EPK – Apollo – A Divine Comedy (2023)
Publicist – Jon[@]ashermediarelations[.]com
“This EP has been in the works for a long time, and I could not be happier with the result. I ended up collaborating with a few new friends, and together, we achieved an impressive piece of work that really feels like art. I’m satisfied we told the story I set out to tell, and it’s expressive not only Dante’s journey, but the journey we all find ourselves on at one time or another; having to fight like Hell and make it out the other side. This EP is for those who have ever doubted themselves, have fallen apart to the demons in their head, felt like giving up, and needed guidance. Don’t give up. Keep fighting. Keep climbing. Trust the ones who stick by your side. Eventually, you’ll find your path.” – Kyle
“I think Kyle has had this EP in the works for the past 8 years, if I’m not mistaken, bringing me on to write lyrics as long as 3 years ago. The more I wrote, the more attached I grew to the vocals that would eventually be put down on this EP. The level of quality and the tones these tracks demanded forced me far outside my comfort zone, having to learn entirely new vocal techniques to do it justice. In the end, this EP is a comprehensive death metal opera, an epic that will hopefully give the listener the same growth and cathartic experience we had while writing it. Every single choice, every note, and vocal take was absolutely deliberate and meant to evoke a specific response. Throughout the journey, the listener will be presented with soaring melodic solos, sombre but beautiful keys that guide the self to introspection, crushingly heavy 8-string guitars, pounding drums, and vocals that dance with the music like a soliloquy to an audience of one”. – Adrian
For fans of Slice the Cake, Between the Buried and Me, The Contortionist, Spiritbox, Rivers of Nihil
Band Name: Apollo
EP Title: A Divine Comedy
Release Date: January 27th, 2023
Label: Self-Release
Apexaudio.ca | Facebook.com/ApolloMusicCanada | Instagram.com/apollomusiccanada | YouTube | Spotify
Track Listing:
I: Dark Woods – 3:59
II: Abandon All Hope – 6:19
III: Interlude – 1:19
IV: Deeper, Darker – 6:22
V: Ascendance – 6:56
EP Length: 24:56
EP Recording Credits:
• All songs performed by: Kyle Prusky, Adrian Parcioaga
• All songs written by: Kyle Prusky, Adrian Parcioaga
• Produced by: Kyle Prusky, Adrian Parcioaga
• Mixed by: Kyle Prusky
• Mastered by: Kyle Prusky
• EP Artwork by: Adrian Parcioaga
EP Band Lineup:
Kyle Prusky – Guitars, Bass
Adrian Parcioaga – Vocals
Alex Rudinger – Programmed Drums
Layne Murdoch – Solo Guitar (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4)
Lucas de la Rosa – Keys (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4)
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The EP as a whole (LYRICALLY & MUSICALLY):
MUSICALLY – I would describe this EP as a journey that has its ups and downs. You feel the weight of what Dante is going through; the aggression, uncertainty, unknown, and mystery. Don’t forget an unrelenting progression that crescendos into epic highs, straight down to epic lows. – Kyle
LYRICALLY – Like several other concept records I’ve had the honour of taking part in, I tried to take a story (in this case an existing one), build out a journey, and infuse it with personal reflection in the process. It’s almost impossible to write agnostically, that is to say without letting your own ideals spill over into the material. As a result, the chronicles of Dante and the obstacles he faces should end up feeling more relatable, even with all the elevated language mimicking the original prose throughout. Here is a man who has lost and seeks to regain, but in the process he must dive further and further into madness, fear, grotesque dread, and the suffering of mankind others may be (or choose to be) blind to, and at the end, he must come out a changed person. This is the basis of any good character development and a process we undertake invisibly most of the time in our lives. Dante descends into Hell on a quest to bring back his late beloved along with his guide, Virgil. Along the way, he learns he must travel through all the rings of Hell and face the original evil in Lucifer himself. He bears witness to tragedies beyond comprehension and must consistently turn his head from the horrors or sheds tears for the doomed souls within. There are several stages at which he feels hopeless, that he is unable to continue and must turn back, but comes to the realization that the only way out is through. So he ventures on through the darkest depths and faces the terrors within and without before he is allowed to ascend into the light. – Adrian
Track by track (LYRICALLY & MUSICALLY):
MUSICALLY – I: Dark Woods. Begins with Dante waking up in the woods, not sure how he got there or where to go. I wanted to start the EP just as innocently and slowly as his journey started, adding one more element to the tapestry at a time. The track then transitions into their descent into hell, appropriately titled II: Abandon All Hope. This track is where things start to kick off. Dante is experiencing life in Limbo and the first few rings of Hell. I wanted this track to sound just as overwhelming, daunting at times, and chaotic so that people can feel the effects of the journey ahead. III: Interlude is a brief pause as Dante leans on the safety of his guide Virgil, still aware that there is a long journey ahead. Listeners should anticipate that the Interlude is but a short reprieve until we get back into the swing of things. It’s a track both beautiful, and unnerving. IV: Deeper, Darker is where we start to get into the harsh realities of this journey through Hell and all the stress endured. We start off with a symphony of guitars that make up the voices of demons and suddenly enter into a jarringly heavy passage. Up and down we go all track long, finding short moments of clarity in an otherwise surreal journey. V: Ascendance. This track is heavy riff, after heavy riff, after heavy riff. I wanted to feel Dante’s struggle to stay the course and make it out of Hell. I’ve always joked that this song is “riff city” – Kyle
LYRICALLY –
I: Dark Woods: Dante wakes in a dark forest, confused. The lyrics in this song aim to address the paranoia and uncertainty he feels confronted with this new and terrible quest laid out for him. He is unsure of his path, uncomfortable of his surroundings, and slowly thrust into a whirlwind of hellish visions. The language used is very direct and statement oriented, it is taking stock of the environment and path ahead and gives us a direct insight into Dante’s state of mind. He describes very deliberately his emotions, hopes, and fears. He yearns for the light which he has been exiled from, the sweet ecstasy of the world he has departed, and begins a descent into despair. It is only a taste of the things to come, and serves as a sort of monologue like one would find at the beginning of a play.
II: Abandon All Hope: Here, the journey begins in earnest, Dante is urged to turn back or abandon all hope if he enters Hell itself. The lyrics try to communicate a feeling of disgust and horror at these initial rings of Hell, closely following Dante’s own reactions. The heroes venture on through rings of screaming corpses whose voices get swept up by the wind and echo endlessly, toiling in agony forever, and reach the river Styx which serves as a passage for the damned further in. The legendary Charon ferries them across to a land of men who worshipped false idols, on which I provide some commentary that time had betrayed them since some had come before it was determined Christianity was to be the true religion, and as such, they are punished for sins unknown and unwillingly committed. Across the various next chapters, Dante and Virgil come across lustful lovers, adulterers, and those who wasted their lives, each ring offering carefully curated and increasingly torturous punishments.
Interlude – no lyrics
IV: Deeper; Darker: The initial shock of Hell has worn off somewhat by this point and we focus on Dante’s condemnation of the sinners within throughout this song and an increased panic that sets in as the heroes are chased further down to the very center of Hell. First, they come upon another set of dark and twisted trees, where screams of anguish once again appear to sit upon the very air surrounding them, only to learn these sinners have been turned into the living trees they walk amongst, blood seeping from broken branches and Harpies sent to feast upon them a la Prometheus’ famous punishment. Further on, another river, where souls that profaned divinity are set to burn tantalizingly out of reach of the water that would end their misery. Another circle down, ten pits of frauds and cheaters writhing in excrement and filth, constantly whipped, as well a blackened pit where souls desperately climb the walls only to be cut by waiting demons and cast down into the fires below. Dante muses on the sufferings he sees, gazing and judging through philosophical eyes, accepting what some souls have done and lamenting what others have wrought. At the end, they reach the climax of their descent, the very center of Hell.
V: Ascendance: For the final track, I wanted to invoke a sense of awe and admiration amidst the fear and dread. It is the most egregious and terrible sight that Dante has ever witnessed, the most loathsome of visions, the true form of Lucifer himself towering over his domain, inspiring nightmares of terrible proportions and bending the minds of the weak to madness. In this incomprehensible horror, however, I believe there is an admiration for the pure scale of it all in Dante. How can one gaze at something so profoundly terrifying and not be amazed at it in spite of one’s fear? As a result, the lyrics tend towards statements and descriptions that beggar belief, inspiring incredulity, and demanding worship. As the heroes climb up on the very back of the multi-headed beast that is the Lord of Darkness, they finally make their ascent out of Hell and, once reaching the surface, gaze up at the stars with fresh eyes and newfound appreciation. – Adrian
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BAND STORY ANGLES / FUN FACTS:
1. I had surgery on my chest a while back. I had this EP 100% written and planned out, and then suddenly I couldn’t play guitar for months to recover! When I finally felt able… recording this EP become a part of my physical therapy. It meant a lot to me to finally be able to play guitar well enough to get this thing done. – Kyle
2. Adrian and I have been working together for many years now, in multiple projects and multiple bands. I actually don’t know what I would do without him. He has become an integral part of my creative process and it’s awesome to have a brother in music! – Kyle
3. Almost every single song I have done with Kyle for Apollo preceding this EP had an entirely different tone and vibe, and this EP ended up being more varied than ever before! I’d never done most of these vocal techniques prior to tracking this work and Kyle is always very open to my experimentation, which I cannot thank him for enough. The trust we share is something very dear to me and allows me to grow as a musician in every way possible, I wouldn’t be who I am without him. – Adrian
4. The vocals on this EP were re-tracked probably 7 or 8 times per song over the course of 2 years, it was an absolute product of love, passion, and hard work. – Adrian
L-R – Kyle Prusky (Guitars, Bass), Adrian Parcioaga (Vocals)
Apollo features a clever combination of beautiful melodies and earth-shattering dissonance that culminates into a powerful and unique display of metal.
Apollo is the solo side project of one Kyle Prusky who brought in the expertise of Adrian Parcioaga to create an enthusiastic, heavy, and memorable concept EP revolving around the classic story of Dante and his descent into hell. “A Divine Comedy” takes the listener on a cathartic journey through breakdowns, growls, and aggressive riffs. Prusky shares his thoughts on the release:
“This EP has been in the works for a long time, and I could not be happier with the result. This EP is for those who have ever doubted themselves, have fallen apart to the demons in their head, felt like giving up, and needed guidance. Don’t give up. Keep fighting. Keep climbing. Trust the ones who stick by your side. Eventually, you’ll find your path. Every single choice, every note, and vocal take was absolutely deliberate and meant to evoke a specific response. Throughout the journey, the listener will be presented with soaring melodic solos, somber but beautiful keys that guide the self to introspection, crushingly heavy 8-string guitars, pounding drums, and vocals that dance with the music like a soliloquy to an audience of one.”
The concept record contains 5 tracks, each one a chapter following Dante’s descent into hell. It is a journey that has its ups and downs; you feel the weight of what Dante is going through; the aggression, uncertainty, unknown, and mystery. Don’t forget an unrelenting progression that crescendos into epic highs, straight down to epic lows.
According to Parcioaga “A Divine Comedy” is a progressive death metal opera, unabashedly dynamic and ever-shifting; and Apollo is an expression and extension of whatever comes to Kyle Prusky’s brilliant mind, regardless of genre. The EP was produced, mixed, and mastered by Prusky, with assistance from Parcioaga who also did the cover artwork. It is recommended for fans of Between the Buried and Me, The Contortionist, and Spiritbox.
“A Divine Comedy” is due out on January 27, 2023.
EP Band Lineup:
Kyle Prusky – Guitars, Bass
Adrian Parcioaga – Vocals
Alex Rudinger – Programmed Drums
Layne Murdoch – Solo Guitar (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4)
Lucas de la Rosa – Keys (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4)
Discography:
2022 – Sundowning (single)
2022 – Clarity (single)
2021 – Self-Indulgence (single)
2021 – pitygang (single)
2020 – Murderous (single)
2020 – Swarm (single)
2020 – WMD (single)
2020 – Blunt Force Trauma (single)
2015 – Peace & Quiet EP
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