Black Aleph have just premiered a music video for their latest single “Return,” the second single from their upcoming album “Apsides,” out 25 October on Art As Catharsis and Dunk Records.
Black Aleph offer what is best termed ‘deconstructed Doom and Post-Metal‘, creating bodily, earthy, Heavy music that speaks to deeper layers of the human psyche.
Latest single “Return” reveals a different side to the band’s sound. Here a moody chord progression cycles over a melodic loop, patiently building builds over the course of four-and-a-half minutes.
The track blooms with textural and harmonic layers provided by the guitar and cello, conveying a sense of melancholy and loss. From this simple dirge emerges a rich, cinematic composition which calls to mind the dystopian atmosphere of Godspeed You! Black Emperor and We Lost The Sea.
Spanish musician & film maker Michel Gasco produced a video to accompany the track. Of the piece he writes: “They say that the true journey lies in the return. Everything returns and leaves again – the sun, the moon, the birds. For many, the return is sweet, like a homecoming. But for others, a return home is impossible. The thought of return becomes a daily blow which rains down upon them. Others, forced to return, will find nothing of what they once knew – not even the skeleton of their old houses left standing.“
Watch the officia music video through the YouTube player below:
Black Aleph are a Sydney/Melbourne based Experimental ensemble featuring Lachlan Dale (guitar/effects), Peter Hollo (cello/effects) and Timothy Johannessen (percussion).
On their debut album, the trio draw inspiration from diverse sources ranging from Post-metal to Middle-Eastern Modal Music. “Apsides” features both composed and improvised pieces that involve the players layering live-loops, ritualistic-beats and Doom Metal style musical variations that progressively unfold and build in intensity throughout the performance.
Black Aleph’s style has been compared to Justin Broderick, Neurosis, and Godspeed You! Black Emperor – though there is a borderline spiritual quality to the music that comes from the unique instrumentation: guitar, cello, and Iranian daf drum.
The sound is tectonic – apt for a record centred around concepts of orbital mechanics, like the notion of ‘apsis,’ which is the points of extreme and least distance between a celestial and a primary body (sun-earth-moon) in an elliptical orbit. A second theme concerns the relationship between light and dark, or more specifically the difference between bodies that emit versus those that merely reflect light – and in-between those that obstruct it.
“Apsides” was recorded over a number of years by Tim Carr (We Lost The Sea) and mastered by Mell Dettmer (Earth, Sunn O))). Jessika Kenney lends her sublime voice to a number of tracks, as does Natalya Bing her violin.
The album cover artwork was created by Melbourne-based artist Darren Tanny Tan, whose process involves ‘destroying’ a solid surface using various materials and techniques, while the single artwork was produced by the Syrian artist Salah Alkhal.
Black Aleph‘s debut album “Apsides” is out 25 October on Art As Catharsis and dunk!records. Pre-Order is live here: https://blackaleph.bandcamp.com/album/apsides
Tracklist:
01. Descent
02. Ambit I (Ascension)
03. Ambit II (Aphelion)
04. Separation
05. Precession
06. Return
07. Occultation