Twilight - Monument to Time End

Full-length, Southern Lord
April 27th, 2010

What month is it? April? Seems early to claim that this release would be one of the top 5 releases of the year. But to be honest, the more I hear it, the more I feel this will be right up at the top of the pile come the end of the year.

Twilight is known as a USBM super group with members from the most prominent bands playing for them. The band roster consists of Blake Judd (Nachtmystium), Wrest (Leviathan, Lurker of Chalice), N. Imperial (Kreig), – and new recruits Stavros Giannopolous (The Atlas Moth), Sanford Parker (Minsk, Buried At Sea) and Aaron Turner (Isis, Old Man Gloom). The band released a self titled album in 2005 with members of Nachtmystium, Leviathan, Kreig, Xasthur and Draugar to some rave reviews, only to disband a year later. With no reunion in sight, I was pleasantly surprised when I heard in early 2009 that some members decided to resurrect the band with a modified lineup. And the ‘modifications’ are the main reasons why this release has turned out to be nothing short of a masterpiece.

While the debut was very good, it lacked something. It appeared disconnected and incoherent at times; and that led to its downfall. Thankfully, these hitches have been ironed out in this release and the results are staggering. What we have here is one of the most impressive “dark” black metal albums to be made in a long time. It consists of the best of all of the aforementioned bands: An oppressive atmosphere screaming of despair and anguish, pounding riffs, intense psychedelia and a sick, filthy torturous layer of vocals. The band manages to create a blizzard of emotion and torment without compromising on any of the brute force.

Any inhibitions regarding this release were put to rest after listening to the opening track, ‘The Cryptic Ascension’- the song is descriptive of what the right lineup can do. It starts in a mid tempo pace until around 6 minutes in and it is extremely detailed in its structure. The vocals are tortured screams and are used excellently. Melodic and harmonic, without disrupting the overall atmosphere of the song. This track helps in setting up a perverse vicious mood for the rest of the album.

‘8000 years’ is intense. As the sound explodes from the speakers, you cant help but be smothered by the atmosphere of pure suffering and torment and you will struggle to get out of the state of emotional limbo imposed by the atmosphere. The mood is evil, yet so frantic and beautiful, its hard to escape.

‘Convulsions In Wells Of Fever’ and ‘Decaying Observer’ are similar to the songs in the debut album. They feature the speed and the atmospheric texture of the songs from the debut album. Although they are a lot more experimental, they are the closest to the primal sounding songs in this release.

Probably my favorite song on the album would be the closing track ‘Negative Cell Omega’. It leads to a change of direction, to a mood of depression, hopelessness and despondency. You are transported to a cold harsh place. A place where time stands still. A place where there is no light at the end. A place where there is only one escape –Death.

‘Monument to the End’ is a stunning release. Throughout listening to this album, the listener is made to step into the demented, maniacal realms of madness. It is mesmerizing and powerful. It is devastating and the feeling is of having the soul sucked out of your body as you listen. By the end of it, you are in a state of emotional emptiness. A state where happiness and joy is replaced by nothingness and vacuum. A state of nonexistence and nonbeing.

This release is not for the elitists who scorn experimentation in Black metal. If you approach this with an open mind, you will love this.

9/10

Aderlating - dying of the light

EP.
Jan 2010
FREE DOWNLOAD ONLY: http://www.archive.org/details/dying_of_the_light

Aderlating is a project of Mories, the disturbed, twisted artist behind the overwhelming ‘Gnaw Their Tongues’ and ‘De Magia Veterum’. He has always been one to take extreme music to a new level with an exceptional catalog or original and diverse releases. So, when I heard about this project, I decided to check it out as soon as I could and try to keep my expectations as low as possible lest I be disappointed. But surely, Mories could do no wrong…right? RIGHT. What we have here is Mories delving into a gruesome and corrosive atmosphere with Aderlating playing a mixture of Black Noise, drone and black metal thrown in to create an oppressive environment of torture and vengeance.

The sound here is murky. Murky to the point where you feel its been submerged in a never-ending pit of murkiness, creating a pulse of ugly black noise. Buzzing black metal guitars are submerged into the blurred landscapes. You will find some heavy distorted bass which gives a harsh discordant, noisy tone. The drums are primitive and drive the music brilliantly. There is a section in the second song ‘Soul Harvest’ in which all you can hear is some dark ambiance, slow plodding riffs but fast and bizarre drums. Sounds peculiar and very different and pretty much depicts the madness of the artist. The vocals range from high torturous screams to some mysterious chanting and outright creepy voices. They complement the claustrophobic and the torturous sound of the music perfectly and at times, even add a sense of dread to the overall sound. The synths are stunning. Depicting pain and torture, they are used to awaken fear, psychosis and the agony that has been lodged deep beneath the human soul.

The music here is aimed at total emotional obliteration. You are immediately transported into the mind of a maniacal, unstable individual devoid of reason or logic. You can experience a plethora of emotions ranging from fear to misery. It grabs the attention of the listener. There is never a moment when the listener would be able to draw his breath over a long period of time. Never a moment where he would be calm. This is the total darkness. Highly recommended to people who like chaotic black metal, noise or dark ambient music.

Lunar Aurora - Andacht

I don't remember many Black Metal albums I heard which carried a dense and mystifying atmosphere as this one. This is definitely one of the most eerie sounding albums out there and that's what makes Lunar Aurora a cut above your average Black Metal bands. Andacht is a musical masterpiece which grows on you after each listen. It's one of the few ''love at first listen'' albums in my opinion. You can never get tired of it. It's a sad thing that they are on hold now and the future of Lunar Aurora looks pretty dubious. But what they have left behind them is certainly going to get the band accolades in the future as well. Their musical prowess really justifies their name. Lunar Aurora : ''The aura of the Moon''. The cold and melancholic atmosphere takes the listener to an unending dark celestial voyage. The album contains 6 Intense tracks which captivates the listener almost till an hour. The guitar and drum onslaught on this album is absolutely rapturous. Pummeling tremolo picked riffs and nefarious shrieks and howls define the somber mood of Andacht. But the biggest highlight of this release are the bizarre Keyboard passages and sound effects which are instrumental in creating a desolate atmosphere and sorrowful mood which is the real strength of this musical masterpiece. The opening track ''Gluck'' is an absolute majestic exemplification of the unique songwriting capability of Aran and Co. With amazing Spoken vocals, beautiful acoustic interludes and chorus this song has been deftly etched in my memories. The sound effects used were something i never heard! The way they have been intertwined with the music is just incredible and gives me goose pimples on each listen. Geisterschiff begins with a amazing sample which resembles the sound of calm sea waves and fades into the riffs pretty soon. A euphoric ambience supports the riffs which makes this song an exquisite one. Lunar Aurora's ability to maintain the smooth flow of their instruments is far beyond belief.The next tracks ''Dunkler Mann'', ''Finlding'' and ''Der Pakt'' are full of culminating samples and dense atmosphere. What makes these songs so special is the amazing variance used in the vocal department. The clean spoken vocals sound almost godly! Probably the next best i heard apart from Lykathea Aflame's epic album ''Elvenfris''. It's really hard to believe that a drum machine was used in this album because they sound so natural and precise. Blast beats have been executed in full glory which are totally in-sync with the incredible and herculean riffage. Various tempo changes and transitions depict the mighty grandeur of this album. Another striking highlight is the flawless production. But It's definitely not ''polished''. A good production is quintessential for a band like Lunar Aurora whose music depends mostly on the atmosphere otherwise it'd sound too dissonant. When it comes to bands like Lunar Aurora, Verdunkeln, Darkspace etc, it's the atmosphere which matters the most! Overall, this release is capable enough to make it to the list of one of the best albums ever released in this genre. This is not simply music but a heavy slab of emotions. It takes oneself into the abysmal depths of solitude and anguish. This subtle skill of Lunar Aurora make them as the connoisseurs of desolation. If you are a fan of black metal, then i see no reason as to why this album shouldn't be a part of your collection. So, if you truly yearn to drown in a pool of melancholy then do yourselves a favour and listen to Andacht and other mighty releases by Lunar Aurora. I am sure that you'll be more than satisfied. It can't get as mysterious and perfect as this one.

Wodensthrone - Loss (2009)

Full-length, Bindrune Recordings
August 2009

Track List:
1. Fyrgenstréam 03:12
2. Leódum On Lande 06:59
3. Heófungtid 08:14
4. Those That Crush the Roots of Blood 10:28
5. Black Moss 12:42
6. Upon These Stones 11:01
7. Pillar of the Sun 05:26
8. That Which is Now Forgotten – 597 11:32
Total playing time 01:09:34

I have been listening to a lot of atmospheric black metal lately, and I noticed a lot of hype surrounding this debut by Wodensthrone. I generally stay away from releases that are exceedingly hyped up by people, because they always tend to be disappointing and fall way below my expectations. I decided to give this a listen but totally forgot about it; until a couple of days back. I listened to Loss in a recent train journey where it was just me passing through scenery full of trees, fields and a lot of greenery. And it just thrust me in a trance-like state and I couldn’t snap out of it till it finished one entire spin. Throughout the 70 odd minutes, I felt like I was in a different place. A different world, where time stood still.

Wodensthrone are a 5-piece band from north England and their music, while undeniably black metal has a lot more to it. They use a variety of instruments such as a flute, keyboards and even a harp (at times) without sounding annoyingly ‘epic’ or pretentious. The songs bear similarities to ‘Wolves in a Throne Room’, ‘drudkh’ and ‘Weakling’, but this band is not a cheap imitation or a clone at all. They are an excellent band in their own right and Loss has just proved it.

The atmosphere generated in this album is spectacular. You feel yourself getting lost in it as the world passes you by. The production is excellent. The lo-fi production adds another dimension to the music, but all instruments are clear and audible. The Songwriting and musicianship is brilliant and very mature, which is very impressive considering that this is their debut album. The riffs are excellent; They alternate between crushing brute force and beautiful melodies. The softer acoustic and clean sections are simply stunning and very nicely used and are hypnotizing, to say the least. Keyboards accompany almost every riff and is a very prominent feature of this album. But its not overdone and does not ruin anything. It creates a brilliant atmosphere that does not let go of you till the end. The vocals are mainly shrieks. There are certain variations at some parts when they add low raspy vocals too, but they are hardly used. The drumming is very good. The best element about it was how seamlessly it fits in with the instrumental passages as well.

As good as the first 3-4 tracks are, the later half of the album is what excels and places this release in a different league altogether. ‘Black Moss’ is an epic which features some brilliant riffs and has plenty of complex twist and turns. Hréowsian on drums excels in this song. ‘Upon These Stones’ and ‘Pillar of the Sun’ has one of the most beautiful instrumental sections I have heard in a long time. The final track ‘That Which is Now Forgotten-597’ is the most atmospheric track of the album and provides the album with a very enjoyable conclusion.

In short, Loss is a brilliant album. An absorbing listen and it leaves a profound impact on the listener. It would definitely make it to the top-3 releases of the year for me. These 5 guys know how to get it right. A pagan/black masterpiece which is definitely worth your attention.

9/10