The Moshville Times - Review: Anguish

[avatar =”James” size=”50″ align=”left” /]It’s not often I’m lost for words about an album. With this one I am. It’s like a mixture of both interest and confusion. I’m not normally a fan of doom metal, but this album sparked my interest.

I don’t think much of the lyrical themes, or the fact that it’s all very slow and mellow. Screaming about murdering people, that’s more death metal territory. I don’t normally complain about lyrics, I enjoy listening to Cannibal Corpse, but I’m making an exception this time.

Music wise, it’s all very slow down tuned guitars and high-pitched growls. It sounds like a slowed down black metal record to be honest. I quite enjoy a bit of black metal every now and again, so that’s a point in its favor.

Production wise, it’s clean and crisp. Unlike a black metal record, you can actually hear everything and it doesn’t sound like it’s being played in a food blender. That’s a generalization I know, but most of the black metal stuff I’ve listened to sounds like that.

A slow and solemn start to the album “Intro” does what it says on the tin. It introduces the album, with clean guitars and a distant overdriven guitar melody.

“Makarian Furnace” then comes in, almost like a ton of bricks. A slow and somber track, it combines slow riffing with harsh vocals expertly. I commend the vocalist; I can make out everything he’s saying. Certain vocalists in the heavier end of metal have really bad annunciation, thus meaning you can’t tell what the hell they are saying.

Following in a similar pattern to the previous track, “Stir Up the Demon” then comes in. This song is the sort of thing that could be used in a horror movie, if the horror genre didn’t mind a bit of metal. Picking the pace slightly towards the end of the track, it makes for an interesting listen.

Starting with a slow clean guitar melody, “Master of Peak’s fall” is another track that’s a horror movie fit. Coming in with the usual heaviness at the 0:39 mark, it continues along with the albums theme. Featuring a guitar solo giving way into a bass solo, it once again picks up the pace slightly.

The second shortest track of the album, “Decomposer of Planets”, then follows. Featuring spaced out whispers instead of harsh vocals, it doesn’t detract from the doom and heaviness of the album.

Starting with a slow bass solo, “The Woven Shield” brings things back to normal once more. Having everything drop out aside from the drums at the 3:07 mark made for an interesting change. Having everything drop out again, leaving just a wind sound just before the end of the track made this one stand out.

“Void” literally describes this track. Dark and kicking the tempo slightly, it literally creates the feeling of being in the void. Featuring another bass solo around the 1:18 mark, it keeps the dark atmosphere throughout, making it one of the darker tracks of the album.

Finishing the album off is the track “Snowhammer”. Featuring what sounds like an organ in the beginning, it once again makes for an interesting listen. Finishing with a slow guitar and organ riff, it provides a dark end to a rather interesting and hellish album.

I’m at odds with myself over this record. For one, it was an interesting listen and an album I’ll probably listen to again sometime. For another, I’m not really a fan of slow/doomy sounding albums. I can’t really say what side I’m on.

I do recommend this album, but only for fans of Doom and Black metal. You’ll either really like it, or not be too happy with it. Little bit like marmite.

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