AZURE EMOTE · Cryptic Aura | TRANSPARENT RED LP

Transparent red vinyl. Includes two double-sided inserts, a polylined inner sleeve and a protection sleeve. Limited to 300 copies.

Background information about 'Cryptic Aura'

Cryptic Aura is the fourth full-length from Philadelphia's Azure Emote, and it arrives like a signal beamed in from somewhere well past the edge of the known death metal map. The band, founded by vocalist and keyboard player Mike Hrubovcak back in 2003 with guitarist Ryan Moll at his side, has always treated genre borders as suggestions rather than laws, and here that philosophy pays off in spectacular fashion. Ten tracks, ten distinct universes, each one built on a foundation of unsettling atmosphere and restless, defiant creativity.

What makes this record so gripping is the way it refuses to sit still. Riffs lurch and spiral, keyboards smear cold light across the mix, and the rhythm section — anchored by former Death bassist Kelly Conlon and drummer Mike Heller — keeps everything teetering on the brink of collapse without ever losing the plot. Add former Eluveitie vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Anna Murphy plus violinist Pete Johansen into the equation and the palette widens even further, from eerie chamber textures to full-on ultra-heavy crush. It is brutal at its core, but the brutality is wrapped in something stranger and more cerebral. Every spin reveals another layer, another wrong turn that turns out to be exactly right.

For fans of: Gorguts, Ulcerate, Death, Pyrrhon, Imperial Triumphant

Other Versions

CD · 13,99 € BLACK LP · 25,99 €

Track listing

A1. Into Abysmal Oblivion
A2. Insomnia Nervosa
A3. Aeons Adrift
A4. Bleed With The Moon
A5. Defiance Infernus
B1. Provoking The Obscene
B2. Disease Of The Soul
B3. Feast Of Leeches
B4. Return To The Unknown
B5. Writhing Lunacy

Manufacturer: ProMedia GmbH, Im Gartenfeld 1, 54516 Flußbach, Germany, Contact: testimonyrecords.de