Turn Loose the Swans
Encyclopedia
Turn Loose the Swans was the second album by the British
doom metal
band My Dying Bride
.
It marked a radical departure from the band's first full length, As the Flower Withers
. Martin Powell
's violin playing had become fully integrated into the band's sound, whilst vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe mixed death metal
growls and grunts with the spoken word and an often plaintive singing voice. The first ("Sear Me MCMXCIII") and final ("Black God") tracks dispensed with electric guitar altogether, while the album was also far slower and longer than its predecessor. For these reasons, "Turn Loose the Swans" is often considered to be important in the development of the doom metal
/death metal
hybrid pioneered by My Dying Bride
and fellow Peaceville bands Anathema
and Paradise Lost
.
Though far from straightforward, Aaron Stainthorpe
's lyrics were much less complex than those employed on As the Flower Withers
. He abstained from the use of non-English phrases, and explicitly addressed themes such as Christianity
and lovelorn longing. "Black God" took its lyrics from the last eight lines of a poem called "Ah! The Shepherd's Mournful Fate" by the 18th century Scottish
poet William Hamilton
.
The artwork for the release was designed and created by Aaron Stainthorpe
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
doom metal
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
band My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in 1990. To date, My Dying Bride have released eleven full-length studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release. The band released their tenth studio album, For Lies I Sire,...
.
It marked a radical departure from the band's first full length, As the Flower Withers
As the Flower Withers
As The Flower Withers was the first album by Yorkshire-based doom metal band My Dying Bride. The artwork was designed by Dave McKean.-Song information:Many of the tracks on this album have appeared in a different form on other MDB releases...
. Martin Powell
Martin Powell
Martin Powell is an English musician. In 1991, Powell auditioned for the position of bass-playing in the band My Dying Bride, but was turned down as the band had just filled the position...
's violin playing had become fully integrated into the band's sound, whilst vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe mixed death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
growls and grunts with the spoken word and an often plaintive singing voice. The first ("Sear Me MCMXCIII") and final ("Black God") tracks dispensed with electric guitar altogether, while the album was also far slower and longer than its predecessor. For these reasons, "Turn Loose the Swans" is often considered to be important in the development of the doom metal
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
/death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
hybrid pioneered by My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in 1990. To date, My Dying Bride have released eleven full-length studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release. The band released their tenth studio album, For Lies I Sire,...
and fellow Peaceville bands Anathema
Anathema (band)
Anathema are an English band from Liverpool primarily known for their ever evolving sound. Beginning as pioneers of the death/doom metal sub-genre, their later albums have been associated with genres such as alternative rock, progressive rock, art rock, new prog, and post-rock.-History:Anathema...
and Paradise Lost
Paradise Lost (band)
Paradise Lost are a heavy metal band that formed in 1988 in Halifax, England.-History:Their first three full-length albums are examples of the death/doom style, although the latter two incorporated some melodic and gothic elements...
.
Though far from straightforward, Aaron Stainthorpe
Aaron Stainthorpe
Aaron Stainthorpe is the vocalist for doom metal band My Dying Bride. He was born in England but moved to Germany when he was six months old, because his British army officer father was stationed in the country...
's lyrics were much less complex than those employed on As the Flower Withers
As the Flower Withers
As The Flower Withers was the first album by Yorkshire-based doom metal band My Dying Bride. The artwork was designed by Dave McKean.-Song information:Many of the tracks on this album have appeared in a different form on other MDB releases...
. He abstained from the use of non-English phrases, and explicitly addressed themes such as Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and lovelorn longing. "Black God" took its lyrics from the last eight lines of a poem called "Ah! The Shepherd's Mournful Fate" by the 18th century Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
poet William Hamilton
William Hamilton (Jacobite poet)
William Hamilton was a Scottish poet associated with the Jacobite movement.He was born at the family seat in Ecclesmachan, West Lothian, Scotland. He began his literary career by contributing verses to Allan Ramsay's Tea Table Miscellany. He joined Charles Edward Stuart in 1745, andcelebrated the...
.
The artwork for the release was designed and created by Aaron Stainthorpe
Aaron Stainthorpe
Aaron Stainthorpe is the vocalist for doom metal band My Dying Bride. He was born in England but moved to Germany when he was six months old, because his British army officer father was stationed in the country...
.
Song information
- "Sear Me MCMXCIII" was the second in a trilogy of songs to bear the title, preceded by the doom-metal orientated "Sear Me"As the Flower WithersAs The Flower Withers was the first album by Yorkshire-based doom metal band My Dying Bride. The artwork was designed by Dave McKean.-Song information:Many of the tracks on this album have appeared in a different form on other MDB releases...
in 1992 and followed by "Sear Me III" in 1999, which is similar in style to the original, being a full band composition. The version on this album however, features only the vocals of Aaron StainthorpeAaron StainthorpeAaron Stainthorpe is the vocalist for doom metal band My Dying Bride. He was born in England but moved to Germany when he was six months old, because his British army officer father was stationed in the country...
and the keyboards and violin of Martin PowellMartin PowellMartin Powell is an English musician. In 1991, Powell auditioned for the position of bass-playing in the band My Dying Bride, but was turned down as the band had just filled the position...
. It also features different lyrics to the other two versions. - A video was made for "The Songless Bird" which features slow motion footage of the band running through wilderness, at this stage becoming something of a tradition. The video can be found on "For Darkest EyesFor Darkest EyesFor Darkest Eyes is the first video release by death/doom metal band My Dying Bride. Created first as a VHS in 1997, then later being reproduced as a DVD in 2002 however it was given 2 different version of the front cover...
". - A remix of "The Crown Of Sympathy" was featured on the band's third single, "I Am the Bloody EarthI Am the Bloody EarthI Am the Bloody Earth is a three-track EP, released by British doom metal band My Dying Bride on 24 January 1994.The EP was released as part of the limited box-set, "The Stories", alongside the band's other singles, "Symphonaire Infernus et Spera Empyrium" and "The Thrash of Naked Limbs"...
". This version of the song featured more echoing effects, a shorter outro and a heavy emphasis on Rick Miah's drum sound. - The 2003 reissue of the album featured as bonus tracks; "Le Cerf Malade", an instrumental from "The Thrash Of Naked LimbsThe Thrash of Naked LimbsThe Thrash of Naked Limbs is the third EP by death/doom metal band My Dying Bride. This EP was also released as an vinyl record. By this time, the band was a 6-piece, having added session violinist and keyboardist Martin Powell as an official band member....
", "Transcending (Into The Exquisite)", a remix of songs from this album taken from the later EP "I Am the Bloody EarthI Am the Bloody EarthI Am the Bloody Earth is a three-track EP, released by British doom metal band My Dying Bride on 24 January 1994.The EP was released as part of the limited box-set, "The Stories", alongside the band's other singles, "Symphonaire Infernus et Spera Empyrium" and "The Thrash of Naked Limbs"...
", and a live performance of "Your Shameful Heaven" from the bonus CD of "The Angel and the Dark RiverThe Angel and the Dark RiverThe Angel and the Dark River is the third album by the British doom/death metal band My Dying Bride. The 1996 re-release contains one bonus track "The Sexuality of Bereavement" and a bonus CD titled Live at the Dynamo...
". - Live versions of songs from this album can be found on "For Darkest EyesFor Darkest EyesFor Darkest Eyes is the first video release by death/doom metal band My Dying Bride. Created first as a VHS in 1997, then later being reproduced as a DVD in 2002 however it was given 2 different version of the front cover...
" (all songs except "Black God") and "The Voice of the WretchedThe Voice of the WretchedThe Voice of the Wretched is a live album by doom metal band My Dying Bride, recorded in Tilburg, the Netherlands on the 4 March 2001. Original pressings of the album had tracks 2 and 4 listed in the wrong order, and "Turn Loose The Swans" was spelled "TRUN Loose The Swans".-Track listing:# "She Is...
" (Turn Loose The Swans, The Snow In My Hand and Your River).
Reception
Professional reviews:- Rolling StoneRolling StoneRolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
(#681, 05/05/94) - "Turn Loose the Swans is Bram Stoker's Dracula for the ears – diving into melodrama with grace and making that aspect of life seem the only part worth living. My Dying Bride take a sickly view of traditional orchestration, coupling it with Aaron's wounded-and-pissed animal groans and growls. Poison line each precious flower petal, as if the band were Laura Ashley's evil twin. Disconsolate guitars and funereal passion – in short, music all too susceptible to adjectives but compelling nonetheless."
Track listing
- All Songs Written & Arranged By My Dying Bride (VILE Music Publishing)
- "Sear Me MCMXCIII" – 7:21
- "Your River" – 9:24
- "The Songless Bird" – 7:00
- "The Snow in My Hand" – 7:08
- "The Crown of Sympathy" – 12:15
- "Turn Loose the Swans" – 10:08
- "Black God" – 4:52
- "Le Cerf Malade" – 6:31 *
- "Transcending (Into the Exquisite)" – 8:39 *
- "Your Shameful Heaven (live)" – 5:56 *
- *Bonus track on digipakDigipakDigipak is a patented style of CD, DVD or BD packaging, and is a registered trademark of AGI World Ltd., an Atlas Holdings company.-Features:...
Personnel
- Aaron StainthorpeAaron StainthorpeAaron Stainthorpe is the vocalist for doom metal band My Dying Bride. He was born in England but moved to Germany when he was six months old, because his British army officer father was stationed in the country...
- vocals - Andrew CraighanAndrew CraighanAndrew Craighan is one of My Dying Bride's guitarists. Along with Aaron Stainthorpe, he is the only original member of the band still in the lineup. He played the guitar from 1989 to 1990 in the band Abiosis....
- guitar - Calvin Robertshaw - guitar
- Adrian JacksonAdrian JacksonAdrian Jackson is My Dying Bride's former bassist. He was a member of the band from 1991 until January 2007 when he moved to the USA.-Equipment:* Warwick Thumb Bolt-On bass* Sansamp Processors...
- bass - Martin PowellMartin PowellMartin Powell is an English musician. In 1991, Powell auditioned for the position of bass-playing in the band My Dying Bride, but was turned down as the band had just filled the position...
- violin, keyboard - Rick Miah - drums
Production
- Produced By My Dying Bride & Magne Furuholmen
- Recorded & Engineered By Magne Furuholmen
- Mastered By Noel Summerville