I have been underwhelmed by what I have heard from this band in the past, but this album has gotten a ton of hype this year, so let's see how it holds up. It is more likea blackened power violence than black metal. There is a heavier sound this time around, and they flip shit around in a zany manner. But there are more riffs, and the bass player is earning their keep. Not as dark as Portrayal of Guilt, but it feels like they are trying to move in that direction. "Flea" is even weirder but also more melodic, and snarled vocals offset the indie rock heart of the song.
"Micah" is a raging screamo ditty that lets the momentum carry it away. "The Weight" lives up to its name with an angry sludge feel, bringing a more deliberate heaviness. It's darker and more bleak, but it doesn't really bring anything new to the table. They continue to try and pass off screamo as black metal on "Serenity," and it is where the tedium starts to set in for me. Liturgy did this sort of thing better. It's funny that the reasons the metal crowd shunned Liturgy, they are now embracing this band for.
The fact that the title track is a thirty-second track of ambient noise says alot about this band. Things continue to take a downward turn with 'Dan's Love Song" which is the most generic noisy shoegazing you can imagine, that borrows too heavily on the woozy sound of My Bloody Valentine. To add insult to injury, they show they are capable of coming up with riffs for "Bodhidharma." However, they fail to follow it up, so songwriting might not be their thing, as cool riffs alone do not a good song make. With "Hallelujah" they kept throwing shit at the wall to see what sticks this time; it's indie folk. The last song finds a more indie rock-like melody, adding to the buzz of the blast beats. They do take more chances on this album, so I understand how some one might get fooled by it , though it is not a black metal album by any stretch of the word. I will give this album an 8; it starts off better than it ends.
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