COLISEUM
No Salvation
(Relapse)

TERHEN
Eyes Unfolded
(Firebox)

OXBOW
The Narcotic Story
(Hydra Head)

THESE ARE:
Scare Tactics
(Hold True)

TOMAHAWK
Anonymous
(Ipecac)

CAPITAL
Homefront 

(Revelation)

GET BACK UP
Weathering the Storm

(Organized Crime)

MORE REVIEWS

Nearly flawless record by this virtually unknown Finnish band. Oddly enough, Terhen got their so-called break via a Beijing fashion show. I mean, how the fuck could a black doom band reject such exact proposition? I tell you what is greater; that such opportunity hasn’t deter them from making non-commercial music. And that’s exactly what Eyes Unfolded is; a slow motherfucker with a fascination for the perverse. It is dark, slow, guttural, and is also drenched with gothic qualms and Satanic overtones.  In some levels, Terhen’s music brings to mind the most atmospheric and doom laden tracks of the Tiamat of yore. It doesn’t get clearer than the thirteen minute first track “Influences”; it’s slow and alternates between the gorgeous ambience of Wildhoney and the simplistic one-to-two note extended riffs of Wildhoney. Have I mentioned that Wildhoney is one of my favorite records of all time? Well, it is, and since Eyes Unfolded reminds me of it, it fucking rules.

The rest of Eyes Unfolded follows suit; with one guitarist who’s got the easiest job on the planet, a vocalist who seems to be channeling a burp from the center of the earth and the key to elevating Terhen to such demigod status, Marianne Mieskolainen who is in charge of the synthesizer and the violin. In other words, it is up to her gorgeous hands and blessed brain to elevate the music from mere mortal boring doom metal to egalitarian metal head delight. We are talking grabbing the sound of a band that weighs a ton and make it float, transform it into esoteric, sprinkle a bit of perverse pixie dust and kick ass. And kick ass she does. Eyes Unfolded is great, it’s well-rounded and solid metal. But towards the middle it starts to become a bit stale. The riffs are so simple one can only wonder what else is there. Enter the operatic vocals of Elisa Pellinen, the second female who saves this band from mere mortal boring doom metal to egalitarian metal head delight.

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