Earthen Cloak

INFO

SHROUDED ELK's output feels almost like a parallel to their name - hidden from view and rarely making appearances. Over the past 5 years, only two short releases have been published from SHROUDED ELK, with silence filling the void between. We're honored to present the newest glimmer of sounds from them with Earthen Cloak, a (big surprise) ultra-short track that is as far from the familiar of SHROUDED ELK as possible. Instead of the blistering rhythms and distorted tones of past releases, Earthen Cloak is a slow-burning, ritualistic diatribe of clanging chimes, harmonium, and zither doused in reverb and set to a glacial pace. The track evokes the tranquility of nature yet remains tainted with an unsettling aura of impending doom, never quite reaching its destination but perhaps never intending to...?

The material has been lathe-cut in real time on vintage, monaural lathe cutters onto squares of polycarbonate, adding a lo-fidelity wash to enhance the aesthetic experience. The B-sides have been coated in moss that is simultaneously living and dead, dried to the touch and continuously leaving traces of itself in all places, including the grooves of the record and the environment it's exposed to. Like nature, it also has a strange and unfamiliar scent that fills the atmosphere, and whether it's SHROUDED ELK's way of punishing their human audience or merely a side-effect of its construction, it nevertheless adds to this release's intention.

Notice: Due to the hand-made nature of lathe cut records, the fidelity & consistency of each copy will vary slightly. An assortment of audio ailments such as dropouts, warble, pitch-bending, tracking errors, static, crackle, hiss & extreme frequency shifting are to be expected, and all flaws which may arise are entirely condoned as adding cohesion to the release concept.

PACKAGING

• 7" square polycarbonate lathe cut
• B-side coated in moss
• Clear labels with black ink
• Transparent PVC box
• White cardstock obi with black printing
• Serial number stamped in black ink

TRACKLISTING

A1 – 03:09 – Earthen Cloak