I know a lot of people who refer Raison D'Etre among the old favorites and early influences. For me personally, Stratvm Terror was first "noise" live show I ever witnessed. Back in the 90's noise gigs in Finland were almost non-existent, so went to Stockholm to see Con-Dom and ST!
I used to say that I tend to prefer early RD'E stuff, as I always associated old material more industrial and later stuff leaning more into soundtrack-esque dark ambient. Which may be true, but now that I was listening 2021 release, I was indeed wondering I should really dig deeper into releases he has done over the years and see what else is there.
Friend had accidentally bought two copies of Raison d'être – Daemonum + Daemoniacum 3xLP set, and I took one from him. No real expectations what it would be. It certainly is "clean production" compared to early days, but I like it. Eerie, dark and slow paced occasional "industrial element" there, never gets noisy or hard. He has other projects for that type of things.
Any RD'E fans here, impressions of the re-make albums where he curiously did complete re-makes of old stuff on level of finding the movies he sampled from etc.. no more rips from VHS dubs, but pristine dvd/blue-ray sources etc.
I still have latest Stratvm Terror on my "to be listened" category. Haven't heard any comments on that.
I used to think Raison D'etre is too cheesy, because of the symphonic qualities and emo titles. Also the gig at PRKL in Finland felt quite underwhelming some years ago. Nowadays, I like this project a lot. My favorites are In Sadness, Silence and Solitude and The Stains of the Embodied Sacrifice. There's many albums I have not heard yet though.
The Empty Hollow Unfolds was highly praised by Kuolleen musiikin yhdistys at the time, but it felt a bit boring. It's more darker and somehow with Raison D'Etre, the religious undertones, choir samples, industrial sounds etc. work better for me with less oppressive albums. Maybe it's because the albums are quite bombastic and when the atmosphere is darker, the soundscape becomes too bloated and the lighter tone creates a contrast that works better.
Quote from: FreakAnimalFinland on February 29, 2024, 10:05:50 AMI know a lot of people who refer Raison D'Etre among the old favorites and early influences. For me personally, Stratvm Terror was first "noise" live show I ever witnessed. Back in the 90's noise gigs in Finland were almost non-existent, so went to Stockholm to see Con-Dom and ST!
I guess I consider myself a fan. For me the albums around the turn of the century, such as "The Empty Hollow Unfolds" and "Requiem for Abandoned Souls" were clearly a step forward with their more industrial approach and darker sound. Having said that, I haven't kept up with the output from the last 15 years or so.
Stratvm Terror is sort of the evil twin. Very good stuff. Just had a listen to the new album and it holds up very well. I quite like Svasti-Ayanam too with that project's more ritual/eastern flavor. Panzar was a fine one-off thingy, more alike the German pe stylings of Dagda Mor and Anenzephalia. Then Necrophorus and Atomine Elektrine I seem to remember a tad too new-agey for my likings.
Being one of the organisers of that event in Stockholm in -98 I think it was cool that you did the Baltic booze cruise and came over. I believe there was a contingent from the Turku/KMY crew too. Behind the scenes there was a bit of drama that day, having nothing to do with ST though. Hybryds were refusing to play on the same bill as Con-Dom due to their use of "fascist imagery". Eventually it transpired that Magthea had Con-Dom confused with Grey Wolves. He and Dando shook hands and the show could go on, haha.
I was wearing the grey wolves "hate is in our blood" t-shirt with big celtic cross in front. Back then, didn't think it would cause anything in stockholm.. haha.. but indeed, was mentioned that Hybryds did not like it.
Casual follower of his works. I often play the earlier material, and kept a few in the collection. The one I play most was interestingly enough released on Shane Rout of Abyssic Hate's label.
Svasti-Ayanam is also fantastic, especially the track Chakra Puja. Necrophorus also had some good moments in the earlier material, I remember one in particular that was created from ice melting as the sound source.
For me, "The Empty Hollow Unfolds" is still the pinnacle of Raison.. material.
I've seen Raison D'Etre live a couple of days ago, I didn't expect him to hit hard but it was quite noisy at moments. Great sounds + giant skulls projected behind him.
I don't listen to as much of darkambient these days as I used to do years ago, but Raison D'Etre was among the first projects that introduced me into DA genre twentysomething years ago and it has sticked with me ever since.
First album I got from RDE was Requiem for abandoned souls and that is still my favourite one, and one of the most listened ambient albums overall for me. I love those meditative choirs combined with physical sounds of scraping and screeching metal. The empty hollow unfolds is another favourite with same kind of atmospheres and sounds.
I listen to older albums when I'm in the mood for something "dungeon synthish" but usually it's the newer stuff like Metamorphyses (well not so new anymore because it was released in 2006 :D) and Mise en Abyme. Alchymeia (2018) was ok album with trademark choir sounds, but besides that it was bit too nowadays DA style with too clean production.
I had couple of Stratvm Terror albums but that project never did anything for me for some reason. Atomine Elektrine was/is my fave Peter Andersson project after RDE. Deep cosmic and kosmische electronic soundscapes. Nebulous album is better electronic music to my ears than anything that Warp records has ever released for example.
His demo "Après nous le Déluge" is by far my favourite among his releases
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/apr-s-nous-le-d-luge
Quote from: DrRichard on March 08, 2024, 05:32:45 PMHis demo "Après nous le Déluge" is by far my favourite among his releases
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/apr-s-nous-le-d-luge
This demo is top, I need to get the repress sooner or later.
Concerning Raison d'Etre, excellent project, more "eerie" and with a light dungeon synth/"fantasy" touch (at least for what I listened to) as bands like, for instance, Desideri Marginiis or Lustmord, to name the other two for me most influential dark ambient names from Sweden.
Quote from: FreakAnimalFinland on February 29, 2024, 10:05:50 AMI know a lot of people who refer Raison D'Etre among the old favorites and early influences. For me personally, Stratvm Terror was first "noise" live show I ever witnessed. Back in the 90's noise gigs in Finland were almost non-existent, so went to Stockholm to see Con-Dom and ST!
I used to say that I tend to prefer early RD'E stuff, as I always associated old material more industrial and later stuff leaning more into soundtrack-esque dark ambient. Which may be true, but now that I was listening 2021 release, I was indeed wondering I should really dig deeper into releases he has done over the years and see what else is there.
Peter's output was certainly important for me getting into the wider experimental industrial underground. I think if you discovered this music in the 90s, Raison and BDN were pretty much the flagbearers for CMI at that point, so either one was unavoidable.
I actually always found the opposite as far as RD'E's stuff. His "classic" 90s/early 00s era was more dark ambient. The clangs/factory scraping was there always, of course, but the choirs, chants, and synths are more prominent. "Prospectus" had a bit more electro-industrial influence with some of the beats. Its ok, but not as good as what followed. The next four albums are all rightly dark ambient classics and still get a lot of play from me. "The Empty Hollow Unfolds" I think is the highlight of that first era, and where the industrial elements start to become more prominent. "Metamorhyses" and the next few proper albums were where the industrial side came to dominate. I know a lot of people think this is when he "lost it." I can see where that would come from, especially if you enjoy his early work, but I think what he was doing then was just different. Not a step down, just a different approach. Maybe enjoying noise made me appreciate those albums more, I don't know. "Mise en Abyme" started to see elements from the classic era come back. And then came "Alchymeia."
Personally, I think "Alchymeia" is the best thing Peter has ever done. As good as anything from the classic era, and surpassing them. I'd put it up there with Yen Pox-Between the Horizon and the Abyss as one of the best dark ambient albums released since the turn of the millenium. He took the best parts of both his eras, the factory scrape and dirge of the industrial/experimental stage and the choirs and darkly gorgeous and morose melodies and atmospheres of the classic era, and fused them into something epic. Its nothing fancy, just immense atmospheres to drown in.
The new one is good. I like it. But "Alchymeia" was so good to my ears that anything was going to have a hard time exceeding it.
I do think Bocksholm deserves mention here too. Every release from the two Peter's has been enjoyable. Lots of searing, bludgeoing, industrial factory heat and grime. Not quite pe or harsh noise, but hitting a good sweat spot just beneath it.
I've enjoyed all the Stratvm Terror other than the really early stuff. Anyone that isn't ready to try to smash through a brick wall with their bare hands by the end of "Skullbreeding" wasn't meant to listen to this kind of music. :)
The newest one ups the creepiness factor somewhat as opposed to the more aggressive moments on other albums.
Like post-mortem, I consider myself a fan, at least of the older releases, as I do not own anything released after "Emptry Hollow...". For me "Within the Depths..." is the pinnacle of the project and "Inner Depths of Sadness" is one of my favourite tracks of all time, not just by Raison D'Etre, but in general. It is simple, slow, dark and melodic without being dungeon synth cheesy and I love the samples. From "Enthralled..." to "Empty Hollow..." I find very little fault and when I don't really have a relationship with the newer releases, it is not because it is not good, but simply because I moved on to other and noisier territories during that time and never really caught up again as there is a constant flow of music to buy. The recent gig in Berlin was really good and put me straight into a CMI nostalgia trip, something that happens quite often, to be honest. I guess the fact that this tour was pretty much sold out across the board shows that there is still a place for this kind of dark ambient and death industrial, and that makes me happy - they deserve the recogniton.
Quote from: Phenol on April 08, 2024, 11:41:43 AMLike post-mortem, I consider myself a fan, at least of the older releases, as I do not own anything released after "Emptry Hollow...". For me "Within the Depths..." is the pinnacle of the project and "Inner Depths of Sadness" is one of my favourite tracks of all time, not just by Raison D'Etre, but in general. It is simple, slow, dark and melodic without being dungeon synth cheesy and I love the samples. From "Enthralled..." to "Empty Hollow..." I find very little fault and when I don't really have a relationship with the newer releases, it is not because it is not good, but simply because I moved on to other and noisier territories during that time and never really caught up again as there is a constant flow of music to buy. The recent gig in Berlin was really good and put me straight into a CMI nostalgia trip, something that happens quite often, to be honest. I guess the fact that this tour was pretty much sold out across the board shows that there is still a place for this kind of dark ambient and death industrial, and that makes me happy - they deserve the recogniton.
It is fair to say I am an obsessive fan for close to three decades now, where I pretty much own every album from the project (and on multiple formats too as it goes). Clearly the earlier musically leaning 'gothic' ambient period is untouchable, but the later more drone industrial/ambient phase has a lot to offer too.
Personally I see the core CMI musical 'gothic' period and the later drone industrial/ambient periods as very distinct eras. Although there was also bit of a 'bridging' period between the two eras starting around the 'The Empty Hollow Unfolds'.
If anyone has not followed the project over the last decades, the 'Alchymeia' and 'Daemonum' albums are the most listened and appreciated of the current era for me.
I also appreciated the re-recorded versions of older albums which have been released over recent years. I tend to listen to these back to back with the original recordings and appreciate both versions for what they bring (nostalgia on one side, and updated more professional sound on the other).
After sleeping to JLIAT and Amon, this thread had me revisit Within the Depths of Silence and Phormations, but the Redux version. I'll dig out the original soon. So thanks. At the time, I remember being disappointed in Prospects I and Enthraled by the Wind of Lonelieness (before we had spell checks on everything), but how many ambient albums are going to live up to Within? I'm sure I'll be much more forgiving now. I look forward to hearing them again. I do remember liking the split with Svasti-ayanam though, especially the Svasti-ayanam side. Need to hear the other couple releases from that side of him. Really appreciate how he's collected pre-Raison, all the comp tracks, live, and other edits on the Archives and redux versions with bonus discs. I see some of the albums have been reissued on vinyl. Not sure how well I can see that, but so are the times.
"Enthralled" always had its ups and downs. Some synth/keyboard sounds are at bit cheesy and always were, but at the same time the melodies and the overall atmosphere is great. I find myself becoming way more forgiving now in terms of the "cheap casio keyboard sound" that I hated back then. There's a specific "era sound" that just sits well with me now, probably just a nostalgia thing. I don't like the dungeon synth appropriation of it, though. Anyway, this thread has made me curious about newer RD. It seems from the comments that "Alchymeia" is a good place to begin and I don't think I ever listened to that one, so I'll just do that...
I was listening to Tales from the Tabula Rasa (Early Works 1988-1991) today, and at some point early on, it was reminding me of beginnings Endvra, though Endvra was far better at it. It's quasi gothy, crude neo-classical electronica. Maybe neo-medieval would be more appropriate? I'm such a sucker for the timpani, even if it is sampled and not real. Being a big, BIG Endvra fan, it's fun to run into other stuff like them, though Tales From pre-dates Endvra by a handful of years. Both also becoming greats of dark ambient too.
Yeah, Endvra were quite popular back in the 90s as far as I remember, both in metal and neofolk circles. I got Black Eden and the Elder Signs compilation from back then, both released by Red Stream so probably the releases with the widest distribution. Should revisit...I listened to Mise En Abyme and Alchemeia by RD a few times now on Spotify and especially the latter seems to be growing on me. I like the dark and brooding atmosphere with long build ups and the trademark gregorian samples and metallic clatter, of course, so will no doubt end up buying it, probably just the CD version unless there's a good reason to the the vinyl.
I do really love the early material and the early 2000's material but haven't delved into anything of the last 15 or so years, but maybe that will change now. Is there any real stand outs from his last few years of output?
The last/latest album Daemonum is up there as a standout of the the current era. Either that or Alchymeia are your best bets. Links below.
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/daemonum
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/alchymeia-2
Quote from: re:evolution on May 08, 2024, 06:19:51 AMThe last/latest album Daemonum is up there as a standout of the the current era. Either that or Alchymeia are your best bets. Links below.
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/daemonum
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/alchymeia-2
This thread made me revisit his discography. My previous critic about the "bloated soundscape" seems to mostly concerns the Empty Hollow Unfolds. It's still not my favorite, but I can second that these two albums are excellent.
Quote from: Manhog_84 on May 09, 2024, 11:34:17 AMQuote from: re:evolution on May 08, 2024, 06:19:51 AMThe last/latest album Daemonum is up there as a standout of the the current era. Either that or Alchymeia are your best bets. Links below.
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/daemonum
https://raisondetre.bandcamp.com/album/alchymeia-2
This thread made me revisit his discography. My previous critic about the "bloated soundscape" seems to mostly concerns the Empty Hollow Unfolds. It's still not my favorite, but I can second that these two albums are excellent.
I have noted many hold Empty Hollows... in highest regard, but it is my least listened to in his discography. I guess 'bloated' is a reasonable description of that album not balancing its elements as well as other albums.