KEKHT ARÄKH - MORNING STAR CD
€18.90
KEKHT ARÄKH - MORNING STAR CD
NEW AND UNPLAYED
Sacred Bones Records
Morning Star finds Këkht Aräkh arriving at a truer, more refined version of himself. Recorded between Berlin and Stockholm, the album emerges from a period of intense personal and artistic growth, blending aggressive black metal passages with immersive, textured soundscapes that feel both intimate and vast. Since his origins in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, Dmitry (a.k.a. Crying Orc), the sole mastermind behind the project, has sought a distinctive path within black metal. This vision unfolded through his debut Through the Branches to Eternity EP (2018) and the albums Night & Love (2018) and Pale Swordsman (2021), establishing a signature tension between ferocious, visceral black metal and delicate, introspective ballads. On Morning Star, this dynamic reaches new depth. Created at a point of artistic clarity, the album explores a rawer, more personal emotional palette, shaped by stress, anxiety, and long stretches of writer's block, giving it rare immediacy and vulnerability. Dmitry recorded nearly all instruments himself, with drums by Jonathan (Spira Me, Vanskapth, Olycka). Bladee contributed vocals and co-wrote lyrics on "Eternal Martyr," an unexpected collaboration that reveals intuitive chemistry. VS--55 and Varg2Ö add abstract sampling and subtle textural design, giving Morning Star its distinctive grain and analog warmth, while James Ginzburg (Emptyset, Osmium) handled final mastering, enhancing dynamic depth and atmospheric richness. Several tracks revisit earlier material with fresh perspectives. "Wänderer" and "Drömsång" are partially rerecorded or fully reimagined. Intense, driving passages collide with sparse, contemplative interludes, producing a landscape both visceral and haunting. Themes of isolation and wandering surface in "Wänderer," dreamlike melancholy in "Drömsång," existential struggle in "Angest," and reflections on time and transformation in "Three winters away" With Morning Star, Këkht Aräkh synthesizes past explorations with new collaborative energy, producing a record that honors 90s black metal tradition while embracing lo-fi warmth, melancholic melodies, sonic experimentation, and emotional candor. The result is a deeply personal statement _ an album that is both an arrival and a continuation of his artistic journey. TRACKLISTING: 01. WÄNDERER 02. CASTLE 03. LAMENT 04. 55) - GENOM SORGEN (FT. VS- 05. ANGEST 06. MÖRKER ÖVER MÖRKER 07. THREE WINTERS AWAY 08. DRÖMSÂNG 09. RAVEN KING 10. VIGIL 11. ETERNAL MARTYR (FT. BLADEE) 12. TROLLSÂNG (FT. SPÖKE) 13. LAND AV EVIG NATT L 14. LAND AV EVIG NATT LL 15. GATES 16. MORNING STAR 17. OUTRO (FT. VARG2)
