Lovingly pinched from Doommantia: I’ve been a fan of Ireland’s Wreck of the Hesperus‘ brand of funeral dirge since I first heard their 2006 opus The Sunken Threshold and while their output since has been a little disappointing, I am glad to say they are back, sicker but more sophisticated and atmospheric than they have ever been before. This album comes in an interesting package; it is presented in A5-cardboard sleeve containing 3 beautiful graphic art cards that represent each track on the album.
The only words I can think of to describe Light Rotting Out is otherworldly and surreal. They still sound like a very pissed-off Thergothon or a doomed-out Burzum or Darkthrone but this album unleashes a complex array of emotions through blackened ambiance and raw, sludgy doom that is thicker than molasses syrup.
What makes Wreck of the Hesperus a unique band in the doom scene it is what they don’t do and don’t play that makes them great. Their silences, pauses, starts and stops really makes this album the engaging, tormented experience that it is. The music keeps you guessing and keeps you on the edge of insanity for all of its 40 minutes.
Starting with ‘Kill Monument’ the band stumbles along like a wounded mammoth, lurching with ominous mutated notes and eerie rhythms. They have an industrial, ambient edge but there is also hints of free-form jazz and even cinematic soundtrack music but mostly this is raw, filthy funeral sludge that is ugly, angry and monotonous but it still keeps my attention despite is repetitive bleakness.
Continue reading: DOOMMANTIA: Wreck of the Hesperus – Light Rotting Out ….
Tags: Album of the day, doom, Doommantia, Light Rotting Out, sludge, Wreck of the Hesperus
This entry was posted on Saturday, July 2nd, 2011 at 1:57 pm and is filed under 2011, Album of the Day, Roadburn Recommended . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
No Responses to “Album of the day: Wreck of the Hesperus – Light Rotting Out”