Woods Of Ypres: Woods 5: Grey Skies And Electric Light – new album

‘Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light’, the final album recorded by WOODS OF YPRESS before the tragic death of the band's founder David Gold in December last year, is out now in Europe (February 27th, 2012). The album was recorded at Beach Road Studios in Ontario, Canada with producer Siegfried Meier and was mixed by UK producer John Fryer. ‘Woods 5’ comes available as CD, as well as limited edition coloured vinyl LP with an extra 7” featuring a bonus mix as a B-side. European fans can buy the album here (Earache Europe), and North American supporters can pre-order it here (Earache U.S.). ‘Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light’ is due to be released in North America on April 24th, 2012. Listen to two promotional tracks from the album, ‘Career Suicide (Is Not Real Suicide)’ and ‘Kiss My Ashes (Goodbye)’, below where you’ll find WOODS OF YPRESS' video directed by David Hall of Handshake Inc for their most beautiful though sad tune ‘I Was Buried In Mount Pleasant Cemetery’ taken from ‘Woods 4: The Green Album’, released in 2009 on Practical Art Records and reissued by Earache Records in March 2011.

“Though once a black metal unit, WOODS has slowly moved into a more doom-centric space and ‘Woods 5’ is morose doom rock with only faint black metal inflections remaining. The sound is much closer to that of SENTENCED, CEMETARY, CHARON and TYPE O NEGATIVE and seems like a logical progression from 2009′s ‘Woods 4’. The songs are mostly downcast, depressing examinations of emotional isolation, personal loss and coming to terms with death. Many of them are painstakingly poignant and raw, even heartbreaking. The realization that this is the last we’ll hear from WOODS OF YPRESS as we know them, and that the fate of the band is in limbo without Gold, is unpleasant to be sure. Thankfully, this is an outstanding release and a fitting  close to a chapter, come what may,” [wrote Steel Druhm, Angry Metal Guy – read the rest here]

WOODS OF YPRES was formed in 2002 in Toronto, Canada, by vocalist and guitarist David Gold, bassist and vocalist Aaron Palmer and guitarist and vocalist Brian McManus. The only album featuring Brian McManus and Aaron Palmer was their debut full-length, ‘Against The Seasons: Cold Winter Songs From The Dead Summer Heat’, released in 2002 on Gold's own label Krankenhaus Records as would be its followers 2004's ‘Pursuit Of The Sun & Allure Of The Earth’ and 2007's ‘Woods III: Deepest Roots & Darkest Blues’. Gold, drummer Evan Madden, bassist Shane Madden and lead guitarist Joel Violette released ‘Woods 4: The Green Album’ in 2009:

“Over 16 tracks and nearly 80 minutes of music and story, ‘Woods 4: The Green Album’ covers almost more emotional and temporal ground than reasonably fits into a single album,” [wrote Laura Taylor for Exclaim!] “If there’s polish, it’s not in the harsh tones or production but in the songwriting and performance, especially the vocals - from the wealth of clean melodies to contrasting visceral growls. The shifts shape and support ‘The Green Album’s emotional atmosphere: dark, depressing and honest, but not completely willing to take itself seriously. This mix of honesty and irony, climaxing in the epic ‘I Was Buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery’, is the album's strongest appeal, a compelling record of where the band have been and a marker of where they might go next.” [Read more here]