The title "count to nine" refers both to the number of songs and the mystical number 9. Nine is the number of fulfilment, closure and completion. It also symbolizes the coming of age and the connection between dimensions and worlds on all levels.
The 9 tracks were mixed by the legendary John Fryer (Fields of the Nephilim, Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, Paradise Lost, Cradle Of Filth and more). The band has significantly tightened up their dark gothic rock on their third album and fans around the world can look forward to a vinyl version.
Phil Lee Fall, Gatsby, Ambra Von Bernstein Billac Deville and Amba Von Bernstein recorded the album with a four-piece line-up. Guitarist Mr. Theoridick, who recorded the parts on the last record, is absent this time. According to the band, he just picked up one day and left to get some smokes and never came back. Still, the record is more guitar driven than the previous one. A replacement was found within the band, so Gatsby hung six strings around his neck in addition to bass and programming.
Several unfortunate situations in the band's life affected the making of the record, and the last one changed the release date from this spring to this fall. A longtime friend of the band and their bodyguard in the early nineties - writer Zdeněk Vlk suffered a serious brain injury, which is why the whole album is dedicated to him.
John Fryer, who took over the mixing (the last album was mixed by Eike Freese), was given the titanic task of blending dozens of tracks of guitars, choruses, murmurs and sound effects into the final form so that the aggressiveness and mystical melodic choruses stand out, he did a great job in Los Angeles.
Even with the overblown mix, the album's variety should grow on you. Breathless. From the hypnotic and gothic rock purist track Dreaming In The Witch House to the cowboy shuffle of Pale Rider to the dark pop of Summertime. It's a guarantee for the band that no one will be bored and no one will know what the next track will bring. And yet the whole album holds together conceptually and sonically. Moreover, the songs that have already appeared on the singles (Not Another Vampire Song and Release The Pain) have been brutally reworked by John Fryer for the record.
Gatsby produced each song in the base and then worked with John to fine-tune the resulting arrangements of the songs, which John gave the final sound. Backing tracks were recorded by Gatsby himself at his Flames Records studio, including Ambra's vocals, Phil's vocals and additional guitars were recorded at Karlštejn and Billac de Ville mailed his guitars, and no one knows in what dark hole they were created.
Vocalist Phil Lee Fall says of the album, "On Count to Nine we tried to cross boundaries. We ventured further and deeper than ever before. Musically, lyrically and sonically. It took us almost three years, but we are extremely happy with the result. Dark, mystical and monumental gothic rock for the 21st century."
Gatsby adds: "Each track is heavily influenced by the mood and situations in which it was created. That's why I make music, to get the emotion out. So the fact that it's dark is probably natural. In a way, it's a catharsis of the disgust and confusion we live in."
Gatsby on working with John Fryer: "It took us a long time to figure out his production style and mix. Nowadays I'm sure he did everything right, but it was often a struggle and an endless exchange of tracks where we would work together to fine tune the final sound so that his idea had enough space, but at the same time, it fulfilled our ideas."
Ambra: "As always, I preferred to stand back a bit when Phil and Gatsby wanted to fight. They yelled at each other for weeks over one song. On the other hand, they wrote me a great track called Steam Punk Queen, probably the best thing I've ever sung."
Billac de Ville: "We showed that gothic rock is not a rigid genre, that sonically instrumentally and arrangement-wise it can be pushed into a totally contemporary sound. Unlike bands that play gothic rock today and have one song as another, we are always moving forward. In that way, we're well beyond the genre. I'm glad my track Penetrate Me made the record."
The music and video in digital form (choose your platform, iTunes, Spotify, Youtube,,... ) can be found here: https://musicraft.ffm.to/count-to-nine
CD, vinyl and merch here: https://cathedralinflamesprague.bandcamp.com
