Kentucky Route Zero—the indie point-and-click adventure game that was released episodically (not to mention sporadically) between 2013 and 2020—might have come to an end with its fifth chapter early this year, but it turns out this game still has a few surprises in store. Specifically: this week, the game's fictional musical duo Johnny and Junebug have released an EP.
Entitled Too Late To Love You, the album by the defictionalised Junebug (Johnny apparently doesn't rate top billing) features the titular track and Static Between Stations, both from Kentucky Route Zero, as well as nine new songs. As a huge fan of extended video game lore, the concept of a fictional band with a real back-catalogue is an intriguing one, especially when the music is this wonderfully weird.
The haunting instrumental sections could have come straight from Twin Peaks composer Angelo Badalamenti, while the synthesised vocals are an incredibly evocative throwback to the sounds of the Eighties—in combination, they really are something else. Though the EP's release over eight months after the game's last episode dropped was no doubt unexpected, there's something about the wistful combination of nostalgia and eeriness in these songs that makes them perfect October listening.
If this all sounds too intriguing to resist, you can buy Junebug's new EP on Bandcamp for $7 right now.
