AUN - Black Pyramid

Cyclic Law, 2010

AUN is the experimental drone/ambient project of one Montreal-based Martin Dumais. The project has covered a lot of territory in the associated genres since its initiation in 2007, eventually catching the notice of big-deal labels like Montreal experimental/noise mainstay Alien8 and American mega-label Important. Here Dumais deletes the ambling doom-aping drums which marred the previous Important release VII, and augments his familiar guitar drones (inspired by all the right sources) with a gloriously resonant, dynamic, and downright numinous synthetic drone that feels just in place, but also a wonderful advancement, for the traditional dark ambient label Cyclic Law. Through a black sky laden with emerald stars stream echoing acoustic sigils of electronic crackle and full-range dissonance; melodic form at its center but the tendrils of vast abstraction reverberating out beyond into the stereo space. The album tracks may strike some as samey, but after my initial qualms I realized this was just a byproduct of its succinct focus; AUN has proven to lose the listener by moving too far sideways in previous recordings. A gloriously transcendent album of astral drone.

DOWNLOAD

Tukaaria/ Odz Manouk - Split CS

Rhinocervs, 2011

Powerful split of black native war metal between two Crepúsculo Negro-associated acts, out in totally kvlt underground limited quantities on Yagian's (Odz Manouk, var. Untitled) 100% solid Rhinocervs sister label. Material on both sides exceeds the quality of other releases under these names, with the Tukaaria (Yacqui/Yoeme language "the night") side's production improved well above that seen on Raw To The Rapine, with the usual orthodox war metal riffs tearing out into new levels of chaos, grounded by a chthonic undercurrent of cavernous atmosphere bringing the honor of the ancient's calling to the ceremony. Odz Manouk's side particularly exceeds the self-titled on Crepúsculo Negro, breaking free of LLN-cloned raw orthodoxy off into higher realms of the black metal hierarchy adding bottom-heavy drum, almost death metal-ish, production to the ancestral frostbitten tape quality. This side, alongside Yagian's work with the diverse slew of Untitled releases on Rhinocervs, are cementing his role as one of contemporary black metal's most creative underground shapers. The best of the whole Black Twilight Cult outside of Arizmenda and Glossolalia's soon to be classic sides.

DOWNLOAD

Himmelfahrtstag

Dolorian - Voidwards

Wounded Love Records, 2006

An oneiric transformation of the familiar tropes of doom metal, from the Finnish Helixes Collective (Halo Manash, Arktau Eos, etc.) associated act. Also not coincidentally harkening from the land that brought some of the most significant reformations of the genre in acts like Thergothon & Skepticism. Ostensibly the first project of the collective, although I.Corax may have a small claim to that. Voidwards sees them in a particularly near approach to the collective's usual improvised ritual ambient work, with particularly Helix-ish song titles (i.e. "In The Locus Of Bone," "Raja Naga - Rising"), mystical lyrical content chanted in the same whisper-croak style seen in Arktau Eos' rare vocal pieces, and a shared amorphous, ululating, nigh-improvised aural haze, albeit amplified by resonant, nay even psychedelic, metallic guitars that remind of the midrange sound of the classic doom-death band dISEMBOWELMENT on entheogens. I have been hunting for some dark metal that matches emotional intensity with creativity of composition, and outside of Corrupted and unearthing the late drone metal group The Angelic Process' Weighing Souls With Sand, this album has hit spot on for me.

DOWNLOAD

Corrupted - Garten Der Unbewusstheit

Nostaliga Darkrain, 2011

Highly recommended end opus of this incarnation of the Japanese "doom" masters. Their playing has never been more epic, more emotive, move evocative. Beyond excellent and probably one of the best albums not only of 2011, but of at least the past 5 years.

DOWNLOAD

Tropic Of Cancer

The Dull Age/ Victims 10" (Downwards, 2009)


Be Brave 10" (Downwards, 2011)


The End Of All Things (Downwards, 2011)


The Sorrow Of Two Blooms 12" (Blackest Ever Black, 2011)


Tropic Of Cancer is the groovy UK duo of Camella Lobo & John Mendez producing some bleak noir wave and minimal post-gaze auras that works in the general framework laid down by recent Suicide-revisers like Dirty Beaches as well as being a stripped down version of re-wave operators like Blank Dogs and Gary War. Tastefully minimal but not devoid of feeling, works because just enough seems to be going on. For slow motion dancing in the black lodge.

DOWNLOAD (Bundle)

P.J. - M.F.C.S.J.

Recontextualized sacred music recorded live in the eponymous church, from sometimes film composer and founder of the increasingly astonishing Subtext label. Minimalist electro-acoustic classical musick that distills the unequivocally holy acoustics of many a Christian church and cathedral, reminds much of Arvo Pärt, but with the subtle electronic edge of Jacaszek or Roly Porter. Ends with a beautifully sombre string flourish.

DOWNLOAD

Allseits - Hel

Cyclic Law, 2009

Underrated guitar-based orchestral dark ambient project from the sometimes extra live ⅓ of Troum. Very much in the vein of the parent band, but as one can infer from the album/track titles this is more a heavy journey to the nethermost regions of Norse mythography, where no transcendence is found, only the furthering low tones of abyss upon abyss. One of the most chthonic pieces of dark drone since Lustmord's Heresy.

DOWNLOAD