Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Nachtvorst - "Silence" CD


Forward-thinking post-doom-black metal with swirl and drone...

Nachtvorst are a Rotterdam, Holland-based duo, and their second album, "Silence", shows a remarkable ear for texture and mood, especially for a black doom metal-oriented act. Opening with the epic 11-minute "The Serpent's Tongue", Nachtvorst combine the bewitching ferocity of black metal with classical, drone, post-rock, and electronic textures. "After..." is a lovely piano and string-laden instrumental interlude that shows these guys have skills and interests well beyond the usual, and the album opens up deeper from there.

"Nightwinds" is a moody, atmospheric 9-minute drone/post-metal that strikes hard, while the depressive "Gentle Notice Of A Final Breath" could be a distant cousin of Mono, building to a crushing crescendo before....the track simply cuts off. Not cool. A terrible shame, especially considering this may have been the album's high point. "A Way Of Silence" closes it out with 14 minutes of mid-tempo atmospheres, from speedy thrash to mopey, melodic darkwave. It's a strong track, to be sure, taking us on a journey across a landscape of sorrow and loss. A brilliant ending to a strong, but flawed album.






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