Photo by: Moshmallows
Official press release:
Critically acclaimed, Progressive/Atmospheric Death/Black Metal quartet, An Abstract Illusion, return with a new album in October on Willowtip Records!
The critical response to the band’s previous album, Woe, was nothing short of phenomenal! Black Metal Daily called it “An absolutely fucking herculean masterstroke” (10/10), while Metal-Only minced no words in dubbing it a “Masterpiece” (10/10). As such, the anticipation for the epic follow-up, The Sleeping City, has been sky high!
The Sleeping City, An Abstract Illusion’s third full-length album, utilizes their unique blend of progressive death metal and black metal with arpeggiating synths, wistful drones and vast soundscapes, harkening back to the era of 80’s sci-fi soundtracks. Being the band’s most atmospheric and heavy work to date, the album explores the depths of the human psyche and suffering. A decrepit yet monumental landmark, the sleeping city awaits ahead. Will you enter?
The band comments on the forthcoming album:
“When we compose an album we don’t want it to just be a collection of random songs, we want a holistic theme coursing through the album’s veins. When writing The Sleeping City we wanted to explore what the soundtrack to a dystopian sci-fi film, such as Blade Runner or Terminator, would sound like if it were written by a death metal band.
For The Sleeping City, we took inspiration from acts such as Depeche Mode, My Bloody Valentine, Kite, Ólafur Arnalds and Boards of Canada, pushing us to expand and refine our sound palette. Going from the long-song format of Woe, it was a fun challenge to once again write self-contained songs with a clear beginning and end.
During the creation of this album we worked with a great team of collaborators. Produced by the band’s own Karl Westerlund, The Sleeping City was once again mixed and mastered by Robin Leijon. Drums were recorded and produced by Jakob Herrmann (Devin Townsend, Evergrey, VOLA, Vildhjärta) at the legendary Top Floor Studios in Gothenburg, who has captured some of our all-time favorite drum tones. The gorgeous artwork, a homage to early black metal’s painted artworks, was done by Alex Eckman-Lawn (Horrendous, Afterbirth, Woe, Nero Di Marte). We also worked with amazing musicians who provided us with beautiful strings and vocals.
With The Sleeping City we truly feel we’ve elevated our craft beyond anything we’ve done before and can’t wait for its release. Thank you all for your continued support!”
The official video for the album’s first single, “No Dreams Beyond Empty Horizons”, has been premiered on the Willowtip YouTube Channel. The song will be available everywhere on August 1. Album pre-orders will be available on the same day.
Willowtip will release The Sleeping City on October 17. The album will be available on CD, Limited Longbox CD, 2xLP vinyl, and digital formats.
The Sleeping City track listing:
- “Blackmurmur”
- “No Dreams Beyond Empty Horizons”
- “Like A Geyser Ever Erupting”
- “Frost Flower”
- “Emmett”
- “Silverfields”
- “The Sleeping City”
