A Place Both Wonderful And Strange unveil ‘It’s Not That Bad, Muffin’ video and ‘Matter and Desire’ album
A Place Both Wonderful And Strange (Photo by Christin Gabriel)
New York dark electronic duo A Place Both Wonderful And Strange have released the video for “It’s Not That Bad, Muffin,” taken from their album “Matter and Desire,” out today via Re:Mission Entertainment.
“Matter and Desire” (catalog number RE091) is released as a limited CD and digital format. The album was developed over an extended period. The band began working on material approximately eight years before completion, with early tracks such as “A Map for Birds” performed live long before recording.
The final recording sessions took place in 2025, when the duo completed the material in the studio.
As for “It’s Not That Bad, Muffin” the track addresses a repeating cycle of a worsening day, described as a loop influenced by external forces or persistent habits. The narrative also includes a recurring visual motif of “a car that feels wrong the second it shows up,” forming part of the video’s structure.
The video was directed by Sean Dack and Lucy Swope, who developed its concept. Production was handled by Observed Phenomena Studio, with cinematography by Sean Dack and editing and color also completed by Dack. The cast includes Russ Marshalek and Laura Hajek, with filming support credited to Avalon Lounge in Catskill, New York.
“‘It’s Not That Bad, Muffin’ is a song about a very bad day that just won’t quit […] offering a glimpse into the larger world the album lives in,” the band states.
About A Place Both Wonderful And Strange
A Place Both Wonderful And Strange is a New York-based dark electronic project formed by Russ Marshalek and Laura Hajek, active as a duo since 2016. The project name references a line from Twin Peaks.
The duo developed a live performance concept alongside their music output, including the audiovisual project “Keys Open Doors: The Hidden Life of Laura Palmer,” which was performed for nearly a decade and concluded in April at The Bell House in Brooklyn following the death of David Lynch.
Their earlier material includes the 2018 covers album “Coverups” and the collection “The City Smells Like Cat Spit.” These releases preceded a multi-year gap during which material for “Matter and Desire” was developed but not finalized.
Outside A Place Both Wonderful And Strange, Russ Marshalek works as a writer and DJ and is part of the ADVENTURE[s] collective, while Laura Hajek maintains solo work under Edith Pop and other aliases, alongside visual and performance art practices.
The duo returned to studio production in 2025 to complete “Matter and Desire,” marking A Place Both Wonderful And Strange’s first full-length release in several years.
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Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!
