09/02/2024
XIPHOS - "THE RISE AND FALL OF ATHENS" # Martial-Industrial / Neoclassical / Neofolk / Marches / Military #
The complete, detailed biographical-discographical description of Xiphos and the band's personal interpretations of the contents of this present album, are available in the interview conducted by Max and published on 8 February 2024 on the following page of Vox Tenebris dark interviews:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61554867040860
Xiphos is the project founded in 2018 by three musicians from different European countries: the Italian Matteo Brusa ( all music / composition ) , the Englishman Troy Southgate ( vox / lyrics ) and the Dutchman Miklós Hoffer ( vox / lyrics ) ; in recent times, the musician of Greek origin Simon Shelmerdine ( all music / composition ) took over the line-up, replacing Matteo Brusa, who created the entire sound architecture of the debut album "The Rise and Fall of Athens". The three current band members also come from further, solid artistic backgrounds: Miklós Hoffer is part of two different Dutch projects, the Modern Classical / Electronics band HERR and the Experimental / Weird-Folk Alternative Pop / Ambient / Industrial duo called Donderdag . Troy Southgate boasts collaborations in a wide range of alternative designs: the English Dark Ambient band Elvatorium, the Swedish Power-Electronics / Industrial-Noise Survival Unit, the Polish Industrial / Neofolk / Ambient Horologium, the German Apocalyptic-Folk / Neoclassical Sagittarius, the Portuguese Psyc-Ambient Folk / Dark Ambient The Joy Of Nature and in two German projects, the multi-style Neofolk / Industrial / Ambient Von Thronstahl and the Modern Classical / Neofolk The Days Of The Trumpet Call, playing permanently in HERR and in the UK Modern Classical / Neofolk duo-act Seelenlicht. Simon Shelmerdine is instead a member of the Greek project Neoclassical / Martial /Ritual /Neofolk Dark Awake and of the 'New German Death Art' project Art called Schatten Muse.
Xiphos' music is characterized by the aesthetic rigor 'dark parade' oriented of Martial-Industrial, combined with a wide use of virtual emulations corresponding to the acoustic instruments from Neofolk culture; the result are sonorities permeated with ancient-filmic atmospheres, epic charm, glory and desolation, expressed through highly evocative keyboard orchestrations rich in neoclassicism, vocals alternately by Troy Southgate and Miklós Hoffer - a practice used by them also in the projects in which they participated together - sung with triumphal, nostalgic, contemplative pathos, or declaimed with spoken words full of melancholic pride and decadent romanticism, plus downtempo 'militaristic march' drumming and graceful strings-winds ornaments.
The vocals are distributed in the album's tracklist as follows:
- Troy Southgate > even numbered tracks.
- Miklós Hoffer > tracks with odd numbers.
All these sonic peculiarities that constitute the band's sound-system are poured into the debut album "The Rise And Fall Of Athens" and described in a technically impeccable way by the former member Matteo Brusa:
> "All instruments on the disk are virtual. The album was composed entirely on Propellerhead Reason 10, using basic soundbanks, rack extensions, additional refills and third-party VST instruments. Most of the timbres I used were obtained by modifying, combining or processing different virtual instruments ( for example, the pizzicato sound present in several songs is a modified version of a dulcimer sample; the percussions are different layered percussive samples; the sound in the intro of Themistocles it is a multi-processed English horn to simulate a duduk; elsewhere there are wooden flute samples filtered and combined to simulate an ancient Greek aulos ) .
I performed all the individual parts on a MIDI keyboard, deliberately without quantization for a more realistic effect, and taking into account the natural range and tuning of the instruments used or simulated.
In the composition I tried to maintain a martial and cinematic element, combining it with a melodic approach to writing and a "pop" song structure. The idea was to create music that combined the typical elements of the Martial-Industrial and Neofolk scene with the classic song format with melodic hooks, verses and choruses. Military Pop in the true sense, so to speak.
The songs were written to evoke the characteristics of the characters narrated; for example, the songs dedicated to Solon and Pericles are more reflective, atmospheric and airy, reflecting the protagonists' contribution to Hellenic culture, while those dedicated to Theseus and Cimon are adventurous and combative; Nicias is a limping piece like the uncertain resolve of its protagonist and Alcibiades is a "larger than life" piece like the character whose life it narrates.
After composing the music and the melodic lines, Troy and Miklós wrote and sang the lyrics.
As a matter of curiosity, the music on the album is not in standard tuning ( A at 440 Hz ) but in Verdi tuning ( A at 432 Hz ) , a characteristic that for several years has united all my compositions also for other projects".
"The Rise and Fall Of Athens" is the only work published by the group to date, although two tracks were released before the album's release in a sampler published by Antiq Records, the label that was originally supposed to produce it first that the project be taken over by Lichterklang". <
The concept album "The Rise And Fall Of Athens" - published by the band in 2022 in the first edition and subsequently in 2023 by the German label Lichterklang - consists of a succession of eleven songs thematically focused on the homonym book by the historian and philosopher Plutarch. The texts of the tracks tell in a biographical way the splendor and subsequent ruin of the Greek poleis, rereading them in an imaginative-narrative form through the chronicles of the historical protagonists of that Era: Solon, Themistocles, Aristides, Cimon, Pericles, Nicias and Alcibiades, from the dawn of the foundation of the city, until the destruction of its walls. Get ready for a unique, unrepeatable sonic experience, going back in time and with a formidable emotional impact. Plutarch, wherever he is now, smiles pleased.
Tracklist:
________
"Intro" > A low synth chord extends from the beginning to the end of the track, on which suggestive keyboard melodies and arpeggiated textures with crystalline tones flourish, in an atmospheric context of darkness and nostalgia.
"Theseus" > Harmonious rotations of plucked and strings blend with the dramatic symphonism of the keyboards and the severe downtempo martiality of the drumming, while the voice pronounces a slow chant which alternates hymn-like inflections and spoken words full of epicness and melancholy.
)))))..."Theseus, founding son of Athens,
Wandering seafarer and unifier of cities.
Eternal scourge of the Underworld,
Merciless destroyer of chthonic beasts.
Theseus! The Athenians roar!
Brave deeds in the days of yore!
Theseus! Slayer of the Minotaur!
God-man of the Sphairia shore!"...(((((
"Solon" > The introduction keyboard propagates a deep and choral pad which subsequently transforms into a long monochromatic and vaporous chord, on which melodically nostalgic vocals twirl, surrounded by an essential orchestration composed of low keyboard notes, luminescences of strings and suggestive aerophone melodies.
)))))....."Called upon by wise men, declared wisest of them all
And yet I never cease to learn as I grow old
And under the Attican skies, down by the deep blue sea
I witnessed the birth of a future - for you and for me
And under the Attican skies, down by the Aegean sea
I witnessed the birth of a future - for you and for me"...(((((((
"Themistocles" > The introductory segment propagates aerophonic notes that unfold suggestively in this song with twilight sounds, transporting the imagination far away through the cobalt blue of the Aegean and ancient, glorious Hellenic territories, while a downtempo drumming resonates far away, sublimated by a chant charged with infinite nostalgia and by grandiloquent keyboard symphonies.
)))))..."Thank the gods, Themistocles
For another, breath of life
You rise and fall like an empire
In struggle [up] and in strife
The dreams that crumble and fade, will always find a way
All visions are remade, and live for another day"...(((((
"Aristides" > The martial downtempo percussiveness cadences lines of beats that support with discipline an overall melancholic sound, created through sparkling string arpeggios and keyboard magnificence, all this adorned by the singer's exciting intonations, sung with ardent passion like a hymn to heroism and made even more intense in the interludes of spoken words.
)))))..."So, sing for Aristides
The just and honourable one
O, victorious at Plataea
A hero at Marathon
Sing for Aristides
The just and honourable one
O, victorious at Plataea
A hero at Marathon"...(((((
"Cimon" > Epic sonances flow from this song built through downtempo breaks of martial drumming that give the sound an aura of severity, voluminous orchestral keyboard chords, euphonious string arpeggios and wind sections, in a combination of chivalrous melodism and legendary atmospheres.
)))))..."Into the light, our sharpened blades are flashing
Under a hostile sun, on Persian skulls they're crashing
Into the darkness, slicing through blood and water
Tiremes are flowing east, on crested waves of slaughter
Into the light, the gods of war are calling
A vanquished foe, on broken limbs are crawling
Into the darkness, his warrior ethos rising
He bears a Spartan heart, no conquest too surprising".....(((((
"Pericles" > A low pad extends from the intro to the development, harmonizing with clear string touches, downtempo military percussiveness and a melodiously poignant, declamatory chant, which fills the sound with supreme, nostalgic grace, above which, towards the finale, statuary hovers keyboard arias.
)))))..."Behind the safety of the city walls
Outside, the fields are burning in this war
Once upon a longtime ago
In Greece
Glory to the fallen by a man
Unperturbed like Zeus there he stands
Praising the Athenian way of life
As an ideal"....(((((
"Nicias" > Artificial chorality and heavy downtempo martial beats open this track, based successively on fluted harmonies, austere keyboard symphonies and spoken words dictated with elegant narrative mode, all this in an engaging stream of sounds and voice that recalls grandeur and suggestion.
)))))..."Nicias first rose to prominence at a time of plague and pestilence,
when the city of Athens - citadel of philosophy and cradle of civilisation
- finally withdrew from the edge of the precipice
and began to bask in the wondrous splendour of Pericles
and his great rallying cry for Hellenic rebirth"...(((((
"Alcibiades" > The chant - sublimated by the backing vocals of Stefan Traunmüller, the engineer who mixed and mastered the album - is a fascinating elegy full of intonations tending towards nostalgia, while the instrumentality spreads noble keyboard orchestrations, accompanied by precious string embroideries and hypnotic downtempo military drumming.
)))))..."Fuelled by a raging fire
In everything that I desire
People just too blind to see
They're stronger with than without me
Fuelled by a raging fire
In everything that I desire
People just too blind to see
They're stronger with than without me"...(((((
"Lysander" > The severe gloom generated by the downtempo drumming, by the low chords of the initial keyboard section and by the strings, cloak vocals sung with saddened inflections but at the same time embellished with a regal magnificence, while further on the keyboard counterpoints rise which recall sensations of triumph and majesty.
)))))..."Lyyyyysander
The Hellespont awaits
Europe dips her toes
Outside the Persian gates
Lyyyyysander
No flag left unfurled
Let them know your name
Scourge of the ancient world
Lyyyyysander
The walls of Athens fall
Make the city yours
All in the Spartan cause
Lyyyyysander
Warrior of old
You serve your people well
And shower them with gold"...(((((
"Outro" > The short epilogue initially consists of an atmospheric narration of spoken words that extends over a monochromatic pad, over rarefied drum beats and over string punctuations, awaiting the progressive expansion of the downtempo martial percussiveness and the intensity of the keyboard that sumptuously finalize the song.
)))))..."Picture the city of Athens, home to many a hero,
surrounded by mountains and the sea.
Its port, the Piraeus, was a doorway to the Aegean.
Its people, the Athenians, relied on an inquisitive free spirit.
Not blessed with great riches from the soil,
they visited adjacent and faraway lands and shores
- quenching their thirst for knowledge and adventure.
And they had risen to dizzying heights.
And like Icarus, they had fallen.
Their imperial ambitions shattered,
they would never lay claim to such a vast territory again.
But their legacy would live on,
in the hearts and minds of countless generations to come,
all over the world.
The dreams that crumble and fade will always find a way"...(((((
Conclusions:
________________
Cultured, monumental album, a colossal in its specific music genre, which sensationally relaunches Martial-Industrial / Brass & Military style in a superlative conception : the sculptural features of this full-lenght take the listener back on a highly compelling sound journey, among remote splendors and the decline of a city-state of fundamental, immortal historical importance, transporting him into a timeless dimension through 'illustrative' sounds and lyrics sung with fascinating, figurative passion that will make him experience each episode of the title track as if he directly impersonated the narrated protagonists. Xiphos unsheath their superb art like a sword: the notes rise majestically, sometimes imperiously, illuminated by the commemoration of remote grandeur and at the same time darkened by the shadows of their fatal decadence. In each song we perceive 'romantically disciplined' and nostalgic sentiments, but also a proud spirit that looks and contemplates the Past, arousing immersive, emotional participation. "The Rise And Fall Of Athens" is prospectively perfect, fertile in content, determined in intents: it is together form, intelligence and matter of the new European Martial front. Release to absolutely have and to love with all the intensity of which your soul is capable. Forever.
