DMP Vault – Part VI, "Drei Rituale…"

URFAUST, the name alone creates a hair-raising sensation among all acquainted with the project. Few have mastered such a distinct aura as the Dutch ritualistic and psychedelic Black Metal band - shrouded in enigma from inception, their relevance remains uninterrupted.

DMP had the pleasure of collaborating with the inimitable duo back in 2008; a busy year that we have already visited within the Vault, namely for CELESTIAL BLOODSHED's "Cursed, Scarred and Forever Possessed" piece (read here).

Following a couple of lauded full lengths and splits, the aptly titled "Drei Rituale jenseits des Kosmos" ('Three Rituals Beyond the Cosmos') is the band's first EP and was issued on CD and vinyl.

The record's 20-minute runtime is divided into 3 untitled parts yet offers an incessantly ominous sonic affair, bridging the gap between the astral and the insane. The opening track unveils vocalist/guitarist/synth-player IX already at the end of his chain, unleashing nihilistic groans and psychopathic screams while the instruments amplify his anguish. The deluge of distorted analogue synth is cut by drumbeats of warped and hypnotic simplicity courtesy of VRDRBR. Together they build the song structure into an abysmal vessel of dreary depravity and soul-crushing density.

The intros of each track are incredibly atmospheric and peculiar, offering moments of deceptive quietude before the inevitable headfirst descent into madness. This is most prevalent during the second track where this approach completely wreaks havoc via incoming torrents of feedback. It is music from disordered minds for a disordered mind. And we are all mad here. The EP concludes with the shortest track: expanding upon the groundwork set by the previous pieces, it conjoins the inimitable clean vocals of IX with kosmische synth to blend grueling songwriting and transfixing melody. In retrospect, it feels like VRDRBR and IX spent time at a psych ward observing the patients to channel a range of unsoundness. The aspect of authenticity is what makes this music stand out.

"Drei Rituale jenseits des Kosmos" may be short in duration but not in effect - its sway extends upon the audience in abnormal proportions. A transitional point between the band's earlier sublimated Black Metal and their latter-day epic, contemplative psychedelia, this is a piece of music that truly haunts and challenges the listener.

A portrayal of derangement in sonic form, "Drei Rituale jenseits des Kosmos" reminds us just how once-in-a-lifetime URFAUST is. Do yourselves a favour and revisit this gem, which is easily accessible thanks to Ván records having kept the EP in print.

We got in contact with VRDRBR to reminisce about URFAUST's 2008 EP and question how they now, in 2023, interpret the record's significance in their discography:

Q: "Drei Rituale jenseits des Kosmos" was released in 2008, nearly 15 years ago. If you think back to those days of URFAUST, how do you remember the composition and release of these three pieces?

Back in those days, life was "a party". IX used to live on a small farm in the middle of nowhere, no real neighbours, and we used to meet up very regular: 1 or 2 weekends a month. We used to drink, watch terrible old cult Japanese Horror/Kung Fu crossover movies and blast MANOWAR until deep in the night. When the "spirits" where right, we just stepped into the rehearsal room he had on the farm and created music! Since both IX and I have a very wide variety of musical interests and loved the weird sounds/soundtracks of those old Japanese cult films, I think one night we took the inspiration to trade in the guitars for old vintage analogue synths and just tried it. The results, to our ears, sounded like nothing we had heard before. And it was something we were able to record with Herr Deportator who had his recording equipment with him, as he used to come along for these weekend trips on a regular basis. This was excellent, since he was also in an experimental phase in his ways of recording at that time, so we were all fueling each other's creative fires so to speak.

Q: Could you contextualize for us what "Drei Rituale jenseits des Kosmos" means for you in the URFAUST discography? Was it a form of experiment to "find your sound"?

I think this was the "real" start for us to experiment more and more with our sound and to go in different directions – incorporating more of the less conventional sounds into our music. For us at the time it was very important to do something new on each record, since we didn't want to sound like any other band, maybe not even like ourselves. What would be the point of making the same sounding record over and over? Sure, there will always be the same elements to our music, but a natural evolution was and is important! I think that every URFAUST album has got its "own" sound but is still easily recognizable as URFAUST. But what do I know, I might not be the one to be the judge of that, haha!

Q: Quite a few fans and reviewers consider these pieces as a transition point between your earlier Black Metal and later psychedelic experiments. Would you agree?

Yes, I agree. This was a live recording session only using synths, drums and vocals, everything recorded in one take as we wanted to experiment and see how the ideas would sound. We wanted to take our ideas and sound to a next level, and so this opened the door for more experimental music…

Q: "Drei Rituale jenseits des Kosmos" contains three untitled compositions which drop no hints of any lyrical/conceptual inspirations. Is there a specific symbolic meaning behind this decision?

No, there is no specific symbolic meaning behind it since it was a spontaneous session for us after a night of heavy drinking with Deportator. We didn't give it much thought and just wanted to "record the ideas" which we did live in one take. Deportator mixed it, sent it to us and said: "This is great!" - so we decided to release it upon the world. But regarding the title of this release, I vaguely remember that we ourselves said something like: "Wow, this is some music that pierces straight through the cosmos", hence the name!