New York, NY (Top40 Charts) dredg - Gavin Hayes (vocals, guitars), Drew Roulette (bass, samples), Mark Engles (guitars) and Dino Campanella (drums, keyboards) - is celebrating the 20th anniversary of their second album, EL CIELO, with two special limited-edition box sets, which go on sale Friday, October 7 exclusively on the band's online store.
Both packages include the original critically acclaimed album remastered as double 12" custom marble swirl printed vinyl with a vinyl-etched track listing, and a 16-page 7" booklet. There will also be various EL CIELO merch packages available, as well an extra special "Super pack" collection with includes all of the above plus an autographed cover, wall flag, custom t-shirt and sweatshirt, sticker and magnet pack, and an eye mask (for the amplest dreaming experience). The 16-page 7" booklets contain the album's original hand-written letters from people who suffered from sleep disorders and their experiences with sleep paralysis, which was part of the inspiration for the album's music and lyrics.
The main concept behind EL CIELO stems from a painting by Salvador Dali called "Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee Around a Pomegranate a Second Before Awakening." That title also happens to be the acronym of the first song, ""Brushstroke: dcbtfoabaaposba." Upon its initial release, the band explained to them the painting symbolized sleep paralysis, which Dali's wife suffered from.
"When we were lucky enough to compose our first major label record, we took full advantage of the opportunity to move to the Palm Springs area, set up shop in a rental home and immerse ourselves in as much creative fuel as possible," remembers drummer/keyboardist Dino Campanella.
He continues, "The initial scheduled writing period of 2 months turned into 4 or 5 (I cannot remember), but it didn't matter because we were in route to preparing, what we considered a uniquely special front to back album, meant to be devoured in completion. This methodology of a complete listen is a rarity today, but the records we loved to listen to in this manner will never be forgotten."
Originally released on October 8, 2002 on Interscope Records (when the band's only social media website was Myspace!), it was praised in the CMJ New
Music Report at the time of its release: "The band's new full-length, EL CIELO, was recorded at
George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch, a fitting place to create such a spacey (in a good way), cinematic effort. Boasting broad, sprawling soundscapes that cascade over crystal clear melodies, dredg implements everything from delicate mandolin playing to Bulgarian chants to create songs that are like - in the band's own words - 'abstract paintings'…dredg is in a class and category all by itself."
That's not all…the band is currently putting the finishing touches on THE dredg VAULT large collection of unreleased and newly imagined goods that will be released later this year. While the exact on-sale date and purchasing options are still being planned, THE dredg VAULT was created for the band's most devoted and longtime supporters. The centerpiece will be a beautiful hardcover 13"x10" 330-page coffee table book encompassing imagery and dredg paraphernalia from the years 1994-2022.
Fans will also be thrilled to know that dredg is currently hard at work on their sixth album which will be released in the new year. They've been secretly writing on and off the past few years and are now knee-deep in the process. As Campanella describes, "To me, this album sounds like a more mature incarnation of dredg, which comes from the obvious reason that we are older now, having stepped away from the collective craft for quite some time. This gap in time has given us a newfound appreciation for not only one another, but also for this work of art we've created together and have the ability to create indefinitely. Please don't let the word 'mature' deter the reality that dredg continues, in my opinion, to sound as ambitious and far reaching as ever. Our tastes are clearly fine-tuned and there's no shortage of our classic desire to be weird as fuck."
Stay tuned for more details about THE dredg VAULT and the new album, and in the meantime, head to the band's online store to order the 20th anniversary EL CIELO packages!
