Der Song mit seinem klagenden Gesang und dem Dröhnenden Vibrato des Cellos wurde live in der Orthodox Church of St Elizabeth The New Martyr in Wallasey nahe Liverpool aufgenommen und ist eine Interpretation eines liturgischen Gesangs für Karfreitag. Sein Erlös geht an eineEinrichtung für Geflüchtete aus der Ukraine. “The 15th Antiphon” erscheint digital und wird begleitet von einem Video aus dem Atelier von Opus Media. Weitere Releases von A Glass Darkly sind bereits geplant.

“The piece was our response to the appalling humanitarian crisis resulting from the war in Ukraine and the suffering that is being endured by so many innocent people. The words of the Antiphon have a direct applicability to what is happening in Ukraine and its devastating and tragic impact. For Orthodox Christians every human person is a Living Icon of Christ and every innocent death and act of violence is therefore another Golgotha.” (Jon Egan)

“We never meant it to result in an album. Before the tour we’d been working tirelessly on Emily’s solo record, both putting huge amounts of time and effort into meticulous details, which was totally appropriate for that album – and it sounds beautiful, I might add. We went to throw down a song or two at Manny’s and got on a roll. I think after making heavily layered sonic pop albums with the Sands, where I’d hide behind my songs with layers of guitars and synths and bury my vocals for fear of embarrassment, I wanted to get past that, to feel okay about my songs as they stand. This album sounds like Emily Fairlight and Mike McLeod playing in your lounge. Most performances were nailed first-take – we finished nine songs in two days. It feels like a complete work that perfectly captures a special moment. I’m really proud of it.” (Mike McLeod)

“When I first listened to The Shifting Sands, I could hear a similar style in our songwriting. Then Mike and I started playing and touring together, so this colab album felt like a natural progression for our musical relationship. I haven’t done much collaborative work, so was pleased to fall into this album almost by mistake. The songs’ raw, ‘stripped-back’ form is mildly daunting for us both but hey, that’s the sound of some of my favourite artists, so we hope you’ll enjoy the songs in their purest state.” (Emily Fairlight)

@ Occultation