En Minor - Album Review

Albums are planned out for the most part over years. Musicians get together, form a band, discuss ideas, practice until those ideas form into songs, garner label interest, hit the studio, then release their record. Nobody could have predicted the pandemic that has hit the globe here in 2020, but the stars have aligned to bring us a beautifully solemn record that spews the anguish brought on my today's climate in the form of the new album by En Minor " When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out "

EN MINOR features veteran musicians Philip H. Anselmo (Pantera, Down, Superjoint, Scour, Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals), Stephen Taylor (Superjoint, Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals, Wovenhand, 16 Horsepower), Kevin Bond (Superjoint, Christ Inversion, Artimus Pyledriver et al), Jimmy Bower (Eyehategod, Down, Superjoint), Calvin and Joiner Dover (The Dover Brothers), and Steve Bernal (former first cellist in the Temple Symphony Orchestra).

With Anselmo's naturally deep vocal register a project such as En Minor seemingly was inevitable. Each song on " When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out" is slow and methodical, dark in vocal ambiance and beautiful in musical solemnity. En Minor's latest video for "Mausoleums" can be viewed HERE and is a supreme example of the musical direction Anselmo experiments with for this project. Another decent into the foreboding coldness of the album is the song "Blue" which can be heard HERE. Each song has multiple layers, building it's depth and despair through emoting acoustic and electric guitars, sinister drums and percussion, brooding strings, and haunting keys.

The album continues it's fierce melancholy focus with songs like "On The Floor". The guitars provide the constant as other instruments are brought in to add to the funeral procession timing matching Anselmo's sorrowful vocals. "Dead Can't Dance" features spirited lead guitar and Bower's kick drum/floor tom combo is tribal. "Disposable For You" has old school outlaw country roots and to start before giving way to ethereal keyboard tones.

You're not going to drive down the highway at ridiculously high speeds or dance the night away while listening to "When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out" by En Minor. What you will do is descend into your own thoughts lead there by Philip H. Anselmo and his masterful musical mistrels in En Minor.

When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out Track Listing:

1. Mausoleums

2. Blue

3. On the Floor

4. Dead Can't Dance

5. Love Needs Love

6. Warm Sharp Bath Sleep

7. Melancholia

8. This is Not Your Day

9. Black Mass

10. Hats Off

11. Disposable For You

EN MINOR:
Philip H. Anselmo - vocals, guitars, bass
Kevin Bond - acoustic, electric guitar, bass
Stephen Taylor - guitar
Calvin Dover - keys
Joiner Dover - bass
Steve Bernal - cello
Jimmy Bower - drums

Jose Manuel "Blue" Gonzalez - drums (live)
Paul Webb - guitar (live)

http://www.facebook.com/enminorofficial/
http://www.instagram.com/officialenminor
http://www.thehousecorerecords.com
http://thehousecorestore-com.3dcartstores.com
http://www.facebook.com/housecorerecords

EN MINOR: Decibel Premieres "Mausoleums" Video

EN MINOR: Decibel Premieres "Mausoleums" Video From Project Featuring Members Of Down, Superjoint, Eyehategod, And More; Debut Full-Length Nears Release Via Housecore Records

"The video's sullen sepia tone and time-lapse videography fittingly match the crawling clean guitars and evocative cello. Like the flowers that will inevitably wilt outside the video's titular mausoleum, Anselmo's vocals feel like they're withering with the seasons... " -- Decibel

View / Share EN MINOR's "Mausoleums" Video HERE.

EN MINOR has unveiled a new video for "Mausoleums." Now playing at Decibel Magazine, the solemn track comes off the project's long-awaited debut full-length, When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out, set for release this September via Housecore Records.

An experimental and eclectic musical endeavor that finds founding frontman Philip H. Anselmo (Pantera, Down, Superjoint et al) exploring a softer, graver vocal style, EN MINOR is an honest and deliberate change of pace delivering brooding tales of pain, regret, and sorrow. At once ugly and beautiful, EN MINOR features the collective talents of Stephen Taylor (Superjoint, Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals, Wovenhand, 16 Horsepower), Kevin Bond (Superjoint, Christ Inversion, Artimus Pyledriver), Jimmy Bower (Eyehategod, Down, Superjoint), Calvin and Joiner Dover (The Dover Brothers), and Steve Bernal (former first cellist in the Temple Symphony Orchestra).

Writes Decibel, "In five minutes the song captures the raw, wounded heart of When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out. The video's sullen sepia tone and time-lapse videography fittingly match the crawling clean guitars and evocative cello. Like the flowers that will inevitably wilt outside the video's titular mausoleum, Anselmo's vocals feel like they're withering with the seasons. Not every song on the album is as morose and monochromatic as this single, but there's little sunshine to be found..."

Adds Anselmo, "We were not able to shoot the video we initially had in mind because of the pandemic, but the video rendered is beautifully somber. I'd like to thank the crew responsible for putting it all together and I hope you enjoy it."

View EN MINOR's "Mausoleums" video, courtesy of Decibel Magazine, at THIS LOCATION.

Stream first single, "Blue," at THIS LOCATION.

EN MINOR's When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out was recorded and mixed at Anselmo's Nodferatu's Lair Studio on the Northshore outside of New Orleans, Louisiana and will see release in North America on September 4th via Housecore Records with Season Of Mist handling the release in Europe and Ward Records handling the release in Japan.

Find physical preorders at THIS LOCATION. For digital orders, go HERE.

EN MINOR was inadvertently in the making since Anselmo's earliest days as a child in the French Quarter. "The initial strains - in the most primitive sense - came about when I was given my first guitar at nine-years old," relays Anselmo. "I didn't have the patience to learn other people's music, so I wrote my own. And some of those early parts are still prevalent in the songs we're working with now. Fast-forward to 1988 when I bought my first four-track recorder; those old songs took on a new life and newer songs were written. Heavy metal was at the forefront of my performance-based output, but these little four-track songs were always there."

By 1993, Anselmo moved back to his hometown of New Orleans and his home became an instant magnet for local musicians and artists. "At ungodly hours, these old four-track songs took on an even newer life jamming with these cats. We learned a few of the songs and wrote several more, and soon we were recording under the moniker 'Body & Blood.' We wrote more songs, all recorded on a newer model four-track. It was fun. We did it for the vibe. And it was pleasing to break away from multi-tracking studios and heavy metal. Metal music consumed most of our time and lives. Those 'B&B' sessions were damned-near therapeutic."

Without a clear plan for the band, the project remained a periodic therapy session. "We kept things simple and just jammed when everyone was home and played our recordings for friends. Then I eventually moved again, Hurricane Katrina hit, and life sent all of us in different directions."

It was in 2012 when EN MINOR truly took shape. "[Stephen] "Schteve" [Taylor] was experimenting with some vibey stuff, and soon after began recording the sessions. This led to the current incarnation of EN MINOR. Together, we reworked a few of the old four-track songs and wrote several new ones in short order. These sessions are hypnotic and pulling. And we continue to write songs suitable for this project to this day. Ugly and beautiful, EN MINOR, isn't 'party music.' This is 'kill the party music.'"

"With EN MINOR, he's embracing a gravely vocal style of defiance and regret, singing songs from a lifetime of experience and hard lessons learned in the outlaw country tradition of Merle Haggard... The measured pace and acoustic instruments of his new project reflect a state of mind and a possible sign of maturity finally catching up with Anselmo at a time when addiction is now years behind him." - Revolver

"...Anselmo emoted with somber grace over beautiful ballads evoking his cover of Black Sabbath's 'Planet Caravan' with Pantera all the way back on Far Beyond Driven...it's a refreshing change of pace for Anselmo after many of his heavier outings these last few years." - MXDWN (Psycho Las Vegas 2019 recap)

"Phil Anselmo's low key new acoustic project dubbed 'depression core' was strangely invigorating. This was one of the most chill and memorable sets of the weekend." - Metal Injection (Psycho Las Vegas 2019 recap)

"Dressed in a suit and looking like a suave Mike Patton, Phil had the audience in the palm of his hand. We were willing to take whatever journey he wanted us on. We all knew Phil Anselmo had poetry in his heart but perhaps not to this great extent." - Janky Smooth (Psycho Las Vegas 2019 recap)

"When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out .... takes you on a journey into a dark fog-shrouded alley that is hauntingly irresistible. The music moves around and through you like the lazy hazy in an Amsterdam coffeeshop. EN MINOR have created a fantastic album that will surely be the soundtrack for a birthday party in a funeral parlor." - Metal Wani

"...a cohesive and emotionally devastating record. It's hard not to be entranced with the simple poetry of what they conjure up here. This record is in many ways unexpected from this particular group of guys, but their execution is flawless." - Two Guys Metal Reviews

[Photo by JehN.W.A.]

EN MINOR To Release Debut Full-Length This September

EN MINOR To Release Debut Full-Length This September Via Housecore Records; Revolver Streams New Single + Preorders Available

Philip H. Anselmo's EN MINOR will release its long-awaited debut full-length, When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out, this September via Housecore Records.

An experimental and eclectic musical endeavor that finds Anselmo exploring a softer, graver vocal style, EN MINOR is an honest and deliberate change of pace delivering brooding tales of pain, regret, and sorrow. At once ugly and beautiful, EN MINOR features the collective talents of Stephen Taylor (Superjoint, Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals, Wovenhand, 16 Horsepower), Kevin Bond (Superjoint, Christ Inversion, Artimus Pyledriver et al), Jimmy Bower (Eyehategod, Down, Superjoint), Calvin and Joiner Dover (The Dover Brothers), and Steve Bernal (former first cellist in the Temple Symphony Orchestra).

In advance of its release, Revolver is currently streaming first single, "Blue." Elaborates Anselmo, "We picked 'Blue' to release first because it features the whole band, as some songs don't have percussion. Also, the title of the record, When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out, is from a line in the song. Very fitting and haunting."

Adds Revolver, "Back in August of last year, we unveiled 'On the Floor,' the first song from the self-described 'depression-core' project, which finds the heralded heavy-metal vocalist - known for Pantera, Down, and Superjoint, among too many other bands to list here - exploring mellower, mostly acoustic, yet still dark and heavy musical territory not far flung from the gravelly odes of Nick Cave or Tom Waits. Today, we've teamed with Anselmo again to premiere a new EN MINOR cut, 'Blue,' the stark, stirring lead single off the group's forthcoming debut full-length, When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out..."

Stream EN MINOR's "Blue" at THIS LOCATION.

For physical preorders go to THIS LOCATION. For digital orders, go HERE.

When The Cold Truth Has Worn Its Miserable Welcome Out Track Listing:

1. Mausoleums

2. Blue

3. On the Floor

4. Dead Can't Dance

5. Love Needs Love

6. Warm Sharp Bath Sleep

7. Melancholia

8. This is Not Your Day

9. Black Mass

10. Hats Off

11. Disposable For You

It was in 2012 when EN MINOR truly took shape. "[Stephen] 'Schteve' [Taylor] and I began experimenting with some vibey stuff, and soon after began recording the sessions. This led to the current incarnation of EN MINOR. Together, we reworked a few of the old four-track songs and wrote several new ones in short order. These sessions are hypnotic and pulling. And we continue to write songs suitable for this project to this day. Ugly and beautiful, EN MINOR, isn't 'party music.' This is 'kill the party music.'"

Jose Manuel "Blue" Gonzalez - drums (live)
Paul Webb - guitar (live)

http://www.facebook.com/enminorofficial/

http://www.instagram.com/officialenminor
http://www.thehousecorerecords.com
http://thehousecorestore-com.3dcartstores.com
http://www.facebook.com/housecorerecords

[Photo by JehN.W.A.]

Musicfrenzy.net

Musicfrenzy.net

En Minor - Album Review

EN MINOR: Decibel Premieres "Mausoleums" Video

EN MINOR To Release Debut Full-Length This September