''Saurian Meditation'' is the first solo album by

Karl Sanders Karl Sanders (born June 5, 1963) is an American singer and guitarist, most widely known as the founding member of the ancient Egyptian-themed technical death metal band Nile. Early life Before creating Nile, Sanders was in a thrash metal ...

, the vocalist/guitarist of the

technical death metal Technical death metal (also referred to as tech-death) is a musical subgenre of death metal that began and developed in the early- to mid-1990s, with particular focus on challenging, demanding instrumental skill and complex songwriting. Techni ...

band

Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...

. It was released on 26 October 2004 through

Relapse Records Relapse Records is an American independent record label based in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Matthew F. Jacobson in 1990. The label features many grindcore, death metal, metalcore and sludge metal artists. History The label was ...

. The music is a full length exploration of the atmospheric interludes heard on Nile's previous albums, and still draws on

ancient Babylonia Babylonia (; Akkadian language, Akkadian: , ''māt Akkadī'') was an Ancient history, ancient Akkadian language, Akkadian-speaking state (polity), state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-d ...

and

Lovecraftian Lovecraftian horror, sometimes used interchangeably with "cosmic horror", is a subgenre of horror fiction and weird fiction that emphasizes the horror of the unknowable and incomprehensible more than gore or other elements of shock. It is named a ...

themes for inspiration. The album was well received by metal and non-metal listeners alike.

Track listing

#"Awaiting the Vultures" – 3:52 #"Of the Sleep of Ishtar" – 9:35 #"Luring the Doom Serpent" – 4:00 #"Contemplations of the Endless Abyss" – 3:43 #"The Elder God Shrine" – 7:33 #"Temple of Lunar Ascension" – 3:51 #"Dreaming Through the Eyes of Serpents" – 6:16 #"Whence No Traveler Returns" – 5:36 #"The Forbidden Path Across the Chasm of Self-Realization" – 5:53 #"Beckon the Sick Winds of Pestilence" – 6:04

Personnel

- baglama saz,

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

ebow The EBow, short for electronic bow or energy bow, is an electronic device used for playing string instruments, most often the electric guitar. It is manufactured by Heet Sound Products, of Los Angeles, California. It was invented by Greg Heet i ...

guitar synthesizer A guitar synthesizer is any one of a number of musical instrument systems that allow a guitarist to access synthesizer capabilities. Overview Today's guitar synths are direct descendants of 1970s devices from manufacturers (often in partner ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Mike Brezeale -

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

* Pete Hammoura -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

;Special guests * Shawn Allen - acoustic guitar on "Whence No Traveler Returns" * Dallas Toler-Wade - harmony vocals on "The Elder God Shrine" * David Vincent - narration on "The Forbidden Path Across the Chasm of Self Realization" * Juan Gonzalez - drums on "Beckon the Sick Winds of Pestilence", lead gong on "Whence No Traveler Returns", harmony vocals on "The Elder God Shrine"

References

2004 debut albums Karl Sanders albums Relapse Records albums {{2000s-folk-rock-album-stub