Adder’s Fork – Apparitions

This review comes a little late, but it’s not long time ago that this CD landed on my doorstep. Thus, now I can devote myself to the 2024 EP entitled Apparitions. It’s a six-tracker release by an Austrian project going under the moniker of Adder’s Fork.

Adder’s Fork is a solo project of Marko Köfler from St. Pölten (Lower Austria), founded back in 2012. The band name is taken from William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth. From the very formation the main purpose of this project was to channel musical ideas of Mr. Köfler. Those are mainly influenced by a wide array of great bands like Sisters of Mercy, Talk Talk, Joy Division, Paradise Lost, Cure, Saturnus, The Sound and other classic gothic rock/metal acts.

Since it took him almost three years to create Apparitions it must have been an exhilarating and grueling process, but simultaneously I think that he can be proud of the final result. Let’s beging with the lyrical themes on Apparitions, dealing with subjects of depression, internal struggles, but also about the artist’s own views on today’s society, religion etc. Adder’s Fork maintains this predominant gothic feel throughout Apparitions where it serves as a glue that holds all these different musical styles together. It starts with a self-titled “Apparitions” with some dark spoken-words and accompanying melodic guitar work. Second track named “The Colour Of Cold Rain” features the additional vocals of Gregor Eder (Darkest Moral & Magmabay). Meanwhile I find two other songs more interesting to dwell into, as they each represent an opposite position on a scale and perfectly describe the diversity and varied nature of this release. This is reflected in the “Mourning’s Temptress”, which features some dreamy and solemn female vocals (feat. Lena) being probably the most quite song on the EP, and “Towards The End” which in contrast to its predecessor opens with some extreme metal riffing, and onwards to include more progressive and gothic elements. The closing one “Towards The End” is also the most varied song on Apparitions, being a a real emotional rollercoaster. A nice way to end this six-tracker EP from Adder’s Fork.

I’m equally impressed by the professional sounding production on Apparitions. It has a nice atmosphere and this melancholic yet beautiful vibe, where all the instruments are clear and well mixed. I think that the band/Marko has achieved a satisfying combination of these varied, diverse and unforgettable sounds with the more hard-hitting elements of heavy metal. Often the challenge many solo artists have is either the inability to handle all different aspects of creating a decent piece of music, or the lack of someone to exchange the musical ideas with. Luckily, none of it was the case here, as Marko handles all instruments, vocals, lyrics, songwriting and production to perfection.

You should not hesitate to give it a couple of spins, since there is a lot to discover on Apparitions, revealing new facets with each new listen. Especially recommended for the fans of the above-mentioned acts, but also for anyone into a good gothic/dark wave/heavy sound.

For more info on this EP go to https://addersfork.bandcamp.com/album/apparitions and make sure to get ready for the new effort from Adder’s Fork whenever it might get released!