Throughout the ages, many are the writers of these ancient halls who have remarked upon metalcore bands whose promotional materials lurk deep within that bogs of our storage facility masquerading as something else altogether. Many are those who have excitedly snatched up and absconded with a rare unsupervised melodeath promo only to realize, to their endless despair, that the joke is on them. As a relative newcomer, I knew to beware of this phenomenon, but I didn’t count on the surprising number of ambient bands whose promotional teams might seek to do the same thing with black metal. You’d think I’d have learned by now – Vesperith’s self-titled debut marks the fourth time I’ve sat down to sample a not-black metal “black metal” album.” Sucker!
Ambient Black Metal
Alcest – Spiritual Instinct Review
“Throughout their career as Alcest and helped by gradual fluctuations in style, French multi-instrumentalist Neige and drummer Winterhalter have been cultivating a deep sense of beauty and unfiltered sentiment. An exploration of sonic poetry in the vein of The Lake Poets, unmistakably filled with a romantic ache, a longing, and an expression of beauty and infatuation with the world so deep it hurts. Looking back at their previous work, Spiritual Instinct appears as one of the purest manifestations of this search.” Let the spirit guide.
RÛR – RÛR Review
“Oh, departures. Not traditionally a wildly anticipated experience, and yet to know someone is to invariably set the stage for a future farewell; all roads end in goodbye, whether spoken aloud, though silently alone, or else whispered in the dark before an audience of no one. Some goodbyes sing of poignant possibility, others give voice to the shape of grief to come. But the declaration of egress I now deliver unto you, my children, sounds… waaay more fuckin’ bleak than I had intended to, yo, good Jørn. In a nutshell, what I mean is that RÛR’s self-titled triumph is the last black metal review I intend to write for a while and it’s as befitting the occasion as they come.” Goodbye to necromance.
Schammasch – Triangle [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]
“Based on vocalist and guitarist Chris S.R.’s amalgamation of a number of religions and philosophies, Triangle is a sprawling, grandiose effort that bridges progressive black metal, progressive rock, post-rock, and ambient music, while hinting towards a deeply personal struggle.” A triple album again? Why do we do this to AMG?
Urfaust – Empty Space Meditation Review
“‘…the universe is a flaw in the purity of non-being.’ It’s this thought by French poet and philosopher Paul Valéry that sprung into my mind while listening and re-listening to the latest record by Dutch ambient black metal duo Urfaust. Their style was always born out of a sense of desolation and isolation, a tribute to emptiness, owing equally to dark ambient and metal.” Of being and ambience.
Chasma – Omega Theorian Review
“Portland, Oregon seems the home of the wistful, the home of somber, shifting post-metal with a blackened bejeweled heart. Not too long ago we heard from Agalloch (with a sobering attempt at creating infinity in The Serpent & The Sphere) and now hot on the heels of 2013’s Codex Constellatia, Chasma return with their third full-length release. I’m a slacker and while I can remember seeing the blood red adorned Codex Constellatia hit the promo bin, it’s release date came and went and got lost in the metal mire. Omega Theorian was a little more persistent in succeeding where the earlier release didn’t.” Whenever someone mentions Agalloch in a review intro, I feel the need to read on.