the endless shadow of despicable power

tracklisting

1. plastic trail to the gaping end (13:47)
2. inhumed legacy (09:41)
3. trajectory (07:25)
4. monument to hypocrisy (10:09)
5. the endless shadow of despicable power (06:27)

release day notes:

“as with the first lp, it’s an extremely personal piece, but sonically, it expands on the foundations laid in the debut, and i’m very happy with how it’s turned out - i’m glad to finally get it out there.

the album was very much a labour of love - written and diy-recorded over a period of 14 months or so, it proved highly challenging (and educational) but massively rewarding. combining live elements, as well as a number of the production techniques i use with unbidden audio (ambient parts / soundscapes / sub etc), the basic arrangement was completed using scratch-track guitar & bass recordings, with drum programming via ssd5, all recorded to click tracks. i then re-recorded all the guitar & bass parts as final takes (a combination of amp sims, guitar fx pedals, and mic-ed amps). programmed ssd5 drums were then replaced with a live-kit, after i spent a day playing / recording drums in a practice room in music box cardiff. finally, i recorded vocals, and finished mixing the lp, before handing it over to the highly talented greg chandler (priory recording studios) for mastering.

to mirror the intended aesthetic (raw, lo-fi and organic), i avoided the use of drum triggers, quantising, and auto-tune. comping was used to select the best takes of various recordings. despite working on this lp as five separate cubase project files (by contrast, the debut was all contained within one), the project files ended up leading to a new level of nightmare in terms of cpu-related issues, but i’ve learned lessons for the future. moving forward, i’m also planning on reducing the time period between finishing music, and releasing it.

my doom metal influences have been making an appearance on my unbidden audio kyam output since the first release (time out etc), so i’m proud that the label has significantly and naturally expanded to reflect my tastes and inspirations. i’ve already written around 25 minutes of music for the 3rd doubtsower lp (which pushes the experimental angle further, and also places a greater emphasis on mic-recorded guitar amps) and so there’s more to come on the doubtsower front, as well as the kyam / unbidden audio side of things.

press release

doubtsower (matt strangis) is a self-recorded / produced one-man-band, fuelled by a diy ethic and a respect for the lp / album format. although doom metal at its core, it's also inspired by stoner, post-metal, industrial, death / black metal etc, as well as experimental electronic & ambient. embracing an organic, lo-fi aesthetic, and avoiding the use of drum triggers / quantizing etc, the lp gently blurs the boundaries between doom-metal and electronic / textual experimentation. independently released via strangis' ubaii record label (sub-label of unbidden audio). mastered by greg chandler of esoteric.

"the endless shadow of despicable power" expands on the foundations established in doubtsower's debut lp ("asphyxiation of a seasick soul"), which was released last year to very positive reviews.

outside of doubtsower, strangis plays bass guitar in doom merchants pantheist, and releases dark / experimental electronic music under his kyam alias.

reviews

"this one-man band from the uk packs all the same crushing doom and blackened doom fury as a 10-piece group" (bandcamp new & notable)

"another potent and absorbing work of doom-drenched feeling" (wonderbox metal)