Dusk and Her Embrace

Dusk... and Her Embrace is the second studio album by English extreme metal band Cradle of Filth. It was released on 18 August 1996 and is their first release on the label Music for Nations.

Dusk... and Her Embrace
Cover design by Nigel Wingrove
Studio album by
Cradle of Filth
Released18 August 1996
RecordedSeptember–November 1995 at DEP International Studios, Birmingham, England
GenreExtreme metal
Length53:13
LabelMusic for Nations
Producer
  • Kit Woolven
  • Cradle of Filth
Cradle of Filth chronology
V Empire or Dark Faerytales in Phallustein
(1996)		 Dusk... and Her Embrace
(1996)		 Cruelty and the Beast
(1998)
Alternate covers
Variant digipak edition
Alternative cover
Variant coffin box packaging
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chronicles of Chaos8/10[2]
CMJ New Music Monthlyunfavourable[3]
Exclaim!favourable[4]

Background

Much of the material for the album was written while the band were still under Cacophonous Records' contract.[5] Speaking to Ryan Bird of Kerrang! In 2008, Dani Filth remembered:

This was a bit of a weird one. We actually recorded it as our second release, but we then had to take our label to court which meant that most of it was temporarily lost for legal reasons. The next thing I know the band had split into two-halves, and after releasing the V Empire EP my half was able to re-record and finally release the album. In a way it actually worked in our favour, because after nearly two years of legal battles and non-stop hassle I think the troubles of the times actually came through on the recording. We actually worked with Kit Woolven on that one, who most people knew from working with Thin Lizzy, so it had a very lush edge as well as this distinctive, dark vibe. To this day this is the album that a lot of our fans seem to be really drawn to. And it catapulted us into a whole new world.[6]

Filth later told Kerrang! that the tone and content of the record was also partly the result of Cradle's isolation from the European black metal scene:

Being segregated from mainland Europe really divided us [from that scene], and over time we felt more and more alienated from it. The result was that Dusk and Her Embrace was a quintessentially British album. It was just what felt right. I grew up on Hammer Horror... and we were very much also immersed in the history of witchcraft in Suffolk. There's a lot of spiritual mythology and hauntings in that area, and we channelled that into the album, which is why it has that sort of vampiric feel to it.[7]

The album climaxes with a guest speech from Venom's Cronos on the final track, "Haunted Shores".

Release

Dusk and Her Embrace was released on 19 August 1996 by record label Music for Nations. It charted just outside of the UK top 100, at 107.[8]

Critical reception

Critical reception of this album has been generally positive. AllMusic wrote: "Dusk and Her Embrace may be [Cradle of Filth's] finest moment."[1]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Dani Filth.

No.TitleLength
1."Humana Inspired to Nightmare" (instrumental)1:23
2."Heaven Torn Asunder"7:06
3."Funeral in Carpathia"8:24
4."A Gothic Romance (Red Roses for the Devil's Whore)"8:35
5."Malice Through the Looking-Glass"5:30
6."Dusk and Her Embrace"6:09
7."The Graveyard by Moonlight" (instrumental)2:28
8."Beauty Slept in Sodom"6:32
9."Haunted Shores" (feat. Cronos of Venom)7:04
Total length:53:13
Bonus Tracks
No.TitleLength
10."Hell Awaits" (Slayer cover)5:41
11."Carmilla's Masque" (instrumental)2:54
Leather "digibook" edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
5."Nocturnal Supremacy '96"5:59

Personnel
Cradle of Filth
Guest/session musicians
  • Danielle Cneajna Cottington – backing vocals
  • Cronos – vocals on "Haunted Shores"
Production
  • Kit Woolven – producer, engineer
  • Dan Sprigg – assistant engineer
  • Mike "Exorcist" Exeter, Sato Devinn – additional engineering, keyboards
  • Nigel Wingrove – sleeve art direction and design
  • Simon Marsden, Salvatore, Chris Bell – sleeve photography

Charts
Chart (1996) Peak
position
Finnish Albums Chart[10] 24
UK Albums Chart[11] 107


Dusk and Her Embrace: The Original Sin
Dusk... and Her Embrace: The Original Sin
Cover art by Drake Mefestta
Studio album by
Cradle of Filth
Released8 July 2016
RecordedSpring 1995 at Zella Studios, Birmingham
GenreExtreme metal
Length69:23
LabelCacophonous
Producer
  • Andy Reilly
  • Mike Cowling
  • Zakk Bajjon
Cradle of Filth chronology
Hammer of the Witches
(2015)		 Dusk... and Her Embrace: The Original Sin
(2016)		 Cryptoriana – The Seductiveness of Decay
(2017)

Dusk... and Her Embrace exists in two versions. It was initially recorded as the band's second album for Cacophonous records following The Principle of Evil Made Flesh. Cradle's relationship with Cacophonous subsequently collapsed, however: the band accusing the label of contractual and financial mismanagement. Acrimonious legal proceedings took up most of 1995,[12] and the original version of Dusk was shelved and later re-worked and re-recorded as the eventual 1996 Music For Nations release. Writing in The Gospel of Filth in 2009, Dani indicated that these early recordings were merely demos, rather than a finished album:

We reached a deal with Cacophonous whereby they got another recording from us [V Empire], and in return they agreed to cease the dispute we'd become entangled in with them. The material that we'd demoed for Dusk and Her Embrace needed the space and attention of a full album, so we saved it.[13]

Dani Filth revealed plans for a 20th anniversary release of the original 1995 Cacophonous recordings in 2015, and a release date was officially announced in 2016. Filth told Team Rock:

The original recordings of Dusk – which were literally just sat gathering dust on someone’s shelf – are actually going to see the light of day. It’s going to be a really cool part of Cradle history, and obviously they’ve never been heard before by anyone.[14]

The title for the new release was Dusk... and Her Embrace: The Original Sin. It was released on CD and digital on 8 July 2016.[15] A vinyl version, limited to 666 copies, followed on 10 October 2016.[16] The liner notes confirm that the lineup for this version was almost the same as for The Principle of Evil Made Flesh, including Paul Allender, Paul Ryan and Benjamin Ryan, but excluding Robin Graves, who was shortly replaced by Jon Kennedy. Allender, the Ryan brothers and Kennedy all left the band before the 1996 version of Dusk... was recorded.

Track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Macabre, This Banquet" (instrumental)1:33
2."Nocturnal Supremacy"6:04
3."Heaven Torn Asunder"6:56
4."Dusk and Her Embrace"6:14
5."A Gothic Romance"8:46
6."The Graveyard by Moonlight" (instrumental)2:02
7."Funeral in Carpathia"8:21
8."Beauty Slept in Sodom"6:36
9."The Haunted Shores of Avalon"7:12
10."Carmilla's Masque" (instrumental)2:59
11."A Gothic Romance (Demo Version)"8:25
12."Nocturnal Supremacy (Demo Version)"6:15
Total length:69:23

"Original Sin" personnel
Cradle of Filth
Guest/session musicians
  • Steve Grimmett – vocals ("Arthurian Wails") on "Haunted Shores"
  • Cronos – vocals ("Rabid Captor of Bestial Malevolence") on "Haunted Shores"
Production
  • Andy Reilly, Mike Cowling, Zakk Bajjon – producer, engineer
  • Scott Atkins – mastering (2016)
  • Drake Mefestta, Frater Nihil, Dani Filth – sleeve art, art direction, design and layout
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References
  1. Torreano, Bradley. "Dusk and Her Embrace – Cradle of Filth: Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards: AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
  2. Meloon, Brian (2 January 1997). "CoC : Cradle of Filth – Dusk and Her Embrace : Review". Chronicles of Chaos. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
  3. Christe, Ian (May 1997). "Metal". CMJ New Music Monthly. CMJ Network, Inc.: 48. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  4. Palmerston, Sean (August 2001). "Cradle of Filth – Dusk And Her Embrace • Metal Reviews • exclaim.ca". exclaim.ca. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
  5. Schinzel, Drew (4 September 1997). "CoC : Cradle of Filth : Interview : 4/9/1997". Chronicles of Chaos. Retrieved 8 September 2012.
  6. Bird, Ryan (15 November 2008). "Treasure Chest: an Ultimate Portrait of a Life in Rock. Dani Filth". Kerrang! (1236). p. 54.
  7. Dani Filth. Kerrang! #1666, April 15, 2017. P. 53
  8. "Chart Log UK: Chris C. - CZR". zobbel.de. Archived from the original on 2 May 2012. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
  9. https://www.facebook.com/cradleoffilth/posts/a-short-history-of-dusk/10153695917804077/
  10. "Cradle of Filth - Dusk & Her Embrace (album)". Finnishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  11. "Chart Log UK: Chris C. - CZR". zobbel.de. Archived from the original on 2 May 2012. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
  12. Sharpe-Young, Garry (31 March 2007). "Cradle of Filth | Unique, Detailed Biography | Rockdetector". Rockdetector. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  13. Gavin Baddeley & Dani Filth, The Gospel of Filth, Fab Press, 2009, p.92
  14. http://www.teamrock.com/features/2015-07-15/the-best-of-everything-cradle-of-filth
  15. "Cradle of Filth - Finally, the wait is over! The release... | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  16. "Cradle of Filth - 'Dusk... And Her Embrace - The Original Sin' now available on vinyl". www.cradleoffilth.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
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