genres: post-black metal
If you like atmospheric metal, you’ll love this album. If not, it probably won’t change your mind. The tones Noktvrn plays with are atmospheric/post-black metal through and through, but there’s a total commitment to the album as a piece of art that elevates it into the pantheon of greats alongside Sunbather (Deafhaven) and Try Not To Destroy Everything You Love (An AUtumn For Crippled Children). Doesn’t hurt that the album art fits alongside those two exemplars. But onto the music. When was the last time you heard black metal that wasn’t cheesy in the slightest? Much less black metal with neoclassical ideas? “Monument” kicks the album into gear by blending neoclassical writing and dynamics into an otherwise standard blackgaze wall of sound, and the results could not be better.
Most of the album stays fairly close to this blueprint, evoking a heavier version of early LANTLOS, but then “Immortal” comes out of nowhere to turn everything upside down. And…wow. The track starts off in left field, with a slow bass line leading into hauntingly beautiful clean vocals just dripping with tension. Over the next seven minutes, the band mixes in foreboding John Carpenter-esque synths, explosions into a harsh wall of sound, then bringing it back to that minimalistic starting place. It’s an absolute delight of a track, and one of the best released in any genre this year. The fact it sits right in the middle of the seven album tracks makes it even better in context. I’d recommend listening to the whole album to get the full impact, but if you like any of the aforementioned genres or groups, at minimum check out “Immortal”.
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