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My Silent Wake - Biography


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2005-

Biography

My Silent Wake was formed from the dying embers of Ashen Mortality in May 2005 by Ian Arkley (Seventh Angel, Ashen Mortality, Century Sleeper, Paramaecium, The Other Window). He was joined by ex members of Ashen Mortality, Andi Lee and Jasen Whyte (Bloodwork), and also Alan Southorn (The Other Window) Kate Hamilton joined just prior to the recording of the debut album. The newest member of the band is Steve Allan who has joined on drums. Steve also did the sound engineering on all MSW recordings.

In June 2005 the first recording took place at Kewsound in North Somerset. The 2 song EP which comprises over 16 mins of music was recorded in just 10 hours. One of the songs from the EP 'Encircle' appeared on the cover CD of the Nov/ Dec edition of Zero Tolerance magazine and positive reviews have appeared in many magazines and webzines inc. Terrorizer, Hellride, and Zero Tolerance.

In November 2005 My Silent Wake recorded their debut full length album (again at Kewsound). The album was recorded in just 4 and a half days and with the inclusion of the EP tracks weighs in at over 79 mins of music. The artwork was created by Rex Zachary, who has worked on albums by Opeth (Deliverance) among others.

After work on Shadow of Sorrow was complete, drummer Jasen Whyte began to suffer from a painful wrist injury which meant that playing live was not an option. The band decided to use the time to write and record the follow up to SoS. During early 2006 My Silent Wake began working on an ambitious double album project, the first part of which built on the crushingly heavy sound that they had developed since their formation. The second part aimed to capture a different mood, using almost entirely acoustic instruments and largely recorded live in the studio. The songs showcase the musical abilities of the band, and the more reflective and diverse set of songs are equally heavy in their own way as the more traditional metal songs of the first part. The resulting double album "The Anatomy of Melancholy" was released by Bombworks records on the 24th of April 2007, and pre-shown to the audience at the 2007 Elements of Rock Festival in Uster, Switzerland, where MSW made their debut live performance using Steve Allan on drums (Steve co-produced and engineered both albums). Jasen continues as a member of the band contributing joint vocals live and an increasing number of vocal parts on the cds. Steve is now a full member of the band and Steve and Jasen both played drums on the follow-up to The Anatomy of Melancholy, which was recorded in a few days at the start of March '08.

During 2007 My Silent Wake filmed two promo videos for a future DVD release with director Andrew Spencer. In the autumn, the band completed a mini tour with The Drowning and they also played Nordic fest in Oslo, Norway. 2008, saw My Silent Wake play their first London gig with Norway's Drottnar and the recording of the third album, which has now been released on CD and Vinyl. The artwork for the new album has been created by Matt Vickerstaff, who has created covers for My Dying Bride amongst many others. My Silent Wake toured again with The Drowning, and also with The Prophecy this time - two of the best doom/death bands in the UK. They also played again at Nordic Fest along with Ian's re-formed Seventh Angel. The band also recorded a cover of Attrition's 'Two Gods' for an Attrition tribute album which has recently been released.

Some future plans include more gigs and the release of a split album with The Drowning in May 2010. Late in 2009 MSW decided to work on a new album which has recently been recorded.