Quiet Ritual

LP version. Gatefold sleeve; Features photography from acclaimed photographer Steve Gullick and hand-etched art by David Rooney. 180 gram vinyl. Centering on the theme of death, A Quiet Ritual seeks to process the shock and grief of bereavement and it's aftermath, as well as casting back across history and other cultures for their own metaphors and coping strategies. Snow Ghosts explain, "A Quiet Ritual maps out stages of the grieving process and how every individual deals with it in their own unique way. Most importantly how they handle their own heart and the other fragile hearts inevitably scattered around them. The song 'Rip' is about the initial shock of grief, the effect it has on loved ones and the untimely destruction of dreams." Recorded in a castle in the countryside and two years in the making, A Quiet Ritual is written for an ensemble of classical and modern instruments including the carnyx, an Iron Age Celtic boar-headed horn excavated from a bog in Deskford, Scotland. For the carnyx, they enlisted the services of John Kenny, one of just a few musicians able to play the instrument and the first to do so in modern times. The mix of instruments is indicative of the idiosyncratic timelessness common to this album and all of their previous works: having had a historical context present on their previous albums, the inclusion of the carnyx ties the release together, combining ritualistic themes with an instrument commonly used in rituals or as an offering in ancient culture.