Drummer Cameron Ahslund-Glass and Darkest Era have sent us a drum play-through for ‘A Path Made Of Roots,’ from their latest album, “Wither on the Vine,” which came out on 9/30 via Candlelight Records.
From Belfast, Northern Ireland, Cameron Ahslund-Glass started playing the drums at age 14 and took his first lessons in high school.
“My teacher was a theatre drummer, and in the beginning, we went through the motions of music theory and grade books. After some older kids turned me onto bands like Nile and Meshuggah, I was obsessed, and my lessons quickly shifted gears to help me work toward that level of drumming. I probably spent way too much time watching videos of different drummers and festivals, it was definitely an awakening of sorts.”
Ahslund-Glass spent the next few years studying music and gaining experience playing with as many bands as possible before joining Darkest Era in 2013.
“They had been signed to a major label and had just come off a European tour, so it was a big deal! My second show with the band was a festival in Germany, and I did my first tours with them as well. High profile gigs and tours like this really cemented that is was what I wanted to do with my life.”
Darkest Era went on to open for bands like Amon Amarth, Wintersun, and Tyr, as well as a UK tour with Gloryhammer, followed by a headlining tour.
Favorite Drummers:
Martin Lopez
Cameron’s Gear:
Tama Starclassic Maple Drums
10×8” and 12×9” Toms, 14×14” Floor Tom, 22×18” Bass Drum
Tama Imperialstar Kingbeat 14×5” Snare Drum
Zildjian A Custom 14” Hi-hats, 17” and 18” Crashes, 20” Ping Ride, 18” Oriental China
Tama Iron Cobra Powerglide Double Pedal
Vic Firth 5B Nylon Drumsticks
Remo CS Dot, Emperor, and Powerstroke 3 Drumheads
Shure SE-215 In Ear Monitors, Behringer Xenyx 502 Mixer
It has been eight years since Darkest Era’s last album, 2014’s Severance. In that time, the Northern Irish-centred band has undergone personal and personnel changes, while the world itself has entered its own new dark era. Now, they return with their third album, Wither On The Vine.
Recorded at Wales’ legendary Foel Studios with producer Chris Fielding (Electric Wizard, Primordial, Winterfylleth, Witchsorrow), it finds the band taking their shadowy take on the traditional heavy metal sounds of Iron Maiden and Thin Lizzy, and adding elements of doom, black metal, blackgaze and anything else that casts a musical shadow. Expanding their horizons with where their sound could go on Withered On The Vine, guitarist Ade Mulgrew says it could best be described as simply “dark metal.”
Speaking on the album, Ade adds: “The album presents a bleak reflection of the world as it stands today; politically, socially, environmentally. Among themes of human tragedy and personal introspection, there are songs touching on pagan spirituality, the Dionysian perspective, and even gothic romance. Stylistically the album mixes black metal and doom metal elements with an almost classic rock sense of tone. We hope the album resonates with listeners seeking music with genuine power and emotional weight, pulling them into its dark visions.”
After a long absence, far from withering away, Darkest Era has returned as experts in their craft and made a definitive dark metal statement.
Darkest Era is:
Krum – Vocals
Ade Mulgrew – Guitar
Sarah Wieghell – Guitar
Daniel O’Toole – Bass
Cameron Åhslund-Glass – Drums
