In Stephany’s words,
"’Drown’ is about a tragic moment of acceptance, when you choose to abandon yourself to the most comforting suffering because it is, at least, a world you’ve created for yourself in response to the one you never asked to live in.
“This song is a transition between the Kassogtha’s past and future, with Mortimer’s signature groovy riffs sprinkled with the prog influences the band holds dear today. It’s a genuine evolution in terms of composition, arrangements and performance.
“Trapped in a remote house in the Swiss mountains, surrounded by snow, with nowhere to go: that’s the atmosphere in which the lyrics and the first demo were recorded, which perfectly matched the mood of the place.
Strongly influenced by Tool, the song was composed in part after watching Danny Carey's famous drum playthrough of the track 'Pneuma'. The break was built around polyrhythms that were later extended to the whole song.
“The special sound of the introduction tapping was created in the studio in collaboration with David Castillo."
lyrics
Life is a stone
It's pulling me down
I might have asked for this
Shoot me I won't tell anyone
Just want to get out of here
I am fighting
Someone that doesn't suit me
Maybe I should let it go
Something isn't working
Always makes me suffer
Don't know to which side I belong
It is not who I used to be
But it is who I am now
It's the world against me
Unless it is in me
How could I ever be myself?
Living all alone in hell
This presence is still here inside me
One more cycle
That never seems to end
Maybe it's time to leave this path
Everything is the enemy
Or maybe it is me
I'm scared to bring it to life
It's my life against me
No doubt it is in me
How could I ever be myself?
Living all alone in hell
This presence is still here inside me
What am I supposed to do?
Living in this life is destroying me
This presence is hiding inside me
Lift the veil now and see
What your life looks like
Come out of the mist
Or dive deeper into it
Diving deeper
The next cycle begins
You choose your path
Time to drown yourself
Or go back to the first one
Confusion
Perdition
How could I ever be myself?
Living all alone in hell
This presence is still here inside me
What am I supposed to do?
Living in this life is destroying me
This presence is hiding inside me
They say you can't capture lightning in a bottle the second time. Someone should tell those people that Z&A is Zeus' homeboy.
Fantastic soul metal. Grimmrobe
Blackbraid quickly followed up their 2022 debut in 2023 with more native folk infused furious black metal. This is by no means a sophomore slump as it is equally excellent, methodical, melodical, and approachable as the first record. 9/10 RJ
The hurdy-gurdy always makes a fine accompanying instrument to electric instruments, and this is no exception. Here, hurdy-gurdyist and vocalist Michaelina is the primary focal point, and the band aptly supports her to create a neo-Medieval metal folk symbiosis. I love the title track, but going with Forgive & Forget as more representational of the entire recording Nickie Harte Kelly