Reviews: SAT088
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Abysmal Growls Of Despair are a 1 man band that has been featured before in this zine and plays a very atmospheric form of funeral doom metal with elements of drone and this recording and this is a review of his 2014 album "Dark Days".
A very dark and atmospheric synth sound starts off the album which also brings in elements of ambient and after a couple of minutes a more heavy funeral doom metal sound is mixed in with the more atmospheric side of the recording along with some deep guttural death metal growls and most of the tracks are very long and epic in length.
At times spoken word parts can be heard in certain sections of the recording and also they give the music more of a ritualistic feeling and some of the alter tracks also bring in small amounts of clean playing and all of the songs stick to either a slow, heavy dark and atmospheric sound and on the bonus tracks the bass guitars start adding in more of a very powerful sounding presence while on a later song a small amount of violins are added onto the recording.
On this album Abysmal Growls Of Despair go for more of a straight forward and atmospheric approach to funeral doom metal than what was presented on later recordings, the production sounds for dark and heavy while the lyrics cover despair themes.
In my opinion this is another great sounding recording from Abysmal Growls Of Despair and if you are a fan of funeral doom, you should enjoy this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Darkest Thought" "Solitude" and "Lost Dreams". 8 out of 10.
Abysmal Growls Of Despair is a funeral doom, one man project from France. The sole member behind the moniker is Hangsvart and the latest release is Dark Days, released with Satanath Records, Silent Time Noise and More Hate Prod.
I don’t know if the project’s acronym is deliberately designed to spell “A-GOD” as some sort of symbolism or an inside joke or not, but either way Dark Days is not joking and it’s not funny at all. It deals with desperation, hopelessness and misery through fine musicianship and it is much skillfully produced, comprised of funeral dirges, grieving doom-death metal, even imposing spoken word parts that give the overall experience an almost ceremonial feel.
The nightmarish atmosphere of Dark Days is well established under the atmospheric synths, the neo-classical and ambient parts, the heavily distorted and painfully slow guitar riffs, the mournful growls and its proportions in length, as most of the tracks are really lengthy, up to more than 14 minutes long.
For what it’s worth, Dark Days whetted my appetite for some well crafted funeral doom and got me eager to check out AGOD’s other releases, with much enticing titles like Lovecraftian Drone, Nothing More Humane, etc.
Новый альбом таинственной французской funeral doom metal группы Abysmal Growls Of Despair! Проект, ведомый единственным участником и исполнителем Hangsvart'ом, является воплощением человеческого безумия, порождением отчаяния и грусти, это мир, населенный представителями произведений Лавкрафта и насыщенный магическими словами Беккета! Музыка проекта, звучащая из колонок, представляет собой настоящий похоронный doom metal, местами превращающийся в drone/ ambient. Все 68 минут, пока звучат композиции, слушателя пронизывает атмосфера ужаса и приближения чего-то страшного. Темная сила, которая исходит от этих грубых и как бы небрежно записанных гитарных партий, от монотонного низкочастотного гудения и вибраций клавишных, переходящих вдруг в настоящую neo-classical музыку, в сумме все это сплошной звуковой ландшафт мрака, мистики и полной безысходности! CD издание дополнено 3 специальными бонус трэками!
The new album by the mysterious French funeral doom metal project Abysmal Growls Of Despair! The one-man project of Hangsvart is the embodiment of human insanity, the child of grief and despair, the world haunted by Lovecraft’s creatures and full of Beckett’s magic words! The music of the project is a pure funeral doom metal turning into drone/ambient from time to time. During the 68 minutes of album length the listener will be wrapped up in the atmosphere of horror and impending evil. The dark power emanating from these raw and kind of neglectfully recorded guitar lines, from monotonous low-frequency buzzing and vibrations of keyboards suddenly turning into a pure neo-classical music create a solid soundscape of darkness, mysticism and the deepest despair! CD-version comes with 3 special bonus-tracks!
Грубые должны пройти через огонь, пусть утончённые будут испытаны на интеллект, а возвышенные избранные - в высочайшем.
Алистир Краули. Книга Закона.
Это французский проект одного человека под никнэймом Hangsvart. Он с ноль 13-го года увлекается тяжелым непереносимым стилем музыкального изложения - Funeral Doom Metal, причем его наиболее атмосферной гранью. Музыкой, которая так востребована в фильмах ужасов, музыкой настроения, глубокого, колышущегося, монструозного и особенно инфранизкого удаления в бездну.
Надо заметить, что означает плюс после указания More Hate Productions. Дело в том, что этот диск Abysmal Growls of Despair выпущен, я так понимаю, в кооперации с Satanath Records и Silent Time Noise. Так — по разным сетям продаж, будет легче распространять диск. Который заинтересует профильных людей - это точно.
Hangsvart применяет на этом диске ультранизкий вокал — то ли рык, то ли стенание, от которого мурашки стаями бегут по коже. Он настолько сдвинут в звуковом диапазоне к левой границе графика, что кажется - это не вокал, а местами небольшое землетрясение. Что впрочем, целиком зависит от вашего воспроизводящего аппарата. Ну и кстати, пока не забыл, естественно, рекомендуется реал-диск, которые и вырулит вам весь магнетический эффект этого произведения Abysmal Growls of Despair.
А об эффекте сказать стоит отдельно. Hangsvart создает с первого взгляда непритязательные и простые картинки серого леса на плато посреди гор. Однако, сразу замечаем, что связь внутри компо намеренно напряженная и монолитная. Мастерство художника Abysmal Growls of Despair создает мрачный и гнетущий фон, на котором размещены соляки отчаяния и подземный кавернозный вокал. Кстати, где-то рядом прорываются вопли замурованных людей, может быть пропавшие альпинисты, но не исключено, что это человеческая закуска на вечер, утащенная с дальних деревень кровожадными троллями.
И только крики стихают, как гитара рисует почти пасторальные пейзажи, освещенные светом заходящего солнца... Но такая идиллия продолжается недолго. Скоро, а можно сказать и моментально, горизонт затягивается гитарным риффом, всепобеждающим и всецело черным, а из туч гремит гром, это, оказывается, вокал Hangsvart.
Он же - великолепный фантазер-музыкант, создающий парадоксальные полотна горного мира, что собственно неудивительно стало для меня, когда я поизучал карту местности вокруг Тулузы, города в котором проживает музыкант Abysmal Growls of Despair - почти в 60 километрах от него начинаются предгорья Пиреней. Прямо удивительно, что это так четко читается по музыкальной рекогносцировке.
Так что, дорогой слушатель, приготовься к тому, что почти 50 минут автор будет то заволакивать амбразуру сизым плотным туманом атмосфернейших клавишных пассажей, словно бы тающих среди пологих холмов, горок и гор, то затягивать промозглым дождем - ливнем не утихающего гитарного созвучия, что в горах страшнее паровоза. А то и пробрасывать фаната фюнеральноого звука в ущелье. Однако профильные люди ценят соответствующую влажность воздуха и воспринимут такие вещи «на ура». 50 минут - это немало, но здесь еще три бонус трака, общим таймингом около 20 минут. На диске это - под завязочку.
Я также, пока еще в состоянии, должен предупредить, что Hangsvart выступил с новацией в данной стилистике. Как это ему удалось? Очень непросто — почти каждый раз стену пробивает именно его вокал, а остальное — сыпящиеся струйки песка, дымка далекого костра и закатный проблеск клавишей на лесистых вершинах — это все послезвучание, как боль после удара молотком по пальцу.
Отличный французский подарок для фэнов стайла России. А среди атмосферного фюнерала — заметное явление.
Abysmal Growls Of Despair are a French outfit by a guy called Hangsvart, who formed this project in 2013. Hangsvart is a rather active musician / composer, for Abysmal Growls Of Despair have recorded several pieces in mean time, despite the young age of existence. But who am I to criticise this… I will not!
Actually, this album was originally released on July 11th 2014 by the project itself, being done the digital way, and now mighty, mighty, mighty Satanath Records bring it out on CD too (once again in co-operation with some other labels). That’s great, because I wasn’t aware of the digitally released edition of this fabulous epos.
Dark Days consists of eight compositions that last in between four and fifteen minutes, with a total running time of almost seventy minutes. And what this project brings is an extremely darkened, minimalistic and primal form of droning Funeral Doom. The album opens with the track Darkest Thought, which starts with a cold, minimal synth scape, before turning into an utterly freezing, ominous and asphyxiating piece of monumentally overwhelming Dark Doom, based on droning rhythms, razor-edgy guitar riffs, abyssal-deep grunts and eerie keyboard lines. And damn, immediately Stijn ‘S’ van Cauter comes to mind, the Belgian guy behind projects such as Until Death Overtakes Me or Beyond Black Void, amongst others. And believe me (or do not, but I do not care), this approach continues throughout the whole of the album. Okay, Abysmal Growls Of Despair aren’t just another project within this specific vein (actually, they are, but not the copy-cat alike trend), but one cannot ignore the comparable approach. Even the tranquil intermezzos, the abyssal growls (of despair) and ambient synth lines are very much in the vein of Stijn van Cauter’s main projects.
In general, I guess there is some more variation in comparison to earlier releases, or to higher mentioned comparable acts by Mr. S. Pieces like Tormented Mind go further, much further, which isn’t but an honourable surplus! And at the same time, both ‘integrity’ and ‘introspection’ are not just hollow definitions, but both of them deeply penetrate the core of this project’s essence. I have always been a ‘fan’ of the guy I just mentioned above, being Mr. van Cauter, and there is no reason to dislike this material whatsoever. I adore Kinstrife & Blood, even though they are not the ‘true’ Summoning; I truly like Funereal Moon, despite my unlimited passion for Abruptum; etc… So, why wouldn’t I pay appreciation to this French act?
The twenty minutes of bonus stuff too are within the very same atmosphere, and therefor highly addictive / attractive to fans of this specific trend. Abysmal Growls Of Despair dwell in a dimension that isn’t meant for the ‘average’ listener (or musician), but within their specific league, thy are winners! Consider it as a ‘me like’…
Our guest of honour on the review platform today is Abysmal Growls of Despair (AGOD) - a solo-driven French Funeral Doom Metal outfit that is commandeered by an individual named Hangsvart. Considering that the band is still relatively in its early years of operation (formed in 2013), they have nevertheless managed to put out a fairly impressive number of releases. 'Dark Days' marks the band’s second full-length release and after having spent the last couple of weeks qualitatively with this album, I enthusiastically look forward to checking out the remaining spread of their doom-laden offerings. I found the breadth of their work in 'Dark Days' to be quite intriguing. In as such, I ascertained AGOD to be above and away from the swamp of mediocrity and stylistic conformity evident amongst its peers - especially pertinent with the apparent explosion of ‘bedroom bands’ that have over-saturated the doom marketplace in recent years. Music aside, a quick visit to the band’s Bandcamp page will also reveal the equal measure of value they place on their visual artwork and imagery, the combination of which insinuates a band that has devoted considerable energy and thought into developing a thematic consistency across its expansive discography.
This may be bad practice, but I do observe myself harbouring pre-conceived assumptions of what to expect with a new album - particularly when it comes to Funeral Doom; and as such, this expectation generally consists of being on the receiving end of an onslaught of crushing riffage at sluggish-ridden tempos that brings one right down to a point of absolute despair and hopelessness. Indeed, AGOD certainly delivers in this regard - however, interestingly, this does not seem to be their primary prerogative. Although the album honours the constituents of the ‘dark’ (i.e anguish, burden, loneliness etc.), it simultaneously offers a ‘ray of light’ in the form of of hope, harmony and connection. This apparent nature of dualism pervades the full breadth of 'Dark Days' and carves out an interesting trail for the willing listener to embark upon.
Admittedly, my preliminary response to the album was a divided one. The album kicks off on a strong note with ‘Darkest Thought’, a track that serves as a good representation of what is to come. It then slips into ‘Tormented Mind’ which, unlike the opening track, I found to be a little positively-ethereal for my personal taste. However, it is upon descending into the third track, ‘Vision’, that all conscious judgement and mental self-talk was completely washed away and true musical communion took place. Possibly my favourite track on the album, ‘Vision’ brilliantly combines heavy-droning guitars and intelligent leadwork. This proved to be an all-consuming experience, the effect of which I found very inspirational considering the rather minimalistic nature of the instrumentation and structure employed. The remaining tracks on the album follow a generally similar narrative, one that patiently pulls the listener into AGOD’s inner haven of comfortable darkness and solitude.
The band also generously offers a couple of bonus tracks on the album, and it is especially noteworthy to mention that the bonus tracks consist of a much heavier nature in contrast to the more melodic makeup of the main tracklist. I would recommend ‘Shape of Depth’, a heavy, brooding drone-like piece backed up by sparse yet effectively-intense drumming.
Hangsvart displays a high level of musicianship and intelligence with his formidable yet humble display of control over his instruments, from the guitarwork and rhythmic elements to keyboards/synth layering. Of particular mention would be the instrumental arrangement on the album, particularly with key reference to the drums. As opposed to the conventional practice of employing standard drum pattern signatures (generally comprised of hi-hats, kick and snare at 4/4 time or equivalent), the band instead employs a more tribal approach to its drums with particular emphasis placed on tom-laden sequences. In combination with the droning guitars, keyboard sequences and ethereal atmospheres, the tribal rhythms bring about a very different interpretation of the music. As such, it induces a much higher level of intensity and feelings of suspension rather than the comfort of trailing a pre-defined, predictable drum sequence. These little nuances ultimately contribute to a very effective structural harmony amongst the different instrumental elements, whilst at times, creating an almost nerve-wrecking atmosphere.
The raw production qualities do well in complementing the band’s sound, however there is certainly room for improvement in this area. The combination of relatively ‘thin’ guitars, submerged drums and obtrusively-awkward entrances of harsh vocals do make things feel a little disconnected at certain points.
'Dark Days' turned out to be a thoroughly engaging listening experience for me, one that was filled with equal proportions of beauty and brutality. If I was to sum up the album in a single sentence, it would be this: 'Dark Days' serves to be a sonically delectable canvas that encourages the willing doom-voyager to explore the forest of his or her own mind. Do jump onto their Bandcamp page, support their work, and drop the band a kind word or two of appreciation.
Nachdem Abysmal Growls Of Despair diese Scheibe in 2014 selbst herausbrachten, unterschrieben sie noch im selben Jahr bei Satanath Records, die "Dark Days" noch einmal veröffentlichten. Es handelt sich dabei um das zweite Album der Band, dem noch weitere drei folgten. Eine ganz schöne Masse Musik in der kurzen Zeit, zumal diese Scheibe hier schon eine stattliche Running Time aufweist. Ganze drei Bonustracks hat man beigefügt, nämlich die bislang unveröffentlichten "Shape Of Depth", "Thoughts Of Flesh" und "Lost Dreams". Der Name der Band ist Programm, denn fett tiefe Growls, die weit im Vordergrund stehen und dort alles für sich vereinnahmen, machen die Vocals aus. Sofern sie grad vorkommen, denn im Vordergrund steht die Musik. Die ist von verschieden grolliger Tiefe und Melancholie geprägt, wird aber durch viele noch entspannterer Phasen, auch mit Synthies und Piano, niemals zu abgründig. Wenn die Klangfelder sich ambientmäßig strecken, kann der Hörer schon mal die Aufmerksamkeit verlieren. Hangsvart nennt sich der fleißige Herrscher der Reusen, der bei Abysmal Growls Of Despair alleinig für alle Instrumente und Vocals zuständig ist. Die CD kommt neben den genannten Bonustracks mit kleinem Faltblatt im Crystal Jewelcase.
http://www.crossfire-metal.de/11207-0-ABYSMAL-GROWLS-OF-DESPAIR-DARK-DAYS.html
This could actually be the shortest review ever. I could just write: 'you get exactly what you expect when you read the name of the band'. This is a funeral doom album, filled with all the ingredients the name predicts. If you're a fan of bands like Funeral, Evoken or Until Death Overtakes Me, you will surely dig this French one-man project as much as I do.
The album opens with the massive track 'Darkest Thought', loaded with keyboards, crushing distortion, drums and growls. Here and there sole band member Hangsvart takes on a clean, narrative approach, adding a bit of variation to the whole. Yet, for the main part, we're dragging ourselves through a cesspool of dejection, malaise and hopelessness. And that never stops.
Or what do expect with song titles like 'Solitude', 'Hopeless', 'Tormented Mind' or 'Lost Dreams'? This is not happy music but it is magnificent. Hangsvart seems like a decent musician with a firm focus on a dark, eerie atmosphere, which is all that funeral doomers need. So my advice: don't hesitate, buy it. It's a perfect addition to any of those cd-shelves loaded with burden and grief.
http://www.merchantsofair.com/reviews/abysmal-growls-of-despair-dark-days
WOW!
One of the most impressive albums in my life; near by Venoms Black Metal, Type O Negatives Slow, deep and hardand Bathorys The return. Dark Days is a journey into the depths of a soul and fa beyond.
The titke should not be named Dark Days; but Darkest Days.
At first the darkest thought: its to me like a walk in twilight through the city without name by Lovecraft. The noise; knowing about the horror coming in the very next future. a universe of endless melancholy and depression.
Tormented mind: At the beginning there were silence. in the background a little noise, just elated. Like waves of a quietly sea. But we know, behind the silence and the beauty there is the ABYSS of sorrow.
The voice of this abyss is speaking to us. and behind the silence is growling the darkness.
Vision: a bath in the abyss of the soul. an ocean of dark, muddy, depressive, melancholic and sadly thoughts. standing on the shore and dive into this eternal sea.
Solitude: To me like Symphony with the bang by Bach. WOW
Hopeless: a bear, hungry; very hungry. Ursus horribilis.
I am glad to own this.
https://www.discogs.com/Abysmal-Growls-Of-Despair-Dark-Days/release/6346141