More cheerful music from Poland where this duo have a mission statement to “spread gospels of disappointment, inner struggle and futility.” They have been likened to Kriegsmaschine, Aosoth and Funeral Mist and have recently been playing some shows in support of Hell Militia. This is their third album and that is about all the info we have been provided with here.
‘Myriad Woes’ is a fairly short release spanning just over half an hour in length with five tracks on it. At first it’s a bit tricky getting to grips with things and the music’s so called blackened doom metal orientation due to the sprawling 11-minute instrumental opener ‘Inner Whispers’. These are conveyed by ghostly spoken sound samples over an atmospheric and at first gloomy soundscape. The samples give it an incredibly depressive edge but the music gradually builds from the ground up becoming more rigorous as everything expands. Foot off peddle it all becomes vigorously windswept and the drumming barrage and thick cloying guitar motion charges forth. Plenty of motion and weight here now and what strikes as much musically as post metal as it does black. More conventional songs follow and ‘Spark’ finally introduces the vocals from guitarist, bassist V which are rugged and hoary roars, grizzly providing more disgruntled misery as partner in crime O smacks away at the drum kit behind him. It’s craggy and I note the pair apparently (according to Metal Archives) spent time in Iceland before moving back to Poland again. They certainly retained some of that glacial fury if that is indeed the case and counterpoise the molten rage of their music alongside guitar melody that is sharp and inclined to occasionally settle and shimmer in cold isolation. Glistening away and then surging along in headlong panic seems to be the style on tracks like ‘Efforts To Fail’ and it is furious stuff at full-pelt. The vocals chasing the music like a very hungry polar bear.
An urgent clamour from the guitar sounding fairly reminiscent of Marduk leads into ‘Horns Of Dread.’ This one has a bit more of a bounce and groove to it and is the track that stuck out for me over the five offerings. It also effectively has a dour and brooding mid-section oozing pessimism from every pore. Perhaps alluding to Sisyphus and his eternal conquest final number ‘No More Shall the Boulder Descend’ has another intriguing sound-bite and unleashes more enragement following on from the words “I’ll hang for this.” Whatever the crime was musically the disciplined harshness hones in with feelings of bleakness and futility haranguing until everything dissolves into the final ice-melting shimmering chords and silence is reinstalled.
No denying Above Aura have something here and it is both atmospheric and unhospitable in equal measures. ‘Myriad Woes’ took a fair few listens and although I’m not convinced by the likeness made to other bands it certainly resides on the blackened side of things and is worthy of investigation.
(7/10 Pete Woods)
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