Obscure Sphinx – Emovere (Review)

Obscure Sphinx are a post-metal band from Poland. This is their latest release.

Oh my, new Obscure Sphinx! We last heard from this exemplary band on 2016’s Epitaphs, which narrowly missed out from breaching the top three in that year’s end of year list. So rejoice, as we now have Emovere to salivate over hungrily.

First thing’s first – is this an EP or a new album? It’s three songs, and has a duration of 29 minutes. Given this, and the band’s past work, I’d say that this is an EP, although I’ve seen it referred to as both an EP and an album, (the latter by the band too). It doesn’t really matter I suppose; all that matters is that Obscure Sphinx are back, and they sound as great as ever.

Obscure Sphinx shape their distortion with accomplished hands, building rich and engaging structures of feeling and depth. There is aggression and heaviness on Emovere for sure, but this is music that’s mood-focused more than anything else, it’s just that sometimes those moods can crush you. The band have a toolbox that holds an array of tools, and these they use to craft delicacy and emotion, as well as thunderous riffs. The exceptional singer ranges from harsh hostility to effortless beauty, and the rest of the music follows; from walls of distorted guitars to resplendent melody that reaches for the heavens, and more besides.

The band immediately make an impact with the 10-minute Scarcity Hunter, which rolls out of the speakers like that last decade or so since Epitaphs didn’t happen. It has the perfect mixture of heaviness, emotion, and atmosphere.

As I Stood upon the Shore is the shortest song here at six minutes long, but it carries a disproportionately large impact, (and also an unexpectedly blackened feel here and there). It is an expressive powerhouse of a song. The track showcases the band in one of their more urgent, direct, and potent incarnations, while still making good use of all of those atmospheric components that they utilise so well.

The final song – Nethergrove – is the longest – 13 minutes – and allows Obscure Sphinx to spend the time building and fleshing out an immersive composition that really shows why they are as highly regarded as they are. Of course, the two preceding songs do this too, but Nethergrove is a true epic that takes the listener on a journey to rapturous emotional climax.

Well, whether this is an EP or an album, it’s something special either way. Obscure Sphinx are one of the best post-metal bands in the business, and I am overjoyed to now have Emovere in my life. What else can I say? Just listen to this.

Essential.