Philly's enigmatic post-black collective Crowhurst have unveiled their whopping 34th studio album T H O R N S, due out Friday via Sleeping Giant Glossolalia.

Listen below:

No stranger to concepts, Crowhurst — the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist Jay Gambit (Executioner's Mask, Dragged into Sunlight) — have returned for a grand rebirth inspired by the work of artist Gage Linsten (Magic: The Gathering), whose artwork appears throughout the project.

T H O R N S is five tracks that unfold like the soundtrack to a post-apocalyptic world on the brink of collapse. The band swaps black metal and sludge for avant-garde classical, drone, dark ambient and post-rock with an array of influences like Agitation Free, Bohren & Der Club of Gore, Mount Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, Ulver and Thee Silver Mt. Zion Orchestra.

The concept began as Linsten began working on a graphic novel titled THORNS, with Gambit hoping to create the score to accompany the story.

Years went by, with Linsten's career exploding with MTG, and the graphic novel went on the back burner. But Gambit kept writing.

He explains:

"What I've tried to do with this, especially, is create something that's sort of an amalgamation of all the things that I really love with a lot of musicians that I think are super, super talented, all of whom have created some incredible bodies of work on their own."

The album's lineup features Gambit handling samples, sound manipulation and electronics, alongside saxophonist Dima Dudko (White Ward), harpist and flutist Claire Deak, drummer and violinist Christian Molenaar, guitarist Dave Suzuki (Churchburn, ex-Vital Remains), synth player Justin Sweatt, cellist and violinist Isaac Takeuchi, pianist Mark Warm II, and producer Jeff Zeigler on vibraphone. Sleepwalker’s PBV, meanwhile, lends his talents on seven instruments.

Accompanying the album, the band is also releasing a digital city that listeners will be able to explore alongside T H O R N S. More info on that here.

T H O R N S is out Friday. Pre-order here. Tracklist below:

1. the stars ain't never gonna leave us
2. no city lights
3. onion fields
4. crisis of faith
5. all we have is now, all we have is each other

Tour Date:

02/05 Philadelphia, PA @ Subterranean Dissonance Fest (w/ The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza, Cave In, Primitive Man, etc.)