Stephen R. Burroughs will be always connected to Head Of David. After the split of this legendary formation -which already happened early 90s, Stephen R. Burroughs got involved with numerous sonic projects. In 2013 he released the official debut album “Lost Corridors” of his solo-project Tunnels Of Āhon Cold Spring. The work revealed a mix of influences moving from Ritual to Dark-Ambient and Cinematic to Industrial. Stephen moved on releasing new material. By the end of 2023 Zoharum released the album “The Smeared Cloth 2012-2018 Unearthed” featuring a selection of previously unreleased tracks. The album is quite diversified but still featuring the familiar sound and influences from TUNNELS OF ĀH. Time for a chat with Stephen R. Burroughs. (Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: I realized the first official Tunnels Of Āh-album “Lost Corridors” was released ten years ago now. How do you remember this debut album and how do you perceive the evolution of the project, the sound & the albums throughout the years?

Stephen: It happened quickly. I’d written the material and decided to upload them on to an online page. As I was posting I realised I didn’t have a name. At the time I was reading “Nightside Of Ede” by Kenneth Grant. A section of it is titled “Tunnels Of Set” and I added the sanskrit ‘Ah’ to replace ‘Set’. Within hours Cold Spring contacted me saying they liked what they hear and it started from there.

As for the sound and material I follow my instinct. I simply see what emerges and take it from there.

Q: Head Of David remains the most famous project you’ve been involved with. What did you keep in mind from that period and how much of all side-projects (think about writing, spirit, way of working…) do you still use in Tunnels Of Āh?

Stephen: I’m asked about Head Of David quite regularly but there is no connection between Head Of David or any musical work I do now. Head Of David is a distant place now.

Coma’, which got released fueling my enthusiasm to record more FRAG which I continue to do. Tunnels Of Āh has gone quiet apart from the aforementioned re-releases. I’ve played twice as Frag with a third date in February.

Q: The recently released album “The Smeared Cloth 2012-2018 Unearthed” reveals previously unreleased tracks. Tell us a bit more about the background of these tracks which have been written over different periods and why did they remain unreleased? How did the album and the selection of tracks finally came to live?

Stephen: The material on “The Smeared Cloth 2012-2018 Unearthed” was written at the beginning of Tunnels Of Āh and simply lay in my vaults with no outlet or intention of releasing them till I had the chance and the desire to release a retrospective collection of work. I was very pleased with the “The Smeared Cloth”.  I have another album of retro material coming out on Zoharum in 2024. This will include the original album recorded around the time of “Deathless Mind” which I sidelined in favour of new material.

Q: I’ve always experienced Tunnels Of Āh and especially this new album as the offspring between different music genres; Ritual, Dark-Ambient, Experimental, Drone, Cinematic, Industrial… name it. How do you explain this eclecticism which is however characterized by a dark sound atmosphere? How would you introduce your music/sound to people who aren’t familiar with Tunnels Of Āh?

Stephen: I really don’t know how I describe my work. It gets filed under all those descriptions you mention but I genuinely just followed my instinct and wrote. It does have a dark atmospheric fell to it so I suppose I’d describe it as that.

Q: Do you follow a specific procedure in the composing process and what are the different stages to achieve a song/album?

Stephen: I simply believe in experimentation and following my instinct. I have never thought of being part of some particular genre, I allow people to decide for themselves.

Q: You like working around ‘conceptual’ themes which I think are totally matching with the Ritual side of your music. What do these concepts mean to you and is there any deeper link with your belief in Buddhism? How do you transpose themes and concepts into sound?

Stephen: Yes, the conceptual side of my work is so important to me. These concepts are my life. Buddhism is my practice and post-Head Of David I joined a Buddhist community and worked for a Buddhist movement. I was close to ordination and the movement imploded  leaving me to leave. As for transposing this into sound, once more it all lies in the feel of a piece. I don’t approach work with a particular concept in mind. And I am certainly not trying to convert people to my way of thinking. I do believe that everything we do, from having breakfast to sweeping the floor is an active aspect of ritual.

Q: What comes next?

Stephen:These days I’m working more on my other project Frag. Frag started in the early 90s. The name was presented by Paul Smith (Blast First). I recorded an album for Blast First which sadly never emerged but I carried on recording with no intention of releasing this material. It was only 2020 that I was approached by Cruel Nature Recordings to release something. Out of all the cassettes I made at that time only one remained, “Controlled Coma”, which got released fueling my enthusiasm to record more FRAG which I continue to do. Tunnels Of Āh has gone quiet apart from the aforementioned re-releases. I’ve played twice as Frag with a third date in February.

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

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Genre/Influences: Ritual, Industrial, Dark-Ambient, Drone, Experimental.

Format: Digital, 2CD.

Background/Info: British Industrial music veteran  Stephen Āh Burroughs (known from Head Of David) released now twenty years ago the debut album of his solo-project Tunnels Of Āh. This album is a selection of previously unreleased tracks which have been released as a double CD.

Content: The first disc features 11 tracks  originally released in between 2012 and 2015 which means we here get compositions from the period of the official debut album. The second disc reveals 10 more unreleased cuts originally composed in between 2016 and 2018. The common element between all cuts is the very particular, specific, sound universe created by Burroughs. The sound is a perfect mix between noticeable Ritual elements, Dark-Ambient atmospheres, and Drone. It’s a cold sound universe featuring spoken vocals empowering the mysterious and Ritual sphere of the work.

+ + + : I think it’s a damned good idea these previously unreleased sonic pearls have been recovered from dust. The composition perfectly stands for the obscure universe of Tunnels Of Āh and doesn’t really sound outdated. This work brings us back to the perfect sonic osmosis between Ritual, Drone and Dark-Ambient. The work features multiple outstanding cuts. I’ve a little preference for the second disc. This work will appeal to lovers of Z’Ev and co. I also have to say a word about the great, sober, artwork of the album.

– – – : Most of the tracks are pretty extended so in the end it might be a true marathon listening to this album. The fans will be pleased…

Conclusion: Great previously unreleased material by sonic master Stephen Burroughs.

Best songs: “Camphor”, “To The Paschal Victim”, “Circumcision (Hunter Christ)”, “Brute World”, “Keys King At Womb Door Again”, “In A Pig Ark dark”.

Rate: 8.

Artist: www.facebook.com/TheTunnelsOfAh

Label: www.zoharum.com / www.facebook.com/zoharum

About Tunnels Of Āh

Formed in January 2013, Tunnels Of Āh is Stephen Āh Burroughs (previously part of the cult band Head Of David).

Tunnels Of Āh signed to historical UK label Cold Spring Records in 2013 for the debut album “Lost Corridors”, followed by “Thus Avici” (2015), “Surgical Fires” (2016), “Charnel Transmissions” (2018), and “Deathless Mind” in 2020. “The Smeared Cloth 2012-2018 Unearthed”, released on Zoharum in 2023, collects previously unreleased material recorded during those same years.

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

“Iron Speaks” has become known as the ‘lost’ Tunnels Of Āh album since it was abandoned as the fifth album release due to it sounding ‘unengaged’ to writer Stephen Āh Burroughs. Until now that is. Dense informs us that after reworking the original material, “Iron Speaks” emerges as a rediscovered official sixth album release.

The material itself on this album deals with the transitional stages of life and death. The title, “Iron Speaks”, is a reference to the chapter in the Koran which states that iron emerges from the heavens as a gift to mankind.

The release is out on the Italian label Hypershape Records and comes in a limited metal box.

About Tunnels Of Āh

Formed in January 2013, Tunnels Of Āh is Stephen Ah Burroughs (previously part of the cult band Head Of David).

Tunnels Of Āh signed to historical UK label Cold Spring Records in 2013 for the debut album “Lost Corridors”, followed by “Thus Avici” (2015), “Surgical Fires” (2016), “Charnel Transmissions” (2018), and “Deathless Mind” in 2020.

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Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Birmingham (UK) duo Andy Swan – Damian Bennett set up Khost in 2013. Damian explains the name of the project had a strange shroud’ feel to it, like a presence. Khost is a city in Afghanistan so in the end it sounds a bit the same as acts like Boston, Chicago, London, Berlin and Nazareth. Damian Bennett felt they all seemed to be autonomous and just generated a vibe more than anything literally city-related. Andy Swan first read about the Afghan city of Khost in a CIA book and it immediately hit him as evocative and exotic and yet slightly threatening in a non-specific sort of way. It has an air of unease about it. It’s really hard to put your finger on it which suits the sound of Khost really well. Khost this year released the album “Buried Steel” on Cold Spring Records, which sounds to me as their most accomplished work to date; an album filled with overwhelming, monstrous sound treatments and carried by a rough production. It’s a work that can’t leave you unaffected so I talked about it with both members.

(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)

Q: I noticed you’re hailing from Birmingham, which is a town where numerous bands and artists dealing with very diversified music genres have been established. What has been the impact of it all on your interest in music and starting to experiment yourself? And what’s your connection with JK Flesh/Godflesh?

Damian: I grew up loving acts such as Wizzard, The Move and Moody Blues, all of which are entrenched in the spirit of the city. Later bands like Au Pairs and Steel Pulse… if you know the latter, you know of Handsworth where I used to live. We love Birmingham rock, punk, metal, glam, reggae, D&B, house… from clubs to unofficial anarcho-punk. We love venues like The Asylum and I personally love Newtown and Aston. Sabbath would rehearse in the community centre there.

We both have connections to Godflesh over decades and I was really proud to have worked on music in Avalanche studio, and to play like in Techno Animal… Justin on guitar, Kev on sax, was insane. Plus touring with Godflesh in the depths of Winter, was badass.

Andy: I was born and raised in Birmingham. I left school at 16 and immediately went to work in a Birmingham factory which had a massive effect on me. Birmingham back then had a more lived-in sort of feel which it doesn’t seem to have these days -it’s all plastic and shiny which I hate. It used to have a lot more soul but it’s devoid of that in some ways now.

I was in a band called Final with Justin from Godflesh back when I was 15 or so. We go back a long way!

Q: What means Khost to you and what did you originally tried to express/exorcise?

Damian: I love the possibilities the Khost vibe/temp/mindset presents. I don’t of many acts that have done as much wide-ranging material as we have… this year alone, “Buried Steel”-album –plus videos for that, “Steel Veil”-book, “23_12”-compilation which is ongoing and another project with a USA band which is in the works.

We comprise super heavy riffs, tones and electronics –such as “Intravener” –multi visuals on stage, and have many guest artists such as Eugene from Oxbow, Stephen from Wrangler/Cabaret Voltaire, Syan –who has also played with us live –Daniel Buess, Jo Quail.

We also get some pretty hefty swipes in about what passes for modern civilization. Hardcore commentary, just not the same delivery as you would get in punk. Though we obviously love punk and hardcore throughout the decades. I want to say on the latter am a massive Will Haven fan, for their sonics, approach, vibe, lyrics, live… wow.

Andy: I think that Khost is completely genre-free. It allows any sort of expression which is very liberating.

Q: What kind of work did you wanted to accomplish with “Buried Steel” and what have been the different stages you’d to go through to achieve the album?

Damian: Many albums can be a fairly simple journey from A to B. This is not.

Some albums are just a compilation of tracks. This is not. To do the latter would be, for me, to regard a ‘film’ as being a compilation of separate visual segments then just stuck together: if done right, it’s not that at all; it’s a narrative, a continuum under the watchful eyes of a unified team.

We wrote the material immediately starting after “Governance” and it really developed organically over time, with people entering the space and delivering their part. I think the first piece written was “Kent House”.

We had mechanical mishaps on the way such as a reel to reel catching flame –this is an occupational hazard with the band, but would salvage what we could and make something new from the salvaged material: like creating twisted sculptures from burnt wreckage.

Q: You again asked several guest artists to contribute to the album. Tell us a bit more about the input of other artists, which became like a common thread in the different works you’ve released? How does it happen and do you handle some specific criteria to ask other artists?

Damian: For me some of the spoken parts were inspired by interludes and narratives from the past from people such as Gira and Rollins, and loved how spoken interludes worked with the flow of the album, not to mention live… the connection between spoken and sung lyrics was so cool to me. I loved their books too: “Black Coffee Blues” and “The Consumer” for examples.

We would work with the people over time and develop the sound design to work with the material. It develops a lot as you discuss life and ups and downs. One discussion was about insomnia. We have done this since “Buried Steel” too, with people like Syan on “5 Steps Adrift” and Daniela v.k too, check out “Every Single Lie”.

The piece with M. Liebeskind –engineer for Oxbow, Melt Banana, 16-17 -is something from late night phone discussions and is very eerie actually: about two people on a tram talking to each other without moving, like a B&W film, or painting by Magritte, with a feeling of menace. It’s hard to get the same feeling in a musical piece if you follow.

Similarly Stephen from Tunnels Of Āh and his work… but I don’t want to talk too much more as it is down to the movie that plays in the mind of the listener.

I am also inspired by Mary Ocher who works in music in a way that transcends normal ‘songs’. She is awesome live.

Andy: I go back to the early 80’s Birmingham power electronics scene with Stephen from Tunnels Of Āh. He, along with all the other contributors, ‘get’ khost so they know the score immediately.

Q: I’ve always experienced your works as a mix of different influences, but in the end it always reveals a dark, obscure and event tormenting sound! What’s hiding behind this ‘terror sound’ and what inspired and/or drives you to compose this kind of music?

Damian: This connects to the ‘menace’ point, above. If that’s there then there would be the sort of unease that films from a different era presented… as they used old technology like analogue sound, had different acoustics, lighting, film stock, video stock… that could be low budget horror from 70s; “Lets Scare Jessica To Death” for example, it could be certain scenes even in films like “Dirty Harry”, like when he is confronted by the rogue cops in ‘Magnum Force’ in an underground carpark… it could be certain scenes in Polanski films, like “Rosemary’s Baby” when Rosemary realizes that the older couple are not right or normal (pierced ears), or when she’s in the phone booth and someone has his back to her outside… and in his version of “Macbeth” where dawn comes up and the castle is bathed in red light… not to mention scene with Banquo’s ghost! Or it could be overt stuff like “Evil Dead”, Korean/Japanese horror, moments in the early ‘V/H/S’ franchise… or my personal faves, “Paranormal Activity” 1-3. So it’s usually things from unexpected sources.

And the “World At War”-series. The sound/music on that is enough to stop anyone in their tracks.

Andy: Back when I was a kid there was a TV series called “Armchair Thriller” which scared me to death. There was one particular episode that included a faceless nun which was terrifying to me as a young kid. The first movie however that gave me nightmares was “The Wizard Of Oz” which in itself wasn’t a scary film, but had that underlying unease to it which is something that we’re definitely into. Not overtly horrific or scary but disconcerting and uneasy.

Q: Khost definitely is a live project! You already did an impressive number of live performances in very different countries. So I can easily imagine you must have been frustrated –and still are, because of the restrictions due to Covid 19. So what have you been doing during the lockdown? And how do you transpose your sound and work from the studio towards the stage?

Damian: We continue to work on “23_12”, which is inspiring. We did a live to air/stream at beginning of lockdown. We recently did an hour long mix, full of interesting moments. On a personal front have also done a side-project called TRIAL, industrial-thrash-metal.

Andy: We’ve had quite a few shows and festivals cancelled this year which has been a great shame. We have however been able to work on new material some of which will appear on a split EP to be released later this year or early next year.

Khost live is a different beast altogether. We’ve had all sorts of unexplainable occurrences during live shows -lights failing, laptops refusing to boot, sound cutting out, which all adds to the unease.

Damian & Andy: Merci beaucoup!

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Industrial-ambient, experimental.

Background/Info: Stephen R. Burroughs (previously involved with Head Of David) is back on track as Tunnels Of Āh to unleash the fourth official studio album of his project. This album brings us back to the Cold War era and is inspired by the ‘chime and gong stations’.

Content: Whatever the concept and/or inspiration, Tunnels Of Āh is always transforming ideas into pure sonic mayhem. The album features 5 long-during tracks, which are leading the visitor into darkness while surrounded by an arsenal of noises from which are now and then emerging ghost-like voices.

+ + + : “Charnel Transmissions” sounds like a sensual title for a work, but Tunnels Of Āh will always transpose every single subject into sonic decadence. But that’s also the trademark of this project, which became a reference in its genre. It’s a new atypical exposure of industrial darkness constructed with sonic collages and a real fascination to decompose and recompose sounds and noises. The albums from this artist never repeat themselves although they remain characterized by an explicit approach, which I think always is the mark of great composers.

– – – : This is the kind of album that will only catch the attention of the true lovers of ‘extreme’ industrial- and ambient music. It remains a difficult music format. Speaking for myself I’m missing a climax;

Conclusion: “Charnel Transmissions” makes me think to the work of evil spirits composing music to terrorize poorly mortal souls.

Best songs: “Kosmiglot”, “Homage To The Landfill Dogs”.

Rate: (7).

Artist: www.facebook.com/TheTunnelsOfAh

Label: www.coldspring.co.uk / www.facebook.com/coldspringhq

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Ambient-noise, experimental, dark-ambient.

Background/Info: In a previous life Stephen Reuben Burroughs got involved in Head Of David. Today he has found a new sonic canvas called Tunnels Of Ǡh to exorcise his music ideas. “Surgical Fires” is the third album by this music veteran.

Content: “Surgical Fires” takes off with noise-driven loops and that’s an essential element running throughout the entire production. Burroughs creates a kind of horror-soundscape accentuated by tormenting sound manipulations. From boiling noises and buzzing sound waves plus ghost-like whispers he creates a hostile atmosphere appealing your imagination to create dark and tortured visions.

That’s precisely what the title of this album is referring to: ‘a kind of psychic surgery’ probably to calm down the terror like visions this music is spontaneously appealing for.

+ + + : Tunnels Of Ǡh is a band, which is hard to define as one particular music style. It rather sounds as a synopsis of multiple, dark influences finally resulting in a personal dark music creation. This is a sound, which can’t leave you unaffected; it’s too freaky to leave you unmoved and that’s precisely the main strength of this work. I like the progression from rather noise-like opening cuts towards more ambient-driven cuts with solid sound treatments awakening your most secret and perverted fantasies. So in the end I would say that the ambient side of “Surgical Fires” is definitely hard-hitting.

– – – : “Surgical Fires” is the kind of work, which will be not accessible for a wider audience. That’s what all kind of underground music has to endure isn’t it? You don’t hear me to complain although the very first cuts left aren’t the most convincing ones.

Conclusion: “Surgical Fires” is the work of an alien or simply an artist finding an outlet for his most perverted music ideas. But no doubt about it, this is an artist who already has found disciples who will be ravished discovering this new creation of their Master.

Best songs: “One Hundred Gates + Eight”, “Black Air (Exhale)”, “Mind As Corpse Bearer”.

Rate: (7).

Band: www.facebook.com/TheTunnelsOfAh

Label: www.coldspring.co.uk / www.facebook.com/coldspringhq

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Ambient-noise, industrial, ritual.

Content: Stephen Reuben Burroughs got some fame and recognition as Head Of David. Today that all looks as if it happened in a previous life and numerous readers probably have never heard of Burroughs early involvement. The album “Lost Corridors” released now 2 years ago appeared to be the resurrection of this artist who started a new project.

“Thus Avici” has been introduced as being darker than its predecessor. I think we might say that this work is conceptual because of the inspiration dealing with spiritual and mystic themes like Tantric Buddhism, Christian mysticism and personal magic. It’s not always that easy to find back these influences in the sound composed by Tunnels Of Āh.

One thing is for sure and rapidly comes through: Burroughs conceived a dark and obscure work on, which he used elements of industrial- and ritual music, but still in a kind of ambient-noise approach. All the elements come together and the vocals are an essential aspect of the album. The vocals were produced in a narrative way while some parts become pretty spooky as if in the presence of a ghost. I especially like the track “Locusts Have Broken,” on, which next to the spoken vocals, you’ll discover a kind of humming female chant. It’s a kind of beautiful ghost song, which progressively evolves into a ritual format.

Some passages are a little bit monotonous, but globally speaking, “Thus Avici” is fascinating for its mix of influences and some cool noise manipulations. “The Perpetual Holocaust” is not exactly the kind of title that will give you a happy feeling expect if you’re addicted to obscure and noise/industrial minded atmospheres. The kind of Cathedral bells resonating in the background inject some visual appeal while it’s probably a sound reference to the spiritual concept of the work as well.

Conclusion: This work mainly fascinates me for its perfect balance between different sound influences. Tunnels Of Āh definitely appears to be an interesting new project set up by an old servant of this scene.

Best songs: “Locusts Have Broken”, “At The Error Of The Stars”, “The Perpetual Holocaust”.

Rate: (DP:7)DP.

Band: www.facebook.com/TheTunnelsOfAh

Label: www.coldspring.co.uk / www.facebook.com/coldspringhq

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com