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SAOR Re-Records ‘Carved in Stone’
SAOR Rewrites Its Past
Scottish atmospheric black metal project SAOR have released a re-recorded version of ‘Carved in Stone’, originally featured on their 2013 debut album “Roots”, under the title “Carved in Stone MMXXVI”. An official music video accompanying the song has also been released today.
The new recording serves as the first single from “Caledonia”, due out on November 6, 2026, via Season of Mist. The album finds SAOR, the one-man project led by Andy Marshall, revisiting five songs from the project’s first three albums and re-recording them through the lens of its current musical approach.
The songs selected for “Caledonia” come from the “Roots”, “Aura” and “Guardians” eras. Alongside ‘Carved in Stone’, the album will feature new versions of ‘Aura’, ‘The Awakening’, ‘Hearth’ and ‘Tears of a Nation’. Running at 51 minutes and 28 seconds, the record applies Marshall’s experience in production, arrangement and live performance over the past thirteen years to these early compositions.
The key difference between the new versions is not simply an upgrade in sound quality. SAOR have revisited songs that evolved through years of live performances, giving them broader arrangements and greater atmospheric depth. Production, mixing and mastering for the album were handled by Chris Fielding.
Several guest musicians also contributed to the reconstruction process. Carlos Vivas handles drums, while Ella Zlotos adds tin whistle, low whistle and Uilleann pipes to the album’s folk elements; Àngela Moya Serrat contributes violin. The result expands the foundation in which Marshall handles guitars, bass, vocals and the other core instrumentation himself with guest performances that further strengthen the album’s folk character.
The visual identity of “Caledonia” also maintains a connection with SAOR’s earlier periods. The cover artwork, layout and video for ‘Carved in Stone’ were created by Anaïs Chareyre-Méjan, who has worked with the project since the “Forgotten Paths” era.
The songs revisited by Marshall retain SAOR’s thematic focus on Scottish landscapes, history, nature and cultural heritage. In that sense, “Caledonia” is less the beginning of a new chapter than a return to the project’s early compositions with the experience accumulated over the years between their original recordings and these new versions.
“Caledonia” will be released via Season of Mist on November 6, 2026. The five-track album will feature:
‘Aura MMXXVI’ — 11:40
‘The Awakening MMXXVI’ — 08:58
‘Carved in Stone MMXXVI’ — 10:19
‘Hearth MMXXVI’ — 09:58
‘Tears of a Nation MMXXVI’ — 10:33
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