Yesterday, Sept. 28, 2010, Dallas doomers Elliott’s Keep released their second album through Brainticket Records. Titled Sine Qua Non, the full-length sees them take the traditional doom they unleashed on their 2008 debut, In Medias Res, and up the heaviness with blistering black and death metal vocals alongside the clean ones as heard on the previous outing. The first time I put the song on I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

I enjoyed In Medias Res, don’t get me wrong, but the subtle change in approach puts Elliott’s Keep and Sine Qua Non in a different category entirely. They might still be traditional doom, but they’re refining the tradition instead of working within it. Once you hear the song, you’ll understand the difference.

And about that: The Obelisk couldn’t be more thrilled to bring you the opening track from Sine Qua Non, called “Fearless.” Stream it in high quality on the player below and get filled in on the info from the band’s MySpace:

Fearless

We recorded again at Nomad Studios in Carrollton, Texas, with J.T. Longoria (Solitude Aeturnus, RobertLowe – Candlemass, Concept of God, Absu, King Diamond) at the helm.

As with our initial 2008 release — In Medias Res — Sine Qua Non will be issued on John Perez’s Brainticket Records. We are honored that he makes a special guest appearance with a guitar solo on the track “Shades of Disgrace.”

The title Sine Qua Non is Latin for “Without This, Mothing,” meaning, “Without this part of my life, the rest is meaningless.”

As one of the foremost originators in American doom, a huge supporter of Texas heavy metal and the dude who’s going to put out the record on his Brainticket Records label, it’s maybe not so much of a surprise that John Perez would show up on Sine Qua Non, the new album from Dallas‘ Elliott’s Keep. Nonetheless, it’s happy news, and as Elliott’s Keep guitarist Jonathan Bates informs, progress on the album is moving right along.

He sends along the following:

John Perez, doom lord of Solitude Aeturnus, has recorded a guitar solo for the new Elliott’s Keep album, Sine Qua Non. Sunday, John joined us at Nomad Studios, where we have been tracking the new record, to lay down a solo on the song “Shades of Disgrace.”

As an update about the recording of Sine Qua Non, with the completion of the bass tracking Sunday, all of the music has been recorded. Vocal tracking will get underway in a series of sessions which should commence in a week or so.

May 31 is Memorial Day, and there’s no better time for Dallas doomers Elliott’s Keep to commence the recording of their new album. After all, the band is named in honor of fallen comrade Glenn Riley Elliott, and their particular brand of doom is certainly in homage to the riffers of yore, so while it’s not exactly the jingoism the US government had in mind when they gave everyone that Monday off, it still works.

Guitarist Jonathan sent a note via the rarely-used ObeliskSpace to give the following update:

Just sending a shout out to update you regarding our band. We are headed back to Nomad Studios to record our next album, Sine Qua Non. The title is Latin again and translates to “Without this, Nothing,” as in — without this part of my life the rest would be meaningless. The album will include eight songs and should come in just over 60 minutes.

We will begin recording drums Memorial Day weekend and the entire process will likely be spread across three-to-four months because of work commitments and the like. We are working with JT Longoria again. I can’t say enough good things about him.

We were very fired up to see you mention us in a recent entry about Texas bands that should have been playing the Austin festival. That was very cool for us — thanks much!

Next up for us is the Dallas Doom Daze 3 festival [April 16-18 — ed.] and we are excited to be playing again this year. Should be great fun.

Elliott’s Keep may not play the most innovative kind of doom, but you have to at very least acknowledge why they’re doing it. The Dallas trio of Ken Aubrey (bass/vocals), Jonathan Briar (guitar) and Joel Oloren (drums) were once part of doom stompers Marauder with Glenn Riley Elliott. When Elliott died in 2004, the three surviving members of Marauder — long since broken up by then — formed Elliott’s Keep in his honor and released their debut, In Medias Res, on John Perez of Solitude Aeturnus‘ Brainticket Records late last year.

Stylistically, they offer bloodied-axe medieval themes and ’90s-esque dark sounds?, throwing the occasional heavier element (like a Sepultura breakdown six minutes into “Iter!”) or growled, snarling vocal into a mostly traditional doom context. They’re not hip and they know it, but they’re not trying to be either, so it works for the duration of the six tracks on In Medias Res. It’s roots doom, but with some more metallic tendencies.

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