With "Magna Silentia" ARCANA have gone
full circle.
Thirty years ago their debut on Cold Meat Industry raised a few
eyebrows.
On a label mostly known for various flavors of harsh, industrial
electronics exploring themes of death and destruction, the neoclassical music
of Arcana instead opted to embrace medieval virtues of chivalry and nobleness.
A youthful Peter Bjärgö led his group on a victorious crusade, conquering
audiences wherever they showed up.
But after changes in lineup and record
labels, the last album proper only came out in 2012.
Besides reforming for a
few special festival events, Arcana have remained dormant ever since while
Bjärgö focused on releasing music in his own name.
Fast forward to 2026.
This year sees
Arcana reconnecting with CMI for Magna Silentia, their most profoundly personal
album to date.
While in the past the music has featured contrasting elements of
light and darkness, the new album falls squarely on the dark side.
What started
as a project for a choral requiem slowly became a song cycle when
instrumentations such as strings and percussion seeped into the compositions.
In the wake of the loss of daughter Vendela, Magna Silentia turned
into a mournful epitaph dealing with grief and the sacrosanct nature of
existence.
No more is this evident than in the incredibly moving elegy “You Are
Still With Me”.
What remains of a person who is no longer here?
A lot!
Magna
Silentia stands testament to this.
(from
the pen of longtime CMI associate Mårten Sahlen)
Tracklist:
1. Det Stora Tysta
2. The Adversity Bell
3. Natura Est Templum
4. The Obsidian Mirror
5. You Are Still With Me
6. Viola Eterna
7. The Collapsing of All Light
8. Somnia Intus
9. An Innermost Sanctum
10. Magna Silentia
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