Fvnerals: "the Light"

December is always depressing to me so it seems a perfect time for this Brighton trio to drop their debut full-length, "the Light". They fall somewhere in between slow core doom and something Chelsea Wolfe might do to make sure the p/a was working properly before she began playing actual songs. They weave their web using synths, drums, guitar and female vocals, making them heavy in a similar fashion as Swans if Gira was letting Jarboe run the show.

"Vakana" drifts out of the opener, the tempo stays hesitant. Other elements join their drone making this feel slightly more like a song than the first piece. The singers melodies are more substantial. Tiffany sings with a breathy quality that is along the lines of True Widow's bass player where it sounds like she would have to be close to the mic with little projection. Each piece gains a little more depth. Her melody on "Aryd" stands out more from the minimal drone of the arrangements it's laid over, with the chorus here more defined.

Lyrically the songs seem to be of a personal nature focusing on depression, being dragged down is a common theme. There is an almost David Lynchian feel to "Shine" rings out with the mournful glisten of the reverbed out guitar, that has an a surf rock sound, but it's strummed in a doom like manner with the cymbals tapping along it accent each time another chord is struck. "Tiga" finds her vocal shifting slightly lower. Her alto range centers around the same octave.The layers of harmony vocals are minimal like every thing else on this album remind me a little of Azure Ray. This song almost serves as the intro to "Closer" which drips out of both the same droning accompaniment but the lyrics and the melody seem as if they are a slow evolution into being a song in it's own right." The pace picks up with the drums gathering the most steam yet and her vocal reach out of the the alto octave she has sung in for the bulk of the album. All these factors make for this being one of the best songs on the album.

The title track is split into two pasts, the first  more of an interlude being more focused on ambient sounds, the second part is the actual song.Here the lingering cloud this band comes from feels more like shoe gaze in it's hypnotic nature than doom. First listen this song faded into the background as I lost focus on it, after a few listens it's post- rock haze stuck with me a little more. That's not to say they abandon the creepy darker elements that have shadowed the album, the become more of a under current. As other atmospheric elements converge upon the song as it progress the slow droning ride it stays to through out the six minutes.

This album is best listened to as one whole piece rather than on shuffle mode. If you are a fan of slow-core, doom or shoe gaze there are enough elements for you to sink you teeth into. The oppressive depressive introspection was beautifully painted here, I am giving this album an 8 as some of the songs hover in the same dynamic place , but there are some cool sounds on this one and the album captures all of them perfectly in production.