Steve Von Till shares track/video “The Corpse Road”, taken from Alone In A World Of Wounds

Physically enveloping, forebodingly beautiful, and drawing on the animistic spirit of the natural world, Alone In A World Of Wounds arrives on 16th May via Neurot Recordings. Alone in a World of Wounds is an album of sweeping gothic tinged Americana, tripped out drones, beautiful world weary vocal melodies and slowly unfurling cello arrangements. Initially inspired by the harmonic resonance of piano and synths and his long standing love of ambient music, Alone in a World of Wounds follows 2021’s No Wilderness Deep Enough in reflective ambience. Opening up his voice in ways he has never done before, the album’s genesis came via intuitive improvisations.

“The complex overtones of upright piano and synthesisers really inspired me to sing out more, to seek out the implied harmonies, and to find unique approaches within the limitations of my voice.” says Von Till.

Aside from‬ music, Von Till is a poet (he published his first collection – Harvestman‬ – in 2021) and has a deep bank of poetry and‬ wider writing that he draws on, frequently reflecting on our place within the universe‬ while leaning into themes of loss and longing. Likewise, it is our place in nature and – crucially – our current disconnect from it that prove key to the sonic tapestry woven‬‭ on‬‭ Alone in a World of Wounds‬. The album title itself‬‭ was inspired by a quote from‬ forester and environmental philosopher Aldo Leopold from his 1949 book‬‭ A Sand‬ County Almanac, which called for a reimagining of‬‭ the relationship between people‬ and the natural world (‘one of the penalties of an ecological educations is that one‬ lives alone in a world of wounds’), while – outside of music – Von Till remains‬ equally committed to education (he has been an elementary school teacher for 24‬ years and also serves on the board of directors for the Firekeeper Alliance non-profit‬ which is committed to reducing suicides among the youth of the Blackfeet Nation in‬ Montana).‬

While‬‭ Alone in a World of Wounds‬ may be far removed from the caustic aggression of Neurosis, make no mistake – the‬ life-giving energy of punk rock and DIY ethic continue to provide deep inspiration‬ and grounding to him.‬ ‭The search for deeper connection, living with the sorrow of our separation from the‬ natural world, and relying on gut level instinct to get closer to the primal creative state are all key to Von Till’s process.

“I often wonder where the psychological break was that caused the fatal delusion that we have dominion over the natural world, how it is reduced to existing solely for our benefit. Whenever that disconnect was – I believe it to be the root of most of our problems as a society, in relationships, and even within ourselves and our own minds. It always comes back to the fact that we must have a conscious shift back to understanding that we’re all part of a living animate earth: and that we need to think of the rivers and the mountains and the weather as part of us and us as part of the world. We are wild things but we’ve forgotten. Without this shift in consciousness we’re screwed. That’s the overarching theme. And when I look back on my life it’s becoming more explicit and more clear that this is always what I’ve been singing about”

Recorded mostly at his barn studio at home in Idaho and mixed at Circular Ruin in Brooklyn, NY, with storied producer Randall Dunn (Jóhann Jóhannsson, Sunn O))), Earth, Jim Jarmusch), Alone in a World of Wounds also boasts cover artwork from Spokane, WA based alternative process photographer Brian Deemy – who works with colloidal wet plate ‘tintype’ aesthetics, which compliment Von Till’s uniquely ancient yet grounded aesthetic, and one that perfectly matches his desire to reimagine the connection between the human and the more than human world.

Alone In A World Of Wounds album cover

Alone in a World of Wounds Track List:

1 – The Corpse Road [video]

2 – Watch Them Fade [video]

3 – Horizons Undone

4 – Distance

5 – Calling Down The Darkness

6 – The Dawning Of The Day (Insomnia)

7 – Old Bent Pine

8 – River Of No Return

Steve Von Till Live Dates:

Apr 17 – 20: Artist in Residence (three performances) at Roadburn Festival – Tilburg, NL

May 30 – Jun 1: Prepare the Ground Festival – Toronto, CAN

Jul 25 – 27: Fire in the Mountains Festival – Blackfeet Nation, MT

Credits
All songs written by Steve Von Till
SVT – voice, piano, synths, acoustic and electric guitars
Brent Arnold – cello on 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8
Randall Dunn – synths on 1, 2, 3, 5, 7
Eric Davis – french horn on 1, 4
Scott Evans – synth on 2
Luke Bergman – bass on 3, 4, pedal steel on 5
Ben Greenberg – drums on 4
Ben Chisholm – field recordings, processing, and electronics on 5
Dave French – keys on 7
Foundational tracks, vocals, synths, guitars, electronics and treatments recorded by SVT and
Randall Dunn at The Crow’s Nest, Spirit Lake, Idaho
Piano and additional vocals recorded by Scott Evans
at Antisleep Audio, Oakland, California
Produced and mixed by Randall Dunn
at Circular Ruin, Brooklyn, New York
Cello and french horn arranged and recorded by Brent Arnold in Brooklyn, New York
Mastered by Bob Weston, Chicago Mastering Service, Chicago, Illinois
Tintype photography by Brian Deemy
All hand lettering on front and back cover by Niela Von Till
Layout by SVT and Orion Landau

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