Opening with the haunting cry of screeching lead guitar, timpani, and pipe organ, the ominous introduction sets the stage for a horrifying climax that never seems to lessen in effect with repeated listens. The dastardly arrival of Earthside's new song "All We Knew And Ever Loved" is ushered in by a very human spiral of conflict, represented by the dueling drum performance of Earthside's Ben Shanbrom and featured guest performer, Baard Kolstad of Leprous.
"Humans are the only beings that knowingly destroy themselves," Earthside keyboardist and the piece's composer Frank Sacramone says. "Animals don't have a developed consciousness like we do, or a sense of right or wrong, but 'all we knew and ever loved' will be gone as we keep perpetuating the same poor decision-making as a species - the same societal structures, economic norms, same use of power. Day by day, we're beginning to see very real consequences to these wilful abuses on a scale we don't fully comprehend."
Through the positively apocalyptic sounds of one of the largest pipe organs in the world (recorded at the First Congregational Church in Los Angeles) and an earth-shaking mix courtesy of Randy Staub, known for mixing Metallica's legendary symphonic live album, S&M, the effect isn't merely devastating; it's inescapable.
