Morana

Limited handcrafted CD edition. 70 handnumbered copies. Edited by Unexplained Sounds Group 2017 - All rights reserved Comes in transparrent plastic sleeve containing Foldable inlay 3 page card with printed album info and handnumbered x/70 Artwork card from Jaime Rguez (grey/white) with handnumbered x/70 and handwritten "JAIME RGUEZ/2016" Artwork card from César Naves (blue ice crystals) with handnumbered x/70 and handwritten "César Naves 2016" Card with ASHTORETH White CDr Morana is a Baltic and Slavic goddess associated with seasonal rites based on the idea of death and rebirth of nature. She is an ancient goddess associated with winter's death and rebirth and dreams. And Morana is the title of the latest work of Ashtoreth, the project of Belgian musician Peter Verwimp. A secluded voice in the panorama of so called "experimental ambient" music. His sound universe, usually made of suffering guitars and ritualistic voices, becomes in this work, more rarefied and meditative. Winter, also mentioned in his translation in Lakota language, Wani Yetu, is a condition of the landscape, but also of the mind, of the spirit. It is not the icy winter of a Thomas Koner drone music, but a winter in which the slow pace of rarefied guitar feedback, still lets to glimpse some feeble flame in which to try to warm up. A winter in which you can still feel the life moving in the mist, as well in the forests. Morana is a fully recorded album live, no overdubs (except for the track HYBERNA). An album in which the music of Ashtoreth unfolds slowly and solemnly, magical and ritualistic, but without the excesses of ritual ambient. A seemingly ethereal music, but that requires a mind abandonment to be perceived in its fullness and instrumental solidity. This is demonstrated by the beautiful and minimal guitar arpeggios in Tymor, passages in which we can sense the movement of the musician fingers on the guitar, in his living and material relationship with the instrument. When I started, for the first time, to discuss with Peter the project of publishing this work with Unexplained Sounds Group, I had in mind certain excruciating and suffering guitar pages of his previous productions, through which I had begun to love his music. At a first listen of new material so I was a bit puzzled, because I did not recognize the characteristic feature of Ashtoreth that had so fascinated me. Then listening the several times more, new songs brought me into this shining beauty Winter, mysterious balance between life and death, fear and fascination. The four tracks of Morana have been an enlightening experience for me and will be for many of you who will listen to with the right spirit. Winter is nearing Raffaele Pezzella, February 2017