07/24/2011 16:12

Mournful Congregation

Mournful Congregation: 'The Unspoken Hymns' collection album

This September, 20 Buck Spin will unleash an amassed collection of long out-of-print material from Australian funeral doom icons, Mournful Congregation, onto North American audiences.

Set for official release on in CD and high-quality digital download on September 20, 2011, this collective release, aptly entitled 'The Unspoken Hymns', bears five mammoth tracks previously only available via a limited-edition run vinyl-only splits Mournful Congregation released with like-minded, respected funeral acts Worship, Stabat Mater and Stone Wings. The disc also includes a new, remixed version of the song 'Left Unspoken' — the original version appearing on the 'Four Burials' split that also featured 'Loss and Otesanek' — as well as their cover Thergothon's song 'Elemental'.

'The Unspoken Hymns' is not just a great collection of Mournful Congregation material on its own, the release is also meant to help reintroduce the band to North American audiences in advance of their upcoming fourth album, 'The Book of Kings', which 20 Buck Spin will release stateside in November. The follow-up release to 2009's hallowed 'The June Frost' LP — which claimed the #22 spot on Decibel Magazine's top albums of 2009 list — 'The Book of Kings' is a highly-anticipated release for funeral doom and extreme underground metal fans alike.

Track listing:
1. Left Unspoken (new version)
2. The Epitome of Gods and Men Alike
3. A Slow March to the Burial
4. Descent of the Flames
5. Elemental (Thergothon cover)

Since 1993 Mournful Congregation have become well-known in the international underground metal scene as forerunners of the funeral doom subgenre alongside Skepticism, Asunder and scant few others as long time torchbearers of the unique sound. Involved in numerous other projects, including Stargazer and Cauldron Black Ram, 2011 marks an period of increased activity for Mournful Congregation, as the will also make their stateside live debut in support of the forthcoming album with West Coast dates in December, and culminating with a headlining appearance at the third annual Rites Of Darkness festival in San Antonio.

(source: Earsplit)