Celebrating the tenth anniversary of Fórn's debut album, The Departure of Consciousness, Persistent Vision Records announces its official reissue of the funeral sludge masterpiece.
Originally released in 2014 via Vendetta Recorda and Gilead Media, The Departure of Consciousness is an auspicious debut that documents this remarkable band in its earliest state.
Out June 14th, Persistent Vision's 12” vinyl release will include expanded artwork, by tattoo artist Bryan Proteau, and limited color variants.
Pre-order the LP, here:
https://deathwishinc.com/collections/persistent-vision
Stream the album, here:
https://forn.bandcamp.com/album/the-departure-of-consciousness
In the band's own words, Fórn was formed in 2012 in "a particularly dismal and harsh winter in Boston, Massachusetts" and found its initial inspiration in the sounds of Grief, Burning Witch, and Asunder. With instruments tracked by Alec Rodriguez at New Alliance, vocals tracked by Greg Wilkinson at Earhammer, and mastering handled by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, debut album The Departure of Consciousness captures the raw greatness of those early days. A mix of cavernous atmosphere and gargantuan riffs, the six-track full-length plumbs the lowest depths of human misery, yet buzzes with a relentless energy that keeps the momentum flowing ever forward and holds the listener's attention with a suffocating grip.
In the band's own words, Fórn was formed in 2012 in "a particularly dismal and harsh winter in Boston, Massachusetts" and found its initial inspiration in the sounds of Grief, Burning Witch, and Asunder. With instruments tracked by Alec Rodriguez at New Alliance, vocals tracked by Greg Wilkinson at Earhammer, and mastering handled by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, debut album The Departure of Consciousness captures the raw greatness of those early days. A mix of cavernous atmosphere and gargantuan riffs, the six-track full-length plumbs the lowest depths of human misery, yet buzzes with a relentless energy that keeps the momentum flowing ever forward and holds the listener's attention with a suffocating grip.
Kim Kelly, writing for SPIN in 2015, reported: "Rarely does a debut album spring forth from the womb so fully-formed and vital as Fórn’s The Departure of Consciousness... The album’s six, tense, foreboding compositions take their cues from Thou’s poisonous sludge and funeral doom’s lightless melancholia in equal measure, and come punctuated by sparse, blood-curdling howls. Elephantine riffs like the backbone of 'Gates of the Astral Plane' feel positively cosmic in scope when subjected to this level of desperate, dire intensity. This album drags listeners into the utter depths of despair then leaves them there, alone, as the last light winks out."
Reflecting on the TDOC era, vocalist Chris Pinto states: "Our first show ever was with the mighty Floor. It was also Joey’s first show playing guitar in a band. What I remember most is that we had way, way, way too many amps, but that was kind of the point. From there, things came very quickly. I remember getting to play with Thou, Windhand, Noothgrush, Brainoil, Bell Witch and The Body around when TDOC came out and those were all highlights."
The band also famously played in a cave (located in the ruins of the historic Sutro Baths in San Francisco) in 2014, the week of the album's original release.
Pinto reveals this about the concepts at play behind the album: "The title was inspired by some pseudo research paper I came across when I was studying cognitive psychology in college. A lot of concepts for Fórn songs relate to psychology and occult philosophy. A reoccurring theme on TDOC is facing your shadow self and the negative feelings and experiences that surround that, and how it’s even worse if you don’t confront your shadow self."
In the years since TDOC, Fórn has released two more albums and a split with Yautja, and has established itself as a stalwart of the scene. With members spread now between Boston, LA, Portland and Berlin, the band confirms that a new album is in the works, to be released on Persistent Vision Records later in the year. Guitarist Joey Gonzalez gives the following statement on the upcoming new album: "It's very much a test to see what I could do with this band and how I could push our art into uncharted territories, while still feeling like we’ve maintained the identity of the band. We’re very excited to share new music with the world. In many ways it feels like a homecoming, though certain aspects of the new record are definitely going to feel otherworldly compared to our past releases."
In the meantime, the band will play select dates across the US and Canada, including stops at festivals such as Toronto's Prepare the Ground Festival (with Orchid, Liturgy, Body Void) and Cascadian Midsummer Festival (with Wolves in The Throne Room, Steve Von Till, Earth).
Tracklist:
1) Emergence
2) Dweller on the Threshold
3) Gates of the Astral Plane
4) Alexithymia
5) Suffering in the Eternal Void
6) Cerebral Intermission
Tour:
May 29 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
May 30 - Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus
Jun 1 - Toronto, ON @ Prepare The Ground Festival
Jun 2 - Montreal, QC @ Casa Del Popolo
Jun 20 - Los Angeles, CA @ Knucklehead
Jun 21 - Bakersfield, CA @ Death Over Bakersfield
Jun 23 - Pe Ell, WA @ Cascadian Midsummer Festival
The Departure of Consciousness lineup:
Chris Pinto - vocals
Joey Gonzalez - guitar
Brandon Terzakis - guitars
Brian Barbaruolo - bass
Chris Donaldson - drums
2024 live lineup:
Chris Pinto - vocals
Joey Gonzalez - guitar, electronics
Joey Gonzalez - guitar, electronics
Danny Boyd - guitar
Brian Barbaruolo - bass
Lane Shi - vocals, synth
Andrew Nault - drums, electronics
Promo photo by Reid Haithcock
Live photo by Brian Pelletier
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