Four years after the acclaimed Zwart vierkant, Grey Aura is ready to release Zwart vierkant: Slotstuk, a new journey through art and music.
Four years after the acclaimed Zwart vierkant, Utrecht-based quartet Grey Aura is ready to release Zwart vierkant: Slotstuk, a new, unpredictable journey through art and music.
Zwart vierkant: Slotstuk (Black Square: Finale, Final Piece) continues Grey Aura's journey into the intersection of abstract art and psychological disintegration. Building on themes from their 2021 album, Zwart vierkant, the new work delves into the second half of Ruben Wijlacker's novel, De protodood in zwarte haren. This story follows Pedro, a 20th-century Modernist painter whose attempt to dismantle physical reality through abstraction leads him to the brink of madness.
Drawn to the avant-garde movement of Suprematism, Pedro becomes captivated by Kazimir Malevich's 'Black Square': an emblem of pure abstract feeling and the rejection of natural representation. To him, the painting's void is not merely an end but a gateway to boundless artistic potential and spiritual enlightenment. Within this black square, Pedro envisions his muse, Chauchat--a Wallonian poet and the wife of another collective member. Their elusive romance reflects the essence of abstraction: an existence more imagined than tangible, always slipping beyond his reach.
As his obsession grows, Pedro convinces a group of Utrecht artists to join him in creating a Gesamtkunstwerk--a three-dimensional embodiment of the black square. His unrelenting drive pushes the collective toward bizarre tasks and even criminal acts, all in service of his radical vision. The story reaches its climax when Pedro unveils his ultimate creation: an empty void, a chilling representation of the death of the physical realm and the culmination of his artistic ideology.
Drawing inspiration from the pillars of avantgarde metal, such as Dødheimsgard and Manes, Grey Aura is one of the most interesting names in the experimental corners of extreme metal.
Track Listing
Daken als kiezen De ideologische seance Een uithangbord van wanhoop Opgehangen afgrond Nachten zonder dagen Waarin de dood haar kust De stem, nu als zeeboezem Natalia Goncharova Moordend ongeluk Stille zon Slotstuk
