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ESOTERIC
The Maniacal Vale
(Season of Mist)
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Whichever
way I approach this review it is going to be incomplete.
It is going to be incomplete because this UK band is not
one to make things small. Matter of fact, they like the
length of their music to be like the sound of their
guitars; long, hard and big. Very fucking big. As such,
their newest slab of ultra doom is being released in two
discs adding up to about ninety minutes of music, but
the promos being distributed to the press only contain
the first disc. So I am basing this review on four songs
that amount to over forty minutes of dense experimental
doom. That should say enough about this type of release;
Yes, it is massive. And it is slow, and it is rather
simple and agonizing.
Was it not
for the work of Olivier Goyet, the keyboardist in charge of
adding the experimental quotient, Esoteric would have a harder
time rising amongst other funeral doomsters. The songs in this
album move at such a lethargic pace that The Maniacal Vale
will be a challenge for those not already trained on the
characteristics of the genre. Much of the material is based
around the guitar work of Gordon Bicknell and Greg Chandler, who
not only lay down some dense unsettling riffs but also add a
touch of psychedelia, the likes of which are placed in subtle
volume around the fourth minute of “Beneath This Face”. This
playing is bound to be overlooked because that ‘unheavy’
guitar is placed low in the mix. The end result adds to the
mystery and will provoke people to question, ‘did I just hear
that?’ In this song in particular, Goyet gently touches
his keys like its Sunday mass. Eerie indeed.
Chandler is
also in charge of the vocals. His deep powerful growl dominates
this recording, casting an ominous shadow that’s more one
dimensional than those heavy doom guitars. Again, Esoteric is a
giant band, but beyond their undeniable power, their advantage
resides in the nuances of their music. I am just still kinda
pissed I am missing the second record.
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