Folk black metal sensation Perchta release the new video ‘Hebamm’ (“Midwife”) as the second single taken from the Tyroleans’ forthcoming sophomore album “D’Muata” (“The Mother”), which has been slated for release on June 14, 2024.
The video clip features images from the Austrian live premiere of ‘Hebamm’ recorded at the House of the Holy MMXXIII festival on the Neudegg Alm in Abtenau, Austria on June 17, 2023. The video clip is available at https://youtu.be/qKmKRzGl9WU
Video credits: Camera by Nanna Cartis (Cartismandua), Sunny Shot Me Down, Hendrik Rohmann, and Thomas Keplinger (Framepunk Guerilla) / Editing by Christian Höll
Perchta comment: “The song ‘Hebamm’ was created in a songwriting process that lasted several days on a mountain pasture in the middle of the beautiful, inspiring nature of the Tyrolean mountains alongside other tracks”, frontwoman Frau Percht reveals. “The ambivalence of the challenges of the midwife profession are particularly emphasised in the sometimes calm, harmonious 3-part vocal passages, and the energetic guitar riffs. Full of pride, ‘Hebamm’ was performed for the first time in Austria in front of friends, family and midwife colleagues at the ‘House of the Holy’ 2023 and captured on film for this moving moment never to be forgotten.”
Tracklist: 1. Vom Verlånga 2. Ois wås ma san 3. Heiliges Bluat 4. Hebamm 5. D’Muata 6. Wehenkanon 7. Ausbruch 8. Långtuttin & Stampa 9. Mei Dianä Mei Bua
The image of a solitary woman living in a remote Alpine mountain place literally at the edge of civilisation evokes strong connotations of which ‘witch’ is probably one of the first. An independent woman confident and free in her actions, sexuality, and self-determination still goes against the collective expectations of our society.
With Perchta‘s sophomore full-length entitled “D’Muata”, which translates from her Alpine Austrian dialect to English as “The Mother”, mastermind and vocalist Frau Percht and her band have created a feminist manifesto within a folklore influenced black metal context. Femininity in all its facets is a rather niche topic in this genre although it is an inseparable part of everything human and the natural world around us.
All members of Perchta work in one way or the other with natural materials, while being shaped by the majestic mountain landscape surrounding them and even experiencing the essence of life first hand working as a midwife. “D’Muata” places the focus on procreation, birth, the nourishing of life, and motherhood without reducing women to this aspect. Such themes as female sexuality, menstruation stigma, the loss of a child, violence against women, and even femicide are also explored – and also personified as in the dark ancient Alpine folklore figures described in the track ‘Langtuttin & Stampa’.
Taking their name from an alleged pagan goddess that older scholars tried to reconstruct as being worshiped in the Upper German and Austrian Alpine regions, Perchta were conceived in Tyrol, Austria in 2017 with an aim to preserve and rejuvenate regional traditions.
Three years later, Perchta released their debut album “Ufång” (2020), which established the band’s reputation as a highly individualistic and unique act. All lyrics of the entire album are intoned in the Tyrolean vernacular. The words are shrouded in a tempest of tremolo guitars and ritualistic folk with bone-piercing extreme vocals on top.
Once touring activities resumed after the global break, Perchta also began to earn attention for their outstanding live performances, which strengthened the bonds within the band. Now the black witch of the Tyrolean mountains and her pack return with a magical new album that Perchta will also bring to the stage!
Perchta line-up: Frau Percht – harsh & clean vocals, Teufelsgeige, percussions / Walscher Fabio D’Amore – bass, keys & programming / Loda Chris Knoll – electric lead & acoustic guitars / Moosmandl Christian Höll – dulcimer (Hackbrett) / Gsell Lukas Massinger – electric rhythm & acoustic guitars / Håscht Simon Schnückel – drums
Guest musicians: Morean (ALKALOID, ex-DARK FORTRESS) – vocals on ‘D’Muata’ / Dr. Ranklstein (ARG!) – Percussion on ‘Wehenkanon’ / Theresa Wopfner – tenor hammered dulcimer & zither / Claudia Ciresa, Katja Reisenbauer, Felix, Maria, Laurenz & Darius – choir
Guitar arrangement by Loda and Gsell: Rhythm & lead guitar recordings & editing at Loda’s home studio / Production, recording & editing: Fabio D’Amore at Synonym of Sound, Silz (AT) / Mixing
Staffan Karlsson at The Sweetspot, Halmstad (SE) & Fabio D’Amore at Synonym of Sound, Silz (AT) / Mastering: Mika Jussila at Finnvox Studios, Helsinki (FI) / Cover artwork by Lisa Schubert (Vinsterwan) / Graphical design by Janus Net-Works
Available formats: “D’Muata” is available as a 72-page hardcover CD artbook with bonus DVD, as ltd. smoke clear & black marbled vinyl LP, as black vinyl LP, and as Digisleeve CD.
Shop at http://lnk.spkr.media/perchta-dmuata
