Releases

Amidst the turmoil of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, Cisza found solace in their music. Despite the challenges of lockdown, the band seized the opportunity to work tirelessly on their debut album over the course of 2020 and 2021. Despite being separated, Mateusz and Szymon collaborated closely on most of the songs, perfecting their riffs and gradually enhancing the quality of the material. This resulted in tracks like “Withered Blackened Heart”, “She Yearns For Other Worlds”, “Never Stroll Behind the Pines” and “Ritual of Wind”, while Piotr's contribution “Path of the Dwarves” was also a product of this period. The last two songs on the album, “Jaki Piękny Świat” and “Winter Warriors”, were nearly complete creations of Szymon, the band's drummer who also has a passion for guitars.

The album opens with “Ritual of Wind”, which kicks off with a frantic, almost schizophrenic chromatic lick, setting the tone for what's to come. The track builds to a maelstrom of sound, with guitars soaring into the distance, accompanied by a section of horns that adds to the grandiosity of the moment. The advent of tubular bells brings the song to a climactic close.

The second track, “Withered Blackened Heart”, slows things down, allowing the listener to catch their breath. It starts with a slow build-up, gradually developing into a pulsating rhythm with a solid tonal centre. After a clean guitar break, the song ends with a powerful finale.

“Path of the Dwarves”, the third track, begins with an ominous whisper of J.R.R. Tolkien's poem excerpt from The Hobbit. The song's slow build-up immerses the listener in the epic landscapes painted by the music, with the meticulous work of the cymbals evoking the clash of swords. The track concludes with a clean guitar ending, evoking images of lives lost in a grand battle.

“Never Stroll Behind the Pines”, the fourth track, takes the listener into death metal territory. It is the heaviest and most technical piece on the album, with dissonant melodies and chords that still maintain a melodic core. The song also features guitar solos in the style of classic heavy metal.

The title track, “She Yearns For Other Worlds”, is the album's centerpiece. It starts with a long, dreamy intro that provides a welcome respite from the intensity of the previous song. After almost 1.5 minutes of ethereal landscapes, the band delivers a powerful punch. The surprise of the track is the appearance of Kyriake, the guest vocalist from Zgroza, whose haunting vocals blend perfectly with Piotr's. The contrast between dreamy and relentless sections of the song culminates in a final whirlwind of guitars and piercing screams, depicting the hopeless yearning for change, relief from numbness, and a different life.

The album's sixth track is the only one with Polish lyrics, containing parts of a poem by 19th-century author Maria Konopnicka titled “Jadą dzieci” and portrays rural life in the era. Together with the track closing the album — “Winter Warriors” — they bridge the album to its predecessor “If It Is True What The Prophets Write”. The songs' atmospheric, melancholic melodies and introspective lyrical themes create a reflective and contemplative mood in the listener. The album ends with a long feedback note, a last yearning cry for change and otherness.

The album was recorded, mixed, and mastered by acclaimed sound engineer Arkadiusz Malczewski in Warsaw.