Tigguo Cobauc – A Fountain Of Anguish Is Gone
Tigguo Cobauc – A Fountain Of Anguish Is Gone
Trepanation Recordings
26/04/24
Running Time: 39:47
Review by Oli Gonzalez
9/10
Tigguo Cobauc. Blackened Sludge Metal from Nottingham, England. The name derived from the Old Brittonic name for the city, roughly translating as ‘city of caves’. Though this isn’t a history lesson, this is about looking forward to the future and to the upcoming release “A Fountain Of Anguish Is Gone”. With a style that promises to blend ‘Black Metal atmospheres, the sheer heaviness of Doom & the raw power of Punk’, my curiosity is certainly peaked, and I can’t wait to dive in.
Well, they weren’t lying about the atmosphere and sheer heaviness of Doom! I turn the volume up sharply and my head involuntarily starts shaking back and forth! This is uncompromisingly heavy and pulls no punches. No riff raff or fluffy bits. They seemingly know how to blend the slower, more deliberately crushing aspects of Doom with the sheer unrelenting intensity of Black Metal. I love those tempo shifts. Let’s give a shout out to the bands keys player too, who provides melodic respite in sections, and an overall extra dimension to Tigguo Cobauc’s sound throughout the record. Vocally, Reno is consistently heavy and fierce, yet still retaining clarity in his voice, even adding some cleaner vocals on occasion.
The pacing of the album is fantastic too! There’s only so much of a pounding your senses can take, and at tactical points in the album, you get some more ambient and calmer passages, allowing your ears to rest providing space for tension and anticipation to build. ‘Eternal Quietus’ is by far the best example of this for me.
I haven’t really spoken about individual songs as, to be truthful, no song truly stands out to me. This isn’t a criticism; quite the contrary. Some albums are meant to be enjoyed and appreciated in their entirety. One could say this is an art form that’s sadly being lost, which is why “A Fountain Of Anguish Is Gone” is refreshing and provides a listening experience designed to be consumed in one sitting. Trust me, if you love Blackened Sludge and Doom, there’ll be more than one sitting for you listening to this work of art.
With this being said, ‘Inner Disaster’ not only deserves but demands some extra attention! This is Blackened Doom masterpiece right here, comprising ferociously captivating and addictive grooves, grooves that infect and penetrate your subconscious with you, the listener, submitting and headbanging violently being the only realistic outcome. With those haunting and austere plain chanted vocals lurking in the background, this only adds to that intimidating atmosphere.
The band makes references to an old school sound in the style of Venom and Bathory. If recent history for me is anything to go by, this normally results in alarm bells ringing. However, I’m relieved that Tigguo Cobauc have managed to pay homage to said bands and stay true to their artistic desires, but doing so with modern production that really does themselves justice! Really, the production is impressive, hitting the sweet spot of providing sharpness and clarity whilst retaining a subtle touch of grit and rawness that the genre demands and avoiding being overly polished.
What treasures lie in the great caves of the United Kingdom? Gold? Silver? Ancient relics which hold secrets about the mysteries of mankind and civilisation as we know it? Or maybe, some treasures like Tigguo Cobauc can’t be found in caves. Instead, you’ll have the chance to unearth this treasure for yourself on April 26th via Spotify, Youtube, or via physical media. Whichever way you prefer to consume your music, make sure you give “A Fountain Of Anguish Is Gone” a listen on this date. You won’t be disappointed.
TRACKLISTING:
01. Craving For Slay
02. The Darkest Emperor
03. Eternal Quietus
04. Inner Disaster
05. Volte-Face
06. Engaged Putridity
07. Deliverance
LINE-UP:
Reno Ramos – Bass, Vocals
Luca Martello – Guitar
Wayne Turton – Keyboards
Lloyd David – Drums
LINKS:
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