URSA bassist/vocalist Matt Solis will be familiar to many Decibel readers, both as a contributor to the print magazine and as the guitarist/vocalist in progressive metallers Cormorant. Actually, three quarters of Cormorant are in URSA, so before even clicking play, you know you’re in good hands.
On their new album Abyss Between the Stars, URSA look to the likes of Black Sabbath, Candlemass and Pentagram, weaving doomy tales of wizards and mythical beasts, of barbarians and steel. On new song “Wizard’s Path,” URSA are hypnotic, blending heaviness, melody and even psychedelia into a neat package.
“’Wizard’s Path’ is the first song we wrote when we started jamming together in early 2016,” Solis tells Decibel. “We knew we wanted this band to have an “epic fantasy” aesthetic in terms of the lyrics and overall presentation, and what better place to start than a journey through a mystical landscape teeming with esoteric danger? When I wrote the lyrics, I had one image in mind: a wizard with a beard full of eyeballs, which is actually a real-life painting by our friend Jesse Swanson, who created the artwork on this album. All told, this track is the essence of URSA: crushing riffs, epic vocals, fantastical lyrics and the elemental spirit of all things doom.
‘Abyss Between the Stars’ is our love letter to the traditional heavy metal/doom aesthetic—a place where Candlemass and Pagan Altar are revered as gods and intrepid warriors battle terrifying beasts with the power of their riffs. Each song on the album tells a mythical tale that’s steeped in genre tradition and whimsical creativity. The psychedelic, Frazetta-in-a-fever-dream artwork further reinforces the outlandish adventures that await the listener.”
Go forth and be crushed! Abyss Between the Stars will be available November 2 through Blood Music.
