My Silent Wake-There Was Death

Minotauro Records
2018

Formed in 2005 from the remains of Ashen Mortality, My Silent Wake is one of the UK's best death/doom bands. Since the very beginning the group has been lead by vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Ian Arkley (Seventh Angel, Century Sleeper). Although the background members have come and gone, Ian's vision has kept My Silent Wake not only alive, but consistently evolving and thus improving. Now in it's thirteenth year of existence, My Silent Wake Over has a huge back catalog to it's name. Not only are there multiple full-length recordings, but there are numerous EPs and singles, several compilations, a promo DVD, and two splits! Recorded, produced, mixed, and mastered by Greg Chandler (Esoteric) at Priory studios, "There Was Death" is the tenth full-length album by My Silent Wake. It is the follow-up to 2017's "Invitation to Imperfection". While I choose not to cover that particular album for a variety of reasons (one of which was because it is largely a instrumental release) I did review 2015's "Damnatio Memoriae". At the time I called it "My Silent Wake's strongest release to date".With a release date of February 16th, 2018, "There Was Death" is every bit as good as "Damnatio Memoriae" was. What's more, "There Was Death" is packed with some of My Silent Wake's heaviest material to date! At this point in the game My Silent Wake has developed a unmistakable sound. Anyone that has been following this incredible band for awhile has no doubt picked up on that fact. With "There Was Death" that distinct, somewhat (slowed down) doom rock meets (sorrowful) goth rock sound is still present. As cool as it is that side of the band serves as the album's foundation. With producer Greg Chandler providing keys and some extreme vocals (well, it's more like he is growling into the mic and/or screaming, but it is still epic!) and Ian (vocals/guitars) looking to push the boundaries as far as they will go(!), the one hour long "There Was Death" finds My Silent Wake armed to the teeth for what will be very primitive, hand to hand, combat. The conflict isn't physical though. Like numerous other albums, "There Was Death" deals with spiritual issues (lyrically) while the actually music smothers you under it's mighty weight. At their heaviest/most savage and with some of the best material to date at their disposal, the members of My Silent Wake have gifted the metal community some impeccable music. Longtime fans of My Silent Wake should love this well-crafted disc of  formidable death/doom. For anyone new to the group, My Silent Wake is simply doing what they do best: improving upon perfection. As always this is stellar death/doom from a musical mastermind that is known as Ian Arkley. It's a complex and sometimes challenging band that has taken England by storm along with much of the U.S. With albums like "There Was Death" the world should be won over, but only time will time as far as that wish of mine goes.

Free Metal Monday: Stone Groove Records Sampler 2015

Stone Groove Records
2015

Phoenix, Arizona' Stone Groove Records has this nice digital sampler available for free at this location. In addition to one of my personal faves (My Silent Wake) there are tracks from the likes of Troglodyte Dawn, Henry The Horse, Joe Nash, Starchild, Crawl, D. T. Seizure, Void of Skull, and Ultimatum. All told there are twenty two tracks here and it's yours for the taking! 

My Silent Wake-Damnatio Memoriae

House of Ashes Productions
2015

Produced, engineered and mastered by Greg Chandler (Esoteric) at Priory Recording Studios in West Midlands, UK, is the latest & possibly greatest release from British death/doom band My Silent Wake. It features some of My Silent Wake's strongest material to date and this long player serves as the proper follow-up to 2014's well-received "Eye of the Needle". Opening by way of the aptly-titled "Of Fury",  "Damnatio Memoriae" features eight (Stone Cold Forever) tracks in all for a total run-time of 54:55. As per usual group founder/visionary mastermind Ian Arkley (Century Sleeper, Seventh Angel, ex-Ashen Mortality, ex-Paramæcium, ex-The Other Window) is the driving force behind My Silent Wake (MSW) and here on the band's latest release this multi-talented front-man/songwriter not only exceeds all expectations as a vocalist, but proves himself (once again!) praise-worthy as both a guitarist and keyboardist! Of course long-time fans of MSW won't find that little piece of information all that surprising. Since forming the band back in 2005, with a self-titled, 2-track EP released that very same year, Ian Arkley has released one spectacular recording after another with this new one moving the grand total of full-length albums up to eight! They've all been dangerously good in their own right so why should "Damnatio Memoriae" be an exception? Other than seeing another change in the band's line-up (which is something that has become common place for MSW over the years!) the only real difference between "Eye of the Needle" and "Damnatio Memoriae" takes place in the style department. They are both wonderfully atmospheric and (in regards to the individual song arrangements) technically-amazing, but whereas five out of seven numbers on the band's 2014 album are drawn-out and experiential in nature (the "Eye of the Needle" number "Three Furies" has a run-time of over 21 minutes after all!) much of "Damnatio Memoriae" is short and to the point. Other than "The Empty Unknown" (with a run-time of almost 14 minutes!) My Silent Wake's new album ends up being more direct in it's approach and (in general) things feel a bit more streamlined and focused. Speaking of which, MSW does feature a new cast of characters for album number eight here. Now trimmed to a (power) trio, My Silent Wake (MSW) is rounded out on this album by bassist Adam Westlake (Leppe, Striga, ex-Husk) and drummer Gareth Arlett (Amputated, ex-Awake by Design, ex-Control the Storm) and with that streamlined line-up we get a streamlined sound. Please note that the term "streamlined" should not be seen in a negative light. For example it does not mean that less thought and care went into the recording of this album. It does not mean that album number eight isn't as well-crafted, imagined or (frankly-speaking!) clever as previous MSW releases. And it most certainly does not mean that this album is any less praise-worthy or recommend! Instead of all of that noise, "Damnatio Memoriae" is streamlined in order to put more of an emphasis on traditional doom and Gothic doom. And to that point, "Damnatio Memoriae" is classic Gothic/doom metal the way it used to be. Try on the likes "The Innocent" and "Chaos Enfolds Me" and you just might find yourself blissfully whisked away in time and space to the early nineties. The sweet sounds coming from your speakers might feel vaguely familiar (what with the great "Now it Destroys" sounding as if it could have originally been released anywhere between 1990 and 1993!) and chances are you might have a slight case of déjà vu. That's especially true if you find yourself on the other side of 40 of all places! Only here on this eight-track album you get to enjoy timeless doom/Gothic doom with the benefit of a much-improved production job! One example would half to be "Highwire". Back some twenty or so years ago (when this kind of gloriously extreme Gothic doom was in it's prime!) a lackluster production would have tragically muffled the rich bass playing of Adam Westlake. Seeing as Greg Chandler's skills are so exemplary (his stellar work-history speaks for itself) not even once is that a problem on "Damnatio Memoriae". Every key piece falls smoothly into place for MSW and this album sounds crisp and distinctly clear. Despite it's clean appearance and overall smooth finish there is still something dirty about "Damnatio Memoriae". One can't help but feel as if My Silent Wake's new album is (sublimely) raw and rough. What's more, "Damnatio Memoriae" might very well be the HEAVIEST MSW album to date! And I do not take that statement likely! Even slowed down the material here is HEAVY and it's almost as if Ian Arkley went into this album with this ideal in mind. Well, that and the great idea about making this punchy album feel as natural as humanly possibly. It very much feels like a guitar, bass and drums kind of album. While I wouldn't compare the actual music of "Damnatio Memoriae" to the following band, early Black Sabbath comes to mind as structure-wise and performance-wise this aggressive LP strikes the perfect balance between man and the traditional instruments that are usually associated with classic metal. This suggested correlation goes hand in hand with the great news that My Silent Wake is currently in the process of raising funds in the hopes that "Damnatio Memoriae" might receive the royal vinyl treatment! Over at the linked website MSW explains why a vinyl release is necessary and I could agree more band when they say "We’re doing this campaign because as doomsters through and through, we feel our music can be best appreciated on glorious plastic! Unfortunately the goal is only at 39% perfect, but with 53 days left* we're all hoping they make it! If you're a fan of the band and/or a collector of heavy metal vinyl be sure to head to the group's pledgemusic page as ANY and ALL donations will be appreciated! Of course there are some real goodies to be found on the page so PLEASE do your part if you can! Otherwise, "Damnatio Memoriae" will be released on CD even if a official release date has yet to be announced. Whether you are new to this band or a long-time fan I highly-recommend "Damnatio Memoriae". And the end of the day this is Gothic doom metal/classic doom metal of the highest quality. It's also a album that has been made possibly thanks to one of the genre's true unsung heroes, Ian Arkely. 


*As of this posting.

My Silent Wake-Eye of the Needle

Stone Groove Records
2014

If you are a regular visitor to Heavy Metal Time Machine then chances are you will have likely noticed that UK-based death/doom rockers My Silent Wake Back (MSW) are a new favorite of mine. It was only a few months ago that I first picked up on this band's immense skill-level (thanks to a digital package's worth of prior releases) and back in May of this year I actually interviewed the band's founder, Ian Arkley (link below). At that time he made mention of an upcoming ambient release and now here it is with the calming (make that downright relaxing!), "Eye of the Needle", likely to stick with you long after experiencing it. So far "Eye of the Needle", which is MSW's 9th album overall (including two split CDs), is (sadly) only available as a digital download. Not that such a thing should stop anyone (especially fans of MSW!) from checking out this sublime (and reportedly mostly improvised) hour-plus album. Because really it's all about plugging yourself in and losing yourself anyway right? Music verses physical material should always result in music taking precedence. Or at least one would hope so! And this music can stand perfectly fine without a physical body to hold it up! "Eye of the Needle" is quite rich in it's own way although it's more comforting then anything. Here the music moves over top of your body like a deeply penetrating massage leaving you in a state of peace. I suspect though that words alone will not fully convey the enjoyment of a release like this one. One must listen to it in it's entirety to fully embrace the talent that a band like MSW has. And you can do exactly that (listen to this album in it's entirety) by heading over to the group's bandcamp page right here: http://mysilentwake2.bandcamp.com/album/eye-of-the-needle where (and you can thank me for this later friends!) you too can experience the scope of MSW's latest. Released on June 8th, "Eye of the Needle" features Attrition's Martin Bowes (who actually ended up mixing three of the tracks here as well as mastering the whole album!) on additional keys and electronics (as if Ian Arkley's talents weren't enough reason to pursue an album like this one Bowes adds another element to the mix altogether!) and in the end this one proved to be a sure-fire winner! Truly "Eye of the Needle" adds to My Silent Wake's (http://www.mysilentwake.co.uk/) ever-growing legacy! That legacy will soon enough included a vinyl version of the album "Et Lux Perpetua" with the inclusion of early mixes entitled "And Everlasting Light" as well as a new death/doom album to be recorded in August and September at The Priory Studios near Birmingham. For more information on My Silent Wake be sure to visit any of the links below:

 https://www.facebook.com/pages/My-Silent-Wake/417459134777


http://www.reverbnation.com/mysilentwake?profile_view_source=profile_box

Interview with MSW's Ian Arkley:
http://metalmark.blogspot.com/search?q=Interview+with+Ian+Arkley+

Interview with Ian Arkley

Photo courteous of Pete Skilton

Recently I had the absolute pleasure of talking with multi-instrumentalist Ian Arkley about his band My Silent Wake and let me just say that when it comes to the death/doom scene there are few bands that have intrigued me as much as this UK act has! My Silent Wake (https://www.facebook.com/pages/My-Silent-Wake/417459134777) has been active since 2005 and since day one it has been lead by veteran musician/founder/gentleman Ian Arkley. For My Silent Wake (often times abbreviated as simply MSW) their strength lies in the emotional and spiritual depth of their lyrics and the almost effortless manor in which they can blend subtle melodic passages into songs which (more often then not) border on furious, nail biting metallic death! We're talking about a drop-dead, doom-laden death metal onslaught here and nothing short of it so it's not like MSW's music is for the faint at heart! And yet in Ian's talented hands the music in question, brilliantly worked out so that it reflects many different shades of suffering (as all good death/doom bands should!), is not all death, darkness and despair (or, if you will, brutal metal!). In fact, MSW crafts it's music so that often times individual tracks are filled with smooth interludes, tempting melodies and pieces that hint at a musician whose appreciation for classical music runs almost as deep as his appreciation for the likes of Black Sabbath! All of which ends up making this outfit that much more interesting and, frankly-speaking, it helps them stand amongst their peers! My Silent Wake deserves more recognition, a bigger audience for sure given the bold way this outfit goes about delivering adventurous music. Especially as the adventurous music this UK-based act delivers is real, emotional in a raw way that really tugs at your insides! It reflects the tragic balance of light and darkness in a world that we've made for ourselves (having only ourselves to now blame!) that seems to teeter back and forth at an ever increasing, alarming rate! If you have yet to experience this act for yourself then what are you waiting for?  Head over to the group's Facebook page (after reading this interview over of course!) and go from there. For now though read on as we discover together just what makes MSW so special....

Andy-My Silent Wake, how did it all come about?
 
Ian-The band started in 2005 straight after the demise of my former band Ashen Mortality. 3 of us from the last line-up of that band started to work on new songs and unused Ashen Mortality songs, and within a few months we had recorded our debut album 'Shadow of Sorrow'. We had been quickly signed to Bombworks records after they heard our initial 2 song demo. There were a few changes in the line-up and in the various instruments played by band members as we got ready to gig after the release of our second album 'The Anatomy of Melancholy'. We were unable to gig for the first two years as our drummer at the time (Jasen) had damaged his wrist. Steve, the engineer from the studio we recorded at was also a drummer and started playing with us and soon joined the band officially. Jasen switched to doing joint vocals with me. His vocals are the more black metal sounding ones. Kate switched from keys to bass and Andi from bass to rhythm guitar for gigging purposes and this arrangement stuck, with Kate also providing keys and some vocals on the recordings. Other members have come and gone, but another musician we had early on was Alan, who played bass on our early acoustic songs. All a bit complicated! The line-up has been through a lot of changes in the nine years we have been together.

Andy- Is there a new full-length release in the works for 2014?
 
Ian-We are doing a special re-release of our fourth album 'Et Lux Perpetua' entitled 'And Everlasting Light'. This will feature two new short tracks and different mixes of most of the songs from Et Lux. The whole thing has been newly mastered and sounds great. This will be vinyl only, at least for now and will be released on Fragile Branch and House of Ashes (the label we recently signed to). We are set to record our new album in Sept this year for a release next year and have an album's worth of ambient songs we would like to release. Next year we hope to do some form of compilation to celebrate 10 years in existence.

Andy-You've had a long and varied career now. When did you first know that music was calling you to you?
 
Ian-I loved music from an early age. The first song I liked was 'Mull of Kintyre' by Wings in the seventies. My Mom has a recording of me singing this with a toy guitar when I was very young. Soon after this I got into Led Zeppelin and later Black Sabbath as well as other metal, rock and goth bands. As soon as I realized that forming a band was a possibility, I jumped at the chance. I was late teens by this time, even though I had dabbled with playing guitar and songwriting prior to this.


Andy-The first time I ever heard your work was when you were with Seventh Angel. To this day I look at "The Torment" as one of Christian metal's best albums! I'd imagine that there was no way back then that you could have foreseen just how far you'd come!

Ian- That's great that you have heard that. I still think it was a decent album, but don't like the lyrics. When I formed Ashen Mortality I tried to get away from being tagged a Christian band and am still trying to get free of that tag! I was very young at the time (20 or 21) and didn't know much about life, coming from a fairly sheltered background. I am very pleased that various labels have seen fit to release the music my bands have been making. I love recording and gigging and hope I can keep doing this for a while yet.

Andy-As someone soon to be 41 I understand what you mean when you say that at 20 or 21 you didn't know much about life as you came from a fairly sheltered background. My upbringing was similarly in line with what you likely went through. Still, from a musical standpoint, "The Torment" is way more creative then anything I would have dared to try at that young of an age! It's easy to see that music has always played a huge role in your life Ian!
Ian-Thanks! I think I have always enjoyed a lot of different styles from folk and classical up to black metal, so the influences from all of that comes over in the music. With MSW we always said we would play what we wanted and not be restricted, but even in Seventh Angel days we used doom and medieval elements and the band was never just a thrash band.


Andy-When can we expect to see "And Everlasting Light"? As someone who collects vinyl I will be looking to buy this one for my personal collection!
 
Ian-I really hope it will be released by late summer. The masters are ready, we are awaiting artwork and then we can press ahead with it. Our last vinyl came out last year as a result of some very kind and generous friends and fans contributing to our Kickstarter project. We do love vinyl, but postage is so expensive these days it almost doubles the price people have to pay to order it.

Andy- So, 2015 will mark 10 years together as a band for My Silent Wake? Does it feel like it's been that long to you or has it all been a blur?

Ian-In some ways it does, when I look back to the very first things we did, but the time has gone quickly as it does as you get older. The good thing is that we have managed to release a lot in that time and have had a fairly steady run of gigs. We all work so we couldn't have a hectic gig schedule but it is enough to keep things going.

Andy-Speaking of steady gigs, does My Silent Wake ever make it here to the states? If so how often as My Silent Wake comes across as a band which must be experienced live!
 
Ian-No we have never played a gig over there, even though we were signed to a US label. We would love to play there but I think the costs would be prohibitive. We have played as far afield as Norway and The Czech Republic and we have done plenty of other European gigs.
 
Andy-Alright, we have a new vinyl release in the works and an album slated for 2015. Are there any other projects that you'd like to touch on?
Ian-I mentioned the ambient album. This is something quite different to anything we have done before except maybe the song 'A Photograph' on Anatomy. We hope that we can find a label that will be interested in this and hope to get a really nice package together. If this doesn't happen, we will at least make the tracks downloadable. I am not sure as yet what the compilation or compilations will be like, but hopefully we will be able to do a double album or a metal one and an acoustic one to do the back catalog justice.

Andy-Where's home for you these days Ian?

Ian-I live near Weston-super-Mare in North Somerset and have lived here for 16 years. I am originally from the West Midlands. I live in a small town called Worle and the sea and woods are very close and I can get to work and to the motorway easily, so I am very happy living here.
Andy-Are there any local bands that you'd like to spread some love to?
 
Ian-Our bassist Addam has a band called Striga and also plays in the band Leppe, which are both great bands. He has helped out a cool doom band called Husk. We have been friends and fans of The Drowning from South Wales for years. Probably a lot more I should mention but just woke up!

Andy-When you're not on the road or in the studio what does downtime look like for you? Any hobbies of note?

Ian-I work as a freight train driver and I enjoy railways and model railways in general. I like a lot of comedy and films and enjoy reading - mainly The Fortean Times or occasionally books. I like photography a lot too.

Andy- Wow, it sounds as if you plan a lot on your plate outside of music! That's cool though. As we wrap up our talk today is there anything else you'd like to touch on?

Ian-Just to say thanks for the interview and support for MSW!

Andy-Thank you Ian for talking with us and you can rest assured that I will be throwing my support behind My Silent Wake!

My Silent Wake-Silver Under Midnight

Bombworks Records
2013

Released on Bombworks Records (a subsidiarity of Retroactive Records, both of which specialize in Christian metal) last summer, "Silver Under Midnight", which was produced by Greg Chandler of Esoteric fame over the course of (only) four days(!), was the fifth full-length from the UK's My Silent Wake. Having just recently reviewed their sixth full-length release (the independently-released acoustic album, "Preservation Restoration Reconstruction" which you can read about here:http://metalmark.blogspot.com/2014/05/my-silent-wake-preservation-restoration.html) my curiosity was peaked for an electrified interpretation of this doom/death outfit with goth-rock overtones. Of course the electrified version of My Silent Wake is the day to day version/key operations of this band which resides on the South West side of England. And with June's "Silver Under Midnight" it's quite obvious that this doom/death has their "normal" sound down pat and man alive if it isn't on the lethal side of the spectrum! Opening with the brief instrumental number "Midnight", "Silver Under Midnight" finds My Silent Wake working with guests like the above mentioned Greg Chandler (also with Lychgate and formerly of ex-Pantheist (live) the album's producer does WONDERS here given the fact that he only had four days to record everything!) and Martin Bowes (Attrition) with their fifth full-length album running the gamut from a track like (album single) "The Last Man" (80's goth rock as interpreted by a nineties (heavy rock) doom band!) to doom thrasher "Wars" with numbers such as "Destroyer", "Oblivion" and "My Killer" showing off the ease in which band-founder Ian Arkley (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards and percussion) and companions Kate Hamilton (bass, dulcimer) and drummer Mark Henry are able to lay down FANTASTIC doom/death! After closing with the EPIC 14-minute plus "Third Season" My Silent Wake's "Silver Under Midnight" leaves you more then just satisfied. Rather this full-length studio album leaves you breathless! How an album like this one, which was recorded in only four, turned out this spectacular is mysterious. We're talking mere days here when album's which have taken years  to record pale in comparison, doom/death or not! How it is that My Silent Wake isn't more well-known is also a question, make that even larger mystery, in need of explanation. Especially as there is little here to suggest that My Silent Wake couldn't easily overtake the more talked about/marketed names in the doom/death scene! The natural ability of bandleader Ian Markey (as both a musician and a songwriter!) is evident as this album unfolds and if these seven tracks alone don't speak volumes as to unmistakeably strength that is at the core of this English band the clearly people need to check their hearing (and credentials!) at the door as this trio SLAYED with "Silver Under Midnight"! This my friends is everything I love about doom metal and death metal as performed by a highly creative and constructive metal act and had I covered this last year it would have been hard not to justify it making my top-ten list of album's of the year! Sure as it always rains in Ohio no matter the month or time of year I WILL be revisiting this album again and again in the weeks to come!

My Silent Wake-Preservation Restoration Reconstruction

Self-Released/Independent
2013

For the uninitiated, UK-based My Silent Wake (MSW) is a goth-infused death/doom outfit that was MSW formed in 2005 by founder member/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Ian Arkley (Century Sleeper, Seventh Angel, ex-Ashen Mortality, ex-Paramæcium, ex-The Other Window). With a back catalog that features 5 studio albums, two EPs, a split album with The Drowning and a couple of compilations this spiritually-aware collective has long had a stake in the underground metal scene. "Preservation Restoration Reconstruction" (released last November) might not be the group's latest release (that would seem to fall on "The Cages Sessions 03"), but it's most certainly one of their more interesting additions in their long and varied career. With a few instrumental pieces sandwiched between cuts, "Preservation Restoration Reconstruction" finds MSW exploring the nature of acoustic arrangements and, having listened to this in the comfort of an empty house with the lights dimmed low and the headphones on, for that I applaud Ian Arkley and company! With a sound more befitting a folk metal band, Ian and band-mates work their way through 13 numbers over the course of 37+ minutes and if there is a down-side to be found here I have yet to discover it! Having previously only heard MSW in passing I can honestly say that this one has pushed me towards the potential of another new discovery, a "new" band whose back catalog I'll soon enough be diving into! For the time being though (for those who might come calling) I can be found further enjoying this goth/folk collection that has me wrapped up nicely in a warm embrace!

 http://mysilentwake1.bandcamp.com/album/preservation-restoration-reconstruction

https://www.facebook.com/pages/My-Silent-Wake/417459134777