The 9th studio release from the band finds them continuing down a more refined sonic path. From the first song it is evident the band's sense of dynamics remains intact . The intensity constricts into a metallic thrashing in equal portion to the more expansive dark pathways of sound they lead you through. There is a cool guitar melody that sits in the same space a guitar solo would, but approaches it from a much more melodic direction .At under 7 minutes it a fairly conservative journey when compared to some of the epic ground they have covered in the past. I think the most powerful statement scaling things back to some capacity makes is refusing to write the same songs twice.
They have been growing away from the confines of the black metal genre for sometime now. The vocals to "Twin Mouthed Spring" start with more of a whisper before lower growls couple it up. Then they break off into a more folk direction with acoustic guitars coming out. Just over midway into the son g they explode into the blast beats you might have been waiting, this is counterbalanced by the soaring melodies above it that are now what we think of as Cascadian black metal. I like they despite the shimmer there remains a strong sense of melancholy along with a darker vibe haunting the mood.
"Initiates of the White Hart" opens with more of a neo - folk feeling. It basks in this atmosphere for the duration of the song, it is too complex of a melodic flow to consider how it hangs on the melody droning, but it does not progress in the expected fashion. Then the last track is an ambient passage that feels like something to meditate to rather than a fully formed song. Since I am a little disappointed that after the first two songs were so strong that they would piddle around with folk atmosphere for the second two songs, but even there are some interesting moods created, even if it is not what I would have preferred so I will give this album an 8.
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