The Anchorhold Announced
Following on directly from his debut solo EP, The Anchorite, Final Coil front man Phil Stiles presents his next startling collection of new music, The Anchorhold. Expanding on the promise of its predecessor and exploring unexpected sonic vistas, The Anchorhold is a journey into unknown territories, through fresh and vibrant palettes of colour. Born in the claustrophobia and constraints of lockdown this album is a cry of frustration, a call for companionship, reminiscence and hope, a painting on the walls of a prison.
Keenly feeling the absence of musical community, Phil sent out a message in a bottle to fellow musicians, kindred spirits, inviting them to join him in creating a musical escape from confinement. Over the weeks and months the responses came drifting back on the tide, communications between locked down islands and Phil found, to his delight, his songs augmented and transformed, his ideas sculpted and directed into new avenues by Kyle Brandt (A Light Within, Molitoth), The Medea Project, Richard Allsopp (A Distorted Utopia, Monachopsis), Roger Morter (Pornographic Sunset), Mark Gatland (Hats Off Gentleman It’s Adequate), Tomek Wolski (Metanoia) and Celtic Bluesman, Matt Steady. Combined with Phil’s own brave and thoughtful composition and performance this diverse battalion of talents has created something quite unique. An array of textures and tones, swathes of sound and atmosphere, a collection of dreams, universal hopes and personal fears. The contrasting swirls of colour, like drops of paint in water, were given order and coherent form by Phil’s mixing and the mastering skills of James Plotkin (Merzbow, Khanate, ISIS etc).
As with all his work, as part of Final Coil or for his solo projects, Phil’s lyrics are challenging and thought provoking and play a huge role in making The Anchorhold such an absorbing and rewarding listening experience and everything is drawn together within the evocative artwork and photography of Jola Stiles. The Anchorhold is set to be released on September 17th on cassette and CD by Trepanation and offers both a melancholy monument to the loss and turmoil of the last year and a testament to the creative spirit of humanity.
The Anchorite Tracklist & Link
1. Intro
2. A Nation’s Trust
3. A Slide Into Depravity
4. Antipathy
5. Critical Thinking
6. Bury Your Head (Bonus Track – only available via Bandcamp)
The EP can be ordered now from Bandcamp:
Brand New Track available on Face The Beat 6 & Exclusive Remix ono DJ Shane Aungst Vs Face The Beat 6.
The Anchorite Announced
The Anchorite is the debut solo EP from Final Coil front man Phil Stiles. Whilst the socio-political lyrical themes of Final Coil remain; the music diverges, drawing from a range of electronic influences to create a darkly ambient soundtrack for Phil’s tales of social decay. Eerie dissonance abounds, especially on the atmospheric Intro, which combines stately guitar with the cold, inhuman hum of subterranean machinery. Elsewhere, the rhythmic pulse of mangled samplers recalls the claustrophobic nightmare of Massive Attack, whilst the muscular guitars of Antipathy brings to mind the industrial nightmare of early Godflesh.
Recorded in the wake of Final Coil’s acclaimed sophomore album, The World We Left Behind For Others, and set against the backdrop of the UK’s fateful decision to leave the EU, The Anchorite portrays the seismic societal shift that is occurring, not just in the UK, but all around the world as the guardians of the Westphalian nation-state system clash with progressive globalists.
Recorded and mixed by Phil, the EP was mastered by the legendary James Plotkin (ISIS, Khanate, Earth, Sunn 0))), Pelican), and the result is an EP that treads a fine line between cold industrial, progressive rock and somnolent trip hop.