Angmodnes – Rot Of The Soul
Angmodnes – Rot Of The Soul
Meuse Music Records
Release Date: 23/02/24
Running Time: 55:00
Review by Oli Gonzalez
9.5/10
Confession time. As a guy who loves all things Doom, I’ve been a little disappointed with the genre as of late. Honestly, nothing has really grabbed me in the last few months. Earlier in 2023, Funeral Doom lovers like myself were treated to the new albums from Ahab and Bell Witch respectively. I cannot wait to see them both this calendar year! Aside from that, I’ve been underwhelmed. That all changed when I laid eyes on Angmodnes!
“They were made for me” I squealed in excitement as I was checking out their back catalogue, which made me even more excited about checking out the Dutch trio’s upcoming effort, “Rot Of The Soul”.
I thought to myself ‘Did they record this in a real church?’ given the authentic nature of the church bells chiming and the haunting ethereal chants that open the album and first track ‘Beneath’. They do this in rather ominous fashion as well. Then we quickly get into the meat and potatoes of the album. A skull crushing wall of sound and explosions of doomy goodness that demand to be played on full volume! Just like I did at first (and I am right now as I’m typing these words and listening to this track once again). It’s not long before demonic guttural vocals that are the spawn of Satan carve their way into the mix. This is combined with the spinechilling synths designed to keep you in perpetual unease and anxiety. This is wonderful! Clean ethereal vocals in funeral doom, you say? Ahab and Bell Witch make it work. So do Angmodnes later in this track. This is a phenomenal start and I’m hooked.
The eerie dissonant piano thrusts itself into the mix for the first time on this album during the opening of ‘The Hours’. Another sadistic tool to make you as uncomfortable as possible, this is becoming a masterclass in human psychology now. This is before things revert back to the tried and tested Funeral Doom formula of brutally simplistic riffs played with maximum emotion and venom. The ethereal vocals make a welcome return, somehow sounding even more anguished and tortured this time round! We’re treated to momentary respite at roughly the mid-point of the song. This doesn’t last long though, before our senses are pulverised again by this rotten doom metal attack, an attack that lasts the duration of the song.
More piano intros, this time in ‘Agony Of The Sun’. This is genuinely beautiful, and wouldn’t look out of place in a rom com, a period drama, or even a child’s lullaby. I’m wise to Angmodnes tricks now though. This is a ploy to soften me up, to make me gooey and vulnerable before smashing my senses yet again with the most sadistic doom metal bombardment. It worked. Though nothing could have prepared me for this! Angmodnes somehow manage to increase the intensity and sheer velocity of their sonic attack here, subjecting us to an absolute Blackened Death Metal feast. Blackened Death Metal? Yes! Blast beats, KVLT style screams, tremolo picked riffs. Yep, all this from a Funeral Doom band. This lasts for well over a minute and then I need a further minute to catch my breath once it’s all over! This frenzy makes a return later in the song though. Unwelcome or welcomed, I’m not so sure. Though that delightful atmospheric undertone is so addictive to me – I’d say definitely welcomed! I’m not sure how I’m going to be able to make it to the next song as this is surely going to have to be played on repeat multiple times! Though, this should serve as a warning. Don’t bother trying to box Angmodnes into one genre box; they’ll smash that box up and make you feel like a fool for trying!
Time for ‘Stagnant’ now, and I wonder how they were going to introduce this one. Here, it’s ethereal, delicate, shoe gazey. It’s aesthetic. I can’t truly relax and enjoy it though because of fear of what may come next. However, rather than being the Extreme Metal assault I had been anticipating, this one is different. Drenched in raw human emotion, this one screams of agony and sorrow. I think we’ve all experienced hardships in our lives, when there are sadly no more words of utterances that can come through your lips to describe the pain. All you can do is scream. This song is the living embodiment of that, and to me represents those darker emotions.
The final song, ‘Rot Of The Soul’ is here. It makes me genuinely sad to say that too. This is a rollercoaster ride I don’t want to get off just yet. This is another that will keep you guessing stylistically though. Intertwining and effortlessly switching between aesthetic piano passages and that usual flavour of funeral doom metal savagery, this is a remarkable way to finish the album. And that’s it. It’s all over. I can listen to this again and again though, whereas you’ve got to wait ‘til March 1st (and I feel so smug for saying that).
I’m not sure what else to say except for thank you Angmodnes. Thank you for reigniting a fire in me, renewing my faith, and for making me fall in love with the genre again!
TRACKLISTING:
01. Beneath
02. The Hours
03. Agony Of The Sun
04. Stagnant
05. Rot Of The Soul
LINE-UP:
FS – Vocals
YS – Guitars, bass, vocals
MV – Drums, vocals
LINKS:
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