Dagon/The Cats of Ulthar/The Music of Erich Zann (2022)

CADABR-33 2022
LP
In 2019, Cadabra Records released one of their finest productions. Featuring brand new talents at the time in the music of Anima Morte and voice actor Andrew Leman, the collection of H. P. Lovecraft’s Dagon, The Cats of Ulthar, and The Music of Erich Zann, "brought the spoken arts to a whole new level," as Cadabra label head Jonathan Dennison aptly put it.
In a wonderful bit of synchronicity, these stories also come from Lovecraft's own early years of work, all dating to the first five years of the author's work written as an adult, with the first tale, Dagon, having been composed all the way back in 1917. The story as performed here sets the tone for the record as a whole, as narrator Leman's quiet madness reflects the morphine-blunted panic of his revery, while Anima Morte's music feels as though it, too, has come "crawling and floundering" out of the sea.
The Cats of Ulthar is a full reverse in tone from that which precedes in almost every way. While Dagon is a breathless recitation of eldritch horrors, this second tale is a straightforward story of vengeance against those quite deserving of it. Leman's narration is quite calm, and matter-of-fact in how all of this came to be. Anima Morte's music is wonderfully folk-inspired, resplendent with finger cymbals, acoustic guitar, and bodhrán hand drum. When the terror increases, it's augmented with electric guitar and Mellotron choirs, making for an amazing journey within the nine-minute runtime of this revenge tale, sure to delight all fans of things feline.
The Music of Erich Zann takes up the entirety of this collection's second side, as befits a story which combines two elements which Lovecraft would later explore separately in Pickman's Model and The Color of Out of Space, respectively that of an otherworldly muse or inspiration and an artistic element which has heretofore never existed, nor will be seen again. Of course, given the titular musician's viol, that instrument is featured prominently in Anima Morte's score, which is laden with many "haunting notes." Leman's narration reflects the youth of the teller at the time of the story's events, while also evincing the knowledge and wisdom which come with age.
Credits:
Written by H.P. Lovecraft
Artwork by Karmazid
Liner notes by S.T. Joshi & Fredrik Klingwall
Read by Andrew Leman
Score by Anima Morte
Calligraphy by Josh Yelle
A1		Dagon
A2		The Cats Of Ulthar
B1		The Music Of Erich Zann
Limited pressing on 150 gram vinyl
Printed on a deluxe heavy weight gatefold tip-on jacket
Variants:
Metallic gold
Transparent yellow with black swirl
Hand poured gold and black splatter over clear (40 copies)
Wax mage (25 numbered copies)