So not waiting until winter sets in to release this one then? Looking out the window as I set out to review the eighth full length album from these Chicagoan heavyweights it is anything but gorgeous mid-summer weather. Whilst I blame all the dribbling retards flocking like sheep to Glastonbury festival I can smugly sit here in the dry listening to a quality release far better than anything they will be hearing all weekend. I have dipped into Novembers Doom and their back catalogue at various stages of their 12 year career and liked a lot of what I have heard. Recently 2005 album ‘The Pale Haunt Departure’ really got beneath my skin but last album into ‘Night's Requiem Infernal,’ seemed to have a certain spark missing. Well I can assure you that spark is back with this new one and of everything I have heard ‘Aphotic’ is without a doubt the best material I have encountered from the group.
In case you were wondering (as I in my quest for knowledge) just what the album title means it apparently “is the portion of a lake or ocean where there is little or no sunlight.” So it’s the perfect description to go with the music and hopefully those of you who are not marine biologists may have learned something with this review too.
I have to mention the cover and the inside booklet artwork here, it is excellent and goes incredibly well with the musical narrative. I am reminded a fair bit of some sort of Stephen King novella and the great front cover by Tommy Genest and the booklet art by Jason Hicks should really be applauded.
A subtle splash of strings entrances from the start of ‘The Dark Host’ and gives way to the full musical weight as it plummets in. You are instantly drenched in atmosphere and the hefty drum bombast has you banging your head. All that is missing is the hoary vocals from Paul Kuhr which gruffly growl in completing the picture. Melody is incredibly strong and it is not long before you are overtaken and a host to its grasp, willing or not! Clean vocals are also used and are perfectly pitched, adding a beseeching clamour to things. I am at times, as with the acoustic break on this one, reminded of Opeth but that is not a complaint at all as they hit the dark moonlit romance of the number perfectly. Darkness and light are counterpoised, when this rages it does so with anger but there are moments that are quite beautiful too. ‘Harvest Scythe’ as the title suggests is downright vicious and is as good as any melodic death metal song I have ever heard. The angry and clean vocals joust around each other and the harmonies are brilliantly realised and precisely delivered. This is one song I really want to witness live, it completely flattens you on album so must be really powerful on stage. ‘Buried’ has the almighty roar declaring “I will cover you with soil,” sending a shiver down the spine. The lyrics are great, reminding me of a rape / revenge scenario and this is the revenge served without a shred of mercy. A lush guitar solo is the one bit of relief.
I mentioned beauty and it is nearly all saved for the ballad that is ‘What Could Have Been’ a fragile story of lost love vocalised with the gorgeous tones of guest singer Anneke Van Giersbergen. There is nothing else to say here apart from ‘heart melts.’ Back to the aggressive, dark side served in two parts we have ‘Of Age And Origin’ represented by both ‘A Violent Day’ and the lighter ‘Day Of Joy’ Amidst the solid drum rolls and chugging bass grooves we also encounter Dan Swanö adding to the vocal growls and you don’t get a much better seal of approval than that. There is not an ounce of fat needing to be shaved here, every moment and every song counts. ‘Six Sides’ has the clean vocals reminding a little of Aaron Stainthorpe and Kuhr has the necessary passion to carry things off sincerely. The way he flows from clean to gruff is quite remarkable too. Finally we arrive at last song ‘Shadow Play’ and despite the fact the album is 50 minutes long I am still left hungering for more. This last one is a ponderous and sorrowful number where daylight fades and darkness sets in. Just as you think it is going to fizzle out the drums take up a tattoo and the anger broods back in as we race towards a storm laden conclusion, excellent!
If you like music with lots of atmosphere, superior melody, structured song writing and death and atmospheric doom in any context you need ‘Aphotic.’ This is a sure-fire contender for my top album list of the year and really needs to be checked out.
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Pete Woods
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