Carach Angren’s Ardek unveils track-by-track of new EP

Dutch horror metal masters Carach Angren are back with more symphonic nightmares to share in their new EP, The Cult of Kariba, out Friday (17th) via Season of Mist. Just in time for the Halloween season, the haunting new EP expands on the legends first explored in their 2008 debut, Lammendam. Drawing inspiration from the myth of the White Lady of Schinveld, the band introduces a sinister new figure, Kariba, a poisoner and sorceress resurrected by an underground cult. Ahead of its release, Metal Insider caught up with Ardek, the band’s keyboardist, backing vocalist, and arranger of the orchestration, who has shared a track-by-track breakdown of The Cult of Kariba, just in time as the band shared an early stream of the EP.

A Malevolent Force Stirs

From the start I wanted this orchestral introduction to sound oppressive. I went for a smaller orchestral setting as a homage to older horror film scores. The narrator introduces the listener to the subject at hand, namely the existence of a secret cult in a small town. A man is seen roaming the streets carrying a lantern. This is the sign for the cult members to gather.

This idea originally came to me a couple of years ago. I was watching the street from my window and saw a man walking strangely carrying a big stick. I found it strange but thought he must have some mental problems, particularly because he also walked in an unusual hunched-over way. Over the following weeks I saw him again and again carrying the same stick. I then thought “what if this is the sign for a secret cult to gather?”. That thought felt haunting and I decided to include it in this track. I only changed the stick into a lantern.
In the arrangement I decided to put a bass flute, which adds an otherworldly haunting color to the piece.

Draw Blood

The opening track seemingly blends into this one. Instead of going right into the metal part I always like to extend the tension a bit more, especially here. The listener is confronted with very intrusive sounds like demonic chanting of the cult members. I recorded most of those voices myself and adjusted them accordingly. If you listen closely you can also hear the addition of a didgeridoo. I wanted to aim for this really dark setting with hints of a cult without going overboard. I felt that certain elements (like the didgeridoo) would add that little extra to it to give it something very unsettling. You can also hear the laments of the witch in the background trying to come through from the other world so to speak.
The big hits emphasize that this is all very wrong and will soon get worse which happens when the track final breaks free.

The fast double bass part brings the almost groovie heavy guitars to the front with the ominous orchestral scenery carrying it from the back. I felt we could even built it up more so pretty soon it develops in the fast blast-beat part, this is also when the vocals kick in. Melodic and chord-wise, it is all crafted to be haunting and story-telling from this point on. Lyrically I went for a very literal narrative from the victim’s perspective. Someone is being dragged through the woods and doesn’t understand what is happening. Soon the listener learns that this person is being sacrificed by the cult.
There is an interlude towards the end where the victim is dying but from their perspective it almost feels otherworldly and unreal: “All I can feel, is like drowning, life itself fading from me”.

We often change perspectives during our songs. I think it adds various layers to the story-telling.

The Resurrection of Kariba

During this one the listener still follows the narrative of the Cult. They are fleeing back to the village into a secret crypt. Performing more rituals, we now introduce some historical background of Kariba the witch. We learn what has happened to her and try to understand why she has become so vengeful.

Musically I think both a ferociousness and emotion are represented. I remember coming up with the main piano part which serves as the cradle for the whole song. It often moves away from it with haunting spiccato celli and more but it always comes back to this part in the form of a chorus. Towards the end I made an adaptation of the chorus part, it changes and becomes more dramatic as it culminates into the outro. Here, the listener first hears that this story is actually connected to our first album: Shadows over Lammendam…
The cult has been trying to resurrect the spirit of Kariba, but something much more devious escaped through the portal of the dead…

Ik Kom Uit Het Graf

This is the very first song that we have ever done in Dutch. The story behind this track is that I composed it fairly quickly. One night I woke up and had the basic bass melody in my mind. I felt that I really had to get down into my studio and record it immediately, and so I did. Over the next few days I built the whole song around it and send it over to Seregor. He was immediately excited and came up with the idea for Dutch lyrics.

A little later he sent me his ideas and we both were shocked. It sounded terrifying to hear such lyrics in our own mother tongue. We discussed it heavily but I felt very strongly that this is how the song should be.

A crazy train of events followed as Seregor is singing about this protagonist coming back from the grave to take revenge after Kariba poisoned him and buried him half-alive.
Some months later Seregor suffered from a heart-attack and essentially came back from the grave himself. We discussed the craziness of this all and couldn’t believe it.
So this song is therefore extremely personal and dark…

Musically the song represents lots of new elements as well. From electronic sounds to completely new sounds that I have built from the ground up. One key spooky sound I actually recorded by vocalizing sad sounds into the microphone and heavily adjusting them by putting through synthesizers and various effects. I really like working like this and I think it gives music authenticity.

So the protagonist in this track is like the uninvited guest that ruins the whole original story-line. Musically this happens too in a way because up until this track there haven’t really been industrial elements.

We like that kind of story telling where there are things happening on the meta-level so to speak.

Venomous 1666

During this song the listener learns that the cult eventually succeeded at bringing back Kariba. She is angry, ready for revenge and drags everyone and everything back into her grave. Hallway throughout the song the lyrics change from Dutch into English. Translated: “Anything with a heart beat will perish into my grave.”

Musically the song almost has a heroic touch here and there. This complements the idea of the witch finally being able to resurrect and the short-lived celebration of the cult members being able to do this. Of course the whole Cult as well as the entire town get wiped out.
The ending is almost open, like maybe there can be more to come…