This is the second album from Norwegian doomy atmospheric post metal / sludge band Dwaal. Known for their live performances, this album came out following Covid disruption, problems at the recording facilities, and various personal issues. But it’s out now, complete with their acclaimed “dense wall of sound”.
It’s dark out there. The bass and drum make holes in the floor, as if a pneumatic drill is making a hole in the road. The surrounding atmosphere is spooky and at times misty. The vocals are harsh and abrasive. “All Masters, All Servants” is clinical. At the end it drifts through mist hauntingly. Fuzzy sound introduces the weighty “Pseudanthium Aionios”. On it marches in doom-like fashion, treading heavily and slowly over us. The steady pattern of the drum and the distant guitar are reminiscent of Cult of Luna as the song passes through a steady state and builds up momentum and a lofty aura. The original march returns in the vein of Dark Fortress, or closer to home, those erstwhile purveyors of so-called claustrophobic metal Malsain. Patiently the keyboard trots out a tune like a ticking clock. It is sinister, and precedes slow and sludgy progression. The winds blow as there is a post-metal ring. The drum beats steadily. The bass runs through it. Progress is slow but fearsome.
“Leichenhalle” sends shivers through the spine as it transforms from the creeping, crawling metal to heavy and imperious black metal sludge infused with fuzzy edges. “Repentance of a Bastard” starts funereally. This 11-minute doom-laden track which has been released as a single fits the advertised billing of being suffocating and hypnotising. Danger is in the air. Compromise is out of the question. This is harsh aggression. Life is being dragged out of us. Dwaal make everything around them seem barren. Single notes sound like a striking clock. This is the prelude to a minimalistically dark and haunting passage. In post-metal style, an expansive wall of noise is created, and we find ourselves in a darkly majestic world. Out of this harsh soundscape comes magnificence. The end suggests we are entering a cavernous void. Dwaal do not stand still. Imposing doom dominates the opening of “You Will Never Be Enough”. The title is hissed through the sound of wind. The leaden instrumentals are just part of this as we move from the fury to another spooky passage of instrumental reflection. A melancholic air prevails but the music is strong and imposing. Hypnotically pounding progress is made. A massive sound builds up like developing black clouds. The growling vocalist preaches messages. An array of sounds suggesting destruction and disorder cut in and leave us in the middle of it, as this forcefully persuasive album ends.
The solid sound and the evolving sinister atmospheres make this work so impressive. “Never Enough” is a powerful album and one for those who appreciate truly atmospheric and creepy black metal of the heaviest kind.
(9/10 Andrew Doherty)
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