The Distaff

by maud the moth

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Der Ohlsen
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Der Ohlsen "[...] The Distaff is an impressive journey through dynamics and emotions. From the small and brittle to the surprisingly crushing and cathartic it's an amazingly beautiful achievement. And it does it all in complete defiance of genre conventions [...]"

derohlsen.blogspot.com/2025/10/cassette-craze-chronicles-xlii-feat.html
Nickie Harte Kelly
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Nickie Harte Kelly Maud the Moth returns with this astonishing tour de force. I’m not always a fan of operatic vocals, but this hits all the right notes for me. “Distaff,” refers to the female side, deriving from the wooden rod used for spinning, and is symbolic of rigidity imposed upon women by many societies and individuals. The release unflinchingly explores the theme of trauma and recovery, in all of its complexity. A profoundly rewarding listen, disturbing and exultant. Favorite track: Despeñaperros.
progdolphin
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progdolphin As natural as breath to a body gasping, and as natural as my own breath leaving mine with every passing moment, The Distaff rises and falls with a lurch and solemn acceptance of life unfolding. Finding harmony amonst waves and ripples of discord, Maud the Moth lives a sonic statement all its own: one part voice wild and unwavering, one part subtle rhythms that carry ethereal soundscapes, one part swelling piano textures, all wrapped in an unmistakable bleeding heart. Favorite track: Fiat lux.
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1.
Fuera de si, se adentró en el cuerpo de las dos. Sarmiento envenenado Y la acequia ahoga la vid Peste negra en la raíz. Simiente que se ha echado a perder.
2.
My body is a temple by the river, a crypt of flesh turned to stone. A gate wide open, a safeguard to the heavens. Trodden, sheltering heart. A granary: all husk, all animal feed. A shallow urn overflowing With bile and honey, embalming pride green and glowing, marrow and wine With penitent, flaming hearts over the fields sowed with salt My flowing body drinks from the marshes and the solace of song And the grazing animals feed on the roots below the mud in my banks My flowing body between the reeds that drone the chanters of men And my body is not enough, my body is not enough My body by the temple is a river, a house of red clay and straw
3.
Exuviae 04:03 video
The sky splits like spoilt milk while all rests asleep an eye always open uprooted antiques But inside me there's a crack where the light can never reach Inside me flows a vein of molten ore gone bitter Miscarried, lies on the floor Shame, creeps, red New flesh torn And this self discarnate I do not recognise No more No more The sky wakes to an untouched meal.
4.
Ringless left and burdened right. One steers the oar. One stokes the fire. Word and flame incarnate. A heavy crown. A mouth to feed. A dog to guard the house. Shame spins the wheel. Swollen breasts heavy with greed. In The Holy Sisterhood of Grief Leave these weaving hands, untamed, to bury all your dead To pour the oil that fuels the lantern. To illuminate a path untrodden. Child bound in the cradle, brine boils in the hearth. Crimson robed and starved, holds the distaff Crimson robed and marked for sacrifice
5.
I’ll house a pack of nesting beasts open and honest in my bed All arms and breath and swirling shores And opium eyelids drop Like curtain calls Mouths filled with grace, hands clenching flesh To feed you all my pain. Skin breaks like lace, so bleached, in shreds like seaweed drifting looms Translucent bones A draining bathtub A mirrorlike lake To wash our bodies To soil our face
6.
A trail of pelts and broken bones And friendships with the drowning Swallows diving in a pool of sorrow Imperfect to the eyes of god And through these walls turned sinew and skin all cracked like dawn Under the weight of their expectations Naked and open Milk turns to earth in my breast and my shoulder blades are tectonic plates swimming away from my spine unbraced A choir of angels: featherless, vengeful descending like a wake descending In circles
7.
O rubor 01:18
O rubor sanguinis, qui de excelso illo fluxisti tu flos es quem hyems de flatu serpentis numquam lesit.
8.
Fiat lux 04:04
Blood of the father Flows through the son Drips through the fingers, viscous and warm Furrows be open. Wide for his seed White sheets unfurling In the balcony. Eyes of the child. Violet smears. She closed the door. I disappeared. Keyhole distorts the light Beast of burden rise Kindred bodies dissolve Dehooved and mute in the barn
9.
One thousand lives filtered you through porous flesh and still placentas. Pearlescent brow Primordial crown of stars dissevered, vast and verdant Breeder of chance

credits

released February 21, 2025

Music and lyrics: Amaya López-Carromero

Piano, voice, psaltery, hyperpiano and percussion: Amaya López-Carromero
Guitar, Moog and saxophone: Scott McLean
Drums and percussion: Sebastian Rochford
Cello: Alison Chesley (Helen Money)
Violin: Fay Guiffo
Sound design by Scott McLean and Amaya López-Carromero

Produced by Scott McLean and Amaya López-Carromero
Mastered by Alex Wharton at Abbey Road (London)
Mixed by Scott McLean
Recorded at Gorbals Sounds (Glasgow), The Shelter (London) and Neon Fable (Edinburgh) between January and July of 2024 by Scott McLean and Amaya López-Carromero.

Art direction and artwork by Amaya López-Carromero
Original photo by Demelza Kingston, styled by Michelle Watson.

This album was funded by Creative Scotland.


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¨The Distaff wears in bold and uncharted tapestry its heart-wrenching endeavors. Without a peer, Maud the Moth threatens to fly freely at the top of its own constructed throne.¨ - ANGRY METAL GUY 5/5 album review

¨To listen is to labour. The artist demands not passive consumption but active communion—an emotional and intellectual plunge into the darkest corners of the self. The reward, for those willing to brave the journey, is a rare equilibrium: a balance of beauty and brutality, where closure emerges from the chaos like a fragile moth from its cocoon. Devotees of the extreme, the experimental, and the deeply human will find in The Distaff a work that moves body, mind, and soul—a coruscating rush of sound striking steel, resounding with the grief and grit of survival.¨ - SENTINEL DAILY

“As timely as it is powerful…her most challenging but ultimately rewarding album yet…its power is palpable throughout.” - PROG

“the piano keys in 'Burial Of The Patriarchs' sounding as though they're creeping through castle corridors, the thunderclap guitars on 'Despeñaperros'...” - ELECTRONIC SOUND

“unapologetically rapturous, as if all the performers are playing magnesium flames as musical instruments” - EVERYTHING IS NOISE

“… unfolds like a modern-day, avant-garde opera filled with incomprehensible levels of drama, beauty and pain.” - THE SKINNY

“an artist as intense as Keeley Forsyth, as singular as Joanna Newsom and as dramatic as Diamanda Galas… An operetta set in song, López-Carromero’s thrilling soprano yearns, gliding over the cymbal splashes and scratchy harmonics..." - BACKSEAT MAFIA

"... filled with eerie keys, dramatic volume shifts and diaphanous vocals” - GET IN HER EARS

“an impressive re-imagining of the post-classical form” - BACKSEAT MAFIA - 8.9/10 album review by John Parry

“a cipher of womanhood, transgenerational trauma, of identity unraveled and rewoven through time by the hands of those who came before, and those who follow. There is something ancient about it, something almost inescapable, an organic quality as natural as the turning of the seasons, as instinctive as birds’ chirping.” - LOUD WOMEN - album review by Diana Revell (21st Feb)

“bubbling in the crucible of these songs is that exceptional voice which has with the mercurial dexterity to punch through granite as well as offer up a tenderness that is heart-breaking” - JOYZINE - album review (22nd Feb)

“Its thematic content is rich – exploring trauma, memory and catharsis – and with each listen reveals further layers of intrigue and ideas. Its unexpected, sparse, yet heavy sonic craft is compelling, particularly in its rich falsetto harmonies. Yet the whole thing is escalated through intent. Its off-kilter and thunderous nature directly expresses the vivid and indistinct recollection of childhood. It makes for a compelling experience.” - DISTORTED SOUND MAG - 8/10 album review by Chris Hart (20th Feb)

“a deep, meaningful and transcendental experience that is hard to liken with anything else… essential listening” - NOIZZE UK - 8/10 album review (20th Feb)

“It connects antiquity with the present, it builds bridges, it is about the human condition.” - VEIL OF SOUND - album review (20th Feb)

“a ferocious piece of work… the musicianship is off the scale” - MOONBUILDING - included in newsletter roundup (21st Feb)
“immediately becomes the defining album of her Maud the moth project… deeply moving and memorable ” - BOOLIN TUNES - 9/10 album review by Dobbin Thomas (20th Feb)

“solidifies Maud The Moth as a unique and compelling voice in contemporary music, offering an album that will resonate deeply with those willing to embrace its darker, introspective journey… a hauntingly beautiful and thought-provoking experience that lingers long after the music fades.” - OUT OF RAGE - album review (20th Feb)

“unapologetically rapturous, as if all the performers are playing magnesium flames as musical instruments” - EVERYTHING IS NOISE - album review (18th Feb)

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maud the moth Edinburgh, UK

𝔐𝔞𝔲𝔡 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔪𝔬𝔱𝔥 𝔦𝔰 𝔞𝔫 𝔦𝔫𝔰𝔢𝔠𝔱

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