Ystrith

The M Rites

Ystrith

Across seven tracks, the album draws on the imagery of the Mithraic mysteries and the distance between surviving archaeological objects and the vanished experiences that once gave them meaning. Cautes and Cautopates, the two torchbearers, frame its beginning and end, echoing a personal association with the morning and evening star. Musically, these ideas unfold through dark, contemplative atmospheres, repetition and gradual transformation. The ritual character emerges through the listening experience itself: a sense of entering a space whose significance is felt before it is understood.