History
In spirit, Animus Mundi is a project which orchestrates beautiful, if sometimes dark and sorrowful, combinations of western and eastern aural traditions. The music beckons you on a journey through a magical inner world projected upon the stark landscapes of reality, populated by both devils and angels alike, and the whisperings....of things concealed, of things revealed. The soul ever expansive, the body ever constricting. A serpentine embrace. It is within this unforgiving torque that sounds emanate.
In the flesh, Animus Mundi are Lee Nisbet (voice) and Stacy Evans (instrumentation, production). It has been a collaboration that spans back a decade in one form or another. In 1992, they met while attending art school. Already in a band, Stacy invited Lee to sing for the band when the other vocalist left. The music was largely guitar-based in conception--driven by drums, bass guitar, and percussion. Even then, there was developing interest in ethnic musical theories and aesthetics. Together this band released an E.P., appeared on various compilation CDs and played live throughout the region before finally disbanding in 1994.
The following years saw a hiatus, as Stacy and Lee mainly focused on their academic studies. In 1997, they were introduced to the wondrous technology of the DAW (Digital Audio Workstation), which would herald a significant change in the creative process and culminate into what Animus Mundi is today. A home project studio was quickly built around this technology, equipping Windows and Macintosh computers with full sequencing and multitrack capabilities--augmenting with keyboards, samplers, mixers, etc. With this vastly expanded sonic palette at their fingertips, Stacy and Lee feverishly immersed themselves into music-making once again. Thus, Animus Mundi was born.