Black Metal History Month- Morast : "Fentanyl"

This is what black metal should be. Darkness and misery forged into music. It carries a dreadful throb, that is not what you might think of as depressive black metal, but they succeeded in capturing the despair of junkie in a manner so real we have not heard it since mid-2000s Nachtmystium. I did not know fentanyl was big in Germany, but it's spread worldwide now, as I am sure the trailer parks of Europe in the Eastern Block are spreading it like roaches. There is a denser more deliberate attack on the second song with the vocals dropping into a lower growl. 

It's been a few years since I gave "Ancestral Void" a listen, but it seems they are more committed to the emotional current of black metal on this album. There is less of a death-doom vibe on this one. though they are not pouring on blast beat, and keeping things at a doomy pulse on songs like "Walls Come Closer". The bass has more grit and steps forward in the mix. Once again I beseech all black metal bands to add more bass in the mix as it makes things heavier and here is a case in point. The vocals are at their most articulated, almost reminding me of Entombed. There is a more apocalyptic trudge to the blackened sludge of "A Thousand and More".  The vocals have a similar bark as the previous song. Though their pattern is punchier and catchier. In some ways executed more like a death metal band uses vocals, but the music carries more texture to keep its blackened roots. 

"Akasha" feels like it might have the most interesting lyrics, though the vocals feel more distorted from a production standpoint, as the sweeping riffs provide a more black metal ground for them to howl against. The vocals are used most deliberately on the last song when they lock into the chant of "Rise from the fire, but the fire comes back". Before this, the guitars let the chords hang for the bulk of the song to give the brooding pulse of the song room to breathe. I'll give this album a 9.5, as it works off a uniform murky throb, with nuances to give the songs their identity, as a whole weighing it against perfect black metal albums that might score a 10, those would have more dynamics, but what is offered here makes up for it with the realistic passion for oblivion possessing these songs. 

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