs, but because it dismantles them with intention, extracting their emotional and psychological cores and rebuilding them into something tense, modern, and cinematic. John Beckmann’s singular vision, shaped by architectural precision, nocturnal romanticism, and a refusal to flatten meaning, gives the project a coherence that binds its varied moods into one continuous psychological arc. Each track contributes to a larger conversation about memory, pressure, and inheritance, inviting the listener to experience influence as something unstable and alive rather than fixed and reverent. “Under The Influence” rewards patience, deep listening, and repeat engagement, revealing new textures and emotional nuances with each return. It is an EP best suited for listeners drawn to art-rock, post-punk, experimental minimalism, and the shadowed edges of contemporary sound, particularly those who value atmosphere, restraint, and conceptual depth over immediacy. Ultimately, this release is a compelling recommendation for anyone seeking music that challenges perception while remaining emotionally resonant, an uncompromising work that lingers long after its final moments, not as a memory of what once was, but as a reimagining of what influence can become.
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