The Hermetic Library Anthology Album - Magick, Music and Ritual 3

The Hermetic Library Anthology Album

Magick, Music and Ritual 3

Spring 2012 / Album

Released June 15, 2012

For full artist profiles and more, please head to Magick, Music and Ritual 3 at the Hermetic Library site.

This Spring 2012 issue from the Hermetic Library Anthology Project is being released in mid-June. There's 10 tracks on this anthology album from a number of new and returning artists. This is a playlist that makes me want to dance, makes me want to laugh, makes me want more. It's got an itch that wants to be scratched, and that's what Spring is all about. This release starts out with a strong rock beat with a glitchy guitar riff then moves to a moody melody with attitude. From there, an impromptu rap collaboration that leads to a strong electronica beat. A distorted electronica beat accelerates into an extended set of different raw glitched audio energy from several artists. The penultimate track is a fantastically awkward, lyrical and poetic piece that pretty much is exactly everything about how Spring feels to me, and then ultimately full circle to a final catchy and glitchy guitar riff that I think strongly and authoritatively announces an abrupt crossing of the sun into the coming Summer.

There's a lot of itchy glitchy sounds to this playlist that seem to me just perfect for the feeling of the warm spring sun. You also know this feeling of everything stretching Winter-sore muscles and just aching to start running or climbing through the sudden sunshine. The cover image for this anthology builds on the sequential narrative, the progression from the previous anthology visuals and is meant to evoke the same Spring-like tension developing, an explosive potential just barely managing to hold itself in.

Please join the Hermetic Library in promoting these artists who have contributed their work to this benefit anthology album project. Please also spread the word about these anthology albums to people you think may be interested in the work of artists who combine magick, music and ritual.

Release Notes

The Hermetic Library at Hermetic.com has an overall vision of Archiving, Engaging and Encouraging the living Esoteric Tradition. I started the benefit anthology project to help promote newer works in the Esoteric Tradition to the audience of the Hermetic Library and beyond. The anthology project also further raises awareness about the corpus and culture of magick and ritual.

The Spring issue had been planned for May, but was delayed primarily due to my being called away for a family emergency. However, in some ways the delay has actually resulted in an overall better outcome for this issue since I’m now planning on having physical CDs for this and the previous issue (for which I did not do a physical CD at the time of release) available soon for those that want them. It is strange how tragedy and travail can sometimes bring out surprisingly good results, isn’t it? And, after all, isn’t that kind of one thing Spring is as a season, a season of growing pains and teething before Summer? This issue is also the half way mark in the full cycle of seasons for 2012, the mid-point through the first full year for the anthology project. This has been a very interesting project for me to work on, and actually very gratifying in many ways. Not only do I get to be of service to the community and help create something that can be shared, I get to share with others some great music by a wide range of artists and encourage people to find out more about artists doing work that is inspired by the living Esoteric Tradition.

I encourage you to check out the Hermetic Library at Hermetic.com, if you aren’t already familiar with it, as that’s the reason this project exists and may also offer inspiration to you. The site was started in 1996 and has ever since consistently been an extremely popular resource for students and researchers interested in the Esoteric Tradition. You may also wish to check out other posts at the Hermetic Library blog and the Twitter and Facebook reflections to see how the library engages people in a living Esoteric Tradition. 

— John Griogair Bell

Production, Artwork and Design by John Griogair Bell 

All songs used with permission. All rights reserved.