Death arrives in many forms, and it is often at the root of many mythologies and lore. The new album titled, ‘Cóiste Bodhar,’ from multi-instrumentalist The Phonometrician is a work inspired by two such narratives. This is the second full-length album from Mexico City based musician Carlos Morales under the alias.

Whereas Morales' debut album ‘Mnemosyne,’ asked the question, “what memories would sound like if they were captured through sound?” ‘Cóiste Bodhar’ is derived from a Celtic folk tale about a Death Coach. Seeing or hearing the coach was also said to warn of imminent death to either oneself or that of a close relative. Morales takes further influence from the 1921 Swedish picture, “The Phantom Carriage.” In the silent film directed by Victor Sjöström, it shares a similar legend. On the night of New Year’s Eve the last person to die that year has to drive Death’s carriage and collect the souls of everyone who dies in the coming year.

Perhaps the symbolification of such an enigmatic, polarizing, and inevitable subject such as death has helped to ease our fears of what lies beyond. Many of the stories written and films made have taught us to fear death, march into it bravely, or to look at it as a new beginning, and oftentimes all of the above. It’s a very natural emotion to look back upon life with certain regrets, wishing we had more time to do this or improve that.

The Phonometrician holds true to his core instrumentation throughout ‘Cóiste Bodhar,’ using an acoustic guitar, a Venezuelan cuatro, and synths to give the album a push towards the realm of dark folk. Returning are Morales’ signature low end stomps, which seem well-suited for the topic of death. These heavy marching rhythms share commonalities with those one might expect to hear from the martial industrial or ritual scene. Yet in combination with the cyclical guitar melodies, the dooming percussion never seems to weigh down the compositions. Also for the first time Morales invites a collaborator, with Adrian Copeland (aka Alder & Ash) delivering a scorching cello performance on the song "Death Rides a Horse: Part II.“

‘Cóiste Bodhar,’ although based on fantasy, was written around the fundamental idea of death, the notion of our mortality and the emptiness of our swift existence. All of us have at least pondered death, questioning what truly occurs when the lights fade. Some have concrete ideas, so sure in their footing that they would lead us all to the same fate. Though for many, death remains the great unknown, the ultimate blank canvas for our mind to run amuck, a motivation to live more, a deterrent from danger, an escape when life feels too overwhelming, an unavoidable outcome for every living creature.

There are no concrete answers here, no profound realizations, and Morales knows this. Yet providing some form of kindling for contemplation with ‘Cóiste Bodhar,’ might be the clearest path to satiation.  Maybe death isn’t as scary as it is made out to be, or maybe it is all fire and brimstone. Perhaps worrying about it severely decreases the time we could spend caring for the things and beings right in front of us. One thing is certain, death will continue to be a prized interest of human fascination, and lead to a thousand more stories long after everyone reading this is gone.