March 1, 2024 will see Australian dark folk/blackgaze project SULDUSK herald the new year with the release of their much-awaited sophomore studio offering, entitled Anthesis, via Napalm Records. Following the release of the Melbourne-based act’s first single and album title track, today, SULDUSK are premiering a music video for their gripping new single, “Crystalline”!
Band mastermind Emily Highfield reveals:
“Crystalline is a sequel track to ‘Nazare’, which is on Lunar Falls, the first SULDUSK album.
Nature – its beauty and brutality – is definitely a powerful muse for SULDUSK‘s music, and both these tracks are an homage to the power and the solace of the Ocean.
Coming from Australia, which is an isolated island, nature here is abundant and always a source of inspiration.”
Coming from Australia, which is an isolated island, nature here is abundant and always a source of inspiration.”
Following their much acclaimed 2019 debut album, Lunar Falls – an album that stunned listeners and international press alike, Anthesis continues where SULDUSK left off with their transfixing first full-length, yet proves musically more complex. The album will take you into a gloomy, magical world where the up-and coming act combines a high variety of dark and extreme sounds within its very own sonic universe.
While SULDUSK started as a one-woman project founded by the highly talented Emily Highfield, for the upcoming album,she recruited incredibly talented musicians to help elevate the vision of their acoustic-based music to the level of an intense, powerful and heavy record. On Anthesis, SULDUSK shines with dark folk, blackgaze, post-rock, prog, doom and even black metal elements – flowing together to create one very unique synthesis of sound. Emily’s voice is a strong highlight, impressing with softness and fragility at times, and turning over to demonic screams in the very next moment! For the first time in SULDUSK’s young history, there are also male vocal harmonies contributed by Shane Mulholland.
Anthesis was produced and mixed by Troy Mccosker, and was mastered by Thomas “Plec” Johansson (Soilwork, Opeth, Katatonia). The album also features guest appearances of Raphael Weinroth-Browne (Leprous) and Rachelle Harvey on cello. With their second album, SULDUSK are more than ready to embark on another journey into the depths of primeval forests, where emotions are hidden under the thickets to reveal what’s not meant to be seen. The album is a stunning and enthralling masterpiece – highly recommended for fans of Myrkur, Oathbreaker and Chelsea Wolfe – and one that unconditionally needs to be seen, felt and heard!
