by Has there ever been a greater macabre writer than Edgar Allan Poe? Sure, things have changed and we’ve all become quite a bit more desensitized since the 19th century, but that doesn’t change the fact that Poe’s 1845 poem “The Raven” is among the best of the genre, or that it is one of the most famous poems in the English language.
So, it’s our pleasure to tell you that the fine folks at spoken arts label Cadabra Records (the same that has been putting out the H.P. Lovecraft spoken word albums) are preparing to release a 7” of Poe’s “The Raven” on October 21st. Pre-orders can be made here.
On the release, “The Raven” is read by Anthony D.P. Mann and the backing music track is by Goblin’s Maurizio Guarini. You can hear it now at BloodyDisgusting.com.
Anthony D.P. Mann is a Canadian-based filmmaker and actor with five feature films and a lifetime of stage and radio to his credit. In roles ranging from Count Dracula and the Phantom of the Opera, to Ebenezer Scrooge, his love of the classics is evident in his work. He is delighted to be lending his voice to a series of releases with Cadabra Records, indulging in his first passion – the theater of the imagination. The reading is backed by a score created by Italian composer and multi-instrumentalist Maurizio Guarini, most notably known as a core member of Goblin, who has released dozens of albums since the 1970s, including soundtracks for cult classics like Suspiria, the European release of Dawn Of The Dead, and much more. Guarini adds a strikingly beautiful yet haunting score that accents the intense reading.
In a statement about the new collaboration, Maurizio Guarini offers:
This was the first time I was involved in something like this, I mean it’s not a movie where you work basically on visuals, it’s not a standalone studio project. Working with the spoken word lets the music play a stronger role, visuals are just on the imagination to the listener, so a different approach was needed.
The gruesome artwork for “The Raven” was handled by renowned horror artist Sam Heimer. The track is pressed on a single-sided vinyl 7″, with a hand-screened B-side with additional art by Heimer, the wax packed in a hand-screened sleeve printed on clear Vellum paper, and includes an insert with notes by Maurizio Guanni. “The Raven” will be available only from Cadabra Records, with 200 copies on clear wax available to the public, and 100 copies on transparent red available only to the label’s subscription series.
Rock Hard \m/
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