Ritual Cloak is made up of Daniel Barnett, formerly of the band Samoans, and drummer & producer Andrew Sanders.
The duo met in 2013 after Daniel answered an add for a guitarist to join the backing band for singer Jemma Roper. An instant kinship was struck, with both Daniel and Andrew embracing experimentation and a shared love of electronic music.
After the split of Samoans in 2018, Daniel began to compose a collection of instrumental songs with the aim of releasing a solo record. Spending time working on ideas in the group’s shared studio in Cardiff, Daniel asked for Andrew’s guidance on recording and engineering a session.
Recording sessions evolved quickly into the new project being a full collaboration between the two, with early songs such as ‘Everyone Is Hungover So I Walked The Mountain Alone’, ‘Time Tombs’ and ‘Cracked’ forging the musical direction. Daniel’s intentions were to compose mainly on piano and to use guitar sparingly, or in a less conventional way to create ambient sounds and textures.
The final 9 compositions make up the debut self-titled album Ritual Cloak, released in September 2019.
Yr Albwm | The Album – ‘Ritual Cloak’
Gyda’i feddwl yn y ddinas ond ei chalon yn y mynyddoedd, mae Ritual Cloak yn crynhoi’r angen i ddianc rhag baw modern bywyd dinesig a chroesawu galwad y bryniau. Dyn ni’n ffodus iawn i fyw mewn gwlad mor brydferth â Chymru. Mae ei thirwedd yn cael dylanwad mawr ar swn yr albwm, a recordiwyd yn ein stiwdio yng Nghaerdydd gyda meistrolaeth gan Charlie Francis. Dyluniwyd y gwaith celf clawr gan Jude Lau o The Printhaus trwy fwydo sain o’r albwm cyfan trwy nodwydd, gan dynnu patrwm an-linellol ar blât copr, gan greu gwaith celf unigryw mewn ymateb uniongyrchol i’r albwm.