Bindrune Recordings: Woodland Denizens unite!

The birth of Forest of the Soul began one summer afternoon in 2002 during a sweatlodge in the West Virginia hills. Andrew Della Cagna had brought an acoustic guitar along to strum throughout the day and to play some ideas for Aaron Carey. The two were in the band Harvist together at the time and had discussed doing an acoustic project. They traded ideas back and forth and realized they had more material to work with than previously thought. The sweat itself became an inspiration for one of the early songs, “The Lodge”. Soon the debut self-titled album took shape.

The album, Forest of the Soul, was a combination of classical guitar and piano music that Aaron had been writing since college, Andrew’s folky and infectious song writing, and collaborative songs written in 2002 and 2003. Inspiration from these pieces came primarily from Irish, American Indian, and Italian tradition and from a strong desire to defend Mother Nature through art. Though self-released, it sold well locally and drew some critical praise from American and European critics. It became a wellspring of music in both artists’ live shows, both together as Forest of the Soul and in their own solo performances.

The following four years were spent working on other projects including Angelrust and Nechochwen, with only occasional live Forest of the Soul performances. In 2008 the duo were asked to play at an NPR/PBS festival in Texas called Mesquite Heat. Forest of the Soul quickly entered Sacred Sound Studio to record the five-song EP, Faun Song. With this release, the group added live drums and bass to their sound and experimented with blues, acoustic rock and two cover songs along with an exclusive classical guitar piece.

By mid 2010 Carey and Della Cagna had finished work on releases from Nechochwen, Infirmary, and The Reprisal. A long list of newer Forest of the Soul songs began to surface, and it was time to begin polishing songs at Sacred Sound Studio for their second full-length, Restless In Flight. This time the focus is on streamlining song structures and balancing the album’s flow with atmospheric instrumental interludes. Drums and bass are much more prominent than on earlier releases and four re-worked songs have been added as bonus tracks. Forest of the Soul is honored to announce their signing with Bindrune Recordings for a digipak release of the album. Restless in Flight showcases Forest of the Soul’s continued evolution and philosophy of making music for music’s sake, regardless of genre.