Artist description ...

Music Style Gothic/Folk

Musical Influences many

Similar Artists Death In June, Coil, Sol Invictus, Sisters of mercy, Current 93, etc.

Artist History This project awoke in Seattle as Dark Solace in November of 1995. It was a project conceived to provide an outlet for some thoroughly racked emotions and a much needed departure from previous writing styles. In March of 1997, a brief move was made to Alaska where a large volume of music was written and much of it recorded. During that time, a cassette tape entitled "Dark Solace: The Onset Of Night" (limited to 50 copies) was released. A little over a year passed and a sense of stability had returned on many fronts. The project was then renamed "The Arid Sea" and moved back to Seattle. With a new vision of self and purpose, new alliances were made and another series of recordings were undertaken. But as had always been the case in the past, people drifted and the project was left to a single person. The Arid Sea laid dormant for quite awhile after that, until a friend named Brian Hodges (check out The Blue Hour on Mp3.com), encouraged and helped with a few live performances. And after putting together his mp3.com site, he encouraged the assembly of this one. So now, when some extremely busy schedules allow, the recording of 10 or more new songs will slowly be put together for a formal release. Some demo versions will appear on this mp3.com site, and hopefully, before the end of 2002, the new CD will be available.

Group Members Isaac Aubrey - Demian Johnston - Chris Johansen - Scott Storm - Tion - Brian Hodges - Jyri Glynn

Instruments Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Keys, Flute, Drum machine, etc...

Albums A cassette tape was released in 1997 as Dark Solace : The Onset Of Night, limited to 50 copies. I've also released a CD entitled The Arid Sea : In Dark Solace, that i've been producing by hand to the figure of 200 copies. But intend to release the same material through MP3.com.

Press Reviews Some incredibly kind words from Matthew at www.starvox.net: There isn't much of an alternative in the 'Goth' scene anymore. You pretty much have every band following an electro path, moving further and further away from a 'rock' based structure. That is certainly not the case here with Seattle's The Arid Sea, who describe their sound as "memories of being trapped underwater." This is about as genuine a Goth Rock band as they come. There aren't any dance floor fillers. Instead, there are ten well thought out, well arranged, and thought provoking songs. Moody and dreary in their atmospheres, sometimes a slow Cure-esque feel animates the songs, such as "From The Hiding" while a dark almost apocalyptic folk style carries "Through Lion's Eyes." The combination of acoustics and flute had me thinking of Sol Invictus. "Dawn & Sorrow" and "At The Foot Of A Grave" stand as my two favourite tracks. The guitar reminds me slightly of And Also The Trees, who stand out in my mind as the ultimate and most important underrated Gothic rock band...ever. "Fade Away" is another really cool track, which pairs the buoyant acoustics with a subtle guitar crunch, atop a slight waltzy rhythm. Every track features smooth and deep male vocals, with just enough reverb and delay to produce a ghostly effect. His voice reminds me somewhat of Christopher Grey of Gossamer, if that can give you any idea what to expect. He is a great and confident singer, with an exceptional amount of feeling in his voice. The closing track is a thoroughly disturbing ambient track. Indeed, a very eerie and strange song, with distant moans, backward tape loops, tribal drumming, Lovecraftian flutes and all sorts of odd effects. I was never one for ambient music because it makes me restless and bored. But this seemed to have one of the more important elements missing from nearly every ambient band I have ever heard...emotion. I got chills from this one and actually just sat and stared blankly, letting the song sink in for its eight-minute duration. I couldn't have done otherwise if I wanted to I don't think. But besides the grand and severely enthralling exit, The Arid Sea have nine works of traditional gloomy Gothic ambience that reminded me of the early to mid nineties, back when it seemed that every major city had at least two or three good local Goth rock bands, and these bands all had timeless demo tapes. This has that same special and intimate quality. A warm production and overall depressive beauty that just doesn't seem to be a priority any more in most bands that claim to belong in this genre. This is a gorgeous collection of reflective and brooding songs. Check them out at Mp3.com, as the entire album of "In Dark Solace" is available for streaming and download. Then take it from there...

Location Seattle, Wa - USA

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