David Frazer of Milwaukee metallers Pillaging Villagers has released his self-titled debut solo instrumental synthwave album under the moniker Cruce Signatus! David linked up with Ghost Cult today to give a track-by-track breakdown of the entire album! Check it out!
“Gehenna et Tartareum”
Translated as ‘Hell and Damnation’ this track kicks of the feature length animated anthology for which Cruce Signatus is the soundtrack. In this first chapter, the story’s protagonist, Pierre Le Batard, an impoverished 11th century French knight whose very existence relies on violence, cruelty and vice but which also is defined by a totalitarian religious dogma, confronts this internal contraction upon return from battle and suffers the judgment of an omnipresent deity and the prospect of consignment to eternal torment. One of my favorite moments in this piece is the climax, from 4:12 to 5:24, which illustrator and animator Vincent Kings captured so well in the video. Having implored his God for forgiveness and received only judgment for his heinous crimes, with the eyes of the saints and the choirs of heaven staring down upon him, Pierre is presented instead with a vision of his damnation. As the synths build and the drums pound, flames rise and Pierre is plunged into the infernal pit. The ‘Gehenna’ theme floats ghostlike over the heavy refrain as demons dance around Pierre’s condemned soul. As the key modulates up at 5:00, Pierre is stretched on a rack, his screams drowned out by the hellish chords as the flesh melts from his skull.
“Lus Gladii”
In this second chapter, translated as ‘Law of the Sword,’ Pierre buries the scars of his internal conflict and returns to his manor, where his iron-fisted rule over all under his charge is necessitated in an age in which the strong rule over the weak. His loneliness, depression and self-loathing deepens as he descends into the depths of depravity and excess; his wanton debauchery only momentarily distracts him from the weight of his conscience and the judgment of his God. One of my favorite parts of this track is the section from 1:36 to 3:06, referred to in the screenplay as ‘The Manor.’ As Pierre arrives on horseback to his dilapidated estate, he is immediately mobbed by a horde of starving beggars. They crowd around him, tears in their eyes, pleading for alms, pinning him against the stables. Pierre’s eyes flashing with rage, he takes hold of his mailed club and raises it above his head as the beggars, undeterred, crowd in and begin to overwhelm him. Members of Pierre’s retinue enter the scene and push through the crowd, weapons drawn – revealing, from a low angle, Pierre kicking an unarmed beggar on the ground, fury in his eyes, the pulped face of the beaten man in the extreme foreground, the facial features barely recognizable as human. Still furious, Pierre pushes away from his bannermen and storms toward the gates of the manor. Pierre passes gallows where decomposed bodies swing in the breeze and more condemned men are being strung up by Pierre’s bannermen, with signs which read ‘Débiteur’ and ‘Impôts en Souffrance’ – an example to those who deny their lord his due. The damned men reach out towards Pierre for mercy, but with a nod, Pierre signals the executioners. A head-on shot of Pierre as he storms off – the blurred, out of focus images of bodies plunging through the gallows floor behind him – his face is expressionless save for fury. Throughout the story, we are conflicted about Pierre and his worthiness for our sympathy and redemption – while in the first track, we feel some sympathy for the broken knight, here we see him in one of his darkest moments and feel hatred for him. It is this duality between good and evil, like that epitomized by the scene in the cathedral, that drives the story forward.
“Vexillum Crucis”
In this third chapter, translated as ‘The Banner of the Cross,’ Pierre is called to join the crusade to the Holy Land by his liege lord, whose host descends upon Pierre’s meager fief. Pierre initially refuses to heed the call, but is compelled by loyalty to his lord, the Count, who sees him as merely one of many servants. His desire for acceptance, for the unconditional love of a father-figure, for a purpose in life, drives him to take up the cross. One of my favorite moments in this track is the section from 6:51 to 8:56, referred to in the screenplay as ‘Remembering the Oath.’ In this section, Pierre flashes back to the day of his knighting, 20 years hence. Dimly at first and then more vividly, Pierre pictures the Count, standing in a throne room draped in the pelts and furs of beasts, adorned in gold and fantastic tapestries with a black and gold carpet leading up to a stately throne. On his right, as we zoom out, we see the Count flanked by young knights – all barely adults, their eyes proud as they stand tall. Incense swirls as a monk chants in Latin to the Count’s left – there is an air of arcane ritual. The Count is holding a sword, extended out towards the camera and downwards towards the floor. From the Count’s perspective, the camera shifts to show what is at the end of the sword – Pierre, much younger, kneeling, gazing up at the Count. We sense the connection between the lord and young vassal as they stare into one another’s eyes. Pierre rises and embraces his lord, the Count pins a pendant with his crest, the same pendant Pierre and his men wore at the Count’s arrival at Pierre’s manor, to the place on his left pectoral where it has remained so many years later, if only ceremonially. Slowly, young Pierre rises and joins the other knights at the right hand of the Count, who all greet him loudly and happily, as brothers, slapping him on the back. The ‘Count’s Theme’ soars over the layers of synths. A close up of Pierre’s face, misty eyed – he has just remembered perhaps the best day of his life, the day that made him, for better or worse, what he is today. In contrast to the previous track, we once again feel sympathy for Pierre – is he a villain, or a victim?
“Bellum Dei”
In the fourth chapter, ‘War of God,’ Pierre engages in the brutality and cruelty characteristic of the crusading armies as he marches with the column through Europe to Constantinople, 1096. He engages in the pillage and murder of fellow Christians, butchery and mutilation of enemies, locust-like devastation of the land – all in an effort to please and gain the attention of his lord and master, the Count. One of my favorite sections of this piece is that from 5:15 to 7:18, referred to in the screenplay as ‘Father and Son Reunited.’ An alarm is sounded. Men rush to arms in response to a raid on the crusader column. We see Pierre rise from his straw bed on the ground – his beard is long, he has been on the march for months. Fifty yards distant, he sees riders in black carrying off prisoners, launching arrows into the army and riding off with a cart of provisions. They wear masks over most of their faces, showing only their eyes, and their mares are black. Pierre coldly grabs his weapons, mounts his horse, gestures to his bannermen and races off in pursuit as the raiders flee for the hills, the men of his retinue close behind. As the snare rolls, into the mountains they race. Pierre spots a defile over to the left which he can use to cut off the raiders. He gestures for his men to follow him into the defile and soon they come upon the head of the raiding party, perhaps 10 or 15 men, whose horses rear up – they are blocked as the rest of the crusader party catches up and surrounds them. The eyes of the raiders scan those of their pursuers – the terror in their eyes evident despite their masks. Crashing cymbals and a syncopated drum beat kick in as we cut to the raiders bound at the hands and being dragged behind the horses of Pierre and his retinue. They are bloodied and lifeless, hitting rocks and crags as they are dragged over the stony ground. They are headed for the Count’s fabulous carriage. Pierre draws up to the carriage and dismounts – his retinue praising him and slapping him on the back – it was him that led them in cutting off the raiders. He grabs the rope from his saddle and drags the near lifeless body of one of the raiders using the rope and throws him towards the door of the carriage, beaming with pride. The ‘Count’s Theme’ returns, modulated to a different key and time signature; pummeling kick drum and tremolo picking drives the moment home as the Count steps out, looking proud. Pierre has finally managed to catch the eye of his liege lord, who raises his hands in praise. The raider stirs and Pierre kicks him in the stomach. Pulling his dagger, he kneels and pulls the raider’s head up, exposing his throat, and looks at the Count for approval to kill him. The Count shrugs, as if unimpressed with such a painless death. Seeing the Count’s disappointment, as the barrage of drums continues to build, Pierre instead begins to gouge out the man’s eye with his knife. The man kicks and screams, though we cannot see his face beneath his mask. Blood spurts everywhere. The Count smiles. This elicits cheers from his fellow soldiers, who also take hold of their prisoners and mutilate them for the Count’s approval. The Count smiles more widely and gleefully applauds as he steps down from his carriage and places his hands on Pierre’s shoulders – still on his knees, just as at his knighting, Pierre’s eyes look up to once again meet the Count’s. The Count reaches out his hand, which Pierre grabs with his own bloody hand, shaking with adrenaline, and kisses it. Like a lost child looking for approval, Pierre finds a brief moment of happiness in this grisly scene, once again evoking the conflicting nature of our anti-hero.
Bio:
Cruce Signatus, the project from Milwaukee, WI, based multi-instrumentalist David Frazer (Pillaging Villagers), is preparing to release their instrumental self-titled debut. This is the first of four releases that together produce the soundtrack to a feature length animated anthology. This is a project which collaborates with independent animators and illustrators to bring the story to life. Cruce Signatus is out on June 7th, 2024.
David Frazer comments:
“Taking influences from a wide variety of sources, from the cinematic compositions of HANS ZIMMER and BASIL POLEDOURIS to the dark, brooding synthwave of GOST and PERTURBATOR, all passed through a heavy metal filter, CRUCE SIGNATUS represents a dynamic, ambitious venture into new musical realms.”
About Cruce Signatus:
CRUCE SIGNATUS’ self-titled debut is the first of four epic concept albums which form the musical soundscape for a feature-length, animated anthology series. In collaboration with Heavy Metal Magazine illustrators such as Vincent Kings & Chris Anderson, this series unfolds the tale of an impoverished knight’s quest to confront his sins as he navigates the monstrous brutality of the First Crusade.
Stream the debut album here:
Follow Cruce Signatus:
https://www.facebook.com/crucesignatusband
https://www.instagram.com/crucesignatus2024/
https://crucesignatus.bandcamp.com/album/cruce-signatus
https://www.youtube.com/@cruce.signatus