I'm going to ignore the fact they are draped in black sheets for their album cover and focus on the music since that is what matters. The sophomore album from this duo opens up with a very deliberate creeping stomp that allows darkness to be the organic mood the music naturally creates rather than something they have to work at. Portugal has been pumping at decent metal and these guys are no exception. Falling in a weird middle ground between doom and black metal, they seem to care about songs so that works for me. There is a lot of sound coming from just two people.
"The Presence" feels like Satyricon jamming with Cathedral. It indulges in more traditional metal moods. But this also shows how limited the vocals are so, it might take them out of their sweet spot slightly. "Living Sin" trods a darker road, that feels more fitting of the vocal delivery. The snarl can slither around this riff. I like that this throbs more than it chugs. The guitar parts make more sense, against the dense wall of fuzz coming at you. The more deliberate stomping shift of the guitar works well dynamically.
"Negligent" is more like death doom in the melancholy manner it trudges on. However, I am not sure they need to drag it out for ten minutes. Granted it chugs along with a more forceful purpose. Eight and a half minutes in things ebb down a little to build into a more dramatic melody thanks to the layer of synths. "Guilt" is another tune that leans more into the doom side of what they do, which truth be told feels like who they are as a band. Less black metal than say Mortuary Drape, but they occupy similar sonic space at times. The vocals do go from spoken parts to the same kind of scowling that has dominated this album.
"Regret" is a more sludge-driven dirge. Nothing new is introduced, it works off sounds they have already used with the slowed tempo being the main focus of the song, though the guitar melodies that crop up midway in are pretty cool. I will give this an 8.5, I like what they are doing here, though it's not something I would listen to a great deal, as the vocals could stand to be more dynamic, I know there are fans of this sort of thing that do not find them to be a sticking point so this will be a welcomed addition for fans of death doom or blackened doom. This Drops on Larvae Records
pst621
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