vCJD

Artists

Album Info

Release Date: 2022-08-01

Label: Not On Label

VARIANT CREUTZFELDT-JAKOB DISEASE (COMPLETE)
vCJD was a four-part, fan-made reimagining of Matthew Eder’s 2021 “CJD”. It followed the progression of Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, and its complete annihilation of the spirit, the self, and the brain.

-----

Part 1 Side A
The start of life’s coda. Melancholy and sorrow set in as prions begin to multiply in the cerebrum.

Part 1 Side B
Refusal of their circumstances sets in. Irascibility, fear, and insomnia mute any moments of positive emotion as prions continue to multiply. A tentative diagnosis may occur around this time, though a confident diagnosis is only possible post-mortem.

Part 2 Side C
As synapses suffer continuous erosion, recollections become more difficult to remember. A conscious effort to recall is required. Motor control continues to degrade, leading to uncontrollable jerking, slurred speech, and the inability to comprehend it. Their mental state continues to worsen as insomnia, hallucinations, paranoia, and hypersomnia set in.

Part 2 Side D
The victim loses all hope as extreme erosion and worse recall dominates their memories, while the cerebellum continues to decay as prion multiplication soars. Singular recollections become distant and actively decay in real time.

Part 3 Side E
Recollections start to erode away entirely, with only minute sections being consciously remembered. The victim attempts to escape to memories, but they are all actively being destroyed as prions rip holes in the brain. A prognosis of months becomes days as they savor every moment they have left - with their state worsening as quickly as their brain.

Part 3 F1-F3
Prion damage has made lucidity impossible, with moments of clarity being few and far between. Muscle spasms, involuntary writhing movements (particularly of the arms and legs), and tremors become extremely noticeable. The cortex is ravaged as prion multiplication continues to tear microscopic holes in the brain matter. The patient’s entire existence collapses and this leads to panic attacks, night terrors, mood swings and unending horror.

Part 3 F4-F6
The cortex continues to decay. At this point, the patient is in palliative care. Patients require round-the-clock care and lose the ability to speak. Ataxia sets in, the patient becomes incontinent, and also suffers difficulty swallowing. Vision suffers as the patient becomes almost completely blind.

Part 4 Side G
Akinetic mutism (in effect similar to a permanent state of waking sleep paralysis) overtakes the victim as their physical body fails due to immense atrophy. The patient is aware and awake but is unable to move or feel. Any firing neurons carry stress, fear, decay, and anguish. Suddenly, any and all cognitive function is lost as the patient abruptly slips into an inescapable, comatose state.

Part 4 Side H

Days turn to hours and hours turn to minutes. Over the course of less than a year, their entire life has been ripped out from under them - and they have endured unimaginable suffering.

Now, they approach the end. The mind can atrophy no further. Outsiders witness a barely living person that has lost their connection to existence, every so often making the slightest jolt - the slightest noise. Living is alien to them - their muscles no longer move and their lips no longer speak. They are deaf, blind, paralyzed, and stranded in a vegatitive state that they will never awaken from, no matter the circumstances. Even terminal lucidity, a rare condition associated with other memory conditions, is impossible due to the damage sustained by the brain.

In recent years, advancements in end-of-life care often lead patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease to a quiet, peaceful death.

-----

Covers:
PhiSigma: "131", "91", "75", "63", "54", "43", "30", "24", "23", "20", "17", "16", "13", "8", "6", "5", "3", "1", "0", "end transmission", "full stop", "blissful demise (dnr)"
PURGE: "click in the night"
Forgotten Musician: "brain observation"

Special Thanks To:
Matthew Eder (also known as Jake The Joke and PikyFen) for creating the original CJD album
Vanpassinby for inspiration from Everywhere In A Different Universe
Bella Ciao and Lord Of Cheeses for helpful feedback
Adler Thebes and pot8o for helping with Mixing and BC
The Creutzfeldt-Jakob Foundation in Ohio
PhiSigma, co-creator of the project
Hosted by PXTSERYU