Exitium Sui – Endless 9/10
Resurrected from the recesses of inactivity Exitium Sui returns. The creation of Chris Gebauer (Deadspace) captures a different reflection of its creator dripping in wretchedness and hardship. ‘’Endless” is the never-ending cycle of despair where finality offers no release.
Thick, dense, and cloying the atmosphere on ‘’Endless’’ is without respite, it is a marked return to some funeral doom-inspired soundscapes that are rich in their ability to create a feeling of utter helplessness that is unrepentant, tortured and without end. The majesty of “Forlorn” with all its accompanying orchestrations and ethereal piano melody creates a visual landscape of loss and bereavement. It is a haunting and powerful opening statement that bears the physical burden of pain and reciprocates it upon the listener. “Escape” is anything but, a relentless excursion through the grandeur and suffocating riffs of a track that builds to its inexorable conclusion and is wholly satisfying for it. ‘’ Treading on the Bones of Loneliness’’ is harrowing. Doom executed this heavily and with such intent is rewarding with its sheer power and volume. It is dark, lonely, and forbidding, yet also filled with splendour and creativity. ‘’Escape” is almost beautiful with its atmospheric crescendo and keyboards containing the briefest rays of light against the darkness. ‘’Abysmal’’ does not require words, listen, and experience it for the blackened brilliant hatred that it is.
‘’Endless’’ is depressive and its blackened atmosphere makes the emotions within cold and brittle in their fragility. Pain is ever present yet presented in different forms it is all consuming yet not without a sliver of hope . Exitium Sui represents the darkness where few dwell. The nihilism and misery are ever-present, an inevitability that is painful, mournful and revels in its demise and overwhelms the senses. The result is sophisticated yet inescapable. Highly Recommended.
Morne – Engraved With Pain 9/10
Engraved With Pain is the latest statement from Morne. formed in 2005, they are a heavy, atmospheric outfit based in Boston, Massachusetts. Their fifth full-length release Engraved With Pain further delves into the darkness and bleakness that is their music. It is as much doom as it is classic metal, it is as crust as it is melodic, it is atmospheric as it is genuine. It is music without the pretension.
On first listen you are literally consumed with the weight and power of their compositions. Morne are not to be taken lightly, theirs is a world that is unbearably dark and intense, you are a visitor given a glimpse into their underworld and aesthetic. It is deep, rich, and incredibly powerful. Yet it is scarred with experience and inevitability, their work is emphatic and delivered with such gravitas, that it is on repeated listens the subtleties appear. They are rewarding and hidden for the patient and the penitent. For only those invested will pass and enjoy such riches that the excellent recording has hidden within them. The mood is created by the greatest riffs that are left to naturally and repetitively evolve into creations that breathe with their own individual intentions. The larger, more modern influence of post-metal is prevalent throughout, “Memories Like Stone” is the slow burn where the atmosphere hits its peak after a five-minute gradual crescendo, and that solo at the end is as elegant as it is vital. The guitars are a highlight, the ache that permeates “Fire and Dust” elevates it beyond the notions of simple doom into a cathartic release of emotion that is visceral and tangible with its sonic soundscapes.
Engraved With Pain is enriched with such uncompromising honesty, that it feels intimate whilst sacrificing none of the heaviness and power that Morne create so effortlessly. The result is a timeless genre-defying offering that is a masterwork of heaviness and grace.
Litosth – Cesariana 8.5/10
The brazenly original Litosth is the creation of Brazilian multi-instrumentalist Maicon Ristow and bassist Wendel Siota. Founded in 2016, they have been able to combine their experience within the subterranean of Extreme black metal into an original coalescence of ideas and ideology that their new album Cesariana presents.
Extravagant is the only description that fits Litosth’s third offering to the masses. Is it multitextured, yet nimble, compelling in its design and execution. Not a simple listen, but a complex arrangement of ideas that are presented flawlessly that has the project transcending the original tropes of extreme black metal. It is a vision that is dark yet inviting, capturing the very essence of the genre yet also unafraid to blur its edges into new forms. The classical orchestrations are as important as the hellish tremolo riffing that is savage in its attack. At times cosmic this is black metal steeped in grandeur and drama yet delve further into its depths and some traces of doom appear, eighties style metal dynamics and the briefest flourishes of dark pop. ‘’ Time Doesn´t Heal’’,’’ The Clay Messiah’’ and ‘’ The Argonaut’’ are mere examples of artistry designed to surprise and create music for the maximum effect with excellent musicianship and a flair for the dramatic. Some of the symphonic orchestrations are both bold and creative yet never lose that extreme edge.
Deeply rewarding Cesariana is a celebration of artistic freedom and expression. Wild and overbearing Litosth continue to intensely propel the genre forward into new realms that bear the DNA of its past yet are not encumbered by it. It is a glorious cacophony of sound and image-inducing creativity that causes you to get lost within its grasp. A deeply rich and satisfying experience