LEILA ABDUL-RAUF Issues “Depths Of Us” Video; Calls From A Seething Edge LP From Vastum Member With Guests From Tomb Mold, Weakling, Saros Out Now + NYC Release Show Takes Place Next Week

photos by Houssam Mchaimech

Following the release of her captivating fifth solo LP, Calls From A Seething Edge, LEILA ABDUL-RAUF presents another new video from the album, created for the song âDepths Of Us.â

LEILA ABDUL-RAUF has been a key member in dozens of musical entities since the 1990s, including Vastum, Ionophore, Cardinal Wyrm, Fyrhtu, and more in recent years, preceded by time spent in Amber Asylum, Hammers Of Misfortune, Bastard Noise, Saros, and more. Over the past decade sheâs showcased her talents as a composer, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist through four varied solo efforts, each one more challenging than the last and venturing into new territory of sound and reaching new heights of creativity.

Having navigated a world transformed by pandemic emergence, ongoing global conflicts, the resurgence of widespread fascism, and ecological destruction in recent years, Calls From A Seething Edge is a powerful, conceptual reflection of these immense global and personal upheavals, an album which questions whether an alternative to our destructive ways of operating is possible on a mass level or if they are an inescapable part of the human condition. Moving away from the ambient dreamscapes of her previous works, this album embraces a more epic and rhythmic approach, introducing elements of folk and industrial music.

Calls From A Seething Edge sees LEILA ABDUL-RAUF performing all vocals, trumpet, synth, and a variety of programmed beats, drum tracks, choirs, and string quartets, self-recording and producing the album with assistance from Sammy Fielding (Ancient Owl Audio), who mixed the album. The photography gracing the albumâs cover is by psychoanalyst, artist, and poet Terrance McLarnan, and the mastering was handled by Frederic Arbour at Cyclic Law Mastering. The album features contributions from Gregory C. Hagan (ex-Common Eider, King Eider, ex-Thomas Carnacki) who provides viola solos, acoustic guitar from Derrick Vella (Tomb Mold, Dream Unending), hand percussion and additional drum sampling by Sam Foster (ex-Saros, ex-Weakling), violin from Ryan Honaker (Ionophore, Betterthief), electric cello and upright bass from Vincent van Veen (Kali Ra), and acoustic upright bass by Ed Lloyd Grey.

The third video from the new album, “Depths Of Us” was filmed by Gregory C. Hagan and directed/edited by LeeAnn Perry. ABDUL-RAUF reveals, âItâs one of the more instrumentally stripped-down pieces on the album, which speaks to the vulnerability of the lyrics. I wrote it as a love song to my partner, and not in the fantastical rose-tinted glasses kind of way, but about love existentially in all of its intimate brightness and darkness: ecstasy and connection (there are visual references to an unforgettable acid trip we took together), and also the fear of investing in all of its depths, never being able to go back to a state of neutrality. Vincent van Veen (Kali Ra)âs cello line adds a layer of romanticism that this song called for. LeeAnn Perry (of bewitching electronic duo Xxu & Uxx) is a truly talented and cutting-edge audio/visual artist, and what she did with Gregoryâs artfully filmed footage is so fresh and original.â

Watch LEILA ABDUL-RAUFâs “Depths Of Usâ video at THIS LOCATION.

If you missed them, watch the previously released videos for âCrimes Of The Soulâ HERE and âSummonâ HERE.

Calls From A Seething Edge is out now digitally, on vinyl through Cyclic Law, on tape via Syrup Moose, with both labels co-releasing the album on CD. Additionally, a limited CD run of LEILA ABDUL-RAUFâs solo debut, Cold And Cloud, will be released via Cyclic Law December 21st. Find ordering info for everything HERE.

Following a set at the Arab AmericanÂ National Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, LEILA ABDUL-RAUF will make her NYC live debut with a release show at Hart Bar in Brooklyn next Wednesday, December 18th with Gridfailure, Compactor, and TaksÇs.

LEILA ABDUL-RAUF Live:
12/18/2024 Hart Bar â Brooklyn, NY *LP Release Show w/ Gridfailure, Compactor, TaksÇs [info]

ââ¦her best solo work. It was written during a time of global and domestic unrest, the ascendance of fascism in the United States and Europe, and war in Gaza. Itâs an album that combines disparate cultural threads and traditions to tell a story about humankind perched on the edge.â â Decibel Magazine

ââ¦eerie, brooding, tension-buildingâ¦â â BrooklynVegan

ââ¦it sees her reach even more aspects of sound with her vast music and the results are both hypnotic and ethereal in equal measures.â â Echoes And Dust

âThereâs a deep, dark, torment that bleeds from the first note to the last in this avant-garde treasure.â â Toilet Ov Hell

ââ¦a fully-fledged experience that swipes you off your feet quite easily.â â Everything Is Noise

âA sinister force tries to derail the journey and lingers at the back of your mind as you make your way through Calls From A Seething Edge… Youâre always on edge, yet you hope that the fear running through your veins is a prelude to enlightenment.â â Scream Blast Repeat

“…it displays the fabulous skill of this multi-talented artist who has embraced genre clashes, musical crossovers and pushed the boundaries of her own ambient styleâ¦ an utterly absorbing and transformative record.” â The Sleeping Shaman

ââ¦a challenging album, but it is also a deeply rewarding one. Itâs a work of art that demands the listenerâs attention, but it is also capable of offering a profound listening experience.â â Blare Zine