Born under the vast skies of the Norfolk countryside, in the solitude of
the secretive wetlands to the echoes of the curlew’s haunting cry, And Now The Owls Are Smiling
explore the beauty of nature and the beauty in melancholy, the forests
of the mist shrouded past and the dark forests of the human heart. New
album, The Comforting Grip Of Misery is sweeping and
majestic, an autumn wind rushing across the fenlands and through the
gnarled and mighty oaks, but also intensely intimate; sweetly summoning
up the spectres of sadness and weaving them into bitter sweet vistas of
memory, tapestries of treasured tears woven with the words that meant
more to you than any others you have heard or spoken. The trembling
melodies of ‘The Comforting Grip Of Misery’ draw you through the valleys of the scars upon your heart, while the bewitching simplicity of ‘Winter’s Elegy’ draws you back into a past you have forgotten to remember.
Wherever you may be, the music of Arx Atrata can open a window onto a moment of hope and clarity. The atmospheric black metal sounds of new album The Path Untravelled
bring vast, unspoilt vistas to your mind, cold, cleansing winds to your
heart. The enormity of creation is painted across the canvas of your
imagination in the sweeping strokes of guitar, the intimacy of personal
experience in the golden threads of melody that weave their way through
the rush of power, settling in the shadowed glades of reflection between
the cascading riffs. For those who yearn for substance and meaning,
songs like the album’s overwhelming title track can reconnect you to the
vital heart of all things, reinvigorate the soul and take you riding
upon the winds of imagination. Previous Arx Atrata albums have been
hailed by the critics, with Zero Tolerance commenting on the “frozen beauty and lavish texture” of 2013s Oblivion and Terrorizer calling 2016s Spiritus In Terra “an absolute delight”. With The Path Untravelled, Ben Sizer,
the man behind the Arx Atrata name, has unveiled even more of the
qualities that have delighted fans and reviewers so far on his journey.
He has dug deeper, reached further and dreamed in even more vibrant
colours to create something truly special.
Rending The Veil Of Flesh sees Formicarius
cutting deep into the bloody centuries of Christianity and as they
spread their demon wings lyrically, so has their music become richer and
darker, painted in a thousand layers, the many hued colours of
twilight. To perfect their musical visions Formicarius have called upon
fellow dwellers in perdition. The inversion of the divine that is ‘Early
Will I Seek Thee’ is bookended by a dread invocation from Sakis Tolis (Rotting Christ) and the plaintive violin playing of Nicholas Miller of Aklash. Throughout the album the mighty drumming of Kevin Paradis (Benighted)
propels each grand and glorious track forward like machines of war. To
set the final seal upon this new tome of defiance, Formicarius turned to
Parlour Studios (Dimmu Borgir, Samael, Venomous Concept etc) for the final mix and mastering.
AND NOW THE OWLS ARE SMILING - THE COMFORTING GRIP OF MISERY
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