Unkindness Of Ravens
Formed in Tipperary, Ireland, in June 2015, Unkindness Of Ravens create dark music.
Synths and organ-driven, reverb-drenched rock is the core pillar of the band's sound.
A nod towards modern proponents of darkwave and gothic tinged heavy music is evident in the band's music; as are traces of doom, psychedelia, occult-rock and vintage celtic rock.
Between those fault-lines surfaces verbose post-rock influences, juxtaposed with unlikely comfort alongside torch-ballads and minimalist laments.
However, even more curious is a strong undercurrent of Beckettian surrealism and darker themes, explored through the band's self-produced artwork and music videos, as well clear influences from the black-kaleidoscope of sounds emitting from the thriving avant-garde and dark ambient scene.
BACKGROUND
Originally performing live as a retro-rock group which began in December 2013, the band widened their sound when Danielle Egan (keys/synths) joined founding members Darren Keegan (guitar/vocals), Daryl Hogan (drums) and Shane Fitzgerald (guitar).
Fitzgerald departed the group soon after and the remaining trio pushed the band through a complete remake, emerging with over an hour of recorded material in the winter of 2015.
Subsequently, 'Under Stolen Skies,' the band's debut album was released.
Above: Album artwork for Unkindness Of Ravens' first album 'Under Stolen Skies.'
The album was recorded in a 200 year-old house in the shadow of the Slieve Bloom Mountains in the Irish midlands, with Hogan, a qualified record engineer, overseeing the recording.
Soon later the band teamed up with Dura Gesta Records, a subsidiary of Domestic Genocide Records, based in Michigan in the United States.
This early trans-Atlantic relationship saw Dura Gesta Records release Unkindness Of Ravens first album, ‘Under Stolen Skies’ in November 2015.
A video for the song ‘Leanan Sídhe’ was also released, which was filmed and produced by the band and set in the other-worldly karst landscape of the Burren and their home in the Slieve Bloom Mountains. Filming the video saw the band visit the Pollnagollum Caves, which inspired J.R.R. Tolkien to create the character Gollum in the Lord of the Rings.
The video became a showcase for the band’s style and aesthetic; with down-tuned string arrangements as a backdrop to organ and distorted violin, vocal harmonies and reverb drenched distorted guitars.
In 2016 the band took to the road and expanded the lineup to include Philly Brett on bass and the return of Shane Fitzgerald on guitar. In 2016 the band played at the Siege Of Limerick Festival and visited Eastern Europe for the first time to perform at the Electric Meadow Festival near Lviv in western Ukraine.
February 2017 saw the band release their second album - a 100-minute-long double album titled 'The Perfect Dark' on Domestic Genocide Records.
Above: Album artwork for Unkindness Of Raven's second album - the double album 'The Perfect Dark.'
The album's release was accompanied by a video for the first single - 'The Wolf and the Hound' and again the entire album was self-recorded in the same old house in rural Ireland.
The video was filmed by the band in nearby Leap Castle and the infamously haunted Bloody Chapel, a site known worldwide for its dark history and reputation for paranormal activity.
In early 2018 Shane Fitzgerald left the group and Unkindness Of Ravens announced they intend to continue as a four-piece group and release their third album, 'Beautiful Tragedies' on Wolftrap Records.
The album's release was preceded by the single 'Leda and the Swan' - the band's first time to play black metal.
The video for the track was filmed on the Holy Island of Monahincha, constructed in the 6th Century and recognised as the 32nd Wonder of the World.
The album 'Beautiful Tragedies,' saw the band explore darker and more personal themes and was recorded by Hogan.
2018 will see the band play a series of shows - check the band's social media for dates and follow Unkindness Of Ravens on Instagram, YouTube and Spotify.