The oneiric US ensemble AKHLYS unveils a second track from upcoming album, „House of the Black Geminus,“ set for release on July 5th. ‚Maze of Phobetor‚ weaves an intricate tapestry of Black Metal witchcraft, advancing the distinctively tempestuous sound established on previous albums, „The Dreaming I“ (2015) and „Melinoë“ (2020). To complement this aural hypnosis, visual artist David Tomanek / tomanek|media has created an eldritch video which underscores the band’s spellbinding allure.
Akhlys – Maze of Phobetor (Official video) – YouTube
Phobetor, son of Hypnos, God of sleep, is alongside Morpheus and Phantasos, one of three Gods of dreams in Greek mythology. AKHLYS‚ songwriter Naas Alcameth explains the profound significance of this entity within the lyrical universe of „House of the Black Geminus„:
„Phobetor is not just a symbol or a theme for AKHLYS but a deeply personal and spiritual force of inspiration. His role as the ’shaper of dreams‘ and his association with nightmares resonate with the very essence of our music. The ecstatic mode of dread, which is central to our subject matter, is embodied by Phobetor. He is not just one of many faces of an unknown intercessor but a primary force within the context of our music. In a sense, Phobetor is the muse that presides over the work entire.“
Alcameth elaborates regarding the musical creation of ‚Maze of Phobetor‚: „I had initially devised a prototype for the primary opening riff while warming up at our practice hall before the other guys arrived for rehearsal. Interestingly, this is often how some of my best riffs begin: while warming up and casually playing around before rehearsals or gigs. I kept modifying this concept over time, again, before practices while awaiting everyone to arrive. I then came up with three variants, all present in the song, and then wrote the high guitar part over it once I tracked the other riffs at home. Now that I had this very dark and furious beginning, I understood the vibe of the track, and I developed it all based on this. I already had the conceptual themes in mind, in broad strokes at least, and I knew straight away this track would be the one centered around the figure of Phobetor and the symbol of the ‚maze,‘ given its frantic and dreadful atmosphere. Eoghan wrote all of the drum parts, as usual, but also the bass lines. Nox joined us on the recording for this album and tracked all of the leads I had written, which gave everything a nice sharp edge, as his speed picking is quite impressive.„
