Bone Awl and Mortuary Drape LPs in Stock Now

Bone Awl “Bowing Heads” MLP
Iron Tyrant Italy release. Officially distributed in the USA by NWN.

Vinyl version of the cassette EP from 2010.

A dedication to work still remains, employed until skulls are pressed into the dirt. Bowing Heads is the first new release of Bone Awl in nearly 3 years. All of the pock-marks still there and some new scars, somehow still shaving off dead meat.

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Mortuary Drape “All the Witches Dance” LP
Iron Tyrant Italy release. Officially distributed in the USA by NWN.

(Review by J. Campbell) After the much needed and extremely well-presented reissues of “Into the Drape/Mourn Path” and “Secret Sudaria,” Iron Tyrant Records has now re-released the ever elusive debut LP by MORTUARY DRAPE, “All the Witches Dance.” In many ways, MORTUARY DRAPE are the quintessential Italian metal band. Drawing on the legacy of bands such as BLACK HOLE and DEATH SS, MORTUARY DRAPE relied heavily on the use of atmospheric horror in their sound. Where those bands were mostly theatrics, however, MORTUARY DRAPE demonstrated that there was a deeper core to their work. Listening to MORTUARY DRAPE one gets the sense that they were among the first Black Metal bands to truly create music that extends far beyond the sonic realm and into something more powerful. Indeed, even the cover of the “All the Witches Dance” album is rumored to be a real corpse that the band excavated for ritualistic (and photo opportunity) purposes. From the very beginning, MORTUARY DRAPE proved to be adept at crafting atmosphere without sounding monotonous or repetitious. Their songs exhibit a craftsmanship every bit as potent as the most sophisticated metal acts of that time. While many bands that followed over the next decades seemed content to rely solely upon image rather than skill, MORTUARY DRAPE delivered both. Like the “Into the Drape” MLP that preceded it, “All the Witches Dance” employs heavy use of organ passages and chanting to cast an opaque shroud of evil upon the album. While many bands that use these same ethereal elements merely sound trite and gimmicky, MORTUARY DRAPE implements them with fluidity and craft and avoids that pitfall. The songs on “All the Witches Dance” are predominantly rooted in a traditional approach to Black Metal and express less of a deviation from the foundations laid by Venom, Celtic Frost and Bathory as well as more traditional Heavy Metal styles than many other second wave practitioners of the Black Metal arts. Driving minor key riffs underscored by heavy bass and tactical percussion serve to firmly attach MORTUARY DRAPE’s sound to the roots of the genre. Cutting through the dense aural fog are searing yet melodic guitar leads that enrich the sound with an air of macabre tragedy. The vocals supplied by Wildness Perversion (the only constant member of the band through the years) add the final touch to the record. Wickedly majestic, the vocal intonations on this album command the listener through the obscure pathways of the consciousness of MORTUARY DRAPE. While every song on the album is, by itself, impressive, the true artistic value of “All the Witches Dance” is the manner in which the pieces work together to form a perfect synthesis of ideology, imagery, and sound with no element unduly overshadowing the others. Also, while the effect of many albums from that era has been dulled with time, “All the Witches Dance” still sounds as brilliantly malefic today as it did in 1995 and no band since them has attained a sound and image quite like them. This reissue was badly needed and Iron Tyrant, as usual, has delivered an exceptional edition of it.

Click here to order the beer colored vinyl LP.
Click here to order the bronze colored vinyl LP.
Click here to order the purple colored vinyl LP.