Back to Bandcamp: February 20, 2016

Atel / Bastard of Majesty Sin - Atel / Bastard of Majesty Sin
(https://atelblackmetal.bandcamp.com/album/atel-bastard-of-majesty-sin)

Well, at least the minimalist cover art doesn't hurt to look at.

Atel's half of this "primitive/lo-fi black metal" split is almost high school talent-show material, clumsy and repetitive to a fault. It's hard to tell whether the drumming is the work of an extreme amateur or the result of abusing the "humanize" function in a MIDI arranger; it's painfully bad either way, and only distracts from the band's already extremely forgettable riffs. I couldn't even get through Bastard of Majesty Sin's first song, a formless mass of reverberation and distortion. The possibility that this whole split is a stealth parody of the worst excesses of bedroom black metal—from unlistenable "lo-fi" production used to cover up shoddy musicianship to the plainly absurd song titles ("Desekrating The Servants To Jezuz Krist In The Ninth Circle Ov Hell And The Infinite Destruktion Ov The Trinity")—crossed my mind more than once. But in the absence of a knowing wink, I'll have to assume otherwise.

Not Recommended/Possible Poe's Law Violation

Megatherium - Megatherium
(https://hywelpayne.bandcamp.com/album/megatherium)

As an absolute sucker for anything Pleistocene, Megatherium's name and premise drew me in immediately. This short stoner/doom project has a bit of everything, from sludgy aggression on "Haft & Heft" to primordial post-rock soundscapes on "Megatherium" to vocoders and heavy, gloomy blues on "Black Mountain" and "(in search of the) Elephant Bird." The opening and closing tracks are the strongest, but it's a good listen all the way through. It also has a giant ground sloth looking majestic on the cover, so bonus points for that.

Recommended.

Urðarmáni - Njorun
(https://urdarmani.bandcamp.com/album/njorun)

Imagine if Burzum occasionally threw in a brief passage of bittersweet post-black and you've got a pretty good idea of what Urðarmáni (a name that can probably be pronounced by humans) sounds like. Although nominally a depressive black metal band, this Swedish band's spin on Scandinavia's grimmest export is actually much closer to latter-day Varg Vikernes, complete with strong folk influences, medieval melodies, and riffs that sound like they're lifted straight from Fallen. I don't mean that comparison disparagingly, mind you—believably channeling a black metal great through solid musicianship doesn't need an apology, and "originality is definitely overrated" would make a good slogan for the entire black metal scene. Njorun's three tracks are conservative, but they're good black metal all the same. Just know that if you can't stand Burzum's melody-heavy take on the classic Norwegian sound, I promise you won't like Njorun.

Recommended.

The Thurible Reviews: Mire of Despondency/Omen Ov Torment - "December Winds and Luciferian Mists"

I really, really hated giving Mire of Despondency an unfavorable review last time. I mean, Nokturnus is in high school. Unless your name is Pyha, chances are you're still developing and growing as an artist at that age—I'm certainly glad no one reviewed anything I released in high school. And yet here we are again, reviewing another release from this gloomy Pennsylvania teenager. Why?

Because Mire of Despondency has the makings of a great black metal artist, and I'm going to keep criticizing her until she realizes that potential.

Fortunately, December Winds and Luciferian Mists, a split with San Diego's Omen Ov Tormet, surpasses Loch of the Degenerate Realm by every standard. The musicianship has improved significantly. Mire plays to her strengths much more effectively than on her last split, giving the melancholy melodies and plaintive vocals center stage on tracks like "Todesgalxia" and "Crystalline Castles." The drumming, a major weakness on Loch of the Degenerate Realm, functions much better and feels much more dynamic.

"Demise of Lugubriosity" steals the show, combining beautiful, evocative melodies with Mire's woeful shrieks in an outstanding union of all musical elements. This is a genuinely excellent piece of atmospheric black metal—no caveats or qualifications. It sold me the album.

The production still leaves a little to be desired. The shrieks still occasionally drown out the rest of the mix, and certain instruments (usually keyboards) tend to protrude over the others. Mire of Despondency continues to favor a lofi style on this split, and while it works well for her repetitive, atmospheric style, lofi black metal is an art in itself and Mire has yet to fully master it.

One of the benefits of the shrieking style employed by black metal artists is that you don't have to hear their (usually silly) lyrics. Omen Ov Torment (not to be confused with Oven Ov Torment, a great name for a black metal cooking show) apparently missed the memo on that one, because his very silly lyrics are plainly discernible throughout "Visions of Future Truth." It's not a particularly engaging track overall, and the earnest yet prosaic blasphemies ("Satan has won!") only distract from an otherwise forgettable (and much too long) piece of Leviathan pastiche.

"Luciferian Mists" dials down on the campy speak-screaming and focuses on the frosty riffs for a much stronger result. It's a more traditional, less USBM-influenced track, but still a good one. I'll never pass up a grim and gloomy atmosphere done well.

December Winds and Luciferian Mists certainly has its moments. It's amateurish, to be sure, but we kinda like that in the grim world of Internet black metal. And at $3 for around 40 minutes of black metal, it's not a bad buy. Check it out.

Recommended.