Randal Collier-Ford is a dark ambient producer currently residing near the western shores of the Puget Sound. Several years ago, he took to producing these brooding soundscapes to stymie his insomnia, to focus his energy on crafting his own work instead of listening to and memorizing the constructs of other producers. Thus he made his first appearance in the dark ambient realm with his project The Temple of Algolagnia—a harrowing ritual steeped in mesmerizing drones—which fell silent shortly after forging one spit with Funeral Mantra entitled Fremitus Ortus Cum Defuncti. Around the same time he conjured another project, Black Sun. And eventually, Randal shed the aforementioned monikers to begin producing under his own name. What came of this new path was the utterly bleak Dark Corners followed by his lengthiest album to date, Filosofia.

Filosofia is a particularly fascinating release as it hinted at a universe to be fleshed out with seemingly infinite lore in future releases. This fleck of an idea would then be manifested as a trilogy known as the Architects, Remnants, and Promethean trifecta on Cryo Chamber. The universe building, however, did not conclude with Promethean, where it would seem natural. But rather, Randal is actively completing a new trilogy of albums—to be released on Cryo Chamber—that will give us new perspective of this gargantuan expanse he is so meticulously etching.

In this conversation, Randal submerses us in the lore he’s been penning and articulating in his releases for several years now. He discusses the evolution in sound that takes place throughout his first Cryo Chamber trilogy and describes how he is perpetuating this metamorphosis in albums to come. There is much to learn and glean from this conversation. Expect a more in-depth mini-series exploring Randal’s rich lore in the months to follow. Thank you so much for listening.

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You can peruse a handful of Randal’s albums in the hyperlinks sprinkled above. For a deeper dive, though, you can visit his Bandcamp page. Thank you to Kyle at Ash & Dust Studio for mastering this conversation’s audio.