Pretty Haunted Things

Unto Ashes conjures a stirring and captivating album, simultaneously beautiful and unsettling. Pretty haunted things - their eleventh Projekt release in a career stretching two decades - effortlessly spans the ages from a dark and medieval flair to modern apocalyptic gothic-folk. Recorded almost entirely in an octagonal Victorian parlor room, bewitched by centuries-old traditions, the songs of reflective solemnity are swathed in dramatic, soaring choruses executed by Ericah Hagle, Michael Laird, and Bret Helm (of Audra). The music harkens back to their groundbreaking debut, Moon Oppose Moon (PRO106 - 1999): Unto Ashes has wrought music with an unusually broad array of diverse instruments, including hammered dulcimer, harmonium, autoharp, psaltery, viola da gamba, acoustic guitar, piano, and Arabic percussion. The songs are masterfully crafted by Laird, whose enchanting production is characterized by a gossamer of sonic treatments. The eerie, olden-skills Poppet dolls that adorn the covers seem to beckon the listener with binding spell of ensorcellment. Unto Ashes pay homage to one of their early heroes, Gary Numan, with a breathtaking cover version of My Dying Machine performed exclusively on Arabic and Oriental instruments. Limited edition of 500. Pretty haunted things might just be one of their finest conjurations to date.