The bogs of East Galway are the inspiration for the latest album from composer and sound artist Francis Heery, who creates music under the moniker The Cube of Unknowing.

Francis, who is from Ballinasloe and lives in Berlin, describes Bog Summoner –  released on the Library of the Occult record label –  as “a synth-heavy electronic” album. In it, he explores his deep-rooted fascination with “science fiction, occult mysticism and bio-aesthetic philosophy”.

Evolving organically during the recording process, Bog Summoner became what he describes as “a sprawling, shape-shifting entity”.

Influences range from the live recordings of Harmonia to the cosmic explorations of Tangerine Dream’s Phaedra and Rubycon, all steeped in what he describes as ‘bog gothic’ – an eerie evocation of East Galway’s bogs and buried histories.

One track, Uí Máine, takes its name from the medieval Irish clan that ruled the region, with Francis  being especially intrigued by a claim by a 16th Century alchemist Edward Kelley that he was descended from the Uí Máine.

“Bog Summoner imagines Kelley’s spectral presence lingering in the bogs, appearing to seekers and outcasts, summoning spirits among ancient burial mounds,” says the composer.

The album also draws on Ithell Colquhoun’s evocative writings on Ireland, particularly The Crying of the Wind, to reinforce Francis’s exploration of landscape as a portal to a mysterious world.

It’s available on vinyl, cassette and digital, via Bandcamp and online shops, and can be streamed at https://libraryoftheoccult.bandcamp.com.

Pictured: Francis Heery from Ballinasloe now living in Berlin.