bocpages | Boards of Canada wiki - User contributions [en]

You Retreat In Time And Space

2026-08-31T20:50:29Z

2600:4041:43EE:700:6495:E102:87E7:2E59: /* Samples / Lyrics */

{{Infobox Song|
| name=You Retreat In Time And Space
| runtime=5:25
| appearson=[[Inferno]] (2026)
| next=[[I Saw Through Platonia]]
| prev=[[The Process]]}}

"[[You Retreat In Time And Space]]" is the seventeenth track on [[Boards of Canada]]'s fifth studio album, ''[[Inferno]]''.

__TOC__

== Comments ==
* The first nearly three minutes of the track may have inspired by the 1979 track [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLhayEzDesE&t=134s/ Sea Cathedral by Christian Chevalier], which was included on [[Boards of Canada]]’s 2019 mixtape [[Societas x Tape]] as the outro track, prior to [[Inferno]]’s release.

== Samples / Lyrics ==
* During the first half of the track, sounds of ocean waves hitting a shore can be heard.

== Trivia ==
* The first half of the song sounds nearly identical when played forward or reversed.
* At the [[Inferno listening parties]], this song had it’s own unique visuals, which consisted of sped-up turquoise-colored 1970s-era home videos of children. This was unlike the other tracks, which were accompanied simply by a hexagon flower spinning with fire inside. The visuals shown have not been officially released.

== Videos ==
{{#widget:YouTube|id=ggx4VjIWlJE}}
{{#widget:YouTube|id=447nlkPMOaQ}}

== Audio ==
<spotify width="100%" height="380">track/5m3Uzjuiyj8656EGM1bwhk </spotify>

== See Also ==

== External links ==

== References ==
<references />

[[Category:Released tracks]]
[[Category:Inferno tracks]]

Prophecy At 1420 MHz

2026-08-31T14:20:38Z

2600:4041:43EE:700:6495:E102:87E7:2E59: /* Comments */

{{Infobox Song|
| name=Prophecy At 1420 MHz
| runtime=5:04
| appearson=[[Introit / Prophecy At 1420 MHz]] (2026)<br>[[Inferno]] (2026)
| next=[[Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan]]
| prev=[[Introit]]}}

"[[Prophecy At 1420 MHz]]" is the second track on [[Boards of Canada]]'s fifth studio album, ''[[Inferno]]''. It was released alongside "[[Introit]]" on May 7th, 2026, as the album's lead single.

__TOC__

== Comments ==
* 1420 MHz is the emission frequency of the spin-flip transition of the ground state of neutral, solitary hydrogen atoms, the most commonly-occurring element in the universe. This frequency is part of a "protected spectrum", reserved for astronomical/extraterrestrial research; terrestrial transmissions on this frequency are forbidden. The frequency is often mentioned in the context of the "Wow! signal", an unexplained signal (with this frequency) that was detected on August 15th, 1977.<ref>[[wikipedia:Wow!_signal]]</ref>
* The guitar sound in this track is reminiscent of the sound that can be heard in the background of "[[Oscar See Through Red Eye]]".
* In the official music video for the song, during the “following program” screen, the bottom reads “© MBI MCMLXXIX”, which MBI is an acronym for the Moody Bible Institute, which had previously been referenced in the [[VHS Tape Mailings]] earlier that year.
* The progression in this track is similar to “[[You Could Feel The Sky]]”.
* The plucked synth that can be heard at 2:06 is reminiscent of the main synth that can be heard in [[Meat Beat Manifesto - Prime Audio Soup]]”, a remix that BoC did in the late 90s.

== Music Video References ==
* In the video at 2:04, The rose church window comes from the Chartres Cathedral, a Catholic Church located in Chartres France.
* The man appearing at 1:31 seems to be American cult leader and mass murder Jim Jones, who was known for founding and leading the “People’s Temple” and orchestrating a mass murder-suicide that resulted in the deaths of over 900 people.
* The spiral that appears at 2:48 may be an Archimedean Spiral, named after the Greek mathematician Archimedes, is a mathematical curve where the distance between successive turning loops remain completely constant, it is defined in polar coordinates as r = a + bθ.
* The building appearing at 3:49 could be 200 mission St located in San Francisco.
* the image appearing at 2:02 is speculated to be, something likely related to the church of Scientology being done to someone by another person (possibly L. Ron Hubbard).
* Imagery involving the cross, the symbol most commonly associated with the religion of Christianity, can be seen numerous times, including at 0:06, 1:53, 2:12, 2:34 (as a necklace a woman is wearing), 3:12, 3:43, and 3:45.
* at 3:05 for a single frame, a kind of honeycomb structure (most likely of the species Apis Mellifera) can be seen.

== Samples / Lyrics ==
* The vocal heard over the track is sampled from "In the Beginning Was Consciousness", a lecture by Professor [[wikipedia:Seyyed_Hossein_Nasr|Seyyed Hossein Nasr]] at [[wikipedia:Harvard Divinity School|Harvard Divinity School]] on May 1, 2003.<ref>{{#ev:youtube|fIjW1z-ZAX8|480||||start=0|false}}</ref> The lyrics are spliced together from different parts of the lecture and Q&A.
* Timestamps in the table below correspond to the referenced YouTube video of the lecture. Words and phrases from the lecture have been combined to create new phrases altogether.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Timestamp !! Lyric
|-
| Multiple || End
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4646 1:17:26] || Nothingness
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5114 1:25:14] || Comes to a greater awareness of itself
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=1290 0:21:30] || Divine intellect
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4694 1:18:14] || I am the truth
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4616 1:16:56] || Extinction
|-
| Multiple || Diversion / The question
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=3529 0:58:49] || of reality
|-
| Multiple || Consciousness
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4689 1:18:09] || I am god
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=1890 0:31:30] || The ultimate
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5076 1:24:36] || Resonance
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5175 1:26:15] || Spirit and the soul, or the psyche
|-
| Multiple || Conscious
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5209 1:26:49] || Transcendent source
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5244 1:27:24] || Seat of consciousness
|-
| Multiple || Power
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4862 1:21:02] || It is, in a sense, the religion of the modern world
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4927 1:22:07] || The scientific view of nature
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5091 1:24:51] || Synchronicity
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5094 1:24:54] || Consciousness has operational effect
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5102 1:25:02] || Cause and effect
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4646 1:17:26] || Nothingness
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4985 1:23:05] || The absolute truth
|}

* 4 seconds into the track an obfuscated voice can be heard, although it is unknown what the voice is saying.
* The flute that can be heard at the beginning of the track is most likely a sample of a Persian (or Turkish) Ney, traditionally the lowest pitch of the ney is a C, which is the key of [[Prophecy At 1420 MHz]].

== Trivia ==
* The song premiere occurred 30 minutes earlier than intended on the album's [https://music.apple.com/album/inferno/1890015523 Apple Music page], which allowed some users to listen to the single early.

== Videos ==
The split music video for the song was released on May 7th, 2026, through the [[BoC|band]]'s official [https://www.youtube.com/@boardsofcanada/ YouTube channel].<br>
It is directed by [https://robertbeattyart.com/ Robert Beatty] and produced by [https://www.instagram.com/gregburne/ Greg Burne] of [https://bigactive.com/ Big Active].

{{#widget:YouTube|id= 74NluS3jzTo | height=262| width=465}}{{#widget:YouTube|id= L0ksmlfvNuQ | height=262| width=465}}

== Audio ==
<spotify width="100%" height="380">track/4gYaI1S9Qug6B96E2HwxeN </spotify>

== See Also ==
* "[[Introit]]"

== External links ==

== References ==
<references />

[[Category:Released tracks]]
[[Category:Inferno tracks]]

Prophecy At 1420 MHz

2026-08-31T13:58:53Z

2600:4041:43EE:700:6495:E102:87E7:2E59: /* Comments */

{{Infobox Song|
| name=Prophecy At 1420 MHz
| runtime=5:04
| appearson=[[Introit / Prophecy At 1420 MHz]] (2026)<br>[[Inferno]] (2026)
| next=[[Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan]]
| prev=[[Introit]]}}

"[[Prophecy At 1420 MHz]]" is the second track on [[Boards of Canada]]'s fifth studio album, ''[[Inferno]]''. It was released alongside "[[Introit]]" on May 7th, 2026, as the album's lead single.

__TOC__

== Comments ==
* 1420 MHz is the emission frequency of the spin-flip transition of the ground state of neutral, solitary hydrogen atoms, the most commonly-occurring element in the universe. This frequency is part of a "protected spectrum", reserved for astronomical/extraterrestrial research; terrestrial transmissions on this frequency are forbidden. The frequency is often mentioned in the context of the "Wow! signal", an unexplained signal (with this frequency) that was detected on August 15th, 1977.<ref>[[wikipedia:Wow!_signal]]</ref>
* The guitar sound in this track is reminiscent of the sound that can be heard in the background of "[[Oscar See Through Red Eye]]".
* In the official music video for the song, during the “following program” screen, the bottom reads “© MBI MCMLXXIX”, which MBI is an acronym for the Moody Bible Institute, which had previously been referenced in the [[VHS Tape Mailings]] earlier that year.
* The progression in this track is similar to “[[You Could Feel The Sky]]”.
* The plucked synth that can be heard at 2:06 is very reminiscent of the that can be heard in [[Meat Beat Manifesto - Prime Audio Soup]]”, a remix that BoC did in the late 90s.

== Music Video References ==
* In the video at 2:04, The rose church window comes from the Chartres Cathedral, a Catholic Church located in Chartres France.
* The man appearing at 1:31 seems to be American cult leader and mass murder Jim Jones, who was known for founding and leading the “People’s Temple” and orchestrating a mass murder-suicide that resulted in the deaths of over 900 people.
* The spiral that appears at 2:48 may be an Archimedean Spiral, named after the Greek mathematician Archimedes, is a mathematical curve where the distance between successive turning loops remain completely constant, it is defined in polar coordinates as r = a + bθ.
* The building appearing at 3:49 could be 200 mission St located in San Francisco.
* the image appearing at 2:02 is speculated to be, something likely related to the church of Scientology being done to someone by another person (possibly L. Ron Hubbard).
* Imagery involving the cross, the symbol most commonly associated with the religion of Christianity, can be seen numerous times, including at 0:06, 1:53, 2:12, 2:34 (as a necklace a woman is wearing), 3:12, 3:43, and 3:45.
* at 3:05 for a single frame, a kind of honeycomb structure (most likely of the species Apis Mellifera) can be seen.

== Samples / Lyrics ==
* The vocal heard over the track is sampled from "In the Beginning Was Consciousness", a lecture by Professor [[wikipedia:Seyyed_Hossein_Nasr|Seyyed Hossein Nasr]] at [[wikipedia:Harvard Divinity School|Harvard Divinity School]] on May 1, 2003.<ref>{{#ev:youtube|fIjW1z-ZAX8|480||||start=0|false}}</ref> The lyrics are spliced together from different parts of the lecture and Q&A.
* Timestamps in the table below correspond to the referenced YouTube video of the lecture. Words and phrases from the lecture have been combined to create new phrases altogether.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Timestamp !! Lyric
|-
| Multiple || End
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4646 1:17:26] || Nothingness
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5114 1:25:14] || Comes to a greater awareness of itself
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=1290 0:21:30] || Divine intellect
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4694 1:18:14] || I am the truth
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4616 1:16:56] || Extinction
|-
| Multiple || Diversion / The question
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=3529 0:58:49] || of reality
|-
| Multiple || Consciousness
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4689 1:18:09] || I am god
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=1890 0:31:30] || The ultimate
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5076 1:24:36] || Resonance
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5175 1:26:15] || Spirit and the soul, or the psyche
|-
| Multiple || Conscious
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5209 1:26:49] || Transcendent source
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5244 1:27:24] || Seat of consciousness
|-
| Multiple || Power
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4862 1:21:02] || It is, in a sense, the religion of the modern world
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4927 1:22:07] || The scientific view of nature
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5091 1:24:51] || Synchronicity
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5094 1:24:54] || Consciousness has operational effect
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=5102 1:25:02] || Cause and effect
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4646 1:17:26] || Nothingness
|-
| [https://youtu.be/fIjW1z-ZAX8?t=4985 1:23:05] || The absolute truth
|}

* 4 seconds into the track an obfuscated voice can be heard, although it is unknown what the voice is saying.
* The flute that can be heard at the beginning of the track is most likely a sample of a Persian (or Turkish) Ney, traditionally the lowest pitch of the ney is a C, which is the key of [[Prophecy At 1420 MHz]].

== Trivia ==
* The song premiere occurred 30 minutes earlier than intended on the album's [https://music.apple.com/album/inferno/1890015523 Apple Music page], which allowed some users to listen to the single early.

== Videos ==
The split music video for the song was released on May 7th, 2026, through the [[BoC|band]]'s official [https://www.youtube.com/@boardsofcanada/ YouTube channel].<br>
It is directed by [https://robertbeattyart.com/ Robert Beatty] and produced by [https://www.instagram.com/gregburne/ Greg Burne] of [https://bigactive.com/ Big Active].

{{#widget:YouTube|id= 74NluS3jzTo | height=262| width=465}}{{#widget:YouTube|id= L0ksmlfvNuQ | height=262| width=465}}

== Audio ==
<spotify width="100%" height="380">track/4gYaI1S9Qug6B96E2HwxeN </spotify>

== See Also ==
* "[[Introit]]"

== External links ==

== References ==
<references />

[[Category:Released tracks]]
[[Category:Inferno tracks]]

Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan

2026-08-30T22:49:02Z

2600:4041:43EE:700:6495:E102:87E7:2E59: /* Comments */

{{Infobox Song|
| name=Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan
| runtime=4:44
| appearson=[[Inferno]] (2026)
| next=[[Age Of Capricorn]]
| prev=[[Prophecy At 1420 MHz]]}}

"[[Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan]]" is the third track on [[Boards of Canada]]'s fifth studio album, ''[[Inferno]]''.

__TOC__

== Comments ==
* [[wikipedia:Hydrogen|Hydrogen]], [[wikipedia:Helium|helium]], and [[wikipedia:Lithium|lithium]] are the first three elements of the [[wikipedia:Periodic_table|periodic table]].
* Unlike the others, [[wikipedia:Leviathan|Leviathan]] refers to a massive sea monster found in [[wikipedia:Jewish_mythology|Jewish mythology]].
* Hydrogen, helium, and lithium were the first elements to be "produced" [[wikipedia:Big_Bang_nucleosynthesis|during, and shortly after, the Big Bang.]] All further elements are created during the formation, evolution and death of stars, potentially the "Leviathan" the track title is referring to.
* The title of the track can be abbreviated/initialised as "H He Li L", which bears resemblance to the word Hell, the abode of the dead in various cultures and religions. Boards of Canada have used this title trick before - "[[Satellite Anthem Icarus]]" can be abbreviated as "SAT AN IC".
* Interestingly the title [[Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan]] may be connected to the four books of The Satanic Bible, which contains four books (Satan, Lucifer, Beilal, and Leviathan), and the name of the third track contains four words (Hydrogen, Helium, Lithium, and Leviathan), meanwhile each of the four books is given are element an element to go with them (in order they are fire, air, earth, and water), interestingly Beilal is earth and lithium can mainly be found inside the crust of the Earth, Lucifer is air and helium is famously known to be lighter than air, hydrogen isn’t exactly connected to fire but it is highly combustible and is one of the primary elements of stars (which are often thought of as balls of fire) and one of the primary symbolisms used in connection with the occult is a pentagram, which is a five pointed star.

== Samples / Lyrics ==
* Starting at 2:58, buried chanting can be heard.

== Trivia ==
* The chords and sound of the violin like lead synth are reminiscent of "[[Aquarius]]" from [[Boards of Canada]]’s 1998 album ''[[Music Has The Right To Children]]''.
* The bongos starting at 2:57 are the same bongos that can be heard in the track “[[Alpha And Omega]]”.

== Videos ==
{{#widget:YouTube|id=hGMIycYqvc4}}
{{#widget:YouTube|id=Qn7CQvjfAIA}}

== Audio ==
<spotify width="100%" height="380">track/1NnBADacrHxF7oSprSFoWn </spotify>

== See Also ==

== External links ==

== References ==
<references />

[[Category:Released tracks]]
[[Category:Inferno tracks]]

Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan

2026-08-30T22:46:16Z

2600:4041:43EE:700:6495:E102:87E7:2E59: /* Comments */

{{Infobox Song|
| name=Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan
| runtime=4:44
| appearson=[[Inferno]] (2026)
| next=[[Age Of Capricorn]]
| prev=[[Prophecy At 1420 MHz]]}}

"[[Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan]]" is the third track on [[Boards of Canada]]'s fifth studio album, ''[[Inferno]]''.

__TOC__

== Comments ==
* [[wikipedia:Hydrogen|Hydrogen]], [[wikipedia:Helium|helium]], and [[wikipedia:Lithium|lithium]] are the first three elements of the [[wikipedia:Periodic_table|periodic table]].
* Unlike the others, [[wikipedia:Leviathan|Leviathan]] refers to a massive sea monster found in [[wikipedia:Jewish_mythology|Jewish mythology]].
* Hydrogen, helium, and lithium were the first elements to be "produced" [[wikipedia:Big_Bang_nucleosynthesis|during, and shortly after, the Big Bang.]] All further elements are created during the formation, evolution and death of stars, potentially the "Leviathan" the track title is referring to.
* The title of the track can be abbreviated/initialised as "H He Li L", which bears resemblance to the word Hell, the abode of the dead in various cultures and religions. Boards of Canada have used this title trick before - "[[Satellite Anthem Icarus]]" can be abbreviated as "SAT AN IC".
* Interestingly the title [[Hydrogen Helium Lithium Levitathan]] may be connected to the four books of The Satanic Bible, which contains four books (Satan, Lucifer, Beilal, and Leviathan), and the name of the third track contains four words (Hydrogen, Helium, Lithium, and Leviathan), meanwhile each of the four books is given are element an element to go with them (in order they are fire, air, earth, and water), interestingly Beilal is earth and lithium can mainly be found inside the crust of the Earth, Lucifer is air and helium is famously known to be lighter than air, hydrogen isn’t exactly connected to fire but it is highly combustible and is one of the primary elements of stars (which are often thought of as balls of fire) and one of the primary symbolisms used in connection with the occult is a pentagram, which is a five pointed star.

== Samples / Lyrics ==
* Starting at 2:58, buried chanting can be heard.

== Trivia ==
* The chords and sound of the violin like lead synth are reminiscent of "[[Aquarius]]" from [[Boards of Canada]]’s 1998 album ''[[Music Has The Right To Children]]''.
* The bongos starting at 2:57 are the same bongos that can be heard in the track “[[Alpha And Omega]]”.

== Videos ==
{{#widget:YouTube|id=hGMIycYqvc4}}
{{#widget:YouTube|id=Qn7CQvjfAIA}}

== Audio ==
<spotify width="100%" height="380">track/1NnBADacrHxF7oSprSFoWn </spotify>

== See Also ==

== External links ==

== References ==
<references />

[[Category:Released tracks]]
[[Category:Inferno tracks]]