By Monk
‘A Slow Ride Towards Death’ is a title which more than aptly summarizes both its content and feel, and the circumstances in which it was recorded. It is an album recorded at the most traumatic time in any band’s career, a time when they were questioning the reason for their own existence, their very belief in the music they played, and which provided the glue that kept them together. As a result, it is the soundtrack to the story of a band on the verge of collapse and implosion – a story which concluded when, almost as soon as the recording process was completed, one of the band members actually did quit.
The album’s story begins back at the end of 2018, after the band had completed an ambitious tour which saw them performing their own concert version of the musical ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’; however, the sheer amount of work it took to produce and perform these highly theatrical shows left them questioning, after 25 years as professional musicians, whether it was still worth all the effort it takes to play in a band. Thus, when the band entered the studio the following year to start work on this, only their fourth studio album, they collectively and individually found themselves in some very dark places, resulting in their darkest collection of songs to date…
Fans of the gothic-tinged Scandinavian school of experiential, cinematic prog rock as exemplified by the likes of Opeth will find plenty to embrace with the familiarity of an old friend, especially in the juxtaposition of searing guitar lines with massively layered harmonies and atmospherics. But, despite the darkness which was enveloping the band at the time of its genesis and gestation, it is also an album which possesses an extremely surprising deftness of touch in many places, that darkness only really peaking through during a close examination of the lyrical content: “what if I leave you now, will you embrace the pain?” providing one of many moments of insight into the pain being experienced by the band at the time.
The result is a powerful album. It is one filled with mood swings, matching the feeling of a relationship in which those involved are not only questioning the very nature of that relationship but also trying to give voice to the passion which still exists, buried beneath the surface of that demoralization and self-doubt. Is it the soundtrack to a disintegrating (musical) marriage? That remains to be seen… In the meantime, what we have is a cathartic and experiential audio experience which we can all embrace and identify with.
- ‘A Slow Ride Towards Death’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
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