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čtvrtek 13. října 2022

Recenze/review - MOTHER OF GRAVES - Where The Shadows Adorn (2022)


MOTHER OF GRAVES - Where The Shadows Adorn
CD 2022, Wise Blood Records

for english please scroll down

Poprvé ke mě přišla v jednom zlém snu. Podala mi svoji chladnou ruku a usmála se na mě. Z úst ji vylezli červi a z očí tekla krev. Vyděsil jsem se a po zádech mi přeběhl mráz. Samota duše, strach ze života. Byla naprostá tma, ticho a chlad. Tak krásná, tak smyslná. Vznášela se nad močálem, musel jsem ji následovat. Za zvuků nové desky "Where The Shadows Adorn". Rozplynul jsem se. Jako černá mlha. Jako Smrt.

Je to moje úplně první setkání s kapelou MOTHER OF GRAVES. A musím rovnou napsat, že mě ihned doslova připoutala k reproduktorům. Cítím z ní velkou sílu, smutek, věčnost, bolest i strach. Prosévám mezi prsty prach svých předků a ztrácím se ve vzpomínkách. Tiše se modlím a přidávám hlasitost. Death doomový obřad může začít. 


Procházím se mezi náhrobky, navštěvuji kobky, ve kterých byla kdysi tvořena ta nejlepší muzika. MOTHER OF GRAVES sem také patří. Mají pro to všechny předpoklady. Mrazivý zvuk (Recorded and mixed by Ben Sandman at GLB Studiosm, Mastered by Dan Swanö at Unisound AB), nádherný obal od mistra Paolo Girardiho, tohle všechno jsou řemeslné základy, které byly odvedeny na výbornou. Slyším šepot nemrtvých, proplétám se pavučinami. Hniloba, zmrzlé náhrobky. Ale hlavně skvěle napsané skladby, spoustu pochmurných nálad. Nastává pomalu podzim a v těchto dnech si "Where The Shadows Adorn" hodně užívám. Kolem postupně usíná příroda a duše zemřelých bloudí v úvodu zmiňovaných močálech. Ano, tahle nahrávka je naléhavá, smutná i šílená. Je jako podivný sen, ve kterém potkáte svoji vlastní smrt. V podání kapely je krásná, přitažlivá, krutá a děsivá. Jako když se ztratíte ve tmě. V mrtvém lese plném stínů. Mám rád muziku, která rozdrásá moji fantazii. Která mě uhrane a prokleje. A tohle všechno MOTHER OF GRAVES umí na výbornou. Zase se mi objevila stigmata na rukou. U tohoto alba krvácím, umírám a znovu se rodím. A rád bych za ně kapele poděkoval. Je skvělé po všech stránkách. Mlhavý, bolestivý death doom metalový sen!


Asphyx says:

She first came to me in a bad dream. She gave me her cool hand and smiled at me. Worms came out of her mouth and blood came out of her eyes. I got scared and a chill went down my spine. The loneliness of the soul, the fear of life. It was completely dark, silent and cold. So beautiful, so sensual. She hovered over the swamp, I had to follow her. To the sounds of the new album "Where The Shadows Adorn". I melted away. Like a black fog. Like Death.

It's my very first encounter with MOTHER OF GRAVES. And I have to say, it literally had me glued to the speakers immediately. I can feel the power, the sadness, the eternity, the pain and the fear. I sift through the dust of my ancestors between my fingers and lose myself in memories. I pray silently and turn up the volume. The death doom ceremony can begin.


I walk among the tombstones, visiting the dungeons where the best music was once made. MOTHER OF GRAVES belongs here too. They have all the ingredients. The chilling sound (Recorded and mixed by Ben Sandman at GLB Studiosm, Mastered by Dan Swanö at Unisound AB), the gorgeous cover art by master Paolo Girardi, these are all craftsmanship basics that have been done to perfection. I hear the whispers of the undead, I weave through the cobwebs. Rot, frozen tombstones. But mostly well-written songs, lots of somber moods. It's slowly coming to autumn and I'm enjoying "Where The Shadows Adorn" a lot these days. Nature is gradually falling asleep around me and the souls of the dead are wandering in the swamps mentioned in the introduction. Yes, this record is urgent, sad and crazy. It's like a strange dream in which you meet your own death. As performed by the band, it is beautiful, alluring, cruel and terrifying. It's like being lost in the dark. In a dead forest full of shadows. I like music that tears my imagination apart. That warms me and curses me. And that's what MOTHER OF GRAVES does well. The stigmata on my hands have reappeared. This album makes me bleed, die and be born again. And I'd like to thank the band for them. It's great in every way. A misty, painful death doom metal dream!


TRACKLIST
1. Where The Shadows Adorn
2. Rain
3. Tears Like Wine
4. The Emptiness Of Eyes
5. Of Solitude And Stone
6. The Crown
7. Ghost In The Twilight
8. The Caliginous Voice

CREDITS
Recorded and mixed by Ben Sandman at GLB Studios
Mastered by Dan Swanö at Unisound AB
Drum tracks by Wesley Heaton at 1857 Studios, assisted by Marcus Bowden
Artwork by Paolo Girardi
Layout by David Jaggar

LINE-UP
Brandon Howe - Vocals, Keyboards
Chris Morrison - Guitar
Ben Sandman - Guitar
Corey Clark - Bass
Don Curtis - Drums

A few questions - interview with death doom metal band from United States - MOTHER OF GRAVES.


A few questions - interview with death doom metal band from United States - MOTHER OF GRAVES.

Answered Chris Morrison (Guitars), thank you!

Ave, can you introduce your band to our readers? – When was it founded and what style of music do you play etc.?

Hello, thanks for the interview! We are Mother of Graves from the Indianapolis, Indiana area in the United States. The idea for the band started in late 2016, but we didn’t officially form until 2019. Mother of Graves plays a melodic style of death/doom metal. We released our debut EP, In Somber Dreams, in early 2021.

Where and under what conditions were you recording the new album? Who was in charge of sound, production and mastering?

We recorded the album at our guitarist Ben’s studio, mostly. Drums were tracked at 1857 studios as they have a big room and lots of great drum microphones, etc. The environment was great and laid back since we were able to take our time in the studio and not have to worry about hourly rates piling up. Ben engineered, produced, and mixed the album. He did a great job getting sounds and getting the best performance out of all of us. Then we sent it off to Dan Swano at Unisound for mastering who did a great job with the final product.


How many copies were released and which medium was used for this new edition (CD, digital, vinyl, cassette)?

The new album will be released on 10/14/2022 on Vinyl, CD, cassette, and digital by Wise Blood Records. This vinyl run is limited to 200, and we expect those to sell out quickly. I believe the cassettes may also be a limited run of 200.

Who is the author of the lyrics and how were they created and about what do the lyrics deal with?

Our vocalist, Brandon, writes all the lyrics. He has spoken about how isolation during the pandemic resulted in him diving deep into his own self. The lyrics address loss, love, grief, anger, burdens, mistakes, etc. Basically he takes these deep emotions, and life experiences, and transforms them into his great poetry. The words are not really a concept, but a true release and an outlet for Brandon. These are all things that people relate to. Sometimes you bury the feelings and thoughts deep inside, but in this band we use the words and music as a cathartic release. It is deeply meaningful for all of us.


Who created the logo of the band, and who took care of the graphics and the website? What about you and social networks? Do you consider these things important?

Nate Vaught of Brainvault Designs made the logo for us. We wanted something different, not a typical death metal logo. I knew I wanted some sort of illustration involved, kind of like the King Diamond logo or that early bat and demon Morbid Angel logo. So we got a cool skull in ours, haha! Paolo Girardi painted the album cover for us, and he did a phenomenal job. The gatefold is killer! David Jaggar did the layouts for the album and our t-shirt designs. As far as social media, it is very important. We used to have tape-trading way back in the day. Now we basically do the same thing, but instead it involves communicating with like-minded metal fans online. There are some great communities out there that I am happy to be a part of. I enjoy interacting with fans and learning about new bands, etc. For a band that isn’t that well known, like us, it is important to stay active to spread the word and get people engaged.

Which label did you choose for releasing your album and why this label? Are you satisfied by how your label represents you and takés care about you?

This is our second time working with Wise Blood Records. Sean runs a fantastic label, is a great person, and truly supports the metal community. His label is relatively new, but he does an amazing job with getting the releases heard by as many people as possible. He has unlocked so many doors for us, and we could not be happier to work with him again for this release.


Which bands do you idolise and where do you get your inspiration?

I am not sure I idolize anyone; however, I definitely draw inspiration from bands like the “Peaceville Three,” Katatonia, Tiamat, Edge of Sanity, and bands like that. But I listen to a wide variety of metal, and non metal, and get as much inspiration from what some of our friends’ bands are doing.

Did you send your record to some Labels - which are the labels? How was the response?

No, none. We did not shop anything around. We knew we wanted to work with Sean and Wise Blood again, so we are glad he wanted to work with us again as well. We did get a few labels reaching out to us with varying levels of interest, but we decided Wise Blood was the place to be for this album.


How many gigs have you played? Which type of gigs do you prefer, whether it's (clubs or festivals) and which of your performances would you consider as the best?

Surprisingly we have only played two shows so far. We aren’t the type of band that is going to be out playing live at every opportunity. Our focus is more on writing bleak songs. We love the writing and creating aspect. We want our shows to be special and that is hard to accomplish if you are playing every weekend. That being said, we are looking to book some shows for 2023 to support the album. We would love to play some more festivals. Club gigs are great as well. I really enjoy both the bigger festival atmosphere as well as the intimate club show.

What about your plans for the future? What do you want to achieve with the band?

We just want this album to reach as many people as possible. We hope it resonates with people the way it does with us. As far as plans, as mentioned before we hope to support the album with festival appearances and select shows. Then the plan is to continue writing for the next album.

How and where can your fans contact you? Can you provide some contact information?



@motherofgraves on Twitter and Instagram

Motherofgraves@gmail.com

Thanx for the interview.

Thank you very much! Cheers!


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