Mara is the eclectic solo seven-inch from Agalloch bassist/Self Spiller master draftsman, JASON W. WALTON. Composed via field recordings from various places he would visit, Walton captured the din of humanity on the downtown Portland streets, the rush of ocean waves in Southern California, and the mysteriously comforting monologues emanating from an AM radio. During mid-2014,WALTON manipulated and processed these sounds into disturbingly haunting pieces which would eventually become the basis for the lingering sounds of Mara.
WALTON thematically composed these songs around his struggle with sleep paralysis – a phenomenon in which a person, either falling asleep or awakening, temporarily experiences an inability to move, speak, and react. Through self-imposed sleep deprivation, Walton recounted his episodes of paralysis within the two tracks contained in Mara. During his various occurrences,WALTON sometimes feels like he has some kind of spiritual connection or “visit” from lost loved ones. Shortly after first track, “Alp,” was completed, WALTON lost his stepfather unexpectedly. A few months later, shortly after track two, “Yakshi,” was finished, WALTON‘s dear friend and former Metal Maniacs editor, Katherine Ludwig, passed away. Although these two songs are not about these people, they are wholeheartedly dedicated to them making this an intensely personal work.
Following Cvlt Nation’s recent premiere of “Alp,” today Decibel Magazine offers up “Yakshi” for communal discovery with Walton noting, “‘Yakshi’ is the second and final track of Mara and deals with the terror and helplessness one experiences when in the throes of sleep paralysis. In this state
experience “Yakshi” at THIS LOCATION.
And you can still sample the harrowing sounds of “Alp,” at THIS LOCATION.
Mara was captured at Earth In Sound Studios Portland, Oregon with Anderson’s guest vocals on “Yakshi” performed and recorded at HammerHeart Brewing Company Lino Lakes, Minnesota. Mastered by James Plotkin (OLD, Scorn, Khanate, Khlyst) with design and layout by Agalloch’s John Haughm, Mara is available NOW via Red Orchard Records on limited edition (300) seven-inch black vinyl housed in a deluxe black arigato sleeve featuring silver debossed artwork. Order your copy today at www.redorchardrecords.com. Each copy comes with a free download code.
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