Laid on the clay there in silence
Dreaming the world would go on
Knowing it wouldn’t be long
Can we pretend?
The Book of Miracles, created in mid-16th-century Augsburg, Germany, is a stunning manuscript that reads like a Renaissance tabloid with a divine twist. Compiled between 1552 and 1564, it captures the era’s blend of religious belief and budding scientific curiosity. Each page bursts with vivid watercolors and gouache paintings, showcasing meteor showers, comets, monstrous births, and heavenly signs. The book’s content includes celestial omens, natural disasters interpreted as divine retribution, biblical end-time scenes, and tales of strange creatures.
Far from just bedtime stories, it documented and interpreted the world’s wonders, reinforcing beliefs in a divine order and imminent apocalypse. Lost in private collections and relatively unknown, it resurfaced in the 21st century, offering a fresh glimpse into Renaissance fears and fascinations. Today, the Book of Miracles is treasured for its artistry and historical value, providing insight into the 16th-century mind and its view of the cosmos.
Suffer Ring, a synth-punk duo from Atlanta, GA, packs a punch with their fourth LP, Book of Miracles, which takes a cue from its medieval predecessor and places it in the 21st century. Their sound is both aggressive and ethereal, a blend that hits hard and haunts softly.
McCanna and Davenport intertwine their razor-sharp wit with abrasive, synth-driven melodies, crafting tracks that hit as hard as a right hook and captivate with their contemporary parallels to the arcane tome. “Book of Miracles” presents another innovative chapter in their book of boundary-pushing beats and surreal sounds.
“In the early 2000’s, an illuminated manuscript called the Book of Miracles detailing portents of doom from various periods of history ranging from The Old Testament to the 16th century was discovered in Augsburg, Germany. It stands as a record of people’s fear of powers greater than themselves throughout history, whether they be forces of nature or God’s punishment.
“…SUFFER RING’s 4th album is a Book of Miracles for today. In the wake of dead gods and demystified forces of nature, the powers with apocalyptic potential are more mundane and more horrifying than anything god could dream of. Bitter, resentful, gun-toting losers, proxy wars, opioids, poverty, genocide, and nuclear weapons…Book of Miracles is a return to old-school witch house production with dark rumbling bass and euphoric distorted melodies that inspire dancing as much as it does moshing.”
Book of Miracles is out now on all major digital platforms and limited edition CD, including three previously released digital-only singles and their cover of Not In Love by Crystal Castles/Platinum Blonde as bonus tracks.
Listen to the Book of Miracles below, and order it here.
Book of Miracles follows the eerie echoes of 2021’s Hauntology, the reverent rhythms of 2020’s Reverentia, and the wistful waves of 2018’s Wishing Well. This album continues their signature style—unrelenting yet dreamlike, a concoction of chaos and calm. The album was produced by Kyle McCanna (Dead Fe†us) and Corey Davenport (Cairn Elan).
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