My Dying Bride are heading into a brand new chapter in 2025, one marked by each uncertainty and sudden renewal. In a latest look on the Everblack podcast, guitarist Andrew Craighan confirmed that the band might be joined onstage subsequent yr by Mikko Kotamäki of Swallow the Solar, stepping in on vocals following an obvious dispute with longtime frontman Aaron Stainthorpe.
The selection, Craighan defined, was surprisingly easy. “Principally, it was pretty straightforward. All we did is ask — through Fb, of all issues,” he stated. “We simply advised him that we want a vocalist for these upcoming exhibits. We did not give him any ins and outs of what was happening. [We just asked], ‘Are you out there?’ And he simply stated, ‘Yeah, I am in. I am going to do it. No matter you need, I am going to do it.'”
Kotamäki‘s transition into the position proved seamless, in accordance with Craighan. After flying to England for rehearsals, the Finnish vocalist already knew the fabric, respiratory his personal character into the songs whereas sustaining their essence.
“He does not sing fairly like Aaron does or would, however what he is carried out is completed absolute honesty to the albums, however together with his nuances… not shedding something,” Craighan famous. For a band whose identification has lengthy been entwined with Stainthorpe‘s mournful supply, Kotamäki‘s skill to honor the legacy whereas introducing his personal delicate textures might open an intriguing dimension for the upcoming stay performances.
Trying past the lineup shift, Craighan additionally teased the way forward for My Dying Bride by way of new music. Their most up-to-date document, A Mortal Binding, arrived in April 2024 through Nuclear Blast, however the guitarist made clear that writing by no means stops.
“We had been in somewhat mini studio not too long ago in Huddersfield… simply toying with concepts of the place we wanna go subsequent. I imply, it will nonetheless be us, after all; we’re not gonna be breaking out into any unusual hip-hop or something like that.” That stated, the brand new materials could revisit the rawer, extra aggressive facet of their early work, with Craighan hinting on the return of loss of life steel components from their debut and even one other sprawling epic within the vein of “The Barghest O’ Whitby”.
“We’re considering of possibly even going again to… bringing again among the early loss of life steel stuff off the primary album. Possibly do one other ‘Barghest’ the place we intentionally write a tune so you possibly can’t have a B-side as a result of it is half-hour lengthy.”
Although nothing is completed, Craighan admitted he has “loads of concepts,” together with riffs that did not make the lower for A Mortal Binding. For now, the seeds are simply being planted, however the willingness to experiment with longer types and harsher textures suggests a band not resting on its legacy.
Between the upcoming exhibits with Kotamäki and the primary sparks of a doable follow-up, My Dying Bride seem like transferring ahead with resilience, a mix of reverence for his or her previous and curiosity about the place doom steel can nonetheless take them.
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