8 Facts About ...At The Threshold

1. All the photos featured in the EP were taken in my World Challenge expedition to Borneo.

It began with a few photos I took for fun and keep as a memory but seemed to coincide with the overall theme and mood of the EP. After I noticed that some photos matched particularly well with some of the songs, I began taking photos purposefully trying to match them to the songs.

2. The EP was recorded using 4 different guitars.

Every guitar is different and has different components and elements which make it more apt for certain things and styles and sounds and I took advantage of that.

Jackson PDX-2 King V:

This guitar is my main guitar and I use it for most of the EP. The EMG81 pickup in the bridge has an aggressive and powerful attack which lends itself perfectly for the harsh riffs I attempt to play whilst the EMG60 pickup in the neck position has a smooth quality which lends itself to the smooth melodic solos I play.

Epiphone Special II:

This guitar is used for the more mellow passages. The ceramic magnet pickups give a hot bright timbre which is perfect for smooth tones such as the small interlude in the song Labyrinthine.

B.C. Rich Warbeast Trace:

This guitar I use for the heaviest passages. I use an 8 string guitar gauge. I use the 8th string as the low E and the 3rd string for the high E but tune to standard C. The lower timbre is ideal for the brutal riffs in the song Trench Of Angst.

Classical Guitar:

The nylon strings of this guitar give it a muted quality. I use it for segments such as the rhythm section during the solo in Broken Halo.

3. I recorded the intro song more than 6 times.

When I began the preproduction for the EP I knew the intro song was crucial as it was the listeners first exposure to my sound so it had to be absolutely perfect. I recorded anywhere between 7 and 9 versions but was always dissatisfied with the outcome so I'd delete it and begin again from scratch. The riff from ...At The Threshold used to be the intro to the second song, Labyrinthine. That's why they work so well with each other and complement each other nicely.

4. None of the photos featured in the EP have had any form of human interaction (...Well...sorta...)

When I began going through the photos I had taken and realizing that I could use them for the EP I realized that none of them had any human interaction, meaning there were no man-made objects in the photo or anything of the sort. I then continued this with the rest of the photos I took. Fast forward a few weeks when I was preparing the photos by adding the titles and words and I realized there was a slight fuck-up.

When I saw the flower looking thingy whilst walking in the jungle it reminded me of the flying tree jellyfish from the movie Avatar. I took great care as to not move the flower or touch it in any way as that would ruin the whole "no human interaction" thing. However, when working on the photos I noticed, as I said, a fuck-up. See the orange triangle on the top right corner? The guides at the EcoCamp nail them to the trees to mark a path through the forests. Oops.

5. The concept for the EP was inspired by a Tumblr post.

6. The closing track had a last minute change.

The last song, Island Of Lucidity, was meant to be heavier than the previous song, Trench Of Angst. I even listened to Behemoth, Machine Head, Gojira, and Fleshgod Apocalypse for about a week straight to get in the mood for composing. However, I had a slight change of heart when I listened to Rob Scallon's style of music and was inspired by it and decided to end the EP with a calm song that would add even more variety to the EP.

7. A Level Literature gave me titles.

When it comes to coming up with names for stuff, I'm pretty shitty. However, my A Level Literature novels and poems were riddled with nice words and phrases which I could seamlessly steal (borrow forever) and use for my songs. From Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go, I used the phrases "...At The Threshold" and "Island(s) Of Lucidity". from Ciaran Carson's poem War Correspondent, I used the word "Labyrinthine". It sounded like a nice word. Reminded me of Fleshgod Apocalypse's song Labyrinth.

8. John Carpenter's Halloween theme inspired Labyrinthine's pre-chorus.

I was reading about my favorite horror film (John Carpenter's Halloween) and I came across a fact that stated that the main theme was in 5/4 time signature and that caught my curiosity. Mainly because this was the first film theme I ever learned on guitar (even before Tubular Bells) and it was quite fascinating to think that if I would've known this theme was in 5/4 when I first learned it, I never would've bothered even trying to learn to play it because it would've seemed more complicated and daunting. Fast forward a couple of years and I'm composing Labyrinthine and it just seemed obvious that I had to compose the prechorus in 5/4 as a small nod to my favorite film.