Amber Asylum is a highly-variable San Francisco-based music group that is the brain child of composer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist Kris Force. Current collaborators include Leila Abdul-Rauf(Saros), Chiyo Nukaga(Graves at Sea/Noothgrush), Jackie Perez-Gratz(Grayceon/Giant Squid), Sigrid Sheie(Hammers of Misfortune) and Eric Wood(Bastard Noise/Man is the Bastard). Past contributors and collaborators have included; Liz Albee, John Benson(A Minor Forest), John Cobbet (Hammers of Misfortune/Ludicra), Wendy Farina(Tits/Towel), Kat Gratz, Rosalind Gratz, Tim Green(The Fucking Champs), John Oberon Gustetich, Annabel Lee (Blood Axis), Eric Peterson(Lost Goat/Night After Night), Tim North (R.I.P.), Sarah Shaffer (Weakling), Erica Stoltz (Lost Goat/Dirty Power), Lorraine Rath (The Gault), Mike Richard, Jayne Roderick, Steve Von Till (Neurosis) and Martha Burns Wojno.
Influences
Arvo Part, Coil, Legendary Pink Dots, Throbbing Gristle, Hildegard De Bingem, Johnny Cash, This Mortal Coil, Delibes, Berio, Alfred Schnittke, David Bowie, Erik Satie, Angelo Baldementi, Gorecki, Bernard Herman, Belios, Dr Dre, Judast Priest, Luc Ferrari, Hindemith, Ennio Moricone, Chopin
Sounds Like
Amber Asylum's music is generally within the neoclassical or Dark Ambient genres, and it tends towards the romantic, introspective, and brooding. Violin and cello are the dominant instruments.
Amber Asylum might sound like the polar opposite of Asunder's crushing doom and Wold's terrifying prairie black metal, but the San Francisco foursome are just as capable of establishing dark moods to rival their Profound Lore labelmates. Firmly rooted in the sedate yet experimental terrain of avant-garde chamber music and post rock, the overall effect of their distinct brand of doom and gloom is far more subversive: What starts out as breathtakingly lovely leaves us emotionally shattered an hour later.
HERE IS ONE OF THE FIRST REVIEWS OF BITTER RIVER FROM ABSOLUTE ZERO MAGAZINE:
The moment Amber Asylum starts you know who it is as there are 3 brilliant elements that they have made their own. Kris Force Chanting/ Haunting vocals. The Neoclassical strings arrangements and the the wonderful warm acoustics of the guitar and bass. I know this is an odd critic but Amber Asylum as always reminded me of Neurosis if they when fully acoustic and after I heard Steve von till solo I know I was correct. Amber Asylum have a passion to what they play that most lose in translation over the yrs and time the record new material. Bitter River is just the opposite as with time Amber Asylum become more expressive and rely less on bombastic and more on the delicate tones of each piece and layer of the complete picture. There is not a band on this earth that can put so much beauty in the sounds of sorrow and loss. Someday Amber Asylum main composer Kris Force will be the next Danny Elfman as soundtracks are just the next step of the journey as her studio/ engineering work is world renown now as well. Leila Abdul Rauf of Saros fame the band I just reviewed before is also in Amber Asylum and plays a major role in songwriting on Bitter River as well so props must be given. I still really want to know why Relapse or Neurot didn't push this project to higher levels as Amber Asylum in the new classical or darker adult contemporary scene can and will be the sounds of legends. Profound Lore with there 2nd Amber Asylum release are poised to make them bigger then even Kris and Co can see. Bitter River is there best work to date.
BITTER RIVER Profound Lore 2009 - Beautiful double gatefold digi pack with bequiling illlustrations by David V. D'andrea. Available for purchase securely through the AmberAsylum web site: at www.amberasylum.com - Digital coming soon
STILL POINT Profound Lore 2007. Available for purchase securely through the AmberAsylum web site: at www.amberasylum.com - Digital version available through itunes Worldwide
Jeff from AoF here - just dropping by to listen to your tunes, and see
what's up! Congrats on your recent successes - we hope to catch up with
you on the road some day.
Hello Amber Asylum! Interesting music here as usual! Keep it up! Preview for all tracks of my debut album Symbiosis of Contradictions are now available on my myspace page through zimbalam player. Mp3 release is now available in all the major stores worldwide. Greetings from the rainy Moscow/Russia /Ivan
Like infinitesimal grains of sand we go on Continue our trip into space who knows since when and until when In the immediate probability of our contact with the unexpected
Hails and thanks so much for the add! Fantastic vocal work :)
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Each issue
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compilation CD. As an added bonus issue 4 has an MP3 CD that contains 49 FREE songs!!!
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It was an unforgettable show with you all the other night, hope New York went well, looking into the future and seeing us all together again someday...big smiles!
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