In the Embrace of Nocturnity

The first thing that will really strike you about this swanky mist-shrouded depressathon is not the ludicrously dour atmospherics, nor the plodding pace, nor the elaborate poetry of the lyrics... it’s the leads. Somehow the guitarist of this little group has managed to hit upon this magical perfectly mournful and piercing tone that evokes times long-forgotten and medieval, when women were pining damsels prone to wandering into enchanted forests to be seduced by leonine wood-spirits and men were content to watch the arboreal ravaging. Or something. Anyway, it sounds really good, this sobbing trebly guitar hooking the listener while the rest of the song bleeds out or plunges on with dead-eyed perseverance, every once in a while tainting itself by dipping into the headspace of mere mortals and engaging in a bit of dirty black metal riffage.

Strange introduction that. Anyway, this is a little record from an Estonian group going by the name of Ecthalion. Which you'd know from reading the last review, which is in my opinion a marvellous bit of literary analysis. I'm not even going to try to read anything into the dense poetry of these lyrics other than to say "Huh, deep man" and have some quiet affection for the way the lyrics of the title-track subtly shift from straight-laced and somewhat spiritless (albeit pretty) standard doomy goth wordsmithying to reveal a hint of humanity and masculine fire towards the end of the track. Go read the other review for introspection and Deep Thoughts. Here, I shall ramble about the music a bit.

Okay, firstly. This thing is a demo. It doesn't sound terrible, and you can hear everybody well enough but it is undeniably a demo. The mix feels somewhat washed out and murky, the aforementioned lead guitars being emphatically the loudest and most penetrating thing here. The bass, drums, and various stringed instruments are audible and do what they're supposed to (bass & drums: plod, stringed instruments: be melancholic and atmospheric). Unfortunately, the vocals of both sexes have a lot of trouble escaping the dulling pit of this low-budget recording and as such the male vocals often register as a mere wintry rasp or baritone hum underneath the instrumental ruckus. The female vocals attempt for the gothic overtones of a My Dying Bride or even a thespian Cradle of Filth, but unfortunately lack the near genius of the former and the upscale production values of the latter and as such come off as off-key, amateurish, and somewhat distracting. Like choir practice. A high school choir. Assembled of three women who've never sung before. I exaggerate I suppose, but suffice to say, they didn't get what they were after in this regard.

Songwriting-wise, the album has three or four major styles. The first is willowy acoustics. They do these rather well actually, with a crafted style reserved for top-tier balladeers such as Opeth. Highly emotive, beautiful at times, seemingly fleeting, hard to grasp, and highly delicate. Yes, the word I'm looking for here is 'ethereal', but I hate to use it because it makes me think of the last doom review I wrote. Ah yes The Ethereal, I've not forgotten about you. The day when we meet on the field of battle is almost nigh, Stjinn von Cauter! *ahem* Ecthalion also likes to lock into your traditional, ponderous modern doom stomp, heavy bass and guitar over a heavy drumbeat spiralling downward. When I say spiralling downward I refer to the way that the song always seems to be winding down, like we're nearing the end of an epic journey of rock and we've almost reached the part where they all jump up in the air at the same time and hit that last power chord so we can applaud. Except that this usually takes place around three minutes and change into an eleven minute song. The band also has a black metal element, rarely really jacking up the intensity to Marduk levels, but really cranking up the tremolo-picked riffage at times and even developing a tasty crunch during certain portions of winter-bound epic "Frost Glitters Beneath Its Surface" and the brisk-business nearly-not-slow "Laurelin".

Songwriting-wise, the key influences here have got to be Opeth and the gothic/doom scene of the early 90's. Structurally, it resembles a less aggressive but more direct Opeth... same shifts between long folk and metal passages, but with less of the sick hooky groove Opeth can bring to the table. It’s obvious that they have been influenced by the band, but don't share Akerfeldt's admiration for the likes of Morbid Angel. In fact, in spite of the snarling nastiness and nihilistic death-obsessed lyrics the band conforms to neither the crushing heaviness of a Celestial Season nor the riffless-wonders stillborn from any number of 'faggoth' bands. From looking at the tracklist, you'll notice that the record is pretty much divided between tracks hovering around five minutes and tracks looming beyond ten. This is all well and good, but aside from "Laurelin" most of the short tracks, if put together with other short tracks would result in something virtually identical to the ten-minute tracks. The best example of this involves the first three tracks. "Nonexistant Souls" is basically a really long acoustic intro which eventually gives up a moody, melodic electric lead and is followed by "In the Embrace of Nocturnity" which is a reasonably straight-forward heavy track. Put these together and you've got something not unlike Opeth's "The Moor". "Frost Glitters Beneath the Surface" starts acoustic and goes to a nasty electric section in the latter half... not unlike Opeth's "The Moor". The only difference between the sum of tracks one and two and track three is the brief (and pretty) piano bridge connecting the parts in the latter song.

So yeah, good demo. Been five years since it came out, so I'm not expecting a follow-up. But hey, its well worth your time to go grab for free from their website. I didn't have much to say about how effective the atmosphere is, how effective it is at creating a mood which is key for artists in this genre. That's because the other review did it well. Even if you don't give a toss about the Goddess of Undeath and other somesuch shit, he nailed the mood directly. This album is great for repose, for sitting back and allowing your darkest emotions bleed out into the music. It isn't going to replace Slave to the Grind or Double Live Gonzo in the old cassette deck in your car... but its not a bad way to fall gently into sleep, nor a bad companion in your more wistful and wakeful moments.

Stand-Outs: "Frost Glitters Beneath Its Surface", "As the World Drowns in Rivers of Tears", "Laurelin"

There is a lot of things which makes this demo unique. One wouldn't expect good quality demo recording from Estonia, an ex-USSR country. But things has obviously changed since that time since the quality of the recording is higher than most US demos. Normally doom band demos are only 3-4 tracks long, but this one has seven tracks and lasts for nearly an hour. There is no reason that this demo shouldn't have been released as an album if Ecthalion hadn't been looking for a label. And last but not least what makes it all so unique is the fact that it is freely available from their website. One could hardly say that it is normal to find music this good freely distributed on the web by the band itself. As a wild guess I would guess that the name Ecthalion comes from either Silmarillion or from the same source as Tolkien got the name. Ecthalion is one of Turgons captains. But as said, it is just a wild guess.

The music isn't harsh as most doom is. Instead acoustic guitars, a piano and a violinlike synth calms down most of the track into what can best be described as a lightfooted depressive waltz. There are harsher moments which is mainly created by the raw male snarling vocals, assisted by som heavier sections on the guitars. The calm sound has little bass in it. The doomy sound of the bass has been largely replaced by the guitars which sway in the thypical distorted fashion of doom. The music has a feeling of autumn over it, like the image of a breeze blowing through the dead leaves of a tree, just before winter sets in. To top it all the piano produces the image of raindrops falling. The music isn't pale, but rather serene and natural. Yet it is filled with the essence of death.

On the demo some songs are connected to eachother while some aren't. Though somehow it all seems to belong together. Some deal with the classic torments which only the loss of a dearly belowed can give. Other some deal with the horrible thoughts that one gets from prolonged traumas and sorrow. Some again deal with the afterlife, or rather the deathlife, the eternal life past death, the undeath. Yet they all have a dark fairytale feeling over them. A dusklike fantasy aura which in the last track unites all of them. Tales of loss, death and nocturnity all come together in a goddess of undeath, who calls her children to worship her. She calls them home, by lust and longing, home into the dead forest. This is no pale and horrible undeath, but a tale of the worship of a goddess who cares for her children. All leaves fall at her wish and so does her obediant worshippers.

Interpretation of the tracks:
-Nonexistant Souls: is a calm track done solely on calmly depressed, acustic guitars and melancolic spoken vocals. There is a calm, almost lingering, depressive aura over the beautifully serene music. It sounds all so down to earth and even though it's really sad, it has that oldfashion cozy feeling over it. The track is about an angel that were not long ago, but has since demised, but has since risen. She is the leader of a population, a cult of those like herself. She makes their graves, and fills it with their bodies. She then takes their souls with her beyond the bleak night. She gathers, harvests them and brings them with her. Together with her they will forever fill the dead void with dispair.

-In The Embrace Of Nocturnity: is the first doom track on the album. The acustic gutars make place for electrical ones with the same sad sound, but with a rougher edge. Drums and bass introduces a certain heavyness to the music, yet it isn't as heavy as the riffs most doom bands play. The floating depression of the music is aided by harsh growled vocals with an epic feeling to it. This time the lyrics does not speak of her, the goddess of the deceased. They speak of lust and yearning from the eyes of those she has hravested and enthralled. Her work with her servants is thoroughly done. Not only do they worship and slave for her, they yearn for a glance of her every second of their lives.

-Frost Glitters Beneath It's Surface: begins calmly with a slow and sad acustic guitar. Once the guitar solo is over the music becomes harsher and deeper with the whole band in action. The song is still calm even though the male vocals snarl in their agressive way. It is the first of the tracks which includes the female vocals, where her down to earth voice keeps the calm storylike feeling of the track. Here the godess walks through her home, her forest, and slowly transforms daylight into night, and summer warmth into winter. She does try to find a way out of the death she brings, but yet she finds there are so many other wonderful things like it is. Looking at the lovely pale moonlight and white soft snow, the night is shurely full of beautiful and wonderful things.

-...As The World Drowns In Rivers Of Tears: begins with a violinlike synth that trips along like falling snow. Then as the music progresses the music darkens and converts into a much more majestic duskness. The music varies smoothly between the dark majestic and the more serene approaches. In all of this the vocals continues unchanged and focusing on making a grimmer edge to the music. The lyrics speak of unspeakable sadness which fills every being that slowly dies. Depression fills their hearts as the lonely voids become greater and greater, and death grows nearer. Love has already phased away. They are all forgotten by the present now and fades into what is the past.

-Laurelin: is heavier and more agressively mournful than the other tracks, but also shorter. The pace of this synthless track goes up to medium in large parts of the track. Effectively the guitars and vocals alone bring the whole track upwards to the sky more than the previous tracks. As the name suggests the track is about a lady called Laurelyn, but not just. It's a tale of death, sorrow and emerald green eyes telling the true meaning of love. Love... is a painful experience. It is a truth about one persons euphoria being their loved ones misery, and in the end also their death. Regrets of ignorance constantly lingers inside the heart of the one left behind. It will and can never fade. Only death can heal those wounds.

-The Hour Of Dusk In The Last Of All Forests: sees yet another acustic guitar solo in the beginning. Then the guitars goes harsher and a piano begins to play a beautiful rainlike melody that eases the pain in the music, and alters it into sadness. Even the vocals has become less harsh and more sad and dispaired. The track is a song about the godless apocalypse where evil comes to crave all life, and leave nothing. None of our mortal beliefs are right as our gods are powerless against the true gods which the gods themselves revere. It is they who hold the truth about the world and who rule over it's passing. The world has been slowly deteriorating. The signs are clear. Time is coming to an end.

-Shrouds: is the final chapter of the tale of the goddess. The music plays in advanced guitar melodies and heavy riffs. Spoken vokals tells the final words to be said by her servants, but the truly final utterings are none but her own. She has now gathered those who live past death, her children, around her. She still sometimes longs for it not to be her destiny to rule the shadowland, and wish she could see light and life again. But destiny has only this place in mind for her. Her own home in the dead forest where time has ended, and her place is as the caring mother and dominating queen, of her beloved people and slaves. She has harvested them and removed their life from their souls. For she herself is none other than the goddess of death and undeath. She is Death.