They Grieve

A drone-gloom project born of conflicting desires, Ottawa's They Grieve are a two-piece drawing influence from both minimalist ambient music as well as monolithic doom metal: the resulting sonic unity is a cultivated expression of urgency, tension, and weight. Members Gary Thibert (formerly of Alaskan) and Deniz Guvenc (formerly of Stay Here) aim to experiment with new musical forms and textures while at the same time displaying reverence for their musical predecessors. Drone-y atmospherics meet with relentless power, while they incorporate semi-improvised synthesizers and electronics into the standard guitar/bass/percussion set up. Their debut EP, "I Made My Sacrifice Accordingly", finds its conceptual starting point in Canadian author Timothy Findley’s novel "Pilgrim". In exploring the psychological and emotional contours of loss, grief, and memory, the record forms a seamless first-person narrative: "I Made My Sacrifice Accordingly" is the personal lamentation of a figure in anguish. The singular narrative resonates with the long-form composition—both elements coming together to produce an eclipsing phenomenology of grief. Two-piece drone and gloom from Ottawa, Canada. ex-ALASKAN and STAY HERE.