Ur

Pilgrimage To Pleroma/Ashtoreth - UR (split album)

UR is the upcoming collaboration between Pilgrimage to Pleroma (the solo-project of Mattias M. Van Hulle from Pothamus), Ashtoreth (Peter Verwimp), Stratosphere (Ronald Mariën) and Marko Neuman.

SIDE A
APEIRON
BY PILGRIMAGE TO PLEROMA

Pilgrimage To Pleroma is the solo-project of Mattias M. Van Hulle from Pothamus.

Mattias initially contacted Peter in the context of a Pothamus-performance, which took place 9/4/2022 in the Pieter and Paulus church in Mechelen. Ashtoreth was kind and willing to open the ceremony that evening. The contacts prior to this performance also resulted in the idea of a collaboration of different sorts: a split album. The timing proved to be perfect, as Peter already had some raw material born out of a collaboration with Marko Neuman. After sharing some ideas and philosophical reflections, the conceptual grounds were fertile for a joint release, which became UR.

Apeiron is central to the cosmological theory of the pre-Socratic Greek philosopher Anaximander. The word means "unlimited", "boundless", "infinite", or "indefinite". It's the nature of nature, so to speak, from which everything is generated and to which everything returns. It is generally understood as a sort of primal chaos, serving as a reminder that all structures in the world are merely human creations - an incomplete attempt to understand, grasp, and categorize.

SIDE B PHOBOS & DEIMOS
BY ASHTORETH / MARKO NEUMAN / STRATOSPHERE

`Phobos and Deimos` is named after the Greek Gods of Twist and Fear and the two Moons to the Planet and God of War, Mars.
The album conjures up the fear and anxiety, the isolation and the turmoil of recent times.

The ideas for the record came about when Ashtoreth and Marko Neuman met each other during the Sum of R European Tour in December 2019, right before the start of the Pandemic. Both coming from the heavy music scene and having a mutual interest in new, exciting and experimental music made them decide to work together on a future record. Then the Pandemic hit the World and life was shut down. An ideal and inspirational ground to delve into the primordial Fear of dying and suffering and the inexpugnable forces of Nature.

Vocals recorded in Hedgehog Chamber, Helsinki, Finland by Marko Neuman 2021 Music recorded by Ashtoreth, Palazzo, Antwerp, Belgium, 2020 - 2021.
Bass and additional sounds recorded by Stratosphere, Oud Turnhout, Belgium, 2021 Mixed by Peter Verwimp.
Mastering by Ronald Mariën.