Realm of Shadows

Realm of Shadows is the third studio album by American band Midnight Syndicate, released March 6, 2000 by Entity Productions.[1] Musically keeping with the band's blend of dark instrumental music and horror-influenced soundscape, the theme of the album centers around a cursed and abandoned village.[2][3]

Realm of Shadows
Studio album by
Midnight Syndicate
ReleasedMarch 6, 2000
GenreGothic, Dark Ambient, Neoclassical Dark Wave
Length52:01
LabelEntity Productions
Midnight Syndicate chronology
Born of the Night
(1998)		 Realm of Shadows
(2000)		 Gates of Delirium
(2001)

Album release

The album was self-distributed in United States, selling nationally in the United States through chains like Spencer Gifts, Hot Topic, Border Book Stores. The album was also sold in amusement park gift stores at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, and in other retailers of Halloween-related products, such as Mr Fun's, a chain of costume shops based in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.[2]

Reception

Realm of Shadows, along with their previous release, Born of the Night, helped establish the band's reputation in the haunted attraction and gothic music industries.[4][2][5][6][3] In an October 2000 interview in The Plain Dealer, band founder, Edward Douglas estimated that about 400 haunted houses and amusement parks were using the music including Cedar Point and Busch Gardens Tampa.[2] In an article in Cleveland Magazine Adrian LePeltier, Director of Show Development at Universal Florida, called the music "the most horrifying he'd ever heard," convincing him to use it in the park's Halloween Horror Nights event.[5] Daniel Hinds of Outburn Magazine said the album "took the band's brand of symphonic horror to a new level," commenting on that the ambient, synth-based instrumentals were a more subtle type of "terror."[7] Side-Line Music Magazine praised the dark tone of album's music created and effectiveness of the artwork.[8] Realm of Shadows, along with Born of the Night, was used as pre-show music for King Diamond's tour in 2000.[4]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Prophecy" (narration performed by Joseph Vargo)Edward Douglas, Joseph Vargo1:49
2."Into the Abyss"Gavin Goszka5:00
3."Noctem Aeternus"Edward Douglas2:32
4."Tempest"Edward Douglas1:19
5."Eye of the Storm"Edward Douglas2:35
6."Sanctuary"Gavin Goszka2:32
7."Among the Ruins"Tim Blue1:47
8."Realm of Shadows"Edward Douglas2:57
9."Raven's Hollow"Edward Douglas1:11
10."Beyond the Gates"Edward Douglas2:02
11."The Summoning"Gavin Goszka3:13
12."Spectral Mist"Edward Douglas2:13
13."Soliloquy"Gavin Goszka3:04
14."Twilight"Gavin Goszka2:43
15."Serpent's Lair"Gavin Goszka0:59
16."Black Woods"Gavin Goszka2:48
17."The Night Beckons"Edward Douglas2:25
18."Legions of the Dead"Edward Douglas2:45
19."Witching Hour"Edward Douglas2:50
20."Harbored Souls"Edward Douglas1:44
21."Eclipse"Gavin Goszka3:25

Personnel
  • Edward Douglas – composer
  • Gavin Goszka – composer
  • Tim Blue - composer on Among the Ruins
  • Joseph Vargo - narration on Prophecy

Production
  • Mixed and Engineered by Tim Blue (assisted by Edward Douglas and Gavin Goszka)
  • Artwork by Joseph Vargo for Monolith Graphics
  • Photography and Design by Christine Filipak
  • Additional Photography by Colleen Douglas
  • Financial Consultant: Edward P. Douglas
  • Mixed at Mandala Studios
  • Mastered at Beachwood Studios[1]

References
  1. Discogs Realm of Shadows
  2. Julie E. Washington, "Haunting tunes are Goth band's specialty", The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH ), October 30, 2000, Pg. 1-E
  3. Gregorious Chant, "Audio Drome: Realm of Shadows", Rue Morgue Magazine (Toronto, ON), September, 2000, Pg.72
  4. Jeff Niesel, "Soundbites", Cleveland Scene (Cleveland, OH), October 12, 2000, Pg.52
  5. Linda Feagler, "Tracks of Terror", Cleveland Magazine (Cleveland, OH), October 2000, Pg. 20.
  6. Mike Ventarola, "Music Reviews: Realm of Shadows", Newgrave Magazine (Hollywood, CA), Issue 2, Pg.49
  7. Daniel Hinds "Music Reviews: Realm of Shadows", Outburn (Thousand Oaks, CA), Issue 12
  8. "Music Reviews: Realm of Shadows, Side-Line Magazine (Brussels, Belgium), April 2000, pg.51
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