In May of 1980, Mount St. Helens erupted and everyone in the Pacific Northwest was touched by its ash, its destructiveness, and its story, a shared experience that became an ash souvenir. Ash Souvenir is the collaborative album by Drowse (Kyle Bates) and Ragana (Maria and Noel), conceived in a shared sense of grief and collective memory rooted in the Pacific Northwest.
Ash Souvenir was originally commissioned by and premiered at the 2024 edition of Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, Netherlands. Afterwards, the trio recorded the album at the legendary Unknown studio in Anacortes, Washington.
The album combines Ragana’s heavy, emotionally charged metal with Drowse’s textural approach to sound. Across four long-form pieces, the trio’s voices and instruments move between stark intimacy and overwhelming intensity, culminating in a collective refrain: “there is nothing to lose.”
Ash Souvenir is a sublime experience, conjuring both the power of a devastating eruption and the eerie stillness that lingers in its wake, ashen memories drifting through night air before rejoining the earth.
Listen to the first single, "In Eternal Woods Pts. 2 & 3," and pre-order vinyl, tape, and merch at the links below.
Ash Souvenir will be released November 14th via The Flenser.
