h33t - My Dying Bride - Songs of Darkness, Words of Light (FLAC) [rockbox]

My Dying Bride was formed in June 1990 after lead guitarist Andrew Craighan left his former band Abiosis to join Aaron Stainthorpe (vocals), Calvin Robertshaw (guitar) and Rick Miah (drums). Adrian Jackson would join later on bass. After six months of rehearsing, the band recorded and released their demo, Towards the Sinister. Its title was taken from a line in the song "Symphonaire Infernus Et Spera Empyrium".

In the early 1990s My Dying Bride were part of what was known as the Peaceville Three with Paradise Lost and Anathema - all three bands hailing from the north of England. They also toured in 1995 with Iron Maiden as part of their European tour.

Their music is characterised by romantic, sensual lyrics and an obsessive attention to atmospheric detail. Early demos were death metal in a traditional sense, though much slower than most. However, their debut album As the Flower Withers saw the addition of violins and keyboards. Turn Loose the Swans built on that foundation, utilising clean as well as death grunts and, unusually, lead violin on several tracks. Trinity is a compilation of the three early EPs and a 7". The Angel and the Dark River saw the abandonment of death grunts altogether, this added a more traditional Doom feel to the songs. Like Gods of the Sun continued in that direction.

The somewhat experimental 34.788%...Complete was next, which along with the following The Light at the End of the World polarized fans over the band's new direction. My Dying Bride entered something of a hiatus after this, releasing two retrospective albums Meisterwerk 1 and Meisterwerk 2. These albums lay halfway between best of albums and rarity compilations.

It was not until 2001's The Dreadful Hours that My Dying Bride managed to win round the bulk of their former fans. More innovative than The Light at the End of the World, yet retaining all the key elements of the My Dying Bride sound, The Dreadful Hours was a slightly darker release. 2004's follow-up Songs of Darkness, Words of Light showed a band continuing to expand and refine their sound and purpose. A substantial increase in live performances - once an unheard-of rarity - has led to much greater recognition by a new generation of fans.

Songs of Darkness, Words of Light marks the debut of keyboardist Sarah Stanton. Initial copies of the album came in a hard clamshell case and featured a double sided poster and a fridge magnet as extras.

Track List:
1. "The Wreckage of My Flesh" – 8:45
2. "The Scarlet Garden" – 7:49
3. "Catherine Blake" – 6:32
4. "My Wine in Silence" – 5:53
5. "The Prize of Beauty" – 8:02
6. "The Blue Lotus" – 6:33
7. "And My Fury Stands Ready" – 7:45
8. "A Doomed Lover" – 7:54

Here is My Dying Bride's "Songs of Darkness, Words of Light" ripped in lossless FLAC format for your listening/burning/converting pleasure.