dark ambient / drone / funeral doom / experimental
It is our honour to present KÖRKARLEN SUITE, a project of two experimental music composers and musicians: Kragrowargkomn and Jori Josiphson. This time, it’s in a shortened version. In January 2022, they created an alternative soundtrack to the more than a century-old Swedish silent film named Körkarlen (Phantom Carriage) from 1921. They premiered their soundtrack for this film at the festival SCANDI 2022 at Kino Film Europe in Bratislava.
The most famous element of Körkarlen movie is undoubtedly its depiction of the spirit world as a tormented void between Heaven and Earth. Director and screenwriter Victor Sjöström achieved this with double exposition... at the beginning of the last century. The viewer gradually, slowly uncovers the story of the drunkard and tyrant David, because the film's scenes do not follow in a chronological order. David's posthumous ortel and his conversation with Death are thus interspersed
with flashbacks and memories of his previous earthly life. The themes of alcoholism and domestic violence captured in this audiovisual work are still eerily relevant today...
Slow and rumbling crawling long drones form the basis of Kragrowargkomn's sound and musical aesthetic. It's achieved thanks to an under-tuned six-string bass guitar and an array of effects pedals
and tube machines, such as the legendary Sunn o))). Jori Josiphson combines acoustic instruments (such as Indian harmonium or Tibetan singing bowl) with electronics in his works. In doing so, this artist makes room for a symbiosis of electronic and acoustic sound to emerge. Jori Josiphson's research is based on the search for a certain balance, which allows him to delve into the depths of his own knowledge.
Both authors and performers of this „Körkarlen“ alternative soundtrack respected the progression of the audio-visual work. To enhance the horror atmosphere, they used a combination of the acoustic sound of the Indian harmonium and of the distorted sound of six-string electric bass guitar. This electroacoustic fusion is complemented by vocals, tibetan bowl and synthesizer. In an elegant way they combined drone music and dark ambient with funeral doom.
Music written and produced by
Kragrowargkomn and Juraj Polgary [Jori Josiphson]
Lyrics by Juraj Polgary [Jori Josiphson]
Kragrowargkomn― 6-string bass guitar― synthesizer
Jori Josiphson― indian harmonium― vocals― tibetan singing bowl― electromagnetic field recordings
Live Drums [tracks 12 and 15] by El Muflono
Recording, mixing and mastering by Kragrowargkomn― live recording at film festival SCANDI 2022― studio recording at Room 420, years 2022 - 2023
Visual and cover art by Staša Missanthropi Samouković
Released by SKY BURIAL as SKY065― in collaboration with Vakuum label
in MMXXIV
Supported using public funding by Slovak Arts Council.
ltd 76pcs
