If you were to stumble upon musician/composer/spell caster Klaus Morlock’s Bandcamp page you’d see over 25 releases over the last decade plus. Morlock works in the world of Gothic church organs, woozy 70s synths, and 60s psychedelia, fueled by Hauntology, demonic forces in dilapidated cabins and absinthe. Songs that buzz in the sweet shadows laid on dark grounds by things we don’t quite understand, but are drawn to nonetheless.
The man himself is a mystery. Possibly as mysterious as the hazy, acid-tinged imagined scores he’s created for over a decade(or decades?) He resides in Los Angeles, supposedly. But other info I’ve been able to find on the dark web suggests he’s a German composer, born in England. Possibly a Zelig figure in the world of horror scores, his sound finds its DNA in the world of Frizzi, Rizzati, Goblin, and the acid-burnt Nuggets series of underground psychedelia.
Really, though, do we need to know Klaus Morlock’s origins to escape into his musical world? Of course not, just like we don’t need to truly understand the Aurora Borealis to stand in awe of its otherworldly colors painting the night sky.
Klaus Morlock is readying his newest musical experience for all ears to hear in the form of Fireside Spells, an album brimming with Hammer Films vibes, folk horror feels, and synth-tinged ghost tales. It’s 14 tracks of otherworldly melancholy, spooky musical tales, and the sense that something is reaching from the other side out to you. Merely take it’s hand and see what waits.
First single “Run Hide Die” is an exquisite touch from beyond. An opening musical tale with just enough cold chills and rustic paths through gangly forests to get your blood flowing while going cold as ice. Touches of Goblin and Fabio Frizzi come through, but there’s a fog-covered English countryside vibe here as well. Hints of Paul Giovanni’s score for The Wicker Man come through in acoustic flourishes. It’s an engaging melancholic piece that is as maudlin as it is mad.
This is being released via the great Library of the Occult, Morlock’s second release with the UK label after 2022’s Storm – Tales From The Library Of The Occult. Fireside Spells is a proper pairing with Storm – or really just any old overcast dusk where the moon sits behind a curtain of charcoal grey.
Listen to “Run Hide Die” below, then hit up LOTO and preorder ‘Fireside Spells’ while you can.
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