Reports from the Threshold of Death

Reports from the Threshold of Death is the second full-length studio album from American art rock band Junius. The record was released in CD (digipak), limited edition Vinyl, and digital download format through Prosthetic Records on October 25, 2011.

Reports from the Threshold of Death
Cover Artwork and Design by Ira Bronson
Studio album by
Junius
ReleasedOctober 25, 2011
RecordedWill Benoit's Radar Studios, Clinton, CT (Spring 2011)
Genre
Length42:07
LabelProsthetic
ProducerJames Dunham
Junius chronology
The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist
(2009)		 Reports from the Threshold of Death
(2011)		 Days of the Fallen Sun
(2014)

Background

On March 8, 2011, it was announced that Junius had signed to metal label Prosthetic Records and would be recording a new full-length album during the Spring of 2011.[1] During this time, the album was recorded by the band at Will Benoit's Radar Studios, a recording studio that relies entirely on solar energy and other sustainable practices.[2] Producer and close friend of the band, James Dunham, described the two months spent working on the album with the band as his favorite experience as a hired producer, describing it as "truly rewarding".[3]

On September 13, 2011, the track listing, album cover, release date, and a full stream of the song "All Shall Float" debuted on the independent music news website Brooklyn Vegan.[4] Also, a promotional video directed by Matthew Schwab appeared on the homepage of the band's official website, which featured a snippet of the track "Betray the Grave" with background footage of the band rehearsing at Radar Studios.[5] A full stream of the song "A Universe Without Stars" debuted on Guitar World on October 11, 2011.[6] Eventually, the entire album was made available for streaming exclusively on the band's profile page at AbsolutePunk on October 20, 2011.[7]

On October 25, 2011, Reports from the Threshold of Death was released worldwide.[8] Music videos were released for "All Shall Float" and "Betray the Grave" respectively.[9]

Theme

Following the death of Immanuel Velikovsky on The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist, Reports from the Threshold of Death continues the examination of the human spirit by following its journey after death. Joseph Martinez has stated that this album is very personal to the band, as members have lost close friends and family in the recent years leading up to the album's writing and recording.[10]

The album's title is a reference to near death experiences, while the album itself is based on the experiences of those who have died and come back.[11]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Revolver[12]
MetalSucks(favorable)[13]
the Racquette(favorable)[14]
MSN(favorable)[15]
Blistering[16]
Blogcritics Music(mixed)[17]
Exclaim!(favorable)[18]

Reports from the Threshold of Death was generally well received by critics and fans alike.

Exploding In Sound called the album "album of the week" for the week of November 1, 2011, stating "If you are a fan of nu-wave, post-rock, post-metal, or pretty much post-anything, there's little chance you won't fall all over yourself loving this beast of an album".[19] The metal album review site Sorrow Eternal rated the album 9/10 and awarded Junius "Band Of The Month for November" for their work on the album and their live performance.[20] On November 2, 2011, the album was featured on The A.V. Club monthly LOUD list. Describing the album, list author Jason Heller expressed "The ethereality oozes like congealed plasma out of this one; there’s an almost cathedral-like shiver to the disc’s jet-black majesty." [21]

Decibel Magazine ranked Reports from the Threshold of Death #10 in their "Top 40 Extreme Albums of 2011" list.[22] AOL's music news website Noisecreep placed the album at #3 in their "Best Albums of 2011" list.[23] MSN's music blog Headbang included the title in their end of the year list as well, ranking it #25 in their "Top 50 Albums of 2011" list.[24]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Junius.

No.TitleLength
1."Betray the Grave"4:15
2."All Shall Float"4:33
3."Dance on Blood"4:35
4."A Universe Without Stars"4:24
5."Haunts for Love"4:18
6."The Meeting of Pasts"4:18
7."(Spirit Guidance)"1:41
8."A Reflection on Fire"4:08
9."Transcend the Ghost"5:12
10."Eidolon & Perispirit"5:20
Total length:42:07

Personnel

Reports from the Threshold of Death album personnel adapted from the CD linear notes[25]

Junius

Production

  • James Dunham (of InAeona) & Junius - production, mixing
  • Will Benoit (of Constants) & Daryl Rabidoux - engineering assistants
  • Nick Zampiello & Rob Gonnella - mastering at New Alliance East in Cambridge, MA

Art

  • Ira Bronson (of Black Day Creative) - Album artwork, design, and layout

References
  1. Admin. (2011-04-08). "PROSTHETIC Signs JUNIUS". Prosthetic Records. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  2. Broger, Logan (2011-08-16). "Junius's Reports Due Out in October". Hearwax. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  3. Ty Griffin (2011-11-05). "ETO Exclusive: Boston's InAeona Have Full-Length Album In The Making". Escape The Ordinary. Archived from the original on 2011-11-14. Retrieved 2011-11-10.
  4. BBG(Fred Pessaro) (2011-09-13). "Junius replacing Ghost on Enslaved tour (dates), releasing new LP on Prosthetic (song debut)". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved 2011-11-06.
  5. Junius (2011-10-13). "JUNIUS - Reports from the Threshold of Death Preview". Vimeo. Retrieved 2011-11-06.
  6. Hart, Josh (2011-10-11). "Exclusive: Junius Premiere New Song, "A Universe Without Stars"". Guitar World. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  7. Lueda Alia (2011-10-20). "ABSOLUTExclusive: Junius". AbsolutePunk. Retrieved 2011-11-06.
  8. Junius (2011). "Album Information". Facebook. Retrieved 2011-11-07.
  9. Carlos Ramirez (2012-04-10). "Junius, 'Betray the Grave': Exclusive Video Premiere". Noisecreep. Retrieved 2013-10-12.
  10. JUNIUS (2011). "Press Resources". juniusmusic. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  11. ken (2011-11-19). "The Junius Mystique". HighWire Daze. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  12. J. Bennett (2011-09-21). "Junius - Reports From the Threshold of Death". Revolver. Retrieved 2011-10-18.
  13. Vince Neilstein (2011-10-13). "JUNIUS, OH JUNIUS, IF MUSIC BE THE FOOD OF LOVE, PLAY ON". MetalSucks. Retrieved 2011-10-19.
  14. Carter Jones (2011-10-20). "Junius : Reports from the Threshold of Death". the Racquette. Retrieved 2011-10-20.
  15. Adrien Begrand (2011-10-24). "Review: Junius, 'Reports From the Threshold of Death'". MSN. Archived from the original on 2012-04-02. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
  16. David E. Gehlke (2011-10-24). "Junius - Reports From the Threshold of Death". Blistering. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
  17. Nick Krenn (2011-10-25). "Music Review: Junius - Reports from the Threshold". Blogcritics Music. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
  18. Natalie Zina Walschots (2011-10-26). "Junius - Reports from the Threshold of Death". Exclaim!. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
  19. Roncaglione, Adam (2011-11-01). "Junius "Reports From the Threshold" of Amazing". Exploding In Sound. Retrieved 2011-11-03.
  20. Murmaider (2011-10-29). "The Podcast: Episode 26 (And the winner is...)". Sorrow Eternal. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  21. Jason Heller (2011-11-02). "LOUD November 2, 2011". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2011-11-08.
  22. BBG (2011-11-27). "Decibel Magazine's Top 40 of 2011". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved 2011-11-28.
  23. Noisecreep Staff (2011-12-05). "Best Metal Albums of 2011". Noisecreep. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  24. Adrien Begrand (2011-12-07). "The Top 50 Albums of 2011, #30 - 21". MSN. Archived from the original on 2012-06-05. Retrieved 2011-12-08.
  25. Reports from the Threshold of Death (CD liner). Junius. Prosthetic Records. 2011.CS1 maint: others (link)
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