Post-Black Metal – Page 34

Mare Cognitum – Phobos Monolith (Review)

This is the third album by US one-man project Mare Cognitum. He plays Atmospheric Black Metal.

This is Black Metal of the most expressive and epic variety. Inspired by the mysteries of the cosmos and powered by Blackened harmonies and thick atmospheres, Phobos Monolith takes the listener on a journey through the unexplored natures of the universe.

The songs on this album are exploratory and impressively composed and performed. It’s almost a full 6 minutes before any vocals first appear, so confident is the music in its ability to capture and hold the attention alone. With good reason; the music is an impressive blend of Atmospheric, Post- and raging underground Black Metal.

This is an album that, for all its grand designs and lofty concepts, actually manages to forge an emotional connection with the listener and the result is a very personal-feeling experience. These songs are simply that good.

There are so many bands/albums/etc. these days that simply sound as if they are going through the motions. For Mare Cognitum, however, this is clearly not the case at all. This is an album that has the true mark of a labour of love, and it’s this, combined with the impressive sonicscapes that have been created, that resonate so strongly with the listener.

Find somewhere open to the sky, play this album loudly, stare up at the stars and get absorbed in the endless possibilities that there are out there.

This is an album that has surpassed all of my feeble expectations.

Promethean Horde – Ashes of the Empyrean (Review)

Promethean Horde are from the US and play Black Metal. This is their début album.

This is epic Black Metal that blasts out of the speakers with vitality and passion. Immediately a few things are clear – they have a good sound, the bass has a good presence and it’s fast and furious.

The band have a healthy melodic streak to their sound with a good amount of leads and solos rearing their heads amidst the Blackened landscape.

Mainly screamed vocals are used, although deeper growls and cleans also appear. All are performed well.

Ashes of the Empyrean boasts fast and aggressive Melodic Black Metal that’s dark and sharp. These are Blackened melodies in use here not the joyous, pseudo-Pop of their more commercial cousins. This is hateful, spiteful and lives to cut lives short.

Some of the compositions also feature a bit more of a Progressive influence to them, as if the band are just beginning to tentatively experiment with Post-Black Metal/Folk elements. It’s not a large part of their sound for sure, but it’s an additional touch that keeps things interesting.

All throughout the album the band treat us to thick guitars and scathing vocals that lay the foundation for this enjoyable release. Reminding of old Dimmu Borgir without the keyboard ostentation, this is a pleasing album that is easy to like. The Blackened riffs wash over you like a welcome flagellation and the subtle Death Metal touches give their attack an added edge.

Solid, quality Black Metal. Enjoy.

Orbseven – .ismos. (Review)

Orbseven is a solo project from the US and this is the third album of Experimental Black Metal that the project has unleashed.

This is a combination of electric Black Metal, sleek Post-Black Metal and ambient/avant-garde darkness. It’s an interesting combination and the resulting album is an exploration of state-of-the-art Blackness and atmospheric expression.

Darkened sounds and interesting effects enhance the tracks in a way that’s subtle enough to not steal any thunder from the main driving force of the guitars but has enough impact to be noticeable.

The songs are propelled by Blackened melodies and experimental sound structures, but there’s also enough Post-Black Metal wanderings to allow the room for shades of both light and dark. They’re well written, have great dynamics and are potent affairs.

.ismos. fosters an atmosphere that’s vaguely mechanistic but overtly malevolent and mysterious. Everything about this album from the music itself to the album cover deals in these mysteries and although there are no answers forthcoming the search for them is what’s important.

The vocals are a curious and varied affair. Multiple styles collide as spoken/distorted words, barely audible pseudo-ethereal sounds and subtle cleans all appear at various times during the tracks.

If you think along the lines of Dødheimsgard, Aborym, Red Harvest and Arcturus then you’ll have a good idea of the basic building blocks of the Orbseven sound. There’s even a couple of riffs here and there that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Mastodon album.

Orbseven is a creative and novel approach to what Black Metal should sound like in 2014. Taking the basic Black Metal template and building/distorting it is common enough, but the always interesting thing is where the band ends up once they have done this. In the case of Orbseven we end up with Experimental/Post-Black Metal that rolls smoothly out of the speakers.

A great effort – show your support.

Dust Sculptures – Far Above The Pines (Review)

Dust Sculptures is a US Post-Black Metal band consisting of one person – this is his second release.

An album like this would be a very impressive achievement even if it was the product of a full band, never mind that this is all from one person. The musicianship and songwriting is first rate.

This is a blend of Black Metal, Shoegaze, Progressive Rock and Post-Rock; the various elements are skilfully combined into this release so that you never quite know what exactly you’re going to get next, yet it all gels together and flows seamlessly from one part to the next, from one song to the next.

All of the genre/sub-genre tags above essentially let you know that this is an album that takes a Black Metal base and builds it into something more. The songs have real depth and lasting power. There is a lot of music to explore here and that feels like the essence of the album to me; an exploration through an unknown wilderness.

Soft, crooning clean vocals share space with tortured screams and Blackened agonies. Like the instruments the vocals are perfectly judged and performed flawlessly.

Shades of modern-day Anathema can be heard alongside Blackened parts. Post-Metal highs and Shoegaze wanderings rub shoulders with blast beats and dark melodies. Progressive keyboards and chaotic riffs work together to build sound structures greater than the sum of their parts.

It’s clear that a lot of care, love and attention has gone into the making of this album. Every last part of it has had a lavish amount of focus placed on it and this has resulted in an album that’s a true revelation.

This is for fans of expressive giants like Deafheaven, Enslaved, Wolves in the Throne Room, et al.

Albums like this don’t come along very often and when they do they spirit you away on a very special journey. Let Dust Sculptures be your guide.

This is one for the album of the year pile, methinks.

Get this.

Hegemone – Luminosity (Review)

Hegemone are from Poland and play Post-Black Metal. This is their début album.

With an album cover that promises mystery and rich rewards to those who reveal the music within, this is an album that doesn’t give up its secrets lightly. Even when they’re being overt there are hidden delights to be had here.

Luminosity is a sprawling album stretched across 6 tracks of dark Post-Black Metal with a good amount of Sludge thrown in for good effect.

The guitars sound like they’re coated in tar and the melodies are Blackened and deep. It’s a surprisingly heavy affair and the Sludge influence to their sound allows the band to get away with all sorts of mischief under its banner.

The vocals barks forth brutal noises over music that can be either harsh or beautiful depending on the mood of the band. The music itself may be capable of subtlety and nuance but his is a commanding presence that demands attention and floors all in front of him.

At times recalling second-wave Black Metal, at others recalling the darker side of Post-Metal in a Cult of Luna style; this is a heavier and Sludgier proposition than a lot of Post-Black Metal out there. Yes, they are perfectly capable of creating atmospheric and awe-inspiring musical soundscapes, (and they do), but they also like to make sure that the good old Darkthrone/Satyricon groove is felt to full effect when needed.

There are moments of unbridled creativity and flair displayed on these songs as well. Unexpected delights include appearances by a saxophone that don’t sound incongruous and rivals anything artists like Ihsahn have used.

This is a very accomplished, ambitious and rewarding listen. Hegemony have put together something special that they should be proud of.

This is a cold-hearted gem that’s just waiting to be discovered.

Falls of Rauros – Believe in No Coming Shore (Review)

Falls of Rauros are from the US and play Black Metal with strong Folk elements. This is their third album.

This band specialise in Black/Folk Metal that takes its time to build a slowly developing picture that the band loving craft from the instruments to give the listener a true feeling of the beauty of nature.

Falls of Rauros have a vibrant sound that recalls elements of Shoegaze and Post-Black Metal mixed with more traditional Black Metal and Folk Metal influences to create a collection of songs that have depth and interest.

Somewhat fragile, gentle riffing accompanies faster drumming and passionately harsh screaming. Their expansive sound shows off the full capabilities of all of the instruments and it’s good to hear the oft-neglected bass being quite audible.

The songs twist and curl their way around the central exploratory Black Metal sound and the tracks boast a longevity about them that’s refreshing to hear.

This is a heavily atmospheric album that evokes its feelings from the core instruments rather than from ostentatious keyboards or orchestras. The band keep it simple yet have everything they need to produce involving and engaging music.

This is a quality album. Have a listen and let the music enter your internal landscape.

Myrkur – Myrkur (Review)

Myrkur is a one woman Black Metal project from Denmark. This is her début EP.

Myrkur combines the rawness and bleakness of second-wave Black Metal with ambient and atmospheric sounds to create frostbitten and ice-filled sonicscapes that scar the imagination and enchant the brain.

Ethereal clean female vocals and raw Black Metal mix in such a way that helps the music to transcend the usual genre constraints and become something greater than the sum of its parts.

There are medieval influences to some of the guitar sounds, (when they’re not wrapped in grim darkness of course), and even a touch of the Post-Metal/Post-Black Metal on occasion.

Think a pared down Wolves in the Throne Room, or a more atmospheric Darkthrone, or a less synth-powered Vinterriket; add angelic female vocals and this is the space Myrkur inhabit. It’s not all beauty however as she can also scream and shriek with the best of them when needed.

It’s rare that you find harsh Black Metal skilfully interweaved with music that’s atmospheric and epic in scope. Here the two are thoughtfully and flawlessly intertwined. Usually this is only accomplished by the elite and cream-of-the-crop bands like Agalloch.

Add to this a softer feminine touch that usually, if incorporated into Metal at all, just sounds tacked on; here it’s an integral, fully embedded and realised part of the Myrkur experience.

And to think, this is only a début EP. Imagine what she can do with a full album of material? The mind boggles. The mind can’t wait.

Autumn’s Dawn – Gone (Review)

Autumn’s Dawn are an Australian Post-Black Metal band and this is their début album.

The band play an interesting style of music that has its origins in Depressive Black Metal but has developed into more of a Shoegaze, Post-Rock entity which has plenty of melody and even an Indie feel in places.

This may be an album rooted in the darkness of Black metal but it has long transcended those beginnings and now travels waters brighter but no less melancholic.

The songs are relatively upbeat and feature very atypical clean vocals; atypical in that they sound more akin to the type of voices used in commercial stadium faux-Metal than this kind of music. Harsher screams are also used and these are more in keeping with the style. The clean vocals really do add a differentiating point to the tracks however, although I imagine they’ll be quite contentious for some purists.

This is Post-Black Metal and Shoegaze but without the deep-seated misery that those kind of bands usually revel in. The darkness is there, certainly, but the driving Rock influence to their sound buries it under hopeful harmonies and Post-Rock melodics. The album has more in common with Katatonia and Paradise Lost than it does with bands like Forgotten Tomb.

This is somewhat of an eclectic album as it’s rare to hear Rock, Shoegaze Black Metal and Indie all in one place. Not only do we have that here but the band do an exceedingly good job of keeping it from sounding disjointed or messy.

Autumn’s Dawn are somewhat of a unique band in many ways. Although this will inevitably mean that a lot of people won’t take to this and it will slip through the musical cracks, it also means that for those who are willing to give it a chance this is a hidden gem waiting to be discovered.

In a way it’s a real shame as with the right backing and exposure there is a lot of potential for a much wider audience for Gone, and all without compromising the artistic integrity of the music.

Time to try something a bit different and give Autumn’s Dawn a listen.

Australasia – Vertebra (Review)

Australasia are from Italy and play Post-Black Metal Shoegaze.

Well, I love the album cover, so that’s a good start.

These are largely short compositions although they have all of the time they need to make themselves felt.

These are songs that are as emotive and translucent as any in the style. They take the listener through the usual gamut of emotions typical of Shoegaze releases of this nature.

Post-Black Metal comes about when Black Metal and Post-Metal meet, as can be expected from the name. The addition of the Shoegaze tag usually specifies something similar, only in my experience tends to mean that the band have a fragile, brittle sense about them; not in any negative way but rather in the sense of everything being pushed and focused into making the songs as expressive and emotive as possible.

In Australasia’s case the emphasis is on the Post-Metal side of the equation rather than the Black Metal side, (although this aspect of their sound is still present). In addition to this the band also employ some Electronica influences and use this as a further aspect to their sound.

All of this describes Australasia perfectly as they have the hauntingly fragile delivery and highly evocative emotional appeal that typifies this kind of music. And they do all of it very, very well.

There are largely no vocals, so the instruments take centre stage. The only exception to this is some female vocals which are strong and assured; they appear very briefly as a small but important enhancement to a few tracks.

A recommended listen for seekers of sensation everywhere.

Apnea – Silent Cities (Review)

Apnea are from New Zealand and this is their début EP. They play Post-Black Metal.

This combines Black Metal with Post-Metal and Shoegaze to create an evocative EP of fragile beauty and delicate power.

The songs build, crest and blast their way to moments of melancholy and bitter negativity. Apnea’s sound is the sound of a mellow summer’s day being clobbered to death by an unruly dusk. It’s this mix of beauty and harshness that gives this kind of Shoegaze Post-Black Metal such a haunting sound and such a lasting appeal.

Apnea have a good production that bucks the trend that these kinds of bands usually follow of having a paper-thin sound. The drum presence in particular is immense and it is refreshing to hear a band like this with a rather crushing sound in many respects.

Apnea also stand out from the crowd in having some real moments of Black Metal fury in their sound. This ferocious attack combined with the softer moments and Post-Metal explorations make for a highly enjoyable listening experience.

Overall this is a hugely impressive EP, especially for a first release.

As this EP is a couple of year old now, let’s hope that they will have a début album ready soon. If they can replicate what they’ve achieved with Silent Cities then it’ll be something I’m quite excited to hear.