»IV« by New York City’s cinematic doom metal project Witnesses available now on vinyl

New York City’s cinematic doom metal project Witnesses led by multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Greg Schwan is releasing their album »IV« on vinyl today, March 18th, 2022.

The album was originally released on February 5th, 2021 in digital format.

Courtesy of C Squared Music:

NYC’s Witnesses have teamed up with Sleeping Village Reviews to stream the entirety of »IV«. The album is set to be released on vinyl this Friday.

Mainman Greg comments: “Releasing »IV« on vinyl is a milestone for Witnesses and something of a dream come true. It was hard to select an album for this treatment, but the overall mood and dynamics of »IV« were the right choice. The mastering by Joe Lambert brings out the depth and range in a way that only vinyl can create.”

Order »IV« here: witnesses-nyc.bandcamp.com/album/iv

Witnesses came into being in 2015 through a desire from founder Greg to delve into something with a multi-genre approach through a non-traditional band structure. The accompanying visual artwork sees the project deliver a multisensory experience. An otherworldly atmosphere emerges from the bows of lush strings in »IV«. Ethereal pads, sparse guitar arrangements, and the orchestration combine beautifully to produce a vast and, in places eerie, sound. The opening prelude “the first snow” offers a tantalising taste through a sparse soundscape which flows and grows as the album progresses to the haunting conclusion “the healthy and optimistic among us will doom…”. Witnesses elevate their music by introducing the soulful texture of saxophone melodies and occasional vocal passages containing Danish lyrics. The unexpected materialisation and evanescent nature of these elements makes the album all the more intriguing.

»IV« ventures through a boundless space of escapism. Each track brings a new twist or turn in the musical progression, enticing further into the sense of vastness. Witnesses conjure spectacular moods through the composition depicting emotions and ideas with an impressionistic edge.

Witnesses is:
Greg: NYC

Guest/session musicians:
Matt Kozar: Maryland
Gabbi Coenen: LA
MALMØ: Denmark
Jørgen Munkeby: Norway

Mastered by Joe Lambert
Photography and design of the vinyl release by Andreas Levers

Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well