Regarding the new record, the band comments: “‘A Pyrrhic Existence’ is an album that deals with some of the darkest sides of the human psyche and the harsh realities of existence. The concepts of the lyrics deal with death, suffering, tragedy, lies and the breakdown of the human psyche. The title is a reference as to how existence can be perceived as something that inflicts so much devastation on the survivor, that it becomes tantamount to defeat. The music is a progression from previous albums, and is of an extremely psychedelic and experimental nature. It can be likened to a vicarious journey through the twisted passages of the broken mind.”
The artwork and tracklist of ‘A Pyrrhic Existence’ can be found below. The cover artwork was created by Lisa Schubert.
Tracklist
CD1
1. Descent (27:39)
2. Rotting in Dereliction (15:51)
3. Antim Yatra (04:40)
Total: 0:48:10
CD2
4. Consuming Lies (15:16)
5. Culmination (19:03)
6. Sick and Tired (15:46)
Total: 0:50:05
ESOTERIC live
07 Dec 19 Madrid (ES) Madrid is the Dark Festival
For nearly thirty years ESOTERIC have been pushing the limits of sonic intensity. From the mind-bending darkness of their 90’s double albums ‘Epistemological Despondency’ and ‘The Pernicious Enigma’, to the expansive epics found on their recent opuses ‘The Maniacal Vale’ and ‘Paragon of Dissonance’, they have never compromised their initial aim – to unleash aural mayhem on unsuspecting listeners. Late 2019 sees the release of their most accomplished work to date, ‘A Pyrrhic Existence’.
Begun in the post-industrial decay of Birmingham in 1992, the band initially took influence from personal excursions into inner space, contemporary death metal, and their own warped take on 70’s progressive and psychedelic music. The early years saw them perform live infrequently, often to perplexed (and sometimes hostile) audiences. The prevailing ethos in the underground, and indeed heavy music in general in the early 90’s was one of speed. Along with a few of their contemporaries scattered across the globe, ESOTERIC eschewed this in favour of slow building intensity, extended and multi-layered compositions, and free form noise breaks. A foreboding and pervasive sense of unease permeated the early recordings – this was truly dark music. Throughout the 90’s the band remained very much in the underground, perfecting their craft, unmoved by trends or the expectations of the fickle masses.
Albums such as ‘The Pernicious Enigma’ and ‘Metamorphogenesis’ saw them develop and refine their sound, evolving naturally, never appearing contrived. Problems finding dedicated members meant decreased activity in the late 90’s – finding a suitable drummer proved particularly difficult.
2003 saw the band rejuvenated. With the line-up complete for the first time in years, and signing to Season of Mist for the release of their fourth album ‘Subconscious Dissolution into to Continuum’, they performed their first live shows since 1997. The growing interest in the style of music ESOTERIC had been peddling without compromise since 1992 meant more opportunities to perform on stage, something the band has relished. ESOTERIC has developed into a formidable and respected live act, playing tours and festivals throughout Europe and beyond, sharing stages with bands and artists including AHAB, ALCEST, SWALLOW THE SUN, MAYHEM, EMPOREROR and festivals such as Brutal Assault, SWR Barroselas, Hell’s Pleasure, Damnation Festival, Madrid is The Dark, and many more.
Released in 2008, ‘The Maniacal Vale’ proved to be the bands most ambitious and successful album to date, simultaneously honouring the chaos of the earlier releases whilst expanding into territory that at first glance may seem at odds with the bands ethos, yet has always lurked within their compositions – namely, a sense a melody and grandeur. Having been hinted at on previous albums, this side of the band was fully realized. This was followed in 2011 by ‘Paragon of Dissonance’, an album equal to its predecessor in compositional scope and ambition.
2019 will see the release of the bands seventh opus, ‘A Pyrrhic Existence’, 98 minutes of new material that once again expands on the bands sound, yet retains elements of all their preceding works. It is a culmination of 27 years of uncompromising dedication to their craft – detailed and layered compositions and a high level of musicianship, foreboding production, and equal measures of utter darkness and melodic diversity. The current line up consists of Gordon Bicknell (Guitar since 1992), Mark Bodossian (Bass since 2003), Greg Chandler (Guitar and vocals since 1992), Joe Fletcher (Drums since 2007), and Jim Nolan (Guitar since 2009).
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Line-up
Greg Chandler: Vocals, Guitars
Mark Bodossian: Bass, synths
Joe Fletcher: Drums
Jim Nolan: Guitars
Gordon Bicknell: Guitars
Cover art: Lisa Schubert
Graphics and layout: Mauro Berchi
Production, mixing, mastering: Greg Chandler at Priory Recording Studios
Style: Dark experimental doom
]]>Regarding the new record, the band comments:
“The new album, which will be 2 CD’s and 3 LP’s in length, sees a return to the heavier use of psychedelic effects and a greater variety of tempo, expanding on the sound developed since the band’s inception in 1992.”
For updates regarding the recording, follow ESOTERIC on their facebook page
Esoteric – ‘The Blood of the Eyes’ live
ESOTERIC’s latest double album ‘Paragon of Dissonance’ (2011) is still available from the Season of Mist shop and streaming in full at the official Season of Mist YouTube channel here. Album details can be found below.
CD 1:
1. Abandonment
2. Loss of Will
3. Cipher
4. Non Being
CD 2:
1. Aberration
2. Disconsolate
3. A Torrent of Ills
Slowly, slowly but steadily a sound rises from the deep. This sound starts up deceptively upon a lighter note, but rapidly turns into a swelling tide of massively droning guitars. Vocals are crushing in like a tidal wave, breaking with a voice as harsh and resonant as a maelstrom of grinding granite. Streams of sonic magma are constantly intertwining, twisting, melting together, then exploding into colours, forming patterns and dissolving into chaos again. Shapes, visions and scenes tumble into the mind, luring the soul out of the flesh only to take it firmly into an unrelenting musical grip and take the imagination down into a seething miasma of melancholy and pain.
Thus begins an amazing journey beyond ordinary metal conventions into “The Maniacal Vale”. ESOTERIC will grant you the sonic ride of your life – a daring exploration into the abyss, which lurks in the human mind. The English lords of psychedelic doom are tapping deep into the crimson bloodstream of subconsciousness. Their chosen path makes emotions, thoughts and personal experiences audible. “The Maniacal Vale” carries much more content than merely the significance of the sublime poetry of its lyrics. Some music still comes with a meaning and ESOTERIC present the perfect example for this seemingly old-fashioned concept. There are moments of tranquility surrounded by pounding heaviness and each song takes its time to develop. Time is what “The Maniacal Vale” demands of its listeners as this album refuses to deliver a four-minute-festival-fix, which will make them to grab the next beer. Yet valuable time is also its reward, as new fascinating details will reveal themselves with each listening.
ESOTERIC steadfastly resist the temptation of making their songs suitable to any easy listening or cutting them down to a radio-friendly scale. Their seven sinister psychodramas rather grow into epic dimensions and in fact, it takes two silver-discs to contain them. It is with obvious passion and patience that “The Maniacal Vale” was conceived. The simply stunning song writing on this album portrays all the experience and maturity of a band, which has been around since July 1992. Seasoned and honed to perfection by many a line-up change since then, continuity in ESOTERIC has always been kept safe by the core-members vocalist and guitarist Greg Chandler as well as guitarist Gordon Bicknell. Not everybody was able to participate in or contribute to the strong vision, which is driving the doom-lords, although other members than Gordon and Greg have always added to the song-writing. Yet finally, they have found a stable and dedicated line-up: Olivier Goyet on keyboards although being new to the recording process and widening the band’s sound-range has been a regular sixth member for five years now. Mark Bodossian came with his bass in April 2003, while drummer Joe Fletcher and guitarist Kris Clayton both joined in 2007.
If ESOTERIC had a motto, it would have to be: Think big! Already their first demo “Esoteric Emotions – The Death of Ignorance” injected 82 minutes of hateful – drug influenced tortured doom with a total of eight tracks. Their debut “Epistemological Despondency” (1994) was down to only six songs, but even longer and had to be released as a more than full-length double-CD. As the minute count was steadily rising, so were ESOTERIC’s musical skills and mastery of their heavy genre gaining. “The Pernicious Enigma” (1996) brought another double-CD with nine tracks, now lasting a mind-debilitating 115 minutes.
While the English maintained their essence, this second effort proved to be more complex, sinister, intense and dissonant. At this point, the line-up changes had grown quite numerous and a permanent drummer was missing, which might explain a reduction in productivity, but not quality as the band unleashed “Metamorphogenesis” (1999), which is often described as a Mini-CD although it has a total playing time of nearly 45 minutes. Having taken their sound to even more extremes, the remaining three members in the band recorded “”Subconscious Dissolution into the Continuum” (2004) as their first release on Season of Mist. Uncompromising as ever, the trio returned with a more refined yet terrifyingly bombastic production.
Two successful European tours in 2004 and 2005 were made possible by the addition of three more musicians. ESOTERIC had meanwhile become darlings of the international press and now were conquering the hearts of the fans as well, while sharing stages with While Heaven Wept, Skepticism, Reverend Bizarre, Officium Triste, Mourning Beloveth and Pantheist to name but a few. After “The Maniacal Vale” was released in 2008, ESOTERIC continued performing throughout Europe. Some minor changes in the line-up did not change the band’s course and now the English are back with “Paragon of Dissonance”, which vocalist Greg Chandler describes as a ‘varied and diverse mix of emotions and soundscapes’.
One again ESOTERIC deliver a complex type of crushing and massive music where shapes, visions and scenes are forming an outstanding sonic chaos. Yet “Paragon of Dissonance” gives ample credit to the fact that the band continually evolves and matures in their songwriting and technical skills. Get ready for a splendid sonic ride through the limbs of doom!
www.facebook.com/esotericukofficial
Line-up
Greg Chandler: Vocals, Guitars
Mark Bodossian: Bass
Joe Fletcher: Drums
Jim Nolan: Guitars
Gordon Bicknell: Guitars
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